Hey everyone. I am finally back with an update.
As always. I want to thank all that reviewed, favorited and followed the story since the last update. I really am grateful.
And as usual, if you find the story worthy. Please continue to favorite/follow.
And without further ado please enjoy.
The Sage in the Valley – Chapter Seventy-Three
The group stood in a shocked silence as the serving girl gazed up into the hunched over old woman's glazed eyes.
"Y-you were waiting for me?" Elle pondered in an awed voice while Azula stood beside her with her amber golden eyes still agape in bewilderment.
Only for everyone to stare on in surprise when the old woman abruptly shouted in the gulping girl's face.
"Yes, child I was! What took you so long!" Mava barked in the young girl's face before swatting the yelping teenager over the head.
The group watched their young friend whimper as she nursed thee bump on her head.
As Ty Lee smiled as she noticed how the princess's amber golden eyes lit up violently as soon as her little sister was swatted over the head.
"S-sumimasen! I had a lot of work to do for Azula-sama! Ow!" Elle explained as she backed away from the swinging staff while her princess scowled at the older woman.
"No excuses!" Mava shouted while the others gazed on in amusement at the humorous scene.
"Cease this stupid behavior at once you senile old-" Azula snapped only for her callous eyes to widen murderously when the wooden stick slammed down on her skull.
"I thought I told you get!" Mava shrieked as the three noblewomen smirked at the scene while the princess exhaled fire through her nostrils.
"Now calm down Azula…ahh! What did I do!" Ty Lee cried out after being swatted over the head while Mai stared on with deadpan tawny eyes beside her.
Only for the noblewoman herself to find herself wincing not a moment later as she too rubbed at her head.
"Must be dementia." Jiao stated rudely with a smile while she stood further back at a safe distance as the others gazed on in agreement.
"Are you done old woman?" Azula growled in a cold voice with her ruthless eyes glaring a hole through the hermit's head while her soldier smirked in entertainment.
Just as the mysterious sage turned to gaze deeply back into Elle's innocent amber eyes before she pursed her lips into a frown.
"Me and you have much to discuss." Mava informed in an elusive voice while the others watched in renewed aww.
"W-we do?" Elle questioned in a voice of gentle curiosity while she balanced Naoki on her shoulder just as the sage nodded.
Before turning past the others perplexed faces as she gazed down at Naoki's slumbering face.
"This is…so bizarre." Nako muttered with Saro nodded in wonderment beside her.
"My word. This one has such dark chi." Mava commented in a vague voice with the unnerved members of the group turning to gaze at Naoki's unconscious face.
'Dark chi? How fascinating…' Azula thought with a finger curling up underneath her lip as she regarded Naoki in increasing intrigue.
"Well that sounds promising…" Ty Lee sighed as she gazed at the motionless girl in curiosity.
"Y-yeah well. That doesn't surprise me. She's killed a whole bunch of people." Elle muttered in a reflective voice with the girl passed out against her shoulder.
Mai grimaced as she gazed hard at Naoki's seemingly asleep face with a narrowed tawny eye.
The more she heard about the girl.
The less she liked her leaning on Elle's side.
"And she will kill many, many more." Mava continued with her glazed eyes staring back at the young girl's flinching face.
The princess could only snort as she recalled her handmaid's beyond naïve words from earlier.
Not that she gave a damn.
As long as it happened outside of her domain, she could care less who this girl killed.
"And you…have great power inside of you." Mava remarked in a mysterious voice while the others listened in silence.
"Azula-sama tells me the same thing! I need to figure out how to use it so she can dictate my life's every action!" Elle chirped in a naïve voice with her big sisters staring on humorously beside her while Azula's power hungry lips curved into a pleased smirk.
"Elle…" Ty Lee muttered with a hand over her face while she shook her head fondly.
"Hm. My sentiments exactly." Azula purred with a hand under her chin while she smiled down at her lovely pet in approval.
There was no one more loyal than her pretty handmaid.
That she knew beyond all doubt.
"This one has great purpose in her. Come inside. Let's talk." Mava muttered before she turned away as she hobbled back towards her tree.
The group exchanged a bewildered glance before the princess began to confidently stride forward.
"Did you hear that Azula-sama? I have great purpose in me!" Elle cheered with a thumb pointing at her chest while her mistress snorted over her.
"It is a rare honor to be blessed with serving me so intimately…" Azula trailed off with her arms folded over her armored breasts while she smirked down at her girlfriend's beaming face.
"It is!" Elle exclaimed as she smiled widely as she moved forward with her mistress smirking as she sauntered beside her.
"I suppose we should follow." Zoi stated as she began to walk inside with her companions following after her.
The sage continued to furrow her brows as she gazed up at the tree canopy while they watched her in curiosity.
"There is much death is in the forest today. It's best to get inside. It's not safe out here." Mava mumbled without explanation as she wandered through the door of her tree.
The expedition gazed around them in alarm as they were once more reminded of the strange power that their enemy possessed.
"I still wonder why she hasn't shown herself…" Mai muttered in a thoughtful voice while Zoi took a step inside.
"Most likely because she is after young Elle or…this old woman. Perhaps this…is what she was searching for." Zoi remarked in a thoughtful voice only to enter the tree with her golden eyes gazing around in fascination.
The group entered in unison as they gazed around in amazement to see that a home of some kind was built on the inside of the giant tree!
The princess stared up with a flicker of surprise in her cold eyes as she took in the size of the crone's home.
A tall staircase rose into the air and spiraled high up above them at floor after floor.
And soon enough they followed the old woman into a study of sorts.
They gazed about them in shock to see old maps of both their world and of the stars lining her vast study.
Jiao lingered behind with her blue eyes gazing at the many hanging artifacts just as she reached out to grasp a hold of one.
Only for a strong hand to grasp a hold of her fist while she gazed up into her partner's unusually strict eyes.
"No. Not here." Zoi spoke in a beyond stern voice while the other two noblewomen gazed at the seductress in slight disgust as they passed by them.
"Fine. I'll just take from you instead." Jiao purred in a smug voice as she gazed up into her lover's stony eyes while the taller woman loomed over her.
"Do as you please Jiao. Money is no object to me." Zoi replied with a shrug while she began to walk ahead with her younger lover gazing after her in amusement.
"So many old books!" Nako exclaimed in admiration as she too lingered behind to admire the library.
While Saro stood with her gazing around in similar awe.
And with that the four core members of Team Azula plus their unconscious guest entered the old woman's study.
Just as the sage took a seat on a mat while she pointed at a cot in the corner of the room.
"Put her there." Mava murmured with an old finger pointing at the cot while Elle did as she was instructed.
"Now then…old woman. I demand that you answer all of my questions or I will destroy you." Azula announced in a terribly unsocial voice with her childhood friends nearly falling over in embarrassment beside her.
"A-Azula!" Ty Lee complained with a groan while Azula she watched her spoiled friend glance around the room with cold amber golden eyes.
Before taking a seat in the largest chair as if it was her personal throne.
Mai could only groan as well as she slapped her palm over her forehead.
While Azula smiled in gratification when her pet plopped down at her booted feet the same as she always does.
To which the princess soon found herself lowered a strong hand into Elle's hair while the girl smiled up at her as she petted her soft hair.
"I'm not answering anything you ask me. I am going to ignore you from this moment forward." Mava retorted with sass while the princess glared back at her.
"Do you even know who I am?" Azula questioned in a spoiled voice as she reclined like a queen with her hand in her serving girl's hair.
"A spoiled brat!" Mava insulted with bite in her voice while the two noblewomen chuckled at their scowling friend's expense.
"Foolish hag I am…" Azula trailed off only to glare down at her girlfriend when Elle cut her off.
"My name is Elle Turner! And these are my two beloved big sisters and this is my loyal servant Azula-sama!" Elle announced in a chipper voice with her big sisters listening in humor as they sat down on the floor.
The two noblewomen snickered as they gazed back at the princess's widening amber golden eyes that now burned with the fires of war.
"Hm. Best discipline her then." Mava stated with the two noblewomen chortling as blue fire as spewed forth from the princess's mouth.
"How dare you peasant! I am Princess Azula and this one here is my servant!" Azula declared in a violent voice with her fist clenched before her glaring face.
"Sure, you are. Every young girl these days fancies herself a princess." Mava snorted in an unimpressed voice with the other three girls' now gazing on in hilarity in their seats.
"Are you listening to me old woman? I am actually a genuine princess. I am the heir to the Fire Nation throne!" Azula hissed in a prideful voice with fire burning in her palm while Mai smirked at her from beside her.
"Just ignore her. We keep her around because she does good work. But she has this delusion that she's royalty." Mai informed in a snickering voice with Ty Lee giggling beside her while Azula now looked as if she wanted to kill them.
"You better start behaving right now or we'll have no choice but to punish you servant." Ty Lee giggled with a hand on her womanly hip while Azula's eyes bore through her skull.
"I have never heard of a Princess Azula." Mava muttered with her hands in her lap while the princess's amber golden eyes shimmered in offense.
"Why does that not surprise me. You don't look as if you have left this filthy tree in decades. I am the daughter of Fire Lord Ozai. I am the Crown Princess. Do you understand now peasant?" Azula sneered in a pompous undertone with her friends sighing once more while she allowed her pet to lean into her thigh.
"Fire Lord Ozai? Never heard of him. I know of only Fire Lord Sozin." Mava commented as the four now sat in a deadpan silence.
"You…can't be serious. You think that Sozin is still Fire Lord?" Azula asked in an incredulous voice while she stared at the old woman in disbelief.
"Hm. Is the detestable bastard dead then?" Mava questioned in a snort while the princess's amber golden eyes narrowed over the way that she addressed her ancestor.
"That 'detestable bastard' you speak so eloquently of is my great grandfather." Azula snapped in turn with her friends listening in amusement.
"Oh. My condolences." Mava quipped in a dismissive voice with her old hand reaching for a drink.
"He died over 90 years ago. I find it hard to believe that you are only now just finding out. But in any case…my father now sits the throne. And I soon will too. After my coronation on Sozin's Comet." Azula insisted in a beyond an authoritative voice with her beautiful lips pursing into a proud expression while she leaned back on her throne.
Wherever a princess planted her backside was her throne.
Even if it was but a rotted-out chair in the middle of a forest.
Such was the pleasure of being true royalty.
"Does she ever shut up?" Mava pondered in a scoff with the two noblewomen smiling up at the princess's furious face in entertainment.
"No. Not really!" Ty Lee piped in a cheerful voice while Azula glared down at her.
"Ty Lee. Do you mind?" Azula asked in a cold voice as she folded her legs gracefully while her young girlfriend purred beneath her petting hand.
"I believe you mistake yourself Rude One. The sole reason I even allowed you into my cottage is to speak to the Component." Mava reminded in a calm voice as she sipped her water while Elle smiled brightly once more.
Azula sat back with her arm now resting on the side of the dusty chair as she sighed while scanning her fingernails in an entitled fashion.
"The Component…this one here…she is my personal servant. I am her mistress. And you will most certainly speak to me. Unless…you prefer if I send an armored squadron to convince you otherwise." Azula spoke in a callous voice with her icy eyes gazing back at the old hag's scowling face.
"Azula." Mai snapped with annoyance in her voice as she scowled over the woman's disrespectful behavior.
"You can go ahead and try. Once you leave you will never find my tree again. Not unless I want you here. In any event. Never seeing you again is something for this old woman to look forward to…" Mava replied as she set down her glass while Ty Lee smiled in amusement.
Just as Azula scowled deeply she paused for a moment when her serving girl tugged on her wrist.
"Let me try Azula-sama! I was just joking earlier. I really am Her Highness's loyal servant! I need to find out how to utilize my power so Azula-sama can tell me what to do with it." Elle chirped in a happy voice while her princess's scowl soon gave way to another pleased smile.
Only for her innocent amber eyes to melt like butter when the older woman's hand petted her hair once more.
Oh, how she loved it when her princess charming praised her for good behavior.
Her big sisters sighed just as the captain stepped into the room before taking to leaning against the wall with her usual countenance observing the sage in curiosity.
"You think the purpose of your power is to serve some spoiled princess?" Mava scoffed as she gazed at Elle's brightly nodding face.
"I have no higher purpose than to attend to Azula-sama. I serve her with pride on this day until my last day. Because she is my mistress and my best friend. And it is important for me to be here for her." Elle explained in a sweet voice with Azula patting her head once more as she smiled in her seat.
Ty Lee sighed under her breath once more yet even so she still managed to smile.
Elle's reasoning was sweet…in a twisted way but still sweet.
"Now do you understand old hag. The Component is my faithful pet." Azula boasted with her hand patting her smiling servant's hair while she gazed fondly down at her adorable girlfriend.
Only for the old woman to slam her staff down with a look of annoyance in her glazed eyes while the four highborn women and the servant girl gazed back at her in intrigue.
"Waste of time then girl. If you can't even think for yourself then what's the use in speaking to you. Get out." Mava remarked in a colder voice as she began to stand up while the five stared at her in surprise.
And even though Elle tried to hide it.
A look of hurt flashed in her innocent amber eyes as she sat with her mouth open in renewed low self esteem just as her princess snarled over her.
"B-but I need to figure out how to be useful to Azula-sama. She's my one true love. The h-holder of my heart. S-she's my Fire Queen and she needs m-me to help her defeat the Avatar." Elle stuttered in a shaken voice with a love-struck gleam in her eyes as her princess gazed down at her in approval.
"Oh Elle…" Ty Lee spoke softly with a tender look in her eyes while she stared at Elle's adorably love-struck face.
In all her life she never seen anyone so hopelessly head over heels as Elle.
Thus far she was just thankful that Azula has been gentle with her.
She truly was a pure soul.
"It does not matter if you love her or loath her. Your purpose is not to wash some entitled princess's feet. Do you really think yourself that trivial?" Mava inquired with bite in her voice while the princess's beautiful face darkened into a truly glacial glare.
"Maybe today you should let Elle think for herself Azula…" Ty Lee suggested only to sigh when her princess turned to stare at her incredulously.
"Let her decide for herself? Absurd! I choose for her!" Azula shouted in a haughty voice with a smirk on her lips while even her captain stared at her in mild annoyance.
"How can you say that? I want to serve her. And purpose is what you make of it. Isn't it?" Elle pondered in a puzzled voice with Azula glancing down at her with pleased amber golden eyes.
"Under most circumstances yes. But in your case. No. In your case you have no choice." Mava muttered as she stood with her hands folded under her sleeves while the group listened in wonderment.
"What is it that young Elle has no choice with?" Zoi spoke up at long last with her personal desire buried deep within just as the old woman turned to glance in her direction.
"Isn't my job to defeat the Avatar?" Elle queried in a puzzled voice only for the old woman to shake her head to the surprise of the five girls.
"No. The purpose of the Component is not to defeat the Avatar. Defeating the Avatar…is just an unintended side effect of your primary task at hand." Mava stated as she turned to sit back down while the fivesome stared on in confusion.
"An unintentional side effect you say? Tell me old woman. How do you know of all this anyhow?" Azula inquired in an interrogative voice while she gazed hard at the crone's wrinkled face.
"You want to know rude princess? Fine. I'll tell you. Long ago I gained a power…that I call the sight." Mava began as she sat with a hand on her knee while her audience listened in intrigue.
"The sight?" Zoi asked in a voice of evident intrigue with her golden eyes staring at the old woman's weathered face.
"Indeed. It is a great power but not without its costs. I gained the ability to see glimpses into the future of what roads may come. Many roads that we may travel down. All at the cost of losing the present. My eye stopping seeing over fifty years ago but my mind…my mind still sees." Mava explained in a captivating voice while the group stared at her in astonishment.
"Wow. That's amazing isn't it Azula-sama?" Elle asked as she sat with a hand under her chin while Azula shrugged above her.
"Perhaps Elle. Or it could just be dementia." Azula taunted in a snorting voice with her lifelong friends scowling at her once more.
"Mock me if you like brat. I could care less." Mava mocked in return while the others sighed as the two glared at each other once more.
"You are to address me only as Your Highness. Is that understood peasant?" Azula demanded in an egotistical voice only to scowl when the old woman waved her off.
"I never cared much for you pompous Fire Nation Royals. Arrogant fools the whole lot of you. Just like that bastard Sozin. Annoying bastard he was. Just like you." Mava retorted in a wry voice with the captain chuckling loudly at her enraged princess's expense.
"I like this old woman." Zoi stated in an approving voice while Azula scowled at her.
"You would Zoi. You have no class." Azula spoke coldly with a roll of her eyes while Elle still leaned forward with innocent eagerness in her amber eyes.
"Sure Azula-sama is a bit full of herself. But once you get to know her, she's like a super cuddlable teddy bear!" Elle announced as she reached up to hug her appalled girlfriend around the belly while the princess turned red with anger.
The three noblewomen smirked in amusement.
"How dare you liken me to something so hideous! I should have you put to death!" Azula yelled out with a finger pointing in her handmaid's beaming face while the old woman wrinkled her nose.
"Are these two married yet?" Mava pondered dryly with the princess glaring back at her while Elle smiled in delight.
"Not yet no. But maybe in few years." Ty Lee chuckled while her friend scowled back at her.
"Her Highness says that if all goes well in our relationship that we are going to get married when I turn sixteen…" Elle swooned with a deep blush on her cheek while she sighed contently in her girlfriend's lap.
Azula just scowled as she turned to glare off at the nearest wall while her two childhood friends watched in silent comedy.
The captain's golden eyes now flashed with a flicker of fascination to learn that the couple had discussed marriage.
However, given what she has seen of her princess's interactions with the girl she can't say that it truly surprised her.
And if she were being truthful, she has had her suspicions for quite some time that her princess had plans to take the girl as her wife.
Although she knew well enough that the prospect of the princess of the Fire Nation marrying a commoner was no casual matter.
And another woman at that.
But she wasn't cruel enough to say such a thing out loud in Elle's presence.
And she trusted her princess to make the decision that was best for her own personal happiness and their country.
"You say you have seen multiple roads…" Mai spoke up in a curious voice with a frown on her lips while the old sage nodded.
"A great many roads. Some the same. Some different. Some something else. But one thing stays the same." Mava responded in a vague voice with the team gazing back in rising interest.
"What stays the same?" Elle queried as she sat up once more with her young eyes paying close attention to the old woman's words.
"You have a purpose young Component. And no matter how much you run from it. You cannot escape it. You either succeed or die. That's all there is too it." Mava informed in a grave voice while the young girl paled with fear in her eyes.
"What are you talking about? Speak clearly. No more riddles!" Azula ordered with a protective look in her cold eyes after hearing of the possibility of her girlfriend dying.
"The Component always had the same purpose. And then over a thousand years ago. The Component vanished without a trace. Until many months ago…I started to hear strange sounds in the forest and now…you are back." Mava conversed as she stood up to approach the spellbound teenager.
The four highborn women listened in awe as the old woman slowly walked towards the amazed girl seated before the princess's boots.
"I'm back? I was here before?" Elle asked in continued bafflement only to blink when the sage shook her head.
"No. Another Component was. And before that another. With each generation there is a new holder of the Component Force. And so, there will always be. Until one succeeds or the lineage of the Component is destroyed for good. Are you starting to understand now?" Mava inquired as she gazed down at Elle's awestruck face.
The four nobles exchanged a stunned look as they pondered over the possibility that the power transfers to one holder after another every generation.
Just like the Avatar!
"S-sort of. But I'm still confused." Elle confessed in a naïve voice while the old woman gazed down at her.
"It doesn't matter where you go Elle. Or what you do. You can do as you please with your life. Scrub the palace halls if you wish. But know this. Once you are born with it. There is no turning back. There are dark forces that wish to eradicate what runs through your veins. And once they sense that the Component has returned…they will come for you." Mava announced in a deathly serious voice with her words sensing a chill throughout the room.
"So…what you're saying is that Elle is in danger?" Ty Lee questioned in a mortified voice with sisterly worry in her eyes while Azula scowled deeply.
"A-Azula-sama will protect me. I know so." Elle insisted in a clueless voice while Azula glared down at her.
"She cannot protect you. Not from this. They will go through her. Go through the palace guards. And if you are not ready…then it is over for you." Mava declared in a dark voice while Elle now trembled in her seat.
"You underestimate me old woman. Whatever these 'dark forces' may be. I will kill them." Azula snarled as she sat with her arms on the side of the chair while her lifelong friends gazed on with fear for their young friend in their eyes.
"Arrogant princess. How can you profess to kill what you do not know? I speak of an ancient power. It may take a few weeks. Perhaps a few years. But they will arrive. I have already seen it." Mava spoke in an enrapturing voice with her words cutting through the air like a knife.
"P-please Wise Sage. Will you tell us what you saw?" Elle requested in a respectful voice as she bowed her head while her princess snorted behind her.
"I saw a great many things. I saw a war between two siblings of fire. In some roads the blue fire stands tall and victorious. In many other roads than not the scarred fire wins the duel and the blue flame never burns bright again." Mava began with her glazed eyes gazing down at the princess's now paranoid face while amber golden eyes shimmered in rage.
The two noblewomen shivered as they caught the murderous paranoia in their friend's eyes.
Almost fearing that Azula would order Zuko killed on basis of this prophecy alone.
"Zuko…it's always about Zuko! I will not let him take my bending away. I will defeat him and reign supreme as I am meant to!" Azula barked in a violent voice with blue fire spewing from her lips while Mai gazed on with pained tawny eyes.
"A-Azula I really don't believe that Zuko would ever do that to you." Ty Lee attempted to reason only to shiver while Azula's amber golden eyes glared down at her with no compassion in her gaze.
It was a much colder glare than the gaze that her friend would usually level her with.
Even when Azula was truly furious. She didn't look at her…like that.
Only for the old woman to inadvertently come to her rescue.
"But that is far from all. In some roads blue fire stands beside you. In others…there is no fire to light your way." Mava commented as she glanced back down at Elle's now distraught face while the princess scowled once more.
"N-no Azula-sama? I would kill myself. I couldn't live without her warmth to brighten my day." Elle mumbled in a solemn voice as she sulked like a saddened puppy while her big sisters gazed at her in worry.
Only for Azula's strict voice to tear through the air as the young girl sat up with alarm in her eyes while the older girl glared down at her.
"Fear not Elle. I will always be here to strip you of your free will! You'll never have to worry about the tortures of having freedom ever again." Azula assured in a sadistic voice with her lifelong friends shuddering while her young girlfriend's smile returned in full force.
Only for the young girl to spring into her lap once more while she scowled down at her handmaid fiercely hugging her belly.
"A-arigatou gozaimasu Azula-sama." Elle stammered with her arms tightly wrapped around the princess's belly while she sighed over her.
"See Ty Lee? Even the prophets agree that free will is terrible for this one." Azula spoke in a smug voice while Ty Lee just sighed as she shook her head.
"If you say so Azula." Ty Lee stated in her usual agreeing voice while Azula smirked with Elle still propped up in her lap.
She was just relieved that Azula was no longer gazing at her so terribly.
Only for all five of them to gaze back at the odd old woman as she turned away from them to hobble across the room once more.
"Among these many roads I have seen the shadowed faces of people both good and bad that have the potential to drastically shape the world as we know it. I know that four of these faces are with me in this very room and as we speak at this very moment a fifth stalks the forest." Mava stated as the group listened in amazement as she bent over to throw several ingredients into a wood stove.
The princess and the captain exchanged a knowing glance while they turned back to their peculiar host.
"You speak of the puppeteer?" Zoi pondered with her golden eyes eager to get back at the woman for killing her soldiers.
"That's the one. The hunter that considers herself an artist that seeks to transcend death itself." Mava spoke with a peculiar familiarity in her voice while her audience gazed at her in intrigue.
"A hunter that considers herself an artist?" Azula inquired with a curious gleam in her eyes while she too scowled as she tightened her fist at her hip.
"I'm an artist too! I paint Azula-sama and I also write poetry about Azula-sama!" Elle cried out with cheer in her voice as she sat up while Azula smiled in approval over her.
"Kid. I think we all know enough about your obsession with Azula." Mai remarked in a monotone voice while Elle blushed adorably as she held a hand to her cheek.
Ty Lee let out another giggle with Azula still lounging with a smirk on her lips over Elle's seated form at her feet.
"This hunter's definition of art is much more sinister than what you consider art." Mava replied in what sounded like a resentful voice as she bent the flames in her stove while fire began to burn in the pit.
As her intrigued audience watched her closely.
'She is so old…and yet…she still possesses great power. How interesting.' Azula thought with her cold eyes staring at the burning flames while her companions gazed on in concern.
"By art…you mean puppetry?" Zoi questioned in a searching voice with her arms crossed over her breasts as the old woman nodded gravely.
"What's so terrible about puppetry…" Elle trailed off as she chewed on her lip while the highborn women stared on seriously.
Knowing well enough that any contraption capable of slaughtering a royal platoon was by no means harmless.
"Hers is a dark art child. She seeks the two dragons that stand beside you." Mava informed as she stood over the flames while the two firebenders gazed ahead with narrowed eyes.
"What does she want with Zoi and Azula?" Ty Lee asked in a leery voice with worry in her brown gray eyes.
"This…puppeteer scours the ruins of battlefields in search of powerful benders in their dying moments. And then…she performs a forbidden ritual to claim their fading power as her own." Mava revealed as she threw more ingredients into the fire while her audience now sat in a chilling silence.
Even the likes of Zoi and Azula were unnerved by the chilling admission of their mysterious enemies' twisted intentions.
"She…steals the bending of the dying?" Zoi queried in a taken aback voice with her mouth ajar in a rare sense of disbelief and anger.
The princess clenched her teeth together in paranoia as she glared out of the corner of her eye at the wooden wall of the giant tree.
"In a sense. But only the strongest of benders. Should you ever find yourself at deaths door gazing up at the hunter's painted face. You are better off dying before she has the chance to put her patchwork into you." Mava answered bluntly with her glazed eyes staring back at the stunned highborn women.
It was a truly terrifying statement that had even the likes of Azula on edge.
"So…that's why she is watching us. She's…waiting for us to take a fatal injury on the battlefield." Zoi repeated with her golden eyes wide in fury as she crushed her fist over the hilt of her blade.
An unnerving silence swept over the room while both Mai and Ty Lee shivered in disgust in their seats.
That had to be one of the most frightening things that they have ever heard.
Just as blue fire burst forth from Azula's mouth while she sat seething in her seat.
"I will teach this wretched puppeteer a lesson about hunting us. Mark my words. She will not get my bending!" Azula hissed with rage in her widened eyes just as her young companion reached up to clasp onto her hand.
"T-that's not going to happen to either of you. I'll figure out how to use my power and then I'll help you Azula-sama." Elle insisted in a loving voice with her sweet words managing to calm the nerves of the highborn women.
The princess just sunk back into her seat with her amber golden eyes glaring down at her young girlfriend before she turned to scowl back into the flames.
"That's…the creepiest thing I have ever heard. Almost makes me glad that I am not a bender." Ty Lee muttered only to flinch when Azula and Zoi both glared at the back of her head.
"Your support is greatly appreciated Ty Lee." Azula snorted in a coldly wry voice with her imposing gaze glaring back into the orange fire.
"I have even seen the shadowed face of a traitor who has stood before the blue flame. The specifics of his or her face escape me. But I have seen that this traitor will cast their lost against the blue flame." Mava announced as a vague shape began to twist and form in the fire while the group now stared on with transfixed eyes.
Each and every one of them were stunned that the old sage was proving to be far more knowledgeable than they had even expected her to be.
"Another traitor. I will root them out and crush them underfoot! Just like Zuko!" Azula shouted with her teeth bared in her fury while her childhood friends shuddered beside her.
"And you…Rude One. I have seen your visage in the flames a great many times." Mava muttered as she gazed over her shoulder at the princess's callous face while amber golden eyes glared back at her.
"Where I come from it is customary to speak to your princess with respect peasant. You will address me by title alone. Or I will burn your filthy …tree to ashes in the wake of my flames." Azula called out in a spoiled voice with her palms folded in her lap while the noblewomen groaned once more.
"As you stand right now…Rude One. You are not yet worthy of calling yourself our ruler. So therefore. I will call you as I please!" Mava snapped with her staff in hand while the princess's amber golden eyes flashed in indescribable rage.
And just like that the tension in the vast tree turned unbelievably thick.
"You dare call me unworthy!" Azula roared as she sat up with lightening generating at her fingertips while she ignored her handmaid tugging on her arm.
Only for Mai's voice to cut in the air in defense of the old woman.
"Azula. Have you ever considered that maybe you should try showing why you're a worthy ruler instead of threatening to kill everyone you meet?" Mai interjected in a forceful voice with her tawny eyes gazing back at Azula's furious face.
"Again, I have to agree with Saolin. How many times have I told you that a good ruler wins the love of her people? This is why your father's grip is slipping. And why yours will too if you continue to follow in his footsteps." Zoi remarked in a cool-headed voice as she gazed back at her princess's angered face while Mai gazed at her back in surprise that she came to her aid.
"Listen well…spoiled princess. You have a long way to go before you can truly call yourself a worthy ruler. However. If it is any consolation. This one here may have you on the right track." Mava declared with her wrinkled finger pointing at the young girl's gentle face while the princess scowled down at her servant.
Azula said nothing in response as she sat in her seat with her cold eyes just glaring back at the old sage.
If it wasn't for this old hag's seeming knowledge of her servant's strange powers, she would have killed her for saying those words.
"W-what else have you seen in the flames Sage?" Elle pondered in a childlike voice as she still held onto her mistress's sleeve while Azula sat glowering above her.
Only for Mava to turn and point at Naoki's slumbering form while the others turned to peer at the unmoving girl.
"I saw a great crimson destruction. This one will continue to cut a swath of death and mayhem until her rage is abated." Mava commented in a casual voice while Elle flushed with her highborn friends gazing pointedly at the back of her head.
"Whatever. Who cares?" Azula scoffed in a pompous voice as she gazed down at her well-manicured fingernails while she eyed Naoki's unconscious face.
It was odd that the girl was still out.
She doesn't seem to be that injured…
"Is there something I can do for her? Perhaps more love and peace? Thus far it has worked wonders for Azula-sama!" Elle exclaimed with the three noblewomen smiling in amusement while her princess glared down at her.
"Foolish peasant! You have not calmed me down! My rage burns just as brightly as it ever did!" Azula growled with fire spewing from her lips while Ty Lee grinned beside her.
"No child. I sense that your friend here is…a different matter entirely than the rude one. This is a direct consequence of people in power abusing those under their rule. Eventually abusive regimes give rise to dangerous individuals who have nothing to lose. And there is no one more dangerous than a person who has already lost it all." Mava spoke in a gravely voice with her words causing all five girls to stare at Naoki's prone face.
Naoki slept with her hair covering her eyes as she seemingly breathed at a normal rate.
Mai and Ty Lee gazed hard at Azula's scowling face as if to silently say that was the exact sort of person that her ruthless rule was bound to create.
"P-poor Naoki. Maybe if I could find record of her name…" Elle mumbled in a more solemn voice as she hung her head with sorrow in her eyes while her friends gazed at her in wonderment.
It never ceased to stun them that the young girl was always quick to worry about anyone but herself.
"You're welcome to try. But I suspect that your efforts will be received with violence and a very painful beating." Mava quipped dryly as Elle stood up with her sympathetic eyes gazing back at Naoki's dozing face.
The foursome exchanged an incredulous glance while the princess watched with protectively narrowed eyes in annoyance when her servant began to walk towards the motionless girl.
"So much for your precious love and peace." Azula scoffed in a cold snort as she watched with possessive eyes as her girlfriend came to a stop over the girl.
The other highborn women stared on with wary eyes as Elle frowned down at Naoki in a peculiar display of pity.
"If that's what it takes then so be it. If I could grant her peace and save the lives of thousands then I would take a beating as many times as it takes. I understand her pain and if there's hope for me. Then there's hope for her too." Elle insisted in a determined voice while her four friends gaped at her back incredulously.
"E-Elle I know you want to help people but that sounds a little bit extreme." Ty Lee protested with a deep frown on her lips while Naoki breathed in her sleep.
"This is exactly why this one is much better off under my rule! She is woefully unfit to make her own decisions!" Azula called out in a haughty voice as she set her arm on the side of the chair while Mai gazed at her in annoyance.
"What about me? Where do I stand in your visions?" Zoi questioned in a voice of insatiable curiosity while leaning against the wall as the others still gazed at the sleeping redhead.
"You are Fire Nation's strongest warrior. Where do you think you stand Zoi Song?" Mava replied in turn as she gazed back into Zoi's gratified golden eyes as the woman sunk back against the wall.
"You address Zoi by name and not me?" Azula demanded in an incensed voice while Zoi smirked at her from her position against the wall.
"Because she is respectful. Unlike you, Rude One!" Mava insulted in turn with the others listening humorously while the princess looked as if she was considering killing her.
"I already know the answer to that question. I stand immortal. By the time this war is through. I will see to it that they call this preceding era to Fire Lord Azula's reign the Age of Zoi." Zoi announced with a small smirk on her lips while all but Elle and the old sage rolled their eyes.
"A little full of yourself don't you think?" Mai taunted in a mocking voice with her arms folded over her breasts while Zoi regarded her with disdain.
"That's not as unrealistic as one would think. Soldiers who win the glory of the battlefield are frequently worshiped as heroes for millennia to come. Sometimes more than the kings and queens that they served when they were alive." Mava spoke in a wise voice with her words causing the princess to regard her soldier with a narrowing amber golden glare.
"And rightfully so. Soldiers are the ones that win the war while the monarchy sit on their ass stuffing their face. Glory doesn't come to the entitled. It only comes to those who get off their ass and work for it." Zoi stated in a confident voice with her golden eyes now gazing back at the princess's dangerously cold glare.
"Did I hear you correctly Zoi? Did you just insult my ass?" Azula asked in a frigid voice with the two noblewomen beside her shivering in returning fear.
Only for her young servant girl to spin around smiling reassuringly back at her moody face.
"D-don't you worry Azula-sama. I find one find your buttocks to be simply divine. T-they are so beautiful as is the rest of Your Highness." Elle swooned once more with a love-struck hand on her cheek as her big sister's turned red while Azula angered glare gave way to a pleased stare.
"Humph. Of course, they are. My ass is perfect! As is the rest of me. And I will personally make certain that this age goes down in the history books as the age of Azula!" Azula huffed as she sat back with a smile returning to her spoiled lips while she delighted in how her pet was swooning at her with such adorable starry eyes.
"Just get a room and go elope already!" Mava yelled out in a weathered voice with the highborn women smirking in amusement while Elle turned red.
The princess tried her best to fight the tiny blush on her regal cheeks as she glared hard back at the old woman.
"My thoughts exactly Princess. It's getting annoying. Just go fuck her face already and be done with it." Zoi taunted with a growing smirk while Elle stammered with her hands on her adorable cheeks.
And both Mai and Ty Lee now coughed nervously as they too blushed in their seats.
Azula glared coldly between both her soldier and the sage.
"O-oh my Azula-sama…" Elle murmured in a tender voice as she blushed cutely while her mistress let out a dominant snort as she growled low in her seat.
She found herself unable to resist the pounding of her heart as she became lost in her girlfriend's entrancingly dominant amber golden gaze.
"Elle's face is mine to sit on whenever I please. And I will take her at the time of my choosing." Azula commented in a smug voice with her arms lazily stretching out as she gazed dominantly back at her trembling handmaid.
"S-so anyway about the dark forces that are after Elle?" Ty Lee stammered as she gazed away from the princess's conceited face while the old woman bent over her fire.
"Listen well young Component. Thus far the faces that I have spoken about…excluding the traitor and the puppeteer were your friends and the slumbering one in the corner. But the ones I am about to speak of. You must avoid at all costs. Understand?" Mava continued in a return to her serious voice while the highborn women quickly listened attentively.
"W-what are the other faces?" Elle questioned as she turned around to gaze back at the old woman's weathered visage.
"One of the most dangerous beings of all. Is a man who has long ago shed his humanity. He is a beast who is obsessed with knowledge…a deranged scientist. He roams the lands in search of the secrets of the fibers of life itself." Mava spoke in a stern voice with the flames taking shape once more while the group stared on in an unnerved quiet.
"A s-scientist?" Elle pondered as she watched with widening amber eyes as the sparking flames on the shape of the shadowed outline of a cruel face.
The highborn women gazed in with entranced eyes as the flames took the form a sadistically smiling face.
A face that easily put even Azula's cruelest of smiles to shame.
The features of the man's face were not clear to see in great detail but the one other detail that they took note of was his terrifying red eyes.
"Yes child. A scientist. With no moral regard for any living being or the pain that he inflicts in his obsessive quest to obtain the worlds knowledge." Mava explained as she moved forward with her hands under her sleeves while the young girl nodded numbly as she trembled where she stood.
"This scientist…what can you tell us about him?" Azula demanded as she watched with possessive eyes while the old woman came to a stop before her frightened companion.
"I can tell you that four of you have already met him. And you don't even know it." Mava announced with her words prompting the group to stare on in shock.
As the flames continued to spiral as the highborn women gazed on in confusion.
"Four of us you say?" Zoi asked in a bewildered voice as she paid close attention to the old woman's words.
Just as the old woman turned around to point her wrinkled finger at her taken aback face.
And then to turn and point back at the princess's scowling face as well.
"I have a keen sense of chi. And his is the blackest of them all. I can tell that he has paid both of your dragons a visit. Most likely in search of live subjects to test upon." Mava informed bluntly with the two firebenders now staring back wide eyed.
"T-test upon?" Elle blurted out in fear with her limbs trembling as she swallowed anxiously just as the old woman gazed back at her highborn friends.
The four highborn women stared on with worry in their eyes.
"Indeed. But I can only presume that you two dragons are too old for his liking. He likes to obtain his subjects when they are young…and easy to mold. In his eyes you two are just too old. No. It is clear that he is in search of someone…younger." Mava muttered with a finger under her chin as she gazed back down into Elle's terrified eyes.
The potentially erotic statement instantly put the four women on edge as they glared ahead into the burning flames.
"Younger? You mean for sexual pleasure?" Zoi stated in a cold voice with her golden eyes narrowing in disgust.
Only for the old woman to shake her head.
"Not sexual pleasure. Research. Live experiments to test upon. You also have a faint remnant of his chi Component. He just recently started pursuing you. Fortunately for your sake. It would seem that the presence of the dragons has deterred him for the time being." Mava stated as she gazed down into Elle's widening eyes.
The room turned deathly quiet as the four stared on in complete alarm.
Has the man really been lurking outside the walls of the palace!
"H-he's been trying to come into my room at night?" Elle stuttered as she shivered while her princess growled once more.
"He is like a spider. He watches and waits. And then he finally springs when the moment is right." Mava commented as the girl fearfully shook in her step.
"It's okay Elle! We'll protect you. Won't we Azula!" Ty Lee shouted with her fist clenched in her fury while Azula nodded over her.
"The girl is mine. This man will learn what happens when he pursues what belongs to me." Azula snarled as she brushed her hair from her eyes while her girlfriend calmed somewhat after hearing her words.
"However, by far the one who reeks the most of his chi is this one." Mava declared as she turned to gaze gravely down at Naoki's motionless face while the group rounded around to stare at the unmoving girl.
"N-Naoki reeks of him you say?" Elle questioned in a shaken voice as she quivered while her friends stared on in growing unease.
"Most assuredly! It seems as if he has already begun testing on her." Mava answered as she bent over with her wrinkled hand gently pulling back Naoki's shirt.
Even Zoi and Azula were thrown off by the unnerving statement that the man had already 'begun testing'.
"By Agni! No wonder she reeks of his dark chi!" Mava cried out while the others gazed on in unconcealed curiosity.
Only for their eyes to widen when they saw a strange surgical scar on Naoki's upper chest.
By this point Mai and Ty Lee's hearts were racing in alarm as they gazed on in horror as they just know came to understand what the old woman meant by dark forces!
"What…is that cut mark?" Zoi wondered in an unusually disgusted voice as she strode closer.
"Most likely from a forbidden experiment of some sort." Mava responded with a grim countenance while Elle stood beside the tall soldier with her eyes wide in pity.
Naoki let out a soft groan as the group gazed at her sleeping face in newfound understanding.
"W-what sort of madman just cuts into people while they are asleep?" Mai yelled out with horror in her tawny eyes while she felt a strengthened desire to protect her little sister flow through her veins.
"A being with no morals that's who. Are you starting to understand now Component? Whether you like it or not. You need to broaden your mind and start to think for yourself. Or you will be easy prey." Mava spoke as she turned to gaze back down into Elle's trembling eyes.
"O-okay. I will try." Elle squeaked in a timid voice while her friends gazed on unconvinced that she could defend herself.
"You still have yet to tell us what the significance of the Component is other than functioning as an ancient opposing force against the Avatar and the Spirit World." Azula remarked in a strict voice as she sat up with her icy eyes never leaving her young girlfriend's dainty face.
"As you all well know the Avatar's power is connected to the Spirit World itself. The Avatar works in unison with the spirits to create a balanced world." Mava stated in an enigmatic voice as she gazed back into the young girl's amazed amber eyes.
"W-what about me?" Elle questioned in a piqued voice while the old woman balanced herself upon her staff.
"The Component has the power to cut through mystical barriers and the energy of beings connected to the spiritual plane. This is why the Avatar's power was temporarily disrupted when he was struct by your energy after you awoke your power." Mava answered with her glazed eyes back into Elle's awestruck eyes.
The four highborn women sat in a stunned silence as they processed the woman's words.
It was just…nothing short of astonishing to think that little Elle was in possession of such a power!
"I…I can cut through mystical barriers and the energy of beings connected to the spiritual plane?" Elle breathed in amazement while Azula gazed at the back of her head with increasingly possessive amber golden eyes that shone with great delight in knowing that she was hers.
"Hm. Correct. But only when the power is in activation. The spirits have become alarmed ever since you tapped into your dormant chi. Your power frightens them." Mava muttered as she tipped her head back while the young girl chewed on her lip as she gazed down at her feet.
"Splendid to hear! This means that I will soon rule over the Spirit World as well!" Azula announced in a smug voice as she lounged on her posterior while her childhood friends shivered in horror beside her.
"N-now Azula I am certain that Elle has a responsibility to be unbiased as the Component. You can't just rule over the Spirit World." Ty Lee interjected while Mai snorted beside her as they gazed at Azula's smiling face.
"Nonsense Ty Lee. There is no force in this world behind my control. Soon I will be the queen of all." Azula purred as she smiled widely with her palms clasped in her lap while she gazed at her loyal servant with a pleased amber golden gaze.
"If I bring harm to the spirits…and the Avatar works in sync with them. D-does that make me a bad person and the Avatar just?" Elle pondered in a concerned voice with a frown on her lips while her princess rolled her eyes behind her.
"Make no mistake child. What the Avatar is trying to do is not 'bad'. What the Fire Nation is doing is tyrannical and unjust. And unless she changes her ways. So is your precious princess." Mava spat as she scowled at the princess's now angered face in contempt with a disgusted look in her glazed eyes.
The princess clenched her jaw with her two friends gazing down in guilt while the warrior still gazed on with unbothered golden eyes.
"I suppose I shouldn't expect an old hag that lives in in a decrepit hole in the woods to know anything about progress. The Fire Nation is creating a civilized world." Azula sneered in a cruel voice with an uncaring wave of her hand while her friends scowled up at her.
"B-bad? What is the Fire Nation doing that is bad?" Elle blurted out with Azula suddenly tensing up in her seat while the noblewomen shifted nervously.
"Your sweet princess didn't tell you about the Fire Nation's prison camps?" Mava asked in turn as she leaned on her staff while the princess's face now contorted into rage.
That soon turned into a peculiar conflicting emotion when Elle turned to gaze back at her and her two guilty faced friends with a sliver of accusation in her widened eyes.
In all of the time that they have known Elle the girl never once looked at them like that.
And somehow to all three of the highborn women.
Not one of them enjoyed it.
"Y-you have prison camps Azula-sama? Oneesans? Are you hurting people?" Elle inquired in a searching voice as she stared at her highborn friends.
While Ty Lee and Mai looked as if they wanted to punch the unusually frustrated princess.
"No. Of course not. It's just a little program where we put violent offenders in a workforce that allows them to pay back their crimes to society. They even receive compensation. It's really nothing for you to worry your little mind over Elle." Azula spoke in a charismatic voice with a disarming countenance while all but her handmaid gazed at her incredulously.
'That's a lie and you know it Azula! You can't lie to Elle forever!' Ty Lee thought as she turned away to glare down at the floor.
"And you think yourself worthy. You have much to learn. Selfish brat. As you are now you are nothing but a would-be tyrant. Just as terrible as each of the beasts that I have previously described." Mava stated in a repulsed voice as she slammed her staff on the floor while the princess sat simmering in her rage.
The two noblewomen swallowed as they began to see that the sage didn't think highly of Azula.
Not that it across as a surprise.
"Watch your tone old woman. Or I really will kill you." Azula snapped in an increasingly violent voice while she exhaled fire through her nostrils.
"Do you see now child? This is why you must open your mind and think for yourself. Lest you get lied to. By those you trust the most." Mava informed with a raised finger while Elle still gazed at the trio with a spark of emotion in her eyes.
The two noblewomen gazed back with remorseful looks in their eyes.
Azula tightened her jawline as she crushed the arm of the chair beneath her fist while Zoi gazed down at Elle's back with a calmer gaze than the others.
"S-so is it better if I just let the Avatar restore balance? As long as he doesn't hurt Azula-sama. A chair is just a chair. Land is just land. As long as the princess and my oneesans are still with me it doesn't matter if we lose a palace." Elle muttered with a trace of doubt in her voice as she turned away from Azula's widened amber golden gaze that was now burning through the old woman's skull.
And the two noblewomen could only gaze at their young friend with a moved emotion in their eyes.
Azula however…
The princess clenched her teeth together as she began to smash the arm beneath her burning fist.
How dare this old hag try to turn her girlfriend against her!
"In an ideal world. I would tell you yes. However. You cannot let the Avatar restore 'balance'. There is a primordial evil that must be killed. And you cannot rally the world against it to stop it as long as the Avatar Cycle remains." Mava announced with her hands on her staff while her audience gazed on with bewildered eyes.
That was not the answer that they were expecting the old woman to say!
"A p-primordial evil?" Elle asked in a tone of eagerness to learn while the haggard woman nodded her head.
"Long ago a veil was cast over the world. So, the Avatar is unable to see this evil. This has allowed this… malevolent being to continue to be because the Avatar cannot see past the shroud. Only you…can cut the shroud and see the force that awaits beyond. And to do that…you must defeat the Avatar. As I said…an unintended side effect to your true purpose." Mava explained with a pointed finger while Elle stood with her mouth open in awe.
The four highborn women sat struggling to process the words.
Uncertain if it was all truth or if the old woman had something to gain by coaxing Elle into battle.
"T-then does that mean that Azula-sama is fighting for a just cause and that she is good?" Elle pondered in a hopeful voice as she was unaware that her big sisters were now glaring at Azula's enraged face.
"No, my child. Azula is still wicked. And her father is even more horrible. And her grandfather was also terrible. And her great-grandfather was the one that started the heartless totalitarianism that the Fire Nation Royal Family still enforces to this day. They are selfish, entitled royals that care little to nothing for those that suffer beneath their rule. At best Zoi could be considered patriotic. And your other big sisters considered subservient dogs. But nevertheless, the Fire Nation is a lesser evil. Therefore, it is much more important to kill the greater evil. Even if it means letting another evil run rampant. Use them as they will use you. And try to stay focused on the greater goal at hand." Mava remarked as she leaned on her staff while Elle shook with her eyes agape in growing emotion.
Mai and Ty Lee both gazed away and Zoi glanced at the sage with a spark of surprise in her otherwise calm golden eyes.
'Killing an evil that even the Avatar himself cannot kill…is that the Component's true purpose?' Zoi thought with a thoughtful gleam in her eyes as she gazed down at her booted feet.
There was no doubt in her mind that her nation has committed a great many atrocities.
And yet through out it all she has remained loyal to the people.
In hopes of protecting the honor of her country and hoping that one day it would could change for the better without the cost of watching her nation collapse into ashes.
Perhaps young Elle can sway the princess to a better tomorrow?
Only for the sound of a fist smashing into the chair to filter into the air as Azula now sat staring murderously at the old woman's unbothered face.
"Foolish old hag. I know not of this 'evil' that you speak of but I know that our nation is not evil." Azula hissed with her right fist burning in blue fire as she leaned forward to glare at the old crone.
"S-so I have to let a certain amount of people get hurt to stop an even greater number of people from being hurt. Is that what you are saying?" Elle queried in a soft voice as she turned to gaze back at her princess's unusually bother countenance while her girlfriend snarled through her nostrils.
"That is precisely what I am saying." Mava agreed with a nod as the princess still sat with her wide eyes glaring a hole through her forehead.
"I have heard enough out of you old woman!" Azula barked as she jumped to her feet with her burning fists at her womanly hips.
Only for her fury to turn into an uncertain emotion when she met her serving girl's naïve amber eyes.
"Perhaps one day you will grow into a mature, worthy ruler with the help of this one here. But until that day comes…my opinion will not change." Mava declared gravely with her wrinkled face gazing back into the princess's angered amber golden gaze.
Only to turn around as she watched with cold dominant eyes to see her small girlfriend padding back over to her side.
Just as she stiffened with a barely noticeable twinge of pink on her regal cheeks when the petite girl reached up to grasp ahold of her left hand.
"Azula-sama. Will you help me make the world a better place?" Elle requested in a respectful voice with Azula snorted out fire through her nostrils as she glared down at her.
The three noblewomen watched in curiosity from the sidelines.
"You are such a soft-hearted peasant! How many times must I tell you not to worry about the state of this world!" Azula bellowed in an aggressive voice while she growled down at Elle cupping her hand.
"I-I want to see a peaceful world. I don't want to go through my life watching endless suffering." Elle spoke softly as she craned her neck to meet the much taller woman's scowling face.
"Oh, please don't tell me that you are going to start crying right now…" Azula growled in a prideful voice as leveled her pet with a controlling stare.
"W-will you?" Elle asked again in a tender voice with her hand gentle holding Azula's warm palm while the older girl turned away to scoff at the nearest wall.
"Maybe I will! Maybe I won't! It's not your place to tell me what to do! I am the ruler in this relationship!" Azula grumbled as she shifted on her booted feet while she allowed her servant to lean in to embrace her belly.
"Arigatou gozaimasu Azula-sama." Elle mumbled in a loving voice as she cracked a hopeful smile once more while leaning in to rest her head on the older girl's armored belly.
"You are a troublesome little girlfriend but I would have no other. You are mine." Azula snorted with fire escaping her nostrils while placed her palm on her girlfriend's dainty shoulder as her handmaid hid in her belly.
All the while as she stared coldly across the room at the old sage as the crone hobbled back towards her wood stove.
If anyone tries to take her little peasant from her…
Then she will kill them without a second thought!
There was just nothing else to it.
A dragon must protect her territory and if it comes to that.
Then so be it.
That was what she will do.
AN:
Alright, so allow me to take a moment to respond to a few questions in the reviews.
I am sorry. I really don't have much to offer in the way of recommendations for Azula stories. I am a picky reader, and most Azula stories on here do not meet my standards. The only story I really enjoyed was the Consequences of power by Matt Thermo.
I read it many years ago, and sadly it seems to be abandoned. That said, I enjoyed all 51 chapters of it. Other than that, I don't really have anything else to suggest.
Suffice to say if I did, I probably wouldn't be spending such an insane length of time writing my own Azula story. 😊
And secondly, I want to state that Elle's powers are NOT reality bending. Elle is not a reality warper. As the sage stated this chapter. The user of the Component has the power to cut through spiritual energy.
Elle's powers work similar to Kuwabara's Jigen Tō from Yu Yu Hakusho. She doesn't have a sword, but as long as she is in the Component State. When spiritual energy is in her path, she can cut through it.
It is a powerful ability to be certain but not with many restrictions. Elle is not the strongest. Elle is not the fastest. Nor can Elle cause the most destruction.
But when she masters her power, she will possess a formidable attack against beings that use spiritual energy.
Now onto the afterword.
So, this was a pretty lore heavy chapter. I am going to cover things one at a time. I'll start with Mava's (the sage) power.
Mava has many mystical powers. That said, I will state that she is not like Yoda, or Makarov from Fairy Tail. She is extremely old, and therefore she can barely move around on her own.
However, her mind is still there. For the most part.
She has the power to see many roads of events that can happen in the future. As a side affect of this sight. She lost the ability to see in the normal sense of the word.
As time goes on, she finds herself becoming increasingly lost in visions of the future while the present gets further and further away. She has been sitting in this state waiting for Elle to arrive for a long time.
Also, if anyone is curious why Mava was so disrespectful to Azula. Well, for one Azula opened the meeting by greeting her with disrespect so she returned it in kind.
But most part Mava has to say the least been around for a great while. She isn't going to respect Azula just because she tells her to. In her eyes, Azula most prove that she is worthy of being called their ruler. Mava is also very cynical and bitter. And Azula isn't going to change her mind by threatening her.
Also, Mava may be physically feeble but she is still powerful in many ways. So, she isn't someone that Azula can push around easily. I mean Azula technically could push her down. But that is beside the point.
For the time being Azula and Mava really hate each other but they are going to work together all the same.
However, it should be noted that despite Mava's harsh words for Azula. Unlike Iroh, Mava has some faith in Azula. We saw this when she told Azula that she was on the right track.
Now, onto the visions. Some of the people that Mava is seeing in her mystic flames we have already met. Azula, Zuko, Zoe, Naoki, Silah (the artist) were all seen in her mystic fire.
Other character such as the scientist have yet to appear.
Some of the characters referenced in her flames may appear in book one. Others may not. My goal is to create a sense of fantasy regarding what may come in the future.
When the scientist does appear, he will be a significant villain. But for the time being we have other characters to focus on.
Also, Mava shed a little light on Silah's power. She takes the power of benders in their dying moments. And she seeks to do the same with Zoe and Azula.
And that brings us to the final subject of this afterword, that being the purpose behind Elle's power and the Avatar cycle itself.
I have said it before and I will say it again. My one complaint about Avatar beyond how Azula's character ended was that the Avatar is way too overpowered.
Which is partly why Elle's power exists. To balance out the Avatar's supposed balance. Like I said though, Elle's power is not absolute. Last time around Aang was taken by surprise and he pretty much just ran into her swing. Aang may be able to counter Elle. And then Elle may be able to counter him.
It will be a back and forth. Aang is one with the Spirit World, and Elle is not. The Avatar is for Spirit World interference, and the Component is not.
According to Mava a great evil got the best of the Avatar long, long ago. Mava is claiming that the Avatar failed to defeat this evil, and that this being placed a powerful spell over the Avatar to escape the detection of all Avatars to come.
We'll have to wait and see just the extent of the truth behind Mava's words.
But it is quite clear that she is no fan of the Avatar. She believes that it is time for the Avatar cycle to come to an end so people are not so dependent upon the Avatar to fight for them.
This isn't to say that Aang is evil. No, Aang is a kind person with the best of intentions. And Mava still views Azula and Ozai as evil. But Mava would rather see the Avatar cycle be destroyed. And people endure a few decades to maybe a hundred or so years of hardship because she feels that they will come out of it stronger as a whole. Than they would after tens of thousands more years of helpless reliance on the Avatar.
My main intent here is to explore both the good and the bad of the Avatar. And to show that there might be bigger problems that Aang is not aware of.
I wanted to introduce a philosophical divide in the Avatar world. People that are for the Avatar, and people that are against it. And I also wanted to show that someone can be against the Avatar cycle without being a heartless tyrant like Ozai.
And although Mava means well with Elle. She also showed that she can be a little bit manipulative as well. Mava proved that she was well aware that the Fire Nation dealt in slaves. And with one word she could have shattered Elle's image of Azula.
But she chose not to. And instead she put it lightly as 'prison camps'. Because she knows that Azula is a highly powerful bender, and extremely beneficial to have at Elle's side.
Over time we'll see how honest Mava is. But for the time being that is all for now.
This chapter marks a pretty huge divergence from canon as we expand into my expanded fantasy story line. We're going to continue to see both good and bad from the Avatar. And good and bad from the Component. And that will result in increasingly more hostile clashes as the story progresses.
That said, I will continue to do my best to honor the original canon and write every canon character as accurately as I possibly can.
And for the time being I will continue to post updates roughly every 7-11 days. A bit slower than before. But that is because I am still having personal problems with chronic pain issues that are making me writer slower than usual.
The next chapter will be shorter than this one. Roughly 6500 words. But it will be pretty lore heavy as well.
I also think that I am going to give ATLA a re-watch. I have just been hesitant to do so. Because I always get depressed seeing how broken Azula is at the end of the show. It really makes me sad that Azula doesn't they left Azula off on such a horrible note. And even now after twelve years, there are no concrete plans to give her character proper resolution in the comics.
Anyhow, that's all for now.
Stay tuned for next time.
For chapter seventy-four! The Faces in the Mystic Fire!