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The Faces in the Mystic Fire – Chapter Seventy-Four
Azula plopped back down in the chair as she folded her arms over her breasts while she still glared icily at the old woman hunched over her flames.
She glanced down through the corner of her eye to watch her young girlfriend sit back down at her booted feet with her legs folded beneath her.
'She is mine. I own her. And she will serve me for all of her days. And if anyone should try to change that…then they will die. In agony.' Azula thought with her nostrils releasing more fire in her foul mood as she gazed down at her pet in a possessive amber golden stare.
"Is there anything else that you saw in the flames with your sight?" Elle questioned in a respectful voice that starkly contrasted her girlfriend's cold attitude while she gazed on in wonderment.
Mai and Ty Lee seemed at least relieved that Elle was proving capable of possibly convincing Azula to try to be nicer.
Even if it was only by a tiny margin.
Considering that it was Azula they were talking about it was no small feat.
"Mhm. A matter pertaining to the princess's greatest nemesis. A force even greater than the scarred brother, the shadowed traitor, the scientist and the hunter combined." Mava spoke with her back turned to the group while the princess stared on with paranoid amber golden eyes.
"I order you to tell me everything you know about this enemy or you will be spending the rest of your 'golden' years screaming in a dark cell!" Azula barked in a merciless voice with a scowl on her cold lips while her childhood friends groaned once more.
And even Zoi herself managed to let out a sigh under her breath.
"Wise Sage! Please tell us the nature of Azula-sama's enemy!" Elle exclaimed in a sweet voice as she leaned forward with innocent concern in her amber eyes while her girlfriend huffed over her.
"Hm. It is an enemy that even the mighty Zoi Song is unable to defeat. One capable of bypassing the entire palace guard with ease that the scientist could only dream of." Mava stated with her hands over the fire while the group listened in a piqued silence.
"Please Wise Sage. Tell us the name of this powerful warrior that will rend the princess low." Zoi spoke with her arms folded over her breasts while Azula glared at her from the corner of her eye.
Just as all eyes turned to the old woman as she slowly turned to face them.
Before her glazed golden eyes soon met the princess's callous amber golden stare.
"This powerful warrior's name is none other than…" Mava trailed off in a thoughtful voice with a finger under her chin while the five waited in suspense.
As the princess still stared icily at her before she opened her mouth to reply.
"The cherry pit." Mava answered finally with a twinge of a smug grin on her lips while the three highborn women blinked comically as their leader's amber golden eyes widened in murderous outrage.
Only for Zoi to burst out into roaring laughter as she chortled against the wall while Azula breathed fire out of her nostrils as she glared at the chuckling firebender.
Just as Mai soon joined the other noblewoman in amused laughter with Ty Lee making a poor effort to stifle her own chuckles.
And the only one taken the revelation seriously was the young servant girl herself who was gazing on with deadly serious amber eyes.
"Silence! All three of you! And you, old hag! I am about to relocate you to a nursing home called Boiling Rock!" Azula roared with fire escaping her lips as she seethed in her seat while her fists crushed the side of her chair.
In all her life she has never met such a grating old woman as this wretch!
"You better watch out Princess the cherry pit is coming to get you." Zoi snickered while her princess still glared a hole through her forehead.
"Shut up Zoi!" Azula snapped as she pounded a fist on the arm of her chair while her beautiful lips pursed into a snarl.
"Oh, come on Azula! That was funny and you know it." Ty Lee laughed as she held her belly with a finger wiping at her eye while her spoiled friend scowled at the back of her head.
Only for all three of the highborn women to watch in amusement when their young friend passionately grasped a hold of the princess's right hand as she turned around to gaze up at her.
"Don't you worry Azula-sama! I won't leave a single cherry unchecked! This dark cherry pit won't be making its way to your royal platter! I'll stop this cherry pit even if it costs me my life!" Elle declared in a naïve voice as she rapidly nodded her head with Azula glaring over her shoulder at her big sister's amused faces.
"Elle…there is no dark cherry pit." Mai stated in a humored voice while Elle tilted her head adorably as Azula still glared at them.
"I am pleased by your devotion servant. Which is more than I can say for anyone else in this room." Azula growled as she sat back on her rear with a moody scowl still adorning her regal lips.
"But to answer your question young one. There are more faces in the flames that pertain to you. Two that you already know…and one that you have yet to meet." Mava commented in a serious voice once more with her hands over the flame while the group listened in renewed interest.
"I-I've already met two of them?" Elle asked in a nervous voice as the flames began to twist once more beneath the old woman's wrinkled hands.
The the highborn women watched the flames begin to take shape into the shape of a man adorned in a green military uniform.
Seemingly walking toward, them with a jacket slung over his shoulder.
His hair was a dark brown and his eyes were a cruel blue that seemed to stare right back into the now horrified girl's very soul.
In his mouth was a burning cigarette and in his left hand he held a gun.
And just like that Elle sat in a frozen state of pure terror as she began to tremble with her hands now shaking upon the floor.
Her four companions stared on in alarm when the girl cried out in fright as she fell back onto the floor.
"N-no! Not him! Make him go away!" Elle shouted in fear as Azula sat gazing down at her with coldly protective amber golden eyes while she turned to glare back at the twisting flames.
Mai and Ty Lee sat with their eyes wide in anger as they glared at the visage of the advancing man with understanding in their eyes.
Zoi gazed on in confusion from where she was leaning against the wall.
While they were so preoccupied observing their young friend's plight that they never noticed how the sleeping redhead stirred ever so slightly in her sleep.
Her hand began to twitch over the hilt of her blade when the soldier appeared in the mystic flames.
"Calm yourself Component. He's not here in this room. You must learn to face your fears if you wish to conquer what is to come." Mava advised in a gravelly voice as she turned to gaze back at the terrified girl with glazed over golden eyes.
"It's okay Elle! He can't hurt you!" Ty Lee consoled as she reached over to set her hand on the smaller girl's shoulder as she whimpered against the floor.
"Stop it! You're scaring her!" Mai yelled out with a spark of anger in her eyes while the old woman stood hunched over the fire.
"Fear is what allows us to grow and become stronger. It is a necessity for her survival." Mava replied as she stared back with aged eyes while the four highborn women watched uncertainly as the girl cowered on the floor.
The old woman's logic completely contrasted with the princess's view that fear was how people you kept people in line.
They exchanged a guarded glance only for their eyes to widen when they saw that the man was approaching a small blonde that they knew all too well.
Young Elle backed away with her eyed wide in fear and raw emotion as her friends seethed in anger while they watched the man come to a stop over her trembling form.
Smoke rose into the air behind him as he idly glanced back over his shoulder at the burning city before turning his haunting gaze back down at the cornered child.
Only to speak cold and blunt words that brought hot tears to Elle's eyes.
Both past and present.
"Your mother won't be coming back for you. I killed her." Strados spoke in a pitiless voice as he took a drag out of his cigarette while the small child's eyes welled up in despair.
The child stood in a state of numb shock as she shook before blurting out a broken reply.
"W-what. D-dead? T-that can't be-" Elle blurted out only to slump forward in agony when she was brutally punched in the stomach.
And just like that the five-year-old dropped down to the ground while the soldier now stood over her with his arm falling back to his side.
And then just as quickly as the man's visage appeared.
It vanished into the flames while Elle sat beside Ty Lee with her eyes now shimmering in wetness while the noblewoman gently patted her back.
Ty Lee gritted her teeth in uncharacteristic anger while Mai did the same beside her as they now scowled back into the fire.
And Zoi for her part was gazing at the girl with surprise in her golden eyes to learn that she had went through such a traumatic ordeal.
"H-he took my parents away from me…" Elle murmured in a sorrowful voice as she sniffled while her big sister held her close.
'And I will make him scream for it.' Azula thought with a strangely protective gleam in her callous eyes while she bared her teeth in a vicious snarl.
"There…there little sister." Ty Lee soothed while she held the younger girl under her arm as she patted her back.
"Painful it may be. But you must learn to confront your deepest fears." Mava commented as she turned back to the young girl's pained face while Elle offered her a shaky nod.
"I-I'll do what I can." Elle answered in a quiet voice as she wiped at her eyes while her big sisters gazed at her in pity.
"Cease those tears at once! Or I will punish you!" Azula shouted as she pointed a finger down at the young girl's emotional face while her lifelong friends gave her an exasperated look.
"I'm trying Azula-sama!" Elle exclaimed in a puppylike voice while her girlfriend growled over her.
"Just let the girl cry Azula. Threatening punishment every time she cries is pointless." Mai remarked with a deep frown on her lips while Azula turned to scowl back at her.
"There are three faces that I have seen in the fire that I sense have caused you great pain. The first is the rogue soldier…and the second is the brother." Mava muttered as the flames kindled once more while Team Azula bristled after hearing the woman's dark words.
The flames began to stir as the princess scowled back at the old woman.
"Where exactly are you going with this?" Azula demanded in a strict voice as she narrowed her eyes at the back of the old woman's grayed head.
"Elle must conquer her fear of her past enemies if she is to face and defeat her future enemy." Mava replied with her foreboding words causing Elle to tremble once more.
"M-my future enemy?" Elle asked in an innocent voice that her highborn friends feeling increasingly protective.
"The tiger monkey's enemy? I shake at the prospect of facing such a terrifying rival. I can only imagine the horrors that they must be capable of." Azula snorted in a haughty voice as she lounged in her seat gazing down at her pouting girlfriend with a smug countenance.
The two noblewomen stared at her in disapproval.
"Azula." Ty Lee warned with a frown on her lips while the princess rolled her eyes over them.
"Surely they must be more dangerous than Her Highness's arch rival the cherry pit." Zoi stated in a mocking voice while her princess turned to cast an icy glare her way.
"The flames foretell of a nihilist that exists for the sole purpose of destroying your power. You must prepare yourself Component by confronting the ghosts of the past or your spirit will be broken." Mava announced in a mirthless voice while Elle gazed on with trembling amber eyes.
The four highborn women listened with a wary look in their eyes at the mention of the impending threat.
"A nihilist will come for me?" Elle pondered in a mousy voice with the concerned Ty Lee still seated beside her.
"I know not when. It may take weeks or even a year. But come she will. Of all the threats that will come for you in the flames. She poses the greatest danger to you of them all." Mava explained in a weathered voice as the group stared on with guarded eyes.
Their young friend swallowed in fear with Ty Lee still clutching her shoulder.
Just as the flames took on another shape.
"This nihilist will suffer the same fate as all who oppose me. I will crush her in the wake of my flames!" Azula declared in a malicious voice with her cold eyes gazing down at the back of her girlfriend's trembling head.
Only for her eyes to narrow once more as the flames morphed into the shape of a twistedly smiling blond-haired man.
The teenage girl visibly tensed as she sat in her seat with her amber eyes gazing back at her brother's face while the four older girls took in the young man's eerily gleeful countenance.
"F-Felix…" Elle exclaimed in an unnerved voice as she gazed back at her older brother's face while the visage of her sibling adjusted his glasses.
All the while smirking back at her as her heart began to race in terror while her friends took close note of her fear.
The older brother was leaning while grasping at the railing with a long tan coat over his shoulders as he gazed down with excited amber eyes.
While the visage of a slightly younger Elle gazed down beside him with all of the joy that her friends had come to know absent from her amber eyes.
"I don't know about you little sister but I must say I am feeling over the moon." Felix spoke in a delighted voice with his hands gripping the railing while Elle stared down with haunted amber eyes.
The young girl shook with her hands grasping at the rails while her eyes welled up in wetness as her older brother turned to glance down at her in mock concern.
"Why the long face dear sister?" The older brother pondered in a taunting voice with his younger sister staring down with tear stained eyes.
"Why? Why would you do such a thing?" The younger sibling asked in a broken voice with tears streaming down her wet cheeks.
"I have no idea what you are implying Elle." Felix replied in a playful voice as Elle stared at the back of his head with a stunningly hateful look in her eyes.
"T-that bird was my only friend." Elle whispered in a sorrowful voice as she gazed down at a small lifeless bird laying broken at the bottom of the staircase.
And just like that the group could only stare on with rising disgust in their eyes at the visage of the girl's brother's still amused face.
It was a whole new level of torment and cruelty that even Azula had never done to Zuko.
"Cheer up Elle! It's not as if it was going to last through the winter anyway. Besides…we still have each other." The older brother assured in a sadistic voice as he set his hands on his sister's trembling shoulders as she gazed down at her slain avian companion.
And not even a moment later the past Elle broke down in tears over the railing with her sobs echoing into the air while her cruel brother held her shoulders in a twisted embrace.
"I despise you! I can't wait to watch you die!" Elle shouted with disdain lacing her voice while her older brother just smirked over her shoulder.
"I love you too dear sister." Felix answered in a cruel taunt with his finger wiping a tear off the young girl's cheek while she shook in his arms.
And just as quickly as the two appeared they vanished into the swirling flames while the present Elle stared on with a hateful look in her wet amber eyes.
And the four highborn women were for once at a loss for words at the sheer extent of her brother's cruelty.
'What a sick bastard. I can't believe I am saying this but that man even puts Azula to shame.' Mai thought with great anger flashing in her tawny eyes while she clenched a fist in her lap.
And Zoi could only stare on with her cold golden eyes narrowing in repugnance as she scowled.
In her eyes there was nothing more contemptible than an older sibling abusing their younger!
"Beast!" Ty Lee hissed with her arms around Elle's shoulders while the younger girl wiped at her damp eyes.
'Just wait until I get my hands on him. He will rue the day that he touched what belongs to me!' Azula thought with her nostrils releasing a protective snort of azure fire as she growled down at her saddened girlfriend.
"H-he was supposed to be there for me like Mai…and like Ty Lee. He was supposed to protect me. But instead he tormented me." Elle spoke in a solemn voice with her friends gazing at her in sympathy.
"I'm sorry Elle." Ty Lee hushed in a soft voice with fury in her eyes while her adopted sister still wiped at her wet eyes.
"You must grow Component. If you can bring yourself to gaze upon those two without fear then you will be strong enough to face your future fears." Mava advised in a wise voice as she gazed back at Elle's nervous face while the girl gave her the best nod that she was capable of.
"I…will do my best Wise Sage to become as strong as I am able." Elle muttered as she sniffed while her princess stared down at her with unconvinced amber golden eyes.
And just like that the flames began to morph once more while a smoking visage of a faceless person appeared over the fire.
The details were nearly impossible to make out.
But the one thing that was clear was that the phantom woman was staring out with golden eyes that were devoid of the pleasures of life.
The face gazed back at Elle with a haunting gaze that sent a shiver down Elle's spine while swallowed down her apprehension.
And met the specter's gaze head on while the four highborn women studied the burning flames in growing unease.
It was evident from the look in the smoking woman's eyes that she was not an enemy to be taken lightly.
And they were now finally beginning to comprehend the depth of the old crone's words when she told them that dark forces were after Elle.
"What can you tell us about this woman?" Zoi inquired in a composed voice with her golden eyes staring hard back at the smoking face while Azula scowled in her seat.
"I think her name was…hm it started with a v…?" Mava muttered with a finger under her chin while the princess rolled her amber golden eyes.
"Like I said dementia." Azula taunted with a cold smirk on her lips while her childhood friends gazed at her in exasperation.
"Hm. Was it Vera? No. It was something else." Mava commented to herself with the princess still staring at her with bored amber golden eyes.
"Elle…it's alright. You're not alone in this. We're here for you." Mai assured in a concerned voice after taking notice of Elle's growing unease while the smaller girl shook as she gazed into the mystic flames.
"Why does her presence feel so much stronger than the others?" Elle spoke up in a fretful voice as she chewed on her lip while Ty Lee comforted her with an arm over her shoulder.
"The answer young Component, is that the nihilist rides on the wings of the very dark forces that you must one day face. She is none other than its newly created herald. To you she exists as a more personal threat than the other faces that you saw before. She represents someone that you must defeat." Mava explained with her wrinkled hands dispersing the face in the flames once more while the young girl offered her another timid nod.
"O-okay. I'll do my best to defeat her then." Elle answered in a mousy voice with her princess snorting down at her turned back.
"And this is why it is for the best that I think for you! You are woefully unfit to make your own decisions. But fortunately for you. I have decided to grace you with my rule!" Azula declared in a spoiled voice with her palms clasped in her lap while she smirked when her young girlfriend began to smile once more.
Mai and Ty Lee sighed in exasperation knowing all too well that Azula was going to be as overbearing as possible throughout this whole affair.
"Arigatou gozaimasu Azula-sama! It is so kind of you to dictate my life!" Elle cried out with a bit more cheer than before while Azula gazed down at her with a haughty smile.
"Think nothing of it my pet." Azula purred as she leaned forward to pat her girlfriend's soft head while Ty Lee cast her a scolding stare.
"Well Elle. It is good to see that you are on a fast track to independence." Mai stated in a monotone sigh while her little sister smiled back at her.
"Vega! That's it. Her name was Vega." Mava announced with a finger snapping before her face while the group listened closely.
"Vega…it sounds…lonely." Elle mumbled as she leaned forward with her girlfriend's hand finally leaving her hair.
"Beware of Vega." Mava muttered with her hands still over her fire while the teenage gulped as she nodded her head.
"You still haven't told us what this 'dark force' is." Azula stated in an ever-interrogative voice with her possessive eyes staring ahead at the back of the old woman's grayed head.
"Yes, Wise Sage. What is this dark force?" Elle inquired in a courteous voice with the sage grasping onto her staff once more.
"Somewhere deep inside your heart Elle. You know." Mava declared in an enigmatic voice as she turned to face the puzzled group while the princess's eyes twitched in aggravation.
Elle swallowed the lump that was in her throat as she sat with her legs folded beneath her.
As her amber eyes glanced down with a strange gleam in her gaze that her highborn friends were unable to pin down.
"Ugh! I am getting really sick of your riddles old woman." Azula snorted in a rude voice with her eyes glaring back at the old crone who never flinched from her glare.
"I was under the impression that you were the holder of all the knowledge in the universe as proof of your 'divine right'. Apparently not! Spoiled brat can't even defeat a riddle!" Mava called out in a venomous taunt while all but the princess gazed on in entertainment.
Just as an inferno of blue fire sparked to life before the seething princess as she glared burning daggers back at the hunched over old hermit.
"Filthy old crone! I will burn you to ashes! Zoi! Be silent!" Azula bellowed in a furious voice as she reeled around to stare icily at Zoi's chortling face while her soldier's belly shook against the wall.
"Go choke on a cherry pit!" Mava insulted before throwing a wooden bowl across the room at the princess's skull.
And now both Mai and Ty Lee were doing their best to restrain their bloodthirsty friend from leaping across the room to kill their eccentric host.
"Azula! Stop it!" Ty Lee shouted in a frustrated voice while Azula snarled back at the stooped over old woman.
"You were the one that came to see her Azula. Not the other way around. If you want to talk to her then talk! We didn't come here to threaten to burn her house down!" Mai exclaimed as she pulled Azula back while the princess still exhaled fire from her angered nostrils.
"Then she had better start speaking to me with respect. I am her princess and I will not tolerate this disrespect!" Azula snapped before she plopped back down on her rear with her eyes glaring hatefully at the ancient woman's mutually scowling face.
"I have a question Wise Sage. Is it possible that I could give the power of the Component to someone more suitable? Like Azula-sama? Or Zoi? They are both so much stronger than I am! I am certain that they would do a better job than me!" Elle pondered in a voice of low self-confidence while the two firebenders turned to her in surprise.
And Ty Lee and Mai did their best to suppress the shudder that was traveling down their spine when they took close note of the interested gleam in Azula's power hungry eyes.
"I am inclined to agree. I would make a much better candidate. That way the girl can focus on what's truly most important in her life…serving me." Azula spoke in a spoiled voice as she lounged on her posterior with a conceited smirk forming on her lips while gazing down at her handmaid's eager face.
Just as the girl leaned in to place her head upon her thigh while she lowered her palm into her serving girl's hair with a dominant smile returning to her lips once more.
Her lifelong friends groaned as they sighed heavily under their breath.
"I am not certain. It may be possible. But in most circumstances power transfers are fatal. So, even if it could be done. It would cost Elle her life." Mava replied in a mirthless voice with her words provoking a chill in the air as the princess's power-hungry countenance gave way to discomfort.
"O-oh. Like the redistribution method I've heard about back home…" Elle trailed off in a quieter voice with her two big sisters' now staring hard at the princess's unusually bothered face.
"I am certain that Azula doesn't want your life force Elle. Isn't that right Azula?" Ty Lee implored while her royal friend glared back at her from her seat.
"Please! Of course not! The last thing I want is to turn into a crybaby pacifist like this one! Such weakness would dilute the divinity in my veins!" Azula huffed in a proud voice in an attempt to squash the sadness that she felt in her belly over the prospect of taking her young love's life force.
"Yeah. Forbid you become likeable." Mai snorted with a roll of her tawny eyes while her leader glared down at her.
"I have no interest in young Elle's life force. I have all the strength that I need. Besides. Princess Azula would be much more intolerable if she didn't have such an amicable adviser like Elle." Zoi spoke from her position against the wall with Elle's smile brightening as she gazed in her direction while she herself cracked a small smile.
And Azula turned to glare at her from the corner of her eye.
"Listen well young Component. There are two more faces in the flames. I have foreseen two great calamities that have the potential to kill us all. One being the forces of darkness that propels the herald Vega and the second…" Mava said as she tossed ingredients into the kindling fire while the fivesome turned to her once more.
All but Zoi and Azula shivered as they began to take the old woman more seriously with every passing minute.
The fact that there may well be an unknown enemy that the Avatar was unable to see was a bewildering thought indeed.
"What…is the second threat?" Zoi questioned in a cool-headed voice with her golden eyes gazing on intently while the flames started to morph once again.
"Is a human face. In all the visions that I have foreseen in the mind's eye. This woman may well be the most dangerous human alive." Mava continued with her hands nearly touching the shaping flames while the princess snorted in contempt.
"You are mistaken crone. The most dangerous human already sits before you!" Azula scoffed with a hand waving in the air while her noble friends sighed heavily.
Only for the smoking flames to take on the shape of yet another woman.
Of a shadowed woman seated in a chair with a fist leaning against her cheek while she gazed down at a tabletop with a growing smirk on her pale lips.
Just as the four highborn women gazed on in puzzlement when they turned to notice their young friend staring on with a surprised look in her amber eyes.
"That's…that's Emperor Reiko." Elle spoke in a taken aback voice with her friends now staring on in understanding.
Once more Azula stared on with narrowed amber golden eyes as she bristled over her otherworldly rival being categorized as more dangerous than her.
"Who is this, Emperor Reiko?" Zoi queried in a curious voice with a blink of her golden eyes as she took note of her princess's ire.
"I demand that you tell me more about this emperor and this empire that she rules over." Azula barked with a finger pointing down at her handmaid's intimidated face.
"S-she is the supreme ruler of many countries that she has conquered and transformed into one unified empire! Among those is my mother's ancestral country Japan! Because of that I am one fourth part Japanese which means I'm Eurasian!" Elle explained in a helpful voice while her friends listened in fascination all around her.
That was the first time that any of them had ever heard their young friend divulge details of her heritage.
Suffice to say they were interested to learn as much as they could about their strange jovial companion.
"This had better not mean that you see this woman as a higher ruler than me." Azula remarked in a controlling voice as she sat authoritatively in her seat while her handmaid trembled under her imposing gaze.
"Azula." Ty Lee muttered with a sigh as she massaged her forehead while her little sister adorably blushed under Azula's demanding stare.
"O-oh Azula-sama. In my eyes there is no higher ruler than you. You will always be the only queen for me." Elle swooned with a love-struck hand on her cheek while Azula sat back with much more pleased smile on her lips than before.
"As it should be peasant. As your mistress I am not to be seen as anything less." Azula huffed in a gratified voice while she took delight in how her servant girl swooned under her possessive stare.
"Are you done having Elle stroke your wounded ego?" Mai asked in a dry voice with Azula turning to glare down at her.
Only for the old woman's aged voice to regain their attentions as she turned to face their innocent young friend.
"I know not what this woman plans. But if she continues to meddle with that which is not meant to be meddled. Her insane ambition may well bring ruin to all." Mava advised with the flames rising beneath her wrinkled hands while the five girls listened in fascination.
The two noblewomen shuddered as they exchanged an unnerved glance before gazing up at the princess's regally frigid face.
This woman was almost starting to sound eerily similar to an older, more experienced Azula!
"Her ambition? I…admit that I don't trust her completely. But…she helps people. And she even calls me Elle-chan!" Elle protested in a conflicted voice with her highborn friends gazing at her in obvious curiosity.
"Elle-chan? What is the meaning of such a title?" Zoi pondered with her golden eyes staring at her young friend's gentle face while the girl smiled widely.
"It had better not have romantic connotation." Azula growled with her finger thrusting in Elle's adorable face once more while her servant beamed up at her.
"Silly Azula-sama! Chan isn't romantic! It's a way for older people to address a younger person that they are fond of! It means that she finds me to be an endearing and adorable person!" Elle announced in a proud voice as she puffed out her chest while Azula scrunched up her nose as she rolled her eyes.
Mai and Ty Lee rose a brow as they glanced at their little sister's cute face as they silently mused that it was an apt description.
"I suppose I should have known that it was something of the sort." Azula snorted as she folded her palms over her armored belly while Ty Lee pulled the petite girl into another hug.
"Aww! Elle-chan it is then!" Ty Lee squealed while her little sister flushed with the princess scoffing down at them.
Just before she shouted out a bellowing command while pointing down at her boots.
"Servant-chan! Scrub my boots now." Azula ordered in a spoiled voice with a smirk on her lips while her subordinates sighed.
Elle swooned once more with a dainty hand on her cheek as she blushed under the princess's domineering gaze.
"A-Azula-sama just called me her cute servant! I am so flattered!" Elle chimed with a love-struck sigh while Azula lounged back with a proud smirk on her lips.
Just as the sage's voice spoke up once more as she pushed herself up upon her staff.
"The answer to your question is simple young one. Some tyrants are more obvious in their nature like your princess and her family. It is easy to see who they are. But others wear a mask to fool those around them." Mava responded as the flames dispersed once more with the group listening in an entranced quiet.
Azula still stared callously back at the old woman with her full lips already beginning to purse into a scowl once more.
"But there is good news. The final face that I have foreseen is that of a potential ally. A hero from a faraway land may be able to help guide the way. If you and your friends can form an alliance with this one then your cause will grow stronger." Mava commented as the flames morphed behind her standing from while Elle listened with her mouth agape in wonderment.
It went without saying that Mai and Ty Lee were relieved to finally hear a mention of someone that wasn't after their little sister's life.
"A hero? Do you hear that Azula-sama? We need to form an alliance with a hero!" Elle piped as she pulled on her girlfriend's sleeve while the older woman smirked over her.
Just as the flames took on the shrouded shape of a smoking woman of Eurasian heritage with a long pony tail while the four highborn women studied the image closely.
"Oh, very well. We will seek out this hero and subjugate her under our command. She will have no choice but to bow before my flames or face extermination." Azula declared in a sadistic voice with a haughty smirk on her lips while her two childhood friends face palmed in unison.
And Zoi herself just gazed on in mild amusement with Elle gazing up at Azula in admiration once more.
"Azula…she said form an alliance with her not strip her of her free will." Ty Lee reminded in her usual voice only for Mai to scoff beside her.
"You may as well save your breath Ty Lee." Mai stated in a deadpan fashion with Ty Lee sighing as she nodded beside her.
"Wise Sage! What is the name of this hero that we must befriend?" Elle chirped in a sweet voice with an eager smile on her lips while Azula still smirked as she scanned her fingernails smugly.
The old woman held an aged finger under her chin while waving her staff in the air to put out the mystic flames.
Smoke rose from the wood stove while the fire died down with no more faces rising from its fading embers.
The sage slowly hobbled forward with the princess still staring at her with annoyed amber golden eyes as she muttered under her breath.
"I believe…it was Sayomi…" Mava answered in a voice of boundless experience while the young blonde now stared on with widened eyes.
The four highborn women gazed on with a still amazed look in their eyes only to turned their heads when they heard the sound of a dish breaking in the corner of the study.
And just like that they all spun around to find that Naoki had abruptly sprung up wide eyed from the cot.
Wide brown eyes were now staring down at the floor while her crimson red hair flowed freely over her upper back.
The surprised group gazed back at the mysterious girl as she wordlessly set her booted feet onto the floor.
While an ominous aura of great power began to emanate from the Naoki's body.
At long last their strange guest had finally awoken.
AN:
In this chapter we saw the first appearance of both Strados and Elle's brother Felix. And the mention of a shadowed third face that Elle has yet to meet.
Also, I wanted to state that Mava's words are not by any means definitive visions in the least.
Her 'gift' has allowed her to see many possible roads that may or may not come to be. In fact, Mava has seen so many roads that she can scarcely make much sense of what she has seen.
As she told Azula, she has seen visions where Azula is defeated by Zuko and never burns brightly again. This was an obvious reference to Azula's canon loss against Zuko. And yet in other visions Azula stood victorious.
The sage has spent many years in a trance being bombarded by one vision after another as she waited for the Component to reappear. All the while slowly losing touch with what is real and what is not.
Because of that, much of what she says is rather hit or miss.
And much of what she says is what she obtains by pulling it from the person she is speaking to. As she did with Elle when it came to Strados and Felix.
However, there are also some things that Mava is dead right on.
One of those details was the character named Vega. Mava didn't really offer much in the way of information, she just said that she was a nihilist that would come for Elle on the forces of darkness.
Vega will be a dangerous enemy. But it will be a long while before we see her. Mava only mentioned her to show Elle that she must conquer her fears of the past to face the enemy to come.
In a way Mava represents for Elle much what the White Lotus and Guru Pathik do for Aang. Her goal is to see that the Component is successful. The only difference being is that unlike in the case of the White Lotus, Mava is just one person.
And probably one of the most curious details from this chapter is Mava's fear of Rieko. Despite never meeting Rieko, she considers her to be a highly dangerous threat. As for what that means, we'll have to wait and see.
And on a lighter note, as we saw with the cherry pit gag the sage does possess a sense of humor.
My intent with the visions was to create a sense of mystical fantasy atmosphere regarding Elle's Component and other forces that are at work.
And to give Azula and Elle a sense that there are many enemies to come that they have to face together.
I am trying to give enough details to give the story a feeling of suspense yet at the same time leaving an aura of intrigue.
And one of the last details is we learned that Rieko is the ruler of Japan.
Elle's world is starkly different from ours, mostly because of the destructive world war three that they endured.
Many governments were toppled in the process and much of the world went through decades of chaos. In the aftermath a conqueror appeared to restore hope and order. And that conqueror is Rieko.
For the time being I won't delve into any further detail regarding what else Rieko rules. I will just say that their world map is not like the one we know.
And then that brings us to Naoki. She has finally awoken and we will get our first meeting with her next chapter.
This massive arc is very much Elle's arc both in terms of her past and present. As a result, while characters like Zoe, Nako, Mai and Ty Lee will certainly have their moments. The main focus is on Elle learning to awaken and begin learning her powers.
For the time being, this chapter was the last of the visions. And then we have three more chapters before we begin the five chapter flashback to Elle's past leading up to the moment when she met Azula in chapter one. And then there will be two Naoki chapters as well where we get to see what she went through.
We're going to meet Elle's parents, Lana and Elias. As well as witness some of her brother's descent into cruelty. We will also see the downfall of Elle's village, Rosewood. And much more.
The chapters are both tragic and painful, but for Elle it will end on a happy note with her coming face to face with Azula.
We're going to witness growth from Elle in this arc. As she comes to terms with being the Component, and as she resolves herself to face her fears. There is a lot that is going to happen. And I hope that everyone enjoys it.
Anyhow, that's all for now.
Stay tuned for next time.
For chapter seventy-five! The Girl Named Naoki!