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Odo Island

"So…Azula and Godzilla."

Team Avatar convened outside of the shrine they were directed towards after the wounded sailor died. The island Elder told them everything about the name "Gojira". It turned out it was the name of a sea monster that called the waters around the island home, with the title "Godzilla" being a more commonly used version that was used to describe the same creature.

Whatever its name was, now they knew the identity of the shipwrecker. The problem was that now they had two problems running around.

"How do we know Azula is even on the island?" Katara threw out, furrowing her brow to try and put the pieces together. "You'd figure somebody would've told us about a member of the Royal Family hiding amongst villagers."

"Technically, the Elder already did."

Aang, Sokka, and Katara quizzically looked towards Toph. "Remember when we asked the Elder if he saw Azula? He was lying when he said he didn't see her."

"Wait a minute, how can-ooooooh…right." Sokka resisted the urge to slap his senses back. Sometimes he forgot they had a living lie detector on the team.

"I don't get it. Why would he lie to us though?" Aang wondered. It didn't seem right. Azula was one of Ozai's most loyal supporters. They'd all seen how the Fire Nation treated its citizens, particularly those at the bottom rung of society. Granted he did get how some nobles could still respect her (Spirits knows the amount of hardliners he had to deal with in Fire Nation court these days), but the peasants?

"It's like you said about those kids at the school, Twinkletoes," Toph nonchalantly stated. "Ozai probably taught everyone that he was the next thing to the Avatar and how practically everyone revolved around him. Chances are that everyone in the Fire Nation thinks that way about nobles like him.

"...what? It's like how my parents handled things back home," she added feeling the rather conspicuous silence towards her insight on how nobility operated.

Katara sighed. "Guess that makes our job harder if she's weaseled her way among them. Maybe we should focus on solving our sea monster problem then. At least wait for her to make some kind of mistake."

"Actually, I think Azula's our biggest concern right now."

Aang looked at Sokka like he grew a second head, prompting the Water Tribe boy to launch into his reasoning. "Look, it sounds to me like this Godzilla is just an animal. Chances are that the ships crossed into his territory, and he reacted accordingly. Not saying we shouldn't deal with him eventually, but at least we can just let Zuko know not to send any more ships into this area. That should keep Godzilla happy until we can get to him.

"Azula on the other hand…we all know what she's like. The longer she walks free, the more time she has to get to one of those rogue army groups, and then we'll have even more problems. Plus we know she's not right in the head, so tracking and taking her in won't be too hard with all of us on board."

"Yeah, but what if Godzilla's attacks start affecting the islanders in some way?" Katara asked.

Her brother just shrugged. "Again. I think he's just another sea monster. We've faced those before. And the only way I see him causing any more problems is if he just started walking on land and smashing stuff. Considering how that would probably cause him to be crushed under his own body weight, I'm not betting he's gonna be an issue right now."

His logic was pretty sound. Aang did notice that the largest animals they encountered were sea creatures like the Unagi, the Sea Serpent, and especially the Lion Turtle. Personally, he didn't like leaving a problem like this feature, but it's not like he could be everywhere at once.

"So, we go after Zuko's crazy sister, then we go monster hunting? Sounds like a plan to me," Toph summed up. Katara wasn't exactly amused by the "crazy" comment nor was she entirely convinced, but she also knew her brother was the mind behind the Black Sun Invasion. If anybody could assess the bigger threat, it was him.

"Alright. I'm gonna go send a message to Zuko to stop ships from entering this area. You guys find the commander in charge of things around here and talk with him. I'll meet up with you later?"

"Sure thing Sokka!" Aang cheerfully said as they set out on their tasks. Momo glided from a nearby tree to hitch a ride on Sokka's head, eliciting a rather frustrated sigh from the brains of the group.

Beneath all the cheeriness though, they were all on guard. Azula wasn't exactly one you should have your guard down around, and knowing her, she could be anywhere on the island. Hopefully, they could drag her out of her hole before she was able to poison the whole island against them.

Azula wished that she could personally poison whoever thought digging the hole she was hiding in counted as some kind of cave.

Besides, it's not like they would've helped to hide her from the Avatar. She tried to tell Elder Yamane that they had an earthbender that could sense underground features like a painfully obvious tunnel system. This would be the first place they'd look. Or barring that, the Avatar could bring down the tunnel system on top of them, burying them alive. Probably would chalk it up as rooting out a smuggler's den.

Too bad the only thing being stored here was the amount of fish they were harboring which reeks. Either that or it was the remnants of seawater that had dried out. Maina had graciously given her some replacement clothes to get herself out of. It was a simple red and salmon-colored traveler's robe. A far cry from what she was used to, but at least it wasn't prison garb.

She also offered to do the Princess's hair into her signature topknot, but Azula wouldn't let her lay a finger on it. As much as it pained her to walk around with her hair all disheveled as it was during the Comet, she didn't trust the stranger enough to handle her looks.

Not that she looked like much anyway. Without the topknot or her lipstick, she looked like every other peasant walking through these tunnels. It pained her. Made her feel weak. And the last thing you wanted to feel when being hunted was weak.

The best she could do was busy herself by scoping the area out. Not much more to look at though. None of the peasants struck her as too out of the ordinary and all they were harboring was racks of fish…

"What's with all the fish?" she wondered out loud to nobody in particular. It didn't seem like they were suffering from a famine.

"Commander Maoso's stealing all the fish we've been catching. Or what little's out there nowadays. Keeps saying 'We need to stock up for the reinforcements that are coming.' Easy for him to say. So we've been stockpiling food so we don't starve. Especially if things are about to get real bad," an older man told her, cleaning what looked like a rather toothy herring.

Azula looked at him rather quizzically. "Reinforcements? Why's the island being reinforced when the war's over?"

All she got was an exasperated shrug. "I don't know. Something's going down with the colonies or whatever. All I know is I'm staying out of it. Had enough fill of bloodshed during my service." He chopped the herring's head off as he said this, causing juice to spurt out.

He looked a bit sheepishly at Azula. "Eh, sorry if it's not a pretty sight."

Azula didn't respond. Conflict? Involving the Fire Nation's colonies in the Earth Kingdom? A pit opened up in her stomach. Several of the major clans had put a lot of their wealth and resources into the colonies. If something was happening there…

…hang on a minute.

"You served in the Fire Nation army?" she asked, not exactly looking impressed by his rather laidback demeanor. Nothing screamed "I was a proud member of the strongest military force in the world" at her with his hunched shoulders and weathered apron.

"Yeah. I'm…not exactly the picture of manliness aren't I?" he jokingly said. "See…my leg was crippled during a push towards Omashu. Higher-ups said I wasn't fit for duty and just sent me home. Heh. So much for being the soldier the Fire Lord wanted me to be."

You only get pride once you've earned it, Ozai bitterly spat out. Azula couldn't agree more. You were supposed to lay down your life for your country and people. Not just get sent back home because you broke your leg. And what was that nonsense about having "enough fill of bloodshed"? The way he talked, it sounded like he enjoyed being dishonorably discharged.

He was lucky Azula, her mother's voice told her. Lu Ten and those on the boat weren't.

For once, Ursa's words snapped her back to reality. It was then she noticed the crutches by the man's feet. Guess she must've missed those. Still, she wanted to say something about how…content he seemed having his destiny taken from him. How could he be so…so…

Her mind flashed with screaming and an outreached hand…and all at once Azula wondered if he'd been just a bit unluckier, they wouldn't be having this conversation.

…

She walked away, unable to look him in the eye. He was a mediocre man. Plain and simple. She didn't need luck. She never needed luck. Everything she was, she accomplished on her own. Nobody could argue otherwise.

Still…looking around her, she wondered just how many of these men were amongst these people. How many duties left unfinished because of fate? Now doomed to live like everyone else because of their failure? Left to rot and be abandoned?

Just like you? the three voices that were not her parents asked.

"...no." Azula knew her duty, and right now it was to find out what was going on. Now with purpose in her mind, she walked towards the exit of the caves, where she exited with the old man and Maina to visit the temple.

Speaking of, she felt a hand on her shoulder and a voice in her ear. "Look, if you're gonna go out, take this."

Turning around, Azula saw a heavy dark red cloak being offered by the native girl. Quizzically, she took the robe and fastened it on her shoulders, letting the cape fall to the earth. The weight was…comfortable. It didn't compare to her royal armor, but it was a start.

All she had to ask though is, "...aren't you gonna stop me?"

Maina shrugged. "If I did, I wouldn't be able to. But I'm not letting you walk out in broad daylight alone." She lifted her staff on her shoulders as if it were some kind of weapon.

Azula coyly smirked. "You know, for somebody who doesn't like me, you're doing a lot to keep me out of trouble."

"Let's just say it's an old saying back on my island. Now come on. I'll take you to the harbor. Chances are the Commander's down there like he always is trying to take these people's fish."

Realizing she wasn't going to get rid of her newfound "friend" any time soon and not really in the mood for an argument, Azula followed Maina out of the caves. Having someone who knew these islands could be useful after all.

Odo Island was…rather appealing. Of course, it didn't compare to the beauty of Ember Island or any of the abodes doting the waters around Caldera's influence, but the Princess supposed it was pretty for an offbeat, underdeveloped locale. The village was quaint, populated by wooden huts surrounded by dense jungles and sparkling sapphire waters. Too bad there wasn't a beach here, though she supposed the natives could just leap off the docks and cool off in the waters of the shore.

Quite frankly, the only thing telling her this was Fire Nation was the naval yard towards the other side of the island. In the distance, she could see the imposing fort, with the frames of large ships being docked in the military-controlled portion of the bay. Drifts of smoke climbed into the air, marking where no doubt the local foundry was producing steel. Probably just enough to patch up the ships as opposed to one of the more industrialized shipyards back toward the capital. It stood out in contrast with the rustic feel of the village, blackened steel interrupting the jungle landscape.

Azula did vaguely recall that her father ordered a small base be constructed here. Officially it was to bolster their defenses to repel a probable counterattack from the savages of the North following Zhao's disastrous siege. Unofficially, given what she'd seen, she began to wonder if they were also here to keep an eye on more…local threats.

The garrison here wasn't afraid of throwing their weight around, that's for sure. Azula and Maina had to bob and weave from dirt road to dirt road, dodging frequent guard patrols. Naturally, her mind wondered if they were looking for her, but that didn't make too much sense. After all, she only just got here and nobody aside from those in the Dragon's Caves knew she was here. Still, she wasn't ready to judge just how much of her uncle's lies these men and women were willing to buy up.

She snarled. As much as she despised her brother currently, it wouldn't surprise her if her dear beloved Uncle Fatso had something more to do with her being shoved into an asylum for…how long has it been? 4, 5 months maybe? Long enough for her to become a bit skinnier than she remembered going in, something she was painfully aware of when trying to keep up with a concerned Maina.

The all-too-familiar aching in her muscles didn't exactly help matters either. Guess it was going to take them a little bit of time to get used to freedom.

Maina at least was a little help in that regard, always stopping and going slow to make sure the Princess could keep up. If only Zuko could see her skulking around in the alleys being outpaced by a peasant. She'd never be able to live that down. Add it to the pile of indignities she's had to suffer this year.

Didn't make it any less painful when they arrived at the docks. Or rather, Maina pulled Azula out of the sunshine and the two crept behind in the shadows of some of the stalls amidst the now thoroughly aggravating stench of fish. Granted it was to avoid the crowd of commoners and soldiers making their way amidst the food stalls, but still.

They stopped at the corner of a stall, looking around the corner to see a…well Azula wouldn't say well-to-do but certainly less dirty-looking than the other fisherman. Must've been the harbormaster. The other though had the unmistakable armor of a commander surrounded by a few firebenders and what she guessed was a lieutenant. This must've been this Commander Maoso she had heard about.

"You're short on your quota. Again," he threatened, a bit of a growl in his voice. He did seem especially tall with an impatient weathered face. Azula pegged him as a longtime veteran. Made her wonder why somebody like him was doing here.

The harbormaster shrugged. "And again, there's not enough fish in the sea! Something down there's either scaring them off or eating them! I can't exactly give you any more fish without causing our people to starve!" he fired back, shaking a fish net that wasn't particularly full to get the point across.

Course anybody who spent any time with the military knew it was a phenomenally stupid idea to talk back to an official. Especially one backed up by a whole squadron of firebenders. Something that Maoso understood completely as he stalked forward, practically pushing the harbormaster to the wall of the stall. "We have a lot more issues than a few people going hungry. We're standing on the brink of war with the Earth Kingdom AND we have rebel armies patrolling these waters. Do you want protection? You better start coughing up the fish. Otherwise…well I can't exactly station more troops here without the food to support them."

He let out a small flicker of flame from his knuckles to illustrate the point, before nodding to his forces to let the harbormaster go. The native scowled, but didn't challenge his better in the face of violence, only muttering under his breath, "Armies are the least of your problems right now…"

Azula wasn't impressed by Maoso's display. If she were in his shoes, she would've pointed out how the harbormaster wasn't exactly in a position to bargain, maybe casually saying something about feeding him to whatever's down there so it could chew on him and not the fish. Not wave fire around his face. Often it was the more implicit threat of violence that worked wonders. That way once you started throwing fire around when you needed to, that would terrify people since they weren't used to it.

Though to be honest, the idea of throwing the harbormaster to the sea monster was…not particularly pleasant at the moment.

Her face darkened. People died all the time in the war. Why was she so hung up about some guards dying in front of her eyes then? She almost killed the Avatar, so what was the difference?

"Commander Maoso?"

Speaking of…

Azula and Maina ducked behind the stall when she heard the infuriatingly cheerful greeting that could've come from the Avatar. Suddenly the Commander's demeanor changed in an instant, going from dark to something approaching pleasant. He gave an order to his lieutenant, a Kazuma from the sound of things, to continue his patrol around the village. Not wanting to stick around any longer, both the girls nodded to one another and made a stealthy retreat out of the docks.

Well, THIS complicates things, Azula silently mused to herself. She didn't expect the Avatar and his friends to arrive so quickly. No doubt sent by her brother to chain her back up again. Her mind still shivered with the memories, as well as her body from the sheer cold she felt that moment and the lack of air from being frozen…

"You okay?" Maina whispered.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Let's…let's just head back," Azula responded, not wanting to stay around too much longer, following her lead and slinking back into the alleys.

"It's the Avatar, isn't it?" the other girl correctly deduced.

"Yeah, I'd rather not deal with them right now." And that was true. Azula didn't tell Maina that she wasn't confident she could take them in a fight. She wasn't exactly at her 100%, and she wasn't exactly allowed to practice at the asylum. A fight with the whole team would put her at a huge disadvantage. Right now she needed to get away, maybe bide her time and figure out her next move.

Maina on the other hand, looked her straight in the eye and gravely asked, "Do you really believe that? With…you know…him out there?"

Azula…couldn't answer that. On the one hand, she knew the Avatar and what he and his friends were capable of. Stripping a man of his bending, exploiting their enemies' weakness, stooping to any low to get an advantage. They were capable of a lot.

…she wondered though how much that would compare to what something like Godzilla was capable of.

Aang had relocated with the Commander to a nearby hut used to store netting and boat supplies to explain their concerns. Or rather, Sokka who had just arrived from the rookery to prevent him from blurting out how they think the crazy princess was on the island for practically everyone in the dock to hear relocated them. He also muttered something about "I turn my back for one minute," while herding them into the small shed.

Good thing then that the rest of Team Avatar spent some time asking at the fort about where Commander Maoso was. Otherwise, they'd fall into that old trap of doing stuff without thinking it through.

As for Maoso himself, he seemed a little annoyed about having effectively been shoved around. Even gave Sokka a death glare as the tribesman shoved him into a rickety building.

Annoyance gave way to concern though when Aang and the others told their story. "So…the Princess could be on the island," he mused, furrowing his brow into deep thought. "And how can you be so sure she's here and not out in the ocean."

"Well…we just figured if she was still alive, she'd end up here. We can't say for certain, but at the very least you should be made aware of the possibility."

The Commander closed his eyes to process the information a bit. Nervously, Aang and Katara shared a bit of a glance. They hadn't seen his face before, but by now everyone knew his type. And indeed, it did feel a little surreal being…while not casual with him, but at the very least in a conversation with him without the fear of getting captured or killed.

"Alright. I'll let my troops know to keep an eye out," Maoso concluded. "If it's anything, we've been having a bit of a supply issue around here. I don't think the villagers are being especially truthful about a few things, and I aim to get to the bottom of it. I'll let you know if I find anything."

"Sure thing Commander Maoso," Aang said. They exchanged bows with the Fire Nation leader before stepping aside to let him out of the admittedly rather crowded shed.

As his armored footsteps faded, Toph coughed. "Okay. I didn't even need to check your heart rate to tell you were keeping something, Twinkletoes."

Aang chuckled a little nervously. "Look Toph. We managed to get him on board so-"

"Why not tell him what the Elder told us about Azula? You know, that way if she's using these people as a shield we can just get Maoso to force them to cough her up."

"Toph, think about what you're saying," Katara carefully said. "I've been looking around and those soldiers don't seem like the ones we should sic on the villagers. We do that, and we could just be making things worse."

"Plus, I…don't think he's somebody we should trust. I mean, what are the chances he served under Ozai? Or how he's different from every other Fire Nation army leader we've faced in the past?" Aang pointed out.

"I hate to be that guy, but Zuko's in charge now. I don't think this Maoso would pull anything without him hearing about it. I mean he did promise to restructure the military so a lot of old warmongerers get booted out."

Sokka…did have a point admittedly. The whole point of Zuko being Fire Lord was to make sure the Fire Nation could change for the better.

"Well…yeah. But I don't exactly want to put the villagers on the spot just because Azula's using them. There's got to be another way."

The blind girl just sighed. "Look Twinkletoes. You can't make everyone happy. These guys are harboring Zuko's crazy sister and I don't think they're gonna give her up without a fight. Remember what I said about standing your ground and what you believe in? Well, this is one of those times."

A creeping realization crept up Aang's back. Toph, blunt as she was, wasn't entirely wrong either. Either they make the villagers unhappy, or they let Azula walk free. And the latter was just too big of a threat to leave unattended for long.

It's just…going up against villagers? They were the ones the Avatar was supposed to protect. Not give the Fire Nation a go-ahead to begin checking their houses for fugitives. Stuff like that was supposed to end with the war.

"Well, how about we go to that exorcism ritual Elder Yamane mentioned?" Katara suggested, catching everyone's attention. "I mean maybe if we make an appearance and get to know the people, they'll be able to trust us a bit better. Maybe they'll give us a hint to where she's hiding so we can take her on our own. She just got here so it's not like she's gotten to them too deeply already."

"That's…a good idea actually," Sokka admitted, feeling more than a little embarrassed that his sister just came up with a better plan than he had at the moment. Toph shrugged, which was about as much approval as you could get from her.

Aang was just thankful that the waterbender was able to bail him out like that. Though he also knew what was on her mind. The last thing Katara wanted was for Fire Nation soldiers to begin stomping around the village looking for somebody. Nobody should have to go through that. Not again…

He made a point to talk to her when they had the time. Right now though, Team Avatar made their way out of the shack. Off in the distance, the sun was inching closer to the west, casting its golden rays on the horizon.

Night was coming soon, and everyone needed to be ready. There's no telling what Azula was up to being left to her own devices.

The sun was beginning to descend from the sky as Azula and Maina returned to the Dragon's Cave deep within a patch of jungle, hidden from the rest of the village. Thick trees and brush obscured the cave entrance, which itself would probably look like any other natural tunnel that sometimes dotted remote islands such as Oda.

Of course, any other ordinary tunnel wouldn't have a few people milling about the entrance, no doubt keeping an eye on the trail for any incoming soldiers. Azula saw a few men lounging about, their stances and semi-professional demeanor reminding her of what you would've expected from the military. Probably more disgraces that carry themselves like they were something since why were they here instead of the military?

Then there was Elder Yamane talking to a man in Fire Nation armor-

Azula ducked to the side and grabbed Maina, hoping the guard hadn't noticed them come up. Peeking out from the side, she could see that he was alone. Chances were he was just a stray patrol that noticed the people surrounding the cave entrance. Great. Now her hiding spot was compromised since a guard here only meant-

"Relax, Princess. He's one of us," Maina gently said, managing to slip her way rather easily out of Azula's grip and walking right up to the guard. For a moment Azula got Ty Lee flashbacks given how slippery she proved to be, but she just chalked it up to her weakened muscles making life more difficult for her.

Before she could yank the native from revealing her position, Maina politely bowed before the soldier. Azula noticed that he was the lieutenant from the docks, a young man from the looks of things. Maybe barely out of his teens. Not old enough to have seen any action. Probably got stationed here as a favor from whatever noble house he came from. What was his name again? Kazuma?

"Nice to see you again Maina," he greeted cheerfully, giving a respectful bow in return. This honestly astounded Azula since any self-respecting soldier knew you shouldn't make yourself look as weak as the commoners you were supposed to protect and rule over. Otherwise, how were you going to be respected by those who were your lessers? "I was just bringing some people here who wanted to take shelter. Patrols are getting more intense so I figured I'd escort them so old Maoso wouldn't expect anything else but an interrogation."

Indeed, Azula's attention was drawn to a group of peasants who were making their way inside the cave. Admittedly the lieutenant's cover was…well she wouldn't say clever since what was the point of hiding out in a cave when the local commander was already dressing people down for supposedly stealing fish? Still, it was a respectable effort.

"Ah! Greetings Princess Azula! Elder Yamane told me about you!"

…and she needed to relearn how to be a bit more discreet when you're taking notice of the situation.

Maina and Kazuma gave each other one more bow before the former wandered off into the brush, probably going to do whatever commoners did whenever they had too much free time on their hands. As for Azula, she cautiously emerged from her hiding space, giving the nearby Yamane a bit of a death glare. "I had to, Your Highness. Kazuma here is a liaison between us and the garrison. He's probably the only higher-up there that treats us with any sort of respect."

"A pleasure to make your acquaintance, Princess," Kazuma greeted, giving a formal bow to her presence. Azula just stared. She inwardly admitted that at least these people were consistently giving her some respect as befitting of a member of the Royal Family. Guess the news about her…"incident" hadn't reached the ears this far out into Fire Nation territory.

Still, the opportunity allowed her to fall into her usual routine. "Lieutenant. How come these people want to hide out inside these caves?" Wasn't sure how much authority she truly had nowadays, but that didn't mean she wasn't going to demand some form of respect.

Kazuma looked a little sheepishly, obviously not knowing how to respond. "Well you see…they're all concerned about Godzilla, Your Highness. Word travels fast around here and a lot of people have been wanting to get to safety. I've been doing what I can to help them out."

There was that name again. Godzilla. Given the use of the more common form, Azula pegged him as not being from the island, but he did seem familiar with the beast. Makes sense. A monster like anything that she had seen probably would have more than a few legends about it throughout the islands.

Still, Azula had to ask. "Why? It's a sea monster. Surely it wouldn't be able to crawl onto land." Sure it was terrifying, but anyone with a cursory knowledge of how marine animals operated should know it would be difficult for a creature of that size to be able to transition onto land.

Yamane and Kazuma exchanged glances before the older man spoke. "Trust us. Gojira is not one you should underestimate. The old legends say that once he's chased the fish and evildoers from the sea, he will follow them on land to finish the job. Nobody wants to be in his way when that happens."

"Well, in that case, the garrison should be able to take care of him. Shouldn't they?" Azula wasn't sure if she was asking them this, or herself. As terrible as the carnage from the previous night was, that was just a naval patrol. Surely a garrison would be able to subdue any animal that could come on to land.

At least she hoped she sounded convincing to herself. Given what she saw though…she wasn't sure.

Elder Yamane though had seen right through her. "I think we both know the answer to that Princess Azula. If I were you, I'd make shelter here in the caves with us."

Honestly, she did want to argue that no matter who they followed right now, the Fire Nation military was unstoppable. They were the strongest military might in the world.

She couldn't though. Something in her gut prevented her from launching into a defense of what she knew. And when her emotions superseded what she knew to be right…that never sat well with her.

Nodding to herself, she turned away from the cave entrance and away from Yamane and Kazuma, who went about the business of getting the newcomers settled into their current abode for the foreseeable future. She needed to clear her head. Maybe get some alone time or a bit of space to calm her racing thoughts. It was bad enough that the Avatar was on the island looking for her. Bad enough that somehow she needed to get off this island and get back out there. Possibly try to take back the throne that was stolen from her so that things couldn't get much worse.

Then there was this monster thrown into the mix of things. Great. Just one more thing to worry about.

Not much she could do now though aside from strolling a bit in the nearby trees. She felt her cape snag on a bush or two, but at least it kept her focused on something that wasn't her mind. It…admittedly wasn't too bad out here. Apart from the distant bustle of the peasants back at the entrance of the Dragon's Cave, there wasn't a whole lot of noise. Just the chirping of birds and the buzzing of insects.

Then she heard a girl's voice. More importantly, she heard the words dancing in the air.

"Of forgotten kindness

And ruined spirits

We pray for the people's spirit"

She didn't catch the rest of it, but it sounded almost like a prayer. Coming out of the brush, she saw Maina kneeling under the branches of a tree resting on a hill. Down below, you could see the distant huts of the village and the steely walls of the fortress. Farther out to sea, the sun was sinking further into the sea.

Azula also saw lights at the shrine high up on the hills of the island. That's where they must've been preparing the exorcism ceremony. Admittedly, a part of her was a bit curious as to how such a ritual would be played out, but she also knew that the Avatar and his cronies would probably be there looking for her. Maybe if she watched from a distance, she would get the gist of it…

Speaking of rituals, her attention was drawn to the swaying branches above Maina's head. The native girl had her eyes closed, her hands clasped around that strange stony amulet that hung around her neck. She almost seemed to be in a trance. And if Azula didn't know any better, it almost seemed like a soft breeze was swirling around her. Could've just been the light playing tricks on her though.

"You know, prayers aren't going to be much help out here," Azula stated rather bluntly.

Maina sighed a bit from being rudely interrupted. "Maybe if you tried praying, you wouldn't be looking over your shoulder again and again."

"Hey, if it keeps me safe, that's what I'm gonna do," the Princess replied, sitting right next to the girl and staring out into the sunset. Quite frankly, her muscles needed the rest and a good view would be a nice bonus.

They sat in silence a bit, neither one not knowing how to speak. When…when was the last time Azula just sat with somebody? Not a doctor or a guard or anything. Just…something a bit more casual. Or approaching casual if nothing else. The native certainly had every opportunity to expose her to the Avatar or betray her to the guards. Neither was she particularly intimidated by the Princess if she was brave enough to bite back like that.

It didn't calm her nerves either way. Mai was like that, and look how well that ended up.

Maybe it's not a question of when she'll betray you and more of IF she'll betray you. It was only a matter of time before Mai and Ty Lee wouldn't take how you treated them after all, Mother said.

"No…not again…not ever again…"

"What was that?"

"Nothing!" Azula quickly snapped. Not that it helped since she could feel Maina's worried expression judging the threat level. Great. Now she knew she was crazy as well.

"...look, if you need to talk, I'm a-"

"I can take care of myself, thank you," she lied. The last thing she needed was for some peasant to start pitying her. No. Pity led to sympathy and sympathy led to letting your guard down and letting your guard down…

"Alright. Jeeze. Just…if you need to talk, I'm right here," Maina offered.

Right. Like you need any advice from some backwater native, Father sneered. And he was right. If Azula was going to figure things out, she was gonna have to do it on her own. Like she always had. Otherwise, that meant putting your trust in others. And the more you put faith in the goodness of others, the more you were asking to be betrayed.

Still…

"...what was that prayer?" she asked curiously. She didn't care too much about what it was about, but at least if she could feign interest she could get some kind of positivity out of this.

Maina seemed a little surprised but didn't hesitate to answer. "It's a prayer of peace from my island. They say that whenever there is to be a battle or a conflict, we should pray for both ourselves and our enemies. So when the fighting ended, we can search for understanding and hope that things would never come to pass that way again."

Sentimentality. Perfect. She and the Avatar would be best friends. Chances are wherever this island was, it must've been pretty sheltered from the war to believe that drivel.

Not like you. You know what it means to fight, Ty Lee snickered.

She might as well lay down and die right now. Let's see her talk all about peace once the fighting reaches her island, Mai mused.

You either die for peace or survive to fight another day. That's how the world works. Isn't that right, Sister? Zuko commented, using a title she hadn't heard in so long.

As much as it pained her though, they were right. Maina was too weak to believe in that sort of nonsense. Weak enough to believe that peace was possible. Azula knew the truth though. Just beyond the horizon in the Earth Kingdom, she could just imagine that Earth King marching his armies right up to the colonies, waiting to undo everything so many had died to achieve.

Still…she didn't say anything outside of, "That's awfully optimistic of you."

Maina shrugged. "Well, I'm an optimistic person. There's good in everyone after all."

Azula almost snickered. The fool wouldn't be saying that if she knew the Princess at all.

She kept her thoughts to herself though. Honestly, she was too tired to argue anymore. She just watched the sunset, already making plans to go see the ritual from a distance.

All the while, Maina resumed her prayer.

"If we were to call for help

Over time

Over sea

Like a wave

You'd come

Our guardian angel"

It was right before the ceremony was to start that Aang peeled away from the team with Katara. They found a spot secluded among the trees, hidden from peering eyes. Now that they were alone, they had some time to talk.

"Aang…are we doing the right thing with?" Katara asked, her voice hushed so nobody could hear.

"I mean, we can't exactly let Azula walk free."

"That's not what I'm talking about. I'm talking about working with this Maoso guy and the military. Are we really going to let them push the villagers around if she's hiding amongst them?"

A sigh left Aang's lips. "Well, I don't like it either but…"

"...but what?"

"I don't know. All I know is that the world needs a moment or two to catch its breath, and it can't do that when people like Azula walk free," Aang told both his partner and himself.

Katara didn't seem entirely convinced, and he understood why. After all, it wasn't the first time they were faced with the possibility of the Fire Nation marching through the streets and threatening to set everything on fire…

"We'll handle it ourselves," Aang said firmly. "We're gonna have to hand her over to Maoso eventually, but we'll try to do it ourselves first."

"No, I mean, what about us?"

Her blue eyes captured the Avatar's focus, filled with what he knew was worry. "I get Zuko's in charge now and he's changed, but that doesn't mean everyone in the Fire Nation has changed too. How many generals are we going to have to work with who did who knows what during the war? We can't just let them do whatever they want now that the war's over."

"And we won't. We're going to give the territory they stole back to the Earth Kingdom, and Zuko's going to restructure the army. It's not like we're letting them act like they won."

"Yet the peace talks with Kuei and the others keep falling into fighting. Arnook won't even talk with Zuko in charge before these trials, and…I knew things weren't going to be easy. But it feels like everywhere we look, there's going to be more fighting. I just…"

She looked away. "I just don't know if I can forgive them. If they won't change, then what's the point of trying to make peace?"

Realization dawned on him, causing him to wrap an arm around her shoulders. "It's okay. Just…trust me on this. I don't think either of us wants to be fighting the Fire Nation for the rest of our lives. The monks always told me that seeing the good in our enemies is one of the toughest challenges in the world. Sometimes it doesn't necessarily mean forgiveness. It just means when you know when to stop fighting."

"Heh. I'll take your word for it. I think I'm just a little worn out from everything. Honestly, I'm just a bit eager for some more alone time between just us, you know?" she said with a flirtatious smirk, causing Aang to blush.

Turns out that saving the world made you a bit more fortunate for those who cared that deeply about you. And made those private moments all the more sweeter when they got away from everything. "Don't worry. The whole world's not enough to keep us apart." He kissed her on the cheek to drive the point home, much to her enjoyment.

"HEY LOVEBIRDS! If you two are done, we've got a ceremony you want to see. Which I might add, you two wanted to see."

And with that, their romantic moment was interrupted by the blind girl who they swore made it a profession to keep them from going too lovey-dovey. Mind you, they didn't try to be obnoxious about it, but they swore Toph had some kind of secret sense she was keeping from them that let her know when they were getting close. Katara had to remind Sokka one of these days to keep the earthbender in check. Not that it would do any good since chances were her brother was encouraging this sort of behavior.

Regardless, Aang and Katara sheepishly followed Toph into the gathering crowd outside of the temple. Torches ringed the outside of the courtyard, all awaiting eyes being drawn towards the doors. There was a sizable…thing that somebody had wheeled at the footsteps of the stairs, but it was draped over with leather. Must've been some kind of figurine for an occasion like this. Before it were two braziers, each with some kind of special powder.

The two lovers and Toph joined Sokka where he was sitting among a few villagers close to the front. He gave his sister an annoyed look, but Katara just shrugged nonchalantly. Who was going to stop her from having a moment for herself and her boyfriend?

Aang was just relieved to be sitting amongst the villagers who didn't seem too bothered that the most important person in the world was amongst them. Granted there WAS a bit of formality when they first arrived, but when word spread about what was going on in the seas, everyone started to loosen up and relax around him a bit. Looking around, nobody seemed to do a double take seeing the arrow on his forehead. Suited him just fine to be part of the crowd for once. Honestly, he wished he had more opportunities like this.

Leaning back, he watched as the doors opened, the shrine maiden Nami walking forward and standing in front of the covered figure.

"People of Odo Island," she began. "I come forward before you today for a solemn occasion. The great beast, Gojira, has awoken from his slumber once more."

A silent hush fell upon the crowd. Team Avatar felt a cold chill run down their spines. That name. Every time they heard it, it seemed as though the world stopped turning, almost afraid to move forward to avoid some terrible fate. There were a few names that they knew of that held this sort of power. Ozai and Azula were two. Now there was this Gojira that almost seemed to rule this island from the mere mention of its name alone.

Gojira. Godzilla. How many names did he have? Aang felt certain he knew of at least a few. The names Gigantis or Koshira came to mind, but he didn't know how he knew them. Well no, he was certain that he heard them in one of his past lives thanks to the Avatar Cycle. What he did know was that every time it was uttered, it carried with it the weight of familiarity. He made a note to remind himself to try and speak with Roku or the other Avatars about what they knew about them.

"In times past, the people of Odo performed this sacred exorcism ceremony to quell his anger and bring safety to our people." As she said this, a group of robed men wearing masks of stylized human faces walked onto the courtyard and took their positions.

Nami raised her arms and looked to the sky, speaking to some unseen deity high in the heavens. "Oh, Gojira, Last of the Dragons. God of Destruction. Wielder of the Sapphire Flame. We hope that in humbling ourselves before you and showing our respect for the old ways that many have forgotten, you may stay your wrath and spare our people. Let us be joined in prayer, in hopes that out of the darkness, a new and brighter world for all will arise from the chaos."

As she said this, one of the men removed the robes and unveiled the figurine. It was made of straw and a little crude. But its image was unmistakable. Especially as another man lifted his arms and lit the braziers with firebending.

Aang, Katara, and Sokka flinched as blue fires roared to life, the memories of the mad Princess resurfacing. The powders must've made the fire blue, illuminating the straw figure. It stood on two legs, with a tapering tail trailing behind it. Sharpened stones ran down its back and tipped its arms and feet, creating dorsal spines and claws.

It was him.

Gojira.

Godzilla.

And so the ceremony began. Natives with instruments began playing a ritualistic song as the robed men danced both in silence and in synchrony. The blue flames caused the shadows to dance off of the figurine's body, making it almost seem alive.

Team Avatar couldn't help but exchange glances. They knew Azula was the reason they were here…but this spirit…no, this god made its presence unmistakable.

Hopefully, they can find her quickly so they can return and lay this legend to rest.

From the trees, Azula watched the almost hypnotic dance. She saw the villagers watch. There were so many as if the whole village were here. Made her wonder if this ceremony served as a cover for the rest to evacuate to the caves without Maoso noticing.

She spotted the Avatar and his friends of course. Probably came here looking for her.

More importantly, she saw the straw Godzilla, bathed in blue fire.

Her fire.

"Don't see anything like this back home, don't you?" Maina silently commented, watching the ritual play out. The Princess couldn't argue against this. Rituals like this were supposed to be outlawed, particularly if they weren't sanctioned by the Fire Sages. To think these peasants held just as much stock in a beast as they did the Fire Lord almost seemed blasphemous.

Then again, what she saw was more than worthy of respect.

She was going to say that they shouldn't rely on prayers alone. Only Fire Nation steel could stop this beast. And yet, she remembered the screaming. The carnage…

Her mind began to weigh the odds. There was a garrison here to be sure, but things were coming back to her now. Odo Island. Didn't Father say he was going to set up an observation base here following the disappearance of Admiral Koga? And if this Godzilla was responsible for Koga's death, then that meant Maoso likely was here for it as well as secure their borders. Or at least to figure out what was going on here.

A thought occurred to her, seeing the snarling visage of the monster down below. A naval battle group couldn't stop it…

…so what chance did a garrison have?

At once, Azula nodded and turned back, making her way back into the trees. "Princess? What are you doing?" Maina harshly whispered, trying to keep up with Azula's newfound stride.

"I need to warn Maoso. Get him to pull his forces back to the interior. If what you said was true, there's no way they can stop it," Azula bluntly said.

Suddenly, she felt herself being yanked around and staring into the concerned eyes of Maina. "Hang on! You go to the fort, you're going to get arrested! The Avatar will know you're here and-"

"You didn't see him. I did," Azula shot back. "So if you'll excuse me, I'm going to prevent this commander from making a huge mistake." She wrenched herself free, falling back into her stride as she marched into the woods.

"And do you honestly believe that they're going to listen to you? You're not exactly on the Fire Nation's most respected list anymore if you haven't noticed!"

"So what's your idea? Hide out cowering in a cave waiting for the monster at the door to go away? No. That's not how we do things. In case you haven't noticed, I don't wait for the problem to show up. If you want to hide amongst smelly peasants, that's fine with me. It suits you. I on the other hand am a Princess. And I'm going to do what Father trained me to do. If people want to stop me? Fine. Let them try."

With that, Azula stomped off, not listening anymore to Maina's protests. Forget whatever this ignorant peasant tried to tell her. She didn't know what it meant to lead. And right now, she needed to warn the Commander, even if it killed her.

Her purpose was clear, and it filled her with long-lost strength. She marched forward into the empty village and towards the fort. These soldiers wanted her so bad? Fine. They were going to get her.

Hopefully, they had enough sense to see that there was something a lot bigger on the horizon than just a girl like her.

Momo yawned from his usual spot on top of Appa's head. Ever since Aang had let them down on the cliff overlooking the sea this morning, there wasn't much to do except eat fruit, lounge about, or maybe kill some time air surfing the waves down below.

Not that he minded though. Honestly, he felt both he and the Sky Bison deserved a break from that little stunt the airbender pulled today with the…whatever that thing in the water was. Seriously. Would it kill him not to be a hero every waking second? It felt like they were babysitting him at this point.

Course Appa was a bit more relaxed than he was with the whole ordeal. Figures. You end up in an iceberg and spend an extended period by yourself and suddenly you realize that danger and your partner go hand in hand. Guess that's what you get when you were practically grown up together.

The lemur looked out to see and away from the island. Maybe if he just watched the waves and not thought about the boy who kept trying to get himself killed, he could doze off. Yeah…watching the waves was-

A sudden jerk from Appa ruined Momo's concentration and any chance of an easy night's sleep. The lemur was about to jitter in annoyance, maybe screeching into the bison's ear to make him how it feels to not sleep for once when he heard a panicked bellow erupt from the larger animal's maw.

The first thought Momo had was Azula. He knew the female that his friends had so much trouble with was on the island. But when he smelt the air, looking for her awfully familiar scent, he didn't smell anything.

Well, no. He did smell something, but it most assuredly wasn't the Princess.

It was…old. Drenched in seawater, yet the lingering scents seemed to mix up together. It almost smelled like an island. Almost like…like the Lion Turtle! That's it.

But…far older…

And…there was power behind it…

Looking out to sea, Momo got a feeling of dread. And he wasn't alone either. Flocks of birds were disturbed from the roosts, and Appa couldn't settle down.

Something was coming.

Something…big.

Mosasaurs, like all sea animals, had an innate understanding of the waters of the ocean. Probably far better than most humans. So when the old buck found a relatively slow area of water to rest for the night, he was more than happy to let himself drift in the still, peaceful gloom.

Course it wasn't true sleep. He had to keep a little bit of himself awake of course. Yet his eyes were unfocused, his muscles relaxed. It was as close to sleep as a mosasaur could get. He floated close to the surface so he could just pop his head up and get a gulp of air before resuming his rest. The dark waters below stretched out, but he wasn't worried. Experience told him the only things down there could easily make for a nice meal. And if another predator entered the area…well there was a reason an animal like him got old.

For now, though, he was happy to rest and let his belly digest the meal from today. Inwardly he wondered when he would have to move on with the others. He had to follow his primary source of food in the plesiosaurs. But the recent influx of food from the wreckage meant he was more than happy to just lounge around and let himself rest for a bit. Maybe in the morning, he would make the trip.

Silently, his eyes drifted off into the gloom, the sea reptile allowing himself to relax…

…the mountain peaks drifting through the water though caused his muscles to work into overdrive. His powerful tail propelled him through the sea, and away from what he knew to be the true apex predator of these waters. To challenge it would be suicide.

Not that the apex was interested in him of course. Like all sea animals, the giant had an innate understanding of the waters of the ocean. Probably far better than most humans. So when it sensed the ashes of a nearby foundry, it got its attention.

Its attention was further piqued the more it swam closer to the source. And with it…his anger grew.

He knew the smell. He knew the signs of disturbed waters of Fire Nation boats. And he knew they were in the area. Once more he had to expand his patrol area, not wanting to take one more chance. The last time he allowed himself to relax, the moon nearly died and the world with it.

Not this time.

The Comet came and went, yet the remnants of huge ships plowing through the waters still remained. It only meant the Fire Nation still was here in force. And if they were here in force, then the Avatar failed in his duty.

At the surface, the tips of his dorsal fins breached the surface, before diving back as he saw the approaching island.

A rage that was once kept in check for a hundred years began to boil over. Humanity had failed to keep the balance.

So it was up to the King of the Monsters to return and enact the wrath of a scarred world.

Author's Note: …I apologize for the delay. Again. Turns out Azula in the Spirit Temple took a lot out of me emotionally and now here we are.

A bit more character development for Team Avatar this chapter. I'd figured they'd go after an enemy that was more familiar to them first before going after a more unknown threat. Besides, they are kids and some of them (Sokka and Aang) do have reasons to be more wary of Azula. Not saying they're necessarily in the right since…well the other threat is Godzilla, but it's not like this logic is coming from nowhere.

Just too bad that "unable to come on land" was brought up in Shin Godzilla…only for them to be proven wrong.

For the Fire Nation characters, Azula still is a bit of a villain and she's still in that imperialistic mindset, so it would seem fair to me that she's dismissive of Maina and the others initially. It's going to take more than one encounter with the incredible to dissuade her. I mean given how militaristic the Fire Nation is, would you expect any of them to assume there isn't something they can't overcome with military might? Sure there was Koizilla, but that was a spirit and not something that is, in their minds, an animal.

Maina is the only one who knows, but she's pretty out there as an outlier in terms of Fire Nation. And that's only becoming clearer in this chapter. Needless to say, the prayer is from the Godzilla series and should be a pretty big indicator of who she's affiliated with.

The ritual itself is a call back to the first Godzilla movie where a similar one was performed by the villagers to safeguard themselves from fear of Godzilla coming ashore according to their legends. It didn't work.

All in all, I'd describe this chapter as being a setup for the next one where…uh…let's just say all hell breaks loose if you couldn't tell by the ending.

Anyway, thank you for reading, sorry again for the delay, and feel free to leave your thoughts in a review. Make sure to favorite and follow if you want to see more, and have a great day. Hopefully, the next chapter comes out a lot more smoothly since…well, it's going to be a big one.