Chapter 23
Azula threw herself into her studies as she never had while in school. When she was a student at the Royal Academy for Girls, her lessons had been easy, and she breezed through them without having to try much at all. Because it wasn't hard, school had bored her. But now, she had to puzzle over Szeto's archaic language, and apply his ideas to complex issues she understood only on their surfaces. The stakes were higher than ever, and the potential reward—Aang's love—inspired her to exert her mind as never before. There was nothing she found so motivating as a challenge.
When she concentrated on her reading, or chatted with the captain about her plans, Azula was usually able to block out the voices. When she lay down in bed at night, though, that was another story. Her father haunted her sleep, looming over her dreams larger than life. That is, when he allowed her to sleep at all. Most nights, he filled her brain with something worse than self-doubt, picking apart her germinating ideas with nasty opprobrium and blistering insults. She longed for the others to chime in and break up his tirades, but for the most part, they remained silent. Since her return from the desert, Aang had disappeared entirely. Mai only occasionally jeered at the arrogance of her lofty designs.
Mornings, she dragged her exhausted body back to the library. Once she drank some tea and found an engrossing volume, she was able to concentrate. Somehow, researching an interesting question gave her more energy than a full night's sleep.
As she studied, a vision of Avatar Szeto solidified in Azula's mind. At first she'd thought of him as a Fire-Nation-born version of Aang, young and handsome. She looked for traces of her love in his words, but found none. The past Avatar didn't have Aang's playfulness or humor. The more she read, the more mature and old-fashioned Szeto seemed, a fatherly, or even grandfatherly figure, rather than a boyish lover. Perhaps that was because Szeto had spent his youth traveling the world and mastering the elements, only returning to the Fire Nation at age thirty. Also, Azula identified with Izumi, the first female Fire Lord, and by the time Izumi took the throne, Szeto was in his seventies. Nevertheless, she developed a kind of affection for the ancient bureaucrat. She was surprised to find the image of an elder Avatar comforting, a welcome contrast with her real father and grandfather.
By the time Azula was ready to address her ministers, her injuries had healed. She could walk without a cane, and the bruise around her eye had faded to yellow, which she could cover with cosmetics. She dressed in her kingly robes with sharp epaulets and swept into the throne room, where she had ordered the cabinet to assemble.
"I will be taking a more hands-on approach to leading this country," she announced. "I will call meetings, and I will run them. I will not listen to you speaking unless I want to, and you are advised never to bore me."
She waved a hand, and a servant wheeled in a cart piled with books. "You will all receive a copy of Avatar Szeto's complete works. Starting now, you are to model the actions of your respective departments on his precepts and recommendations. By the end of this week, I will expect a report on volume one from each of you."
"You're wasting their time," Father growled.
"You think a royal book club can fix this country?" Mai scoffed.
Azula startled at her friend's criticism and opened her mouth to answer. Surely her Szeto initiative was more than a book club! Why couldn't Mai see that?
A tentative minister raised a hand, calling her attention back to the people who were really there in the room. Eyeing the thick tomes on the cart with trepidation, he asked, "How many volumes are there?"
"Seven. One for each decade of the Avatar's service," she answered, ignoring the man's groan. "After we have made a thorough study of Szeto's principles, we will begin a program of reforms. Every office and agency will be completely reorganized to fall in line with the classical Fire Nation principles of Avatar Szeto. I understand that this process will take several months. However, some changes must be immediate." She turned toward the left side of the room, where the diplomats and generals were seated. "All violence in the Earth Kingdom will end at once. Fire Nation soldiers are forbidden from harming or intimidating the residents of the continent in any way, for any reason, or risk court martial and dishonorable discharge."
"You throw away our victory! You squander a century of struggle on foolish notions of peace!" Ozai fumed, spitting the last word as if it were an obscenity.
She couldn't help flinching at her father's vitriol, but refused to let him distract her. While the men gaped at this abrupt change in policy, she turned to her right, away from her father's ghost, where she focused on the former headmistress of the Royal Academy for Girls, recently promoted. "Minister of Education, I order a review of the texts that our schoolchildren learn. All derogatory statements about the Air Nomads will be omitted. They were a noble, peaceful people, and the world continues to suffer from their extinction is to be presented as a tragic mistake."
"Race traitor!" Father hissed viciously. "You're rewriting history to erase our victories! Your reign won't be a golden age, it will be the beginning of the Fire Nation's decline!"
"What should we teach children about the other countries? And about the war?" The education minister wondered.
"The war is over. We have won," she proclaimed. A shocked silence spread over the room, so she filled it by clarifying. "Its violence was necessary, regrettable, and most importantly, past. It was a proper campaign waged by our forefathers to establish our appropriate dominion over the world, and now we are where we belong, in charge. Children should learn that residents of the Earth Kingdom are their equals in dignity and should be treated with respect."
"Are we to negotiate a treaty?" The foreign minister asked.
"No. We are simply going to declare victory," she asserted, her chin in the air.
Mai laughed aloud. "And you think that's going to work because…."
"Because she's an idiot and an abject failure of a monarch," Father answered her, seething.
If that's what he thinks, that's just proof you're doing the right thing, she reminded herself.
"But what about the Resistance?" a general pushed.
"The Resistance is to be left alone." The shocked generals could not resist murmuring among themselves. She spoke over them, "We will defeat them by ensuring that they have nothing to resist. I will be such a kind and benevolent ruler, that the whole world will be grateful to be under my domain. We will bring back the Fire Nation's Golden Age!" She finished with her arms held dramatically in the air. Then she paused, and frowned at her silent, dumbfounded advisors. "You may applaud."
Knowing that this was not a mere suggestion, the dubious ministers clapped.
As Raiden walked through the gate to Piandao's estate, he couldn't help feeling pleased with himself. Thanks to his gentle nudges, the Fire Lord was beginning a series of reforms that could not help but bring the country closer to harmony with itself and the world. The new war policy made him uneasy, and he still wasn't sure exactly what was motivating Azula's abrupt change of focus, but surely, on the whole, these developments were positive. Best of all, they were probably due to his influence on the monarch.
Piandao gave the captain the warmest welcome he'd received since he began his assignment. He gestured Raiden to the comfortable chairs by the fire, where they could sit cozily as equals, rather than separated by his desk, and pulled a bottle of his finest whiskey from his top shelf, pouring a generous portion in two glasses.
"So tell me how this happened. Why has Fire Lord Azula chosen Avatar Szeto, of all people, as a role model?" the older man opened conversation.
"I suggested him!" the captain answered proudly. "We were in the portrait gallery, and I suppose I was inspired by the sense of history around us. And to be honest, I've always thought, as I watched the war unfold, what would Szeto say about this?"
Piandao shrugged. "Szeto's writings are like any text—interpretation is everything."
Raiden wrinkled his nose in confusion. "But surely, no one could read his words and use them as justification for…for cruelty, or conquest, or…"
"You'd be surprised how flexible words can be, when someone is determined to bend them. Nevertheless, I do feel encouraged that Rekishi will be there to guide her." The old swordmaster raised his glass and thoughtfully made a toast. "To…..turning things around."
Raiden grinned so hard he could barely sip his whiskey. "You really think she's doing better, then? There won't be a need for any….dishonorable tactics?"
Piandao laughed at his eagerness. "I don't plan to engineer a coup anytime soon. But it would also be premature for you to do a victory lap just yet."
Raiden made a face. "Speaking of premature victory laps…." That morning's parade had felt like a farce to him and all the other servicemen in attendance.
Piandao scoffed. "A show. The Fire Lord's just feeding her ego. Ending such a long conflict is not going to be as easy as she seems to think."
"Of course not." Raiden voiced a thought that anywhere else would have had him called a traitor. "The Fire Nation inflicted a century of war on the world for no reason but to glorify itself. We should not be allowed to emerge from this conflict victorious. That would not be justice."
Piandao shook his head fondly at his young protege. "You're still such an idealist. There's no such thing as justice in war. My concern is that the Fire Lord's new policy puts our troops at the mercy of the Earth King's generals. If they are ordered not to defend themselves, then they will be slaughtered, or taken prisoner, if they're lucky." Raiden nodded. He'd had the same grim thought. Piandao went on. "Then our Fire Lord will have to choose between accepting peace on the Earth Kingdom's terms, or fighting. What do you think she will do?"
Raiden gulped. "She will have to admit defeat."
"And that may prove too much for her. I don't think she's ever lost anything in her life—at least not until she faced Toph Beifong."
Raiden frowned. It was certainly true that Azula had a long track record of success in bending competitions and military campaigns, but she had also suffered losses. Piandao seemed to have forgotten her missing family members, her broken engagement, and her conflict with Katara in the desert. But if those incidents were any indication of how she dealt with failure… He grimaced. "I suppose that will be her true test."
"And you will be there to help her through it." The swordmaster patted his shoulder, then lowered his voice. "Does she trust you?"
"I think so." Raiden looked down into his whiskey, reddening. He remembered her calling him trustworthy, just minutes before he copied the message from her spy. Even now, he was deliberately planning to manipulate her, to use her trust for what he considered the greater good. He felt guilty about it, but remained convinced that he was doing the right thing, not only for the world, but for his country and Azula herself, though she might not see it that way.
"Did your little stunt in the arena have anything to do with that?" Piandao wondered.
"Maybe. That and my good looks and charm," the captain joked.
"Don't take it lightly." Piandao wagged a finger at him. "Everything may rest on that trust."
Which is built on a lie. Raiden swallowed. "I know."
Author's Note: What do you think of Azula's new policies? Tell me in a review! I appreciate every one! Thanks for reading!