Responses to Reviews:

RonaldM40196867: Well, the story's not over yet.

As Always, Please Review!

Mako

If it were not for the electricity pylons that criss-crossed above its winding streets, the city that sat in the middle of the Caldera would not have looked very modern at all. Every building was built in a very traditional style, with ornate red roofs and white walls. The streets were well kept, lined with merchants and their carts, and incredibly narrow.

"Are we nearly there yet?" Wu asked from the back seat of the Satomobile after they had been stationary yet again.

"We would be if these merchants hadn't decided to have an argument in the middle of the road," Hotaru scowled. "I knew we should have taken the underground."

"You have an underground?" Mako asked, surprised. Even Republic City didn't have one, although they were working on it.

"Don't act so surprised, we're more modern than we look," Hotaru pointed out. "Besides, our tunnels weren't infested with Equalists."

"Did you have any Equalists?" Mako was interested now.

"There were some," Hotaru nodded. "But it was only a fringe movement, that fell apart after you exposed Amon."

"If only it had been that easy for us," Mako replied.

"Yes, if only," Hotaru agreed. "Still, was it you who managed to electrocute him?"

"While he was bloodbending me," Mako replied.

"That's quite impressive," Hotaru noted.

Mako, despite himself, puffed up with pride at the praise.

"Thanks," he replied. "I just did what I had to do. Mostly."

His smile soured as he remembered what else had been going on at that time.

"Mostly?"

"Sorry. Just bad memories. My personal life wasn't going great at that point."

Hotaru grimaced. "I see. Would it be too personal to ask why?"

"I would rather not talk about it," Mako paused. "Not my finest hour, I admit. But I learned from it." He blushed from the memories. He had squandered relationships with two amazing women. It was a miracle he was even still friends with either of them, but one he was grateful for.

Hotaru studied him for a moment. "Matters of the heart can be complicated, so I'm told," she eventually said. "Though I'm not speaking from experience I'm afraid."

"I never told you it was romantic," Mako replied.

"It was implied. And you blushed."

"Alright, you got me," Mako held his hand up. "But I'd still rather not talk about it."

He was saved from being pressed on it when the Satomobiles finally pulled up outside a set of ornate gates. Men in old fashioned red uniforms, palace guards , knocked on the window and took a look inside. Seeing the Princess and the Earth King, they nodded and the Satomobiles were waved through. A red carpet had been laid out on the entrance to the palace, a grand building with red spires that reached high into the sky. An honour guard of Fire Nation soldiers with long spears stood ready to receive them. At the other end of the carpet was an old man with a burn scar across one eye, and a younger man in a military uniform.

"Is that Firelord Zuko?" Wu asked.

"Ex- Firelord Zuko, but yes," Hotaru pointed out. "And that is my brother. Like I said, we wouldn't want to insult our guests."

The Satomobile pulled up, and the doors opened. Mako got out, as Wu leisurely stretched. Together, they made their way between the soldiers, followed by the officials who had met them at the airport.

"Earth King, it is a pleasure to meet you," Zuko intoned politely. "The Firelord is waiting for you inside."

As Wu went through all the diplomatic niceties, Mako stood to one side observing. Wu seemed to be surprisingly good at this, he thought.

Finally, Zuko turned to him.

"I hear you have a message for the Firelord from the President?"

"I do," Mako nodded. "A very urgent one."

Zuko half-smiled.

"Then I suppose we had better not keep her waiting. Follow me."

The group followed him into the palace. Braziers burned along the path they followed, set up between rich tapestries and paintings that depicted the Fire Nation's past. Guards stood at the entrances to doorways, protecting whatever lay within.

Eventually, they came to a grand set of doors, and these were flung open to reveal a very large room with pillars set either side of the centre. In between each pillar a larger brazier was set, which burned brighter than the ones they had passed on the way in. At the other end of the room was a raised platform, with a flame burning all the way along it. Behind these flames sat the silhouette of the Fire Lord.

Mako couldn't tell much of Fire Lord Izumi from where he was standing, because her face was wreathed in shadow, but he had seen her before so he knew her to be a woman about Lin and Suyin's age with a stern face and long grey hair. Hotaru had told him not to worry, she was a kind ruler and a good person, but even so it was difficult not to be intimidated by the imposing spectacle in front of him.

"Greetings," her voice rang down from above. "So what does the United Republic want with me?"

Mako gulped, and took a step forward. Deep breath.

"I'm afraid we do not come with good news, Your Majesty."

"I thought not," the voice came again. "I'm assuming this is to do with Kuvira?"

"It is."

"That's interesting. So why is he here?"

The shadowed figure pointed at Wu.

"Not a week ago I had a delegation from the "Earth Empire" as they have taken to calling themselves. "They have insisted that the Earth Kingdom is no longer a Kingdom at all. If you're asking me to go against them, that could lead to war."

"Er, well, you see-" Mako fumbled for an answer. He sighed.

"War is coming anyway," he admitted. "Though you can stop it."

"Really?" Izumi's voice hardened. "How?"

"Kuvira wants to attack and annex the United Republic," Mako told her. "Raiko thinks the attack will come imminently, and is gathering support for it."

"So you want the Fire Nation to fight alongside you, is that it?"

"If it comes to it," Mako nodded, "but it shouldn't."

"Why shouldn't it?" Izumi sounded curious now.

"Raiko's plan is deterrence," Mako told her. "The plan is for you to pledge your support in the event of war, maybe a show of force like a joint naval exercise, and Kuvira will realise attacking us will mean war with the Fire Nation and back down."

"It's an interesting strategy," Izumi mused, "but I have just one question. What happens if Kuvira doesn't back down?"

Mako did not answer. Everyone knew what that would mean anyway.

"You see, it is very foolish to base your war plans on what you think your enemy would do," Izumi pointed out. "Because if they don't do that, if they don't surrender immediately when you thought they would, then what do you do?"

"We improvise," Mako stated.

"Yes, you do," Izumi replied. "And from what I've heard that's worked out very well for you in the past. You've defeated equalist uprisings, dark spirits, and vicious anarchist gangs. But what you propose is war, and that's something entirely different."

She stood up.

"One hundred and seventy years ago, my great-great-grandfather Sozin started a war. That war raged for a hundred years until my parents, working with the Avatar, ended it, and Fire Nation soldiers did terrible things in that time. I'm sure you're aware of them."

Mako was. He had been often called an ash-maker when he was a young boy in the streets of Republic City because of them, and the war had been over for fifty years at that point. Emotions could still run high over it.

The flames parted, revealing Firelord Izumi for the first time as she stepped down off the platform and walked towards them.

"If I were to commit the armies of the Fire Nation to war once again, even to your war, that would be a propaganda boon to Kuvira. She could just point to how the evil ash-makers are trying to stop her from restoring the Empire to greatness, and her people will lap it up. Even if you are in the right here, our assistance will make it seem otherwise."

She paused.

"Besides, I do not wish to condemn Fire Nation soldiers, sailors and airmen to die in a foreign war."

"You signed a treaty!" Mako protested.

"Times change," Izumi replied. "And so does foreign policy. I do not like it, but the interests of the Fire Nation are not served by getting into a protracted war with the Earth Empire. I'm sorry, but if you stand you will have to stand alone."

She said this with a tone of complete finality. Mako thought about arguing, but decided it was probably futile. He nodded, defeated.

"I really am sorry," Izumi repeated. "But my daughter seems fond of you."

Mako almost did a double take he was so surprised. The complete tonal whiplash caught him off guard.

"What?"

"Don't tell me you didn't know, you aren't that oblivious surely."

"Well, no, it just seems-"

"Excellent," Izumi forced a smile. "So you and your friend will stay for dinner then? I would hate to send you away with bad news and an empty stomach, that would just be rude, and I wish to get to know you better."

"You do?"

"I do," Izumi told him. "There'll be a room laid out for you to stay the night afterwards of course, then you can fly home tomorrow."

"Great," Mako said, and then remembered he should be polite. "I mean, thank you Firelord. I am grateful."

"Good," Izumi nodded. "That's dealt with. I suppose you'll want some time to get ready. Dinner will be at six."

There was clearly no arguing with her, so Mako nodded and let himself be shepherded out of there with Wu in tow.

It looked like he had failed, but it wasn't over yet.