A/N: CW: Character death! I never learned you should stop loving fire because you got burned. Love and be loved. Read… and review!
"Yours."
[Winter/Spring 136 AG]
At one time, Linlhao was a spiritual oasis. A wonderland on the edges of the territory between the South Pole and the Earth Kingdom. One could come and venture wherever they pleased and find a brother or sister in faith. There were communes all over, there were people living in every corner of this slice of earth. A place for anyone, inhabitants or otherwise, to come and be one with the spirits. Hundred of years, a myriad of pirates and warlords, and two very dedicated female Fire Nation protectors later, and the island is a mystery to all who come ashore. There are only a few main villages left, no direction, and the land paths change with seasonal avalanches from the mountains on the island.
Residing just a few miles east and a little south is Gako Island, an equally bereft and left behind place of yesteryear. The main differences being that the Fire Nation established a stronghold on Gako rather than Linlhao, giving it more resources and renown to build from after the war, decidedly less spiritual connection, a lower elevation, and numerous inhabitable villages. They also have standing maps all over the island to help guide strangers around should they find themselves lost.
For Tapisa of Gako Island, this would be especially helpful right now.
"Fucking shit. How hard can it be to find one village?" She mutters to herself as she wanders aimlessly through Linlaho's famous waterfront fog. "Gotta be around here somewhere?"
Tapisa is a 19 year old waterbender of medium height. She has tan skin and white hair, which she wears in a combination of high ponytail and braids on each side of her face. She has a small face, small breasts, small ocean-blue eyes, and muscles made of iron. She is yet another weary traveler, come in search of Lonlhai. The myth of the village has grown with the years. It was once known as the last tether to the spirits in the entire Southern Water Tribe. But about fifteen months ago something happened in the village and suddenly the walls went up, quite seriously. Walls that reportedly reached up to 30 feet high sprung up around the village's land-based exterior, and the port authority received sizable upgrades. For a nothing, nowhere village with little to no resource, it is a modern marvel. For Tapisa, though, it might as well be out in space. She can't find it and has been wandering the island for hours, as others have done before her.
"Have to prove them wrong. Have to get there," she mutters to herself again, her body struggling to compensate for the poor conditions. "Have to find The Heathen."
The native of the neighboring island stumbles through a wooded area, unaware that she is the one being hunted.
"Aunt On Jin, can we please go home now?" The child wines. "I'm hungry. And tired. I wanna take a nap!"
"C'mon, Senna," Ty Lee coos at her, a hand running the top of her head. "Just a few more exercises and we'll head back, I promise. And then I'll make you some vegetables."
"Ewww!"
"And Aunt On Jin will make you some dumplings, just the way you like!"
"Yay!"
The three are out and about in the woodlands a few miles beyond Lonlhai. They've been out hunting to help stave off the remaining weeks of winter. They could assuredly get by, and if things got dire, Lin could make an emergency purchase using some of Ty Lee's money and deliver it to the port at the village, but they're fairly confident they won't reach that point.
What's more, they are out and away from the village because they have been secretly training Senna in the ways of healing with her waterbending. Aklaq and Miki seemed hesitant to the idea of their daughter being crowned 'the chosen one' and being a healer for the entire village. Senna's aunties understood that, and yet they still wanted to help her learn how to use her skills and abilities. If she just so happen to also pick up healing along the path, then so be it.
Azula scoffs as the trio walks together, snow crunching underfoot. She lifts her eyes to the girl beside her. She purses her lips and then says to her, "Volunteering me for cooking duty on top of everything else?"
Ty Lee makes a pouty face at her beloved wife. She bends down, wraps an arm around the seven year old and they both look up at the firebender. Senna, several feet off the ground now, flashes a wide open, adorable smile with multiple missing teeth. Rangi flashes her own bright, grey eyes smile and the merciless leader of Lonlhai simply melts despite herself.
"Fine. Fine!" She concedes, earning a raucous celebration from the other two, with high fives and silly dances ensuing.
"Alright, one last time. And then we're done, okay?" On Jin demands of the other two. They are immediately attentive and agree. She turns to Ty Lee. "Cut me."
Rangi pulls Eclipse from its holster on her hip. She steps forward and jabs it at On Jin, slicing an exposed part of her inner leg so that blood rushes down. The red running across the skin is contrasted against the bright white snow around them. Senna swings her arms about wildly, causing snow to rise up slowly, and then it covers Aunt On Jin's leg. The snow pushes against her leg and cools her skin, finally healing the gash after a short time.
"Huzzah!"
"Yay! You did it!" Ty Lee congratulates her with a smile and a hug.
"You've come a long way, Senna. I think we should consider telling your parents soon."
The small waterbender is quite proud of herself. "I used to not be able to do any healing. Now I can do anything!"
The wives smile down at her. "Yes. Yes you can."
The group starts heading home together.
Tapisa finds herself in an open field with trees that have been cut down, only the trunks remaining. She hasn't reached exhaustion yet, she's far too fit for that. But she is Yue damn tired and her feet hurt, so she finally decides to take a break. She sits down on a trunk and puts her feet up on some roots.
It's when she finally stops moving that she hears it. The patter of little feet. Crackling of snow that's not her own. Low breathing. Multiple crunches of steps. She twists her upper body around to discover her hunter.
A few dozen feet away is a massive, hulking polar bear dog. Behind it is another, and a third approaches as well. One of them growls while another barks, startling her. The sound seems so close.
'Oh fuck. Oh shit oh no.'
She stands up slowly, to not scare them but when she does another two appear in her view. She spins again to find a sixth and final one coming near her. She realizes she hasn't seen much wildlife thus far on the island and is quickly coming to the conclusion that this pack of rabid polar bear dogs may be the culprit.
'O-kay. Oh my fucking. Okay, what do we do Tapisa?'
She formulates a plan in her mind. She calculates her odds and chances. The dogs are gradually closing in on her. She is surrounded on both sides, but on one side there's only one of them. And just like that it charges at her!
Tapisa bends a wall of ice to block the lunging polar bear dog. She quickly bends her feet into the snow and then bends it into a path for her to swing onto and whip around. The five polar bear dogs quickly bound after her as she starts to swiftly skate away from them. The sixth dog, who'd jumped into her ice wall, recovers and follows in pursuit.
Things were going fine for Tapisa until her right wrist snapped in half when she fell to the ground. Her ice skating through the woods came to an abrupt end when she missed a jutting branch, and she was mid-bending when she hit the ground. Now she runs through the woods at a high speed, only able to bend with her weaker, left hand. She's stuck between creating a skate rink forward for herself or fending off the pursuing polar bear dogs. She's panicking and her breath is short and her life could end at any second. She has known fear, and she thought coming to Linlhao would be fearful. She knew she could be facing death by coming here, but this was different.
"RAWR!"
A humongous, lurching white beast explodes into view, reaching for her from the unknown.
She screams, "AHHH!"
"RWAR!"
Tapisa narrowly avoids its razor sharp claws and hits the ground with force. She intentionally rolls so she can get away, and with what little bit that she can she summons ice barriers between her and the monsters. It's not strong enough, as they barrel through it and the ice explodes into a flying dust.
"RHAWH!"
'Fuck! No! No!'
Suddenly, Tapisa feels an unseen one sink its claws into her right shoulder and she yelps.
"Fuck! NO!"
"RAAA!"
Another paw sinks into her left shoulder and starts dragging her away. The beast who had startled her, sent her tumbling, effectively ended her life, shares a brief look of disappointment as another gets the kill. It growls loudly.
"GRAWWW!"
"AHHHHH!"
"AHHH! GET UP!"
Tapisa looks up into the face of a human. Not a polar bear dog, ripping her limbs off of her body, but a woman. Black of hair, amber eyes, probably in her 40's or 50's. The woman pulls Tapisa up onto her feet and drags her away before finally letting her go, Tapisa nearly falling back down again, as she turns forward to face the animal. The rabid dog roars at her and bounds forward to attack. The older woman steps forward and punches her right hand out, two fingers leading the way.
Tapisa lifts her left hand up to shield her eyes as a giant, blinding light cracks forth from the woman's fingertips. The lightning crashes into the polar bear, who initially seems fine, but then stumbles as it gets closer to them before finally collapsing a few feet in front of them. Tapisa is stunned to see it hit the ground, dead. There's no time for celebrations however, as she puts her fingers down and then quickly shoots her fists forward to her left, straight ahead, and then to her right.
'Are those fireballs….blue?'
Three polar bear dogs are blasted with a fire, but their thick fur absorbs it and they are undeterred.
"I've got you!" A new voice yells from somewhere.
On Jin turns back to Tapisa and falls away from the animals. A gust of wind pushes at Tapisa's back and out of nowhere a new woman emerges, flying up towards the beasts, a massive scimitar in hand. She swings the ferocious sword parallel to the ground and with just the one swipe she slashes all three across the chest, cleaving all of them with open wounds, but the blade slides through them like it's cutting paper. The woman side steps between two of them and further swipes the blade against their obliques. These two animals let out groans and then fall down.
"BRAHW!"
The third one swings a paw at her. She tries to bring the blade up but its massive claw smacks the weapon away, the force of the blow knocking it out of her hand.
"RAAAH!"
The woman with brown hair, held together in a massive braid, moves faster than Tapisa's eyes can track. She reaches into a holster on her hip and then a flash of steel juts upward.
"RA-"
A dagger with a dragon handle rises from her hand and silences the bear. It's jammed up through its chin, right up into its mouth. The woman wastes no time, ripping downward, slitting the throat open, and pulling it away, covered in blood, as the beast collapses onto the ground beside her.
"RAWH!"
"GRAA!"
The final two polar bear dogs advance towards them. The first woman, who had ducked away from the close combat, now steps forward. The beasts are nearly upon them when she puts both open palms out in their direction. Lightning flashes yet again, and just misses her targets. The bears see the attacks strike the ground near them and realize they are better off running away from it, rather than towards it. They peel off and run for freedom, off into the depths of the forest around them.
Tapisa watches in stunned silence as a seven year old girl uses the water in a waterskin to form an excellent ring of healing around her wrist. Within a minute, the bones reshape, connecting back together and allowing her a range of motion, even if it is limited. All while this is going on though, Tapisa is staring at the fire bending woman. She is short of height, with hair as black as a hole in the ground, and aged, tired, amber eyes. She's the right age, she's the right type, she fits the entire description physically, and on top of all of that she is here, on Linlhao Island.
"Great job, baby girl. Now c'mon all. We need to run back. Those two aren't just running home, they're out to get more from their pack. I doubt they only had the seven total. You can come with us back to our compound, but-"
The woman keeps talking, but Tapisa can't hear her anymore. She turns her back on Tapisa, and so does the child and the other warrior. They all start walking away from her and time seems to slow to a halt for her. She stands up and sees the opportunity of a lifetime. She eyes up her dominant hand, the wrist which was broken only moments ago. They had healed her, and she would use it. She stands still and moves her feet ever slightly so she can get a better footing. She twists her arms and nearby snow from a tree flies off. It shrinks and contours into an icicle projectile, and zooms forward.
The only problem was she made too much noise.
"Wha-!"
Azula turns on the spot over her right shoulder and sees it flying straight for her head. She swings her hand up and a wave of fire roars out to block the arrow-like icicle. She can only barely get it up in time, burning up most of it, but shards of ice explode forward, spraying at the right side of her face like shrapnel.
"AHH!"
Azula shields her face away as she gingerly touches where she's been struck. Ty Lee grabs Senna and protects her, but brandishes Kyoshi's Fan and turns to look at the woman they've just rescued from the wild animals. It is an unbelievable and bizarre turn of events. The time of Azula touching her face is only a moment, but for all the parties involved it feels like an eternity. When she looks back up at Tapisa, the right side of her face is riddled with tiny punctures from the icicle, highlighted by trickles of blood running down her cheek. She speaks in a low, growl-like tone.
"What do they say about not biting the hand that feeds you?" She asks the rhetorical question. After a brief pause she goes on, "How's about attacking the woman who saved you?"
The water tribe girl with braids, a ponytail, white hair, and tan skin spins her arms to form more idly floating icicle arrows. Azula responds by opening her palms towards the girl, electricity cracking at her fingertips.
"You sure you want to do this? I don't think it ends well for you." She tells the young girl. "Why don't we just go back to our village, talk this out? Whatever this is?"
"You're her!" The girl finally speaks.
"Yep," Azula sighs as the drama builds. "I'm me. Last I checked anyway."
The teenage girl speaks loudly and as if she's reciting some speech she's prepared.
"You are The Heathen. I have been sent by Yue to exorcize the demon that rules over this holy land!"
Azula rolls her eyes. "Agni above, what is this now?"
"Yue, On Jin. You never cease to amass titles and assassins."
"I don't even know what I did! Can you tell me? Did I do something to earn this title and your ire?"
"I am on a crusade, to come to this land, and slay you where you stand!"
Azula grows angry.
"Listen, young lady, everyone thinks they're going to be the one to defeat me. But no one has killed me yet. And you're not about to be the one to put me in the grave. So let's get down to the real shit: do you have a death wish? Or is there something else you're searching for?"
Tapisa licks her lips and hesitates. She has already seen The Heathen in action. She already had a free shot at her and even that was not enough. Her courage falters. The words from the woman ring in her head, they stick to her like glue and won't leave her alone.
"What's your name anyway?"
"Uhh… um. I'm, Tapisa, of Gako Island."
"Gako is right next to us!" Senna interrupts.
"Shhh." Ty Lee shushes the child.
"What?" Senna asks defensively. She mutters under her breath, "It is."
Tapisa looks up at Azula.
"Alright then, Tapisa," Azula lifts up a massive longsword from the scabbard at her hip and holds it up above her head. The imposing Moon's Veil shrinks the courage away from the waterbender. "Tell me, how do you want to die?"
"Huh?"
"We can make it quick, we can make it long. It can hurt, or you can barely feel a thing. How do you want to die?"
"I… will die for Yue." She weakly tells them.
Azula grunts at this. "So you've been sent by someone else to slay me, but you're not even ready to die yourself? Maybe, just maybe, someone is asking too much of you?"
Tapisa is struck with a thought.
"No! No, this is the temptation. This is the workings of the Heathen. I can not allow this. I must kill you!"
Azula and Ty Lee share eye contact and an affirmative nod. Ty Lee pats Senna's shoulder and steps away from the girl. She drags Kyoshi's Fan along the snowy ground and comes to face the girl. She stands in between them.
"If you want her, you'll have to go through me."
"What? No! I have no quarrel with you. My fight is with-"
"The only thing that matters, girl, is living. Staying alive. If you can't beat me, you won't beat her. Now," Ty Lee bends her knees and tightens her grip on her scimitar. "Come on!"
She dashes forward and raises the blade up over her head. Tapisa quickly lets loose all of the icicle arrows she's holding up. Ty Lee either dodges or deflects all of them with grace and agility. Tapisa watches in shock as this occurs, stunned by her ability. It is as if only the wind could graze the warrior. Tapisa calculates the woman closing in on her and so she summons a giant ice shield into her weak hand, holding it up to block the incoming attack.
She lifts it up and the blade slices right through the thick of it, stopping halfway through and cracking the ice, making it a spider's web of a shield. Tapisa used her free hand to bend the ice to thicken and freeze the blade into the shield. Ty Lee smirks at this quick thinking, but has already anticipated it. She gives a slight push of the sword towards the Gako islander, getting the water bender off balance, before pulling with all of her might. This swaying motion forces Tapisa to stumble forward, which Ty Lee then uses to her advantage as she sticks her foot out and hits Tapisa in the kneecap.
"Yaaah!"
She falls down to one knee and then Ty Lee twists the sword, and by extension the shield and Tapisa's arm, and then spins it away. Tapisa's shield is thrusted away from her body and her weak arm is exposed. Ty Lee delivers a killer stroke to the arm with her fist, and suddenly Tapisa's arm is lifeless.
"Huh!"
Ty Lee grabs the back of the girl's head, locking her fingers into white hair. She raises her own knee up and connects it square into the teen's forehead, which ricochets back and hits the ground hard. The crusader sees stars and then feels lightheaded, the throbbing pain yet to settle in. Ty Lee mounts her in the snow, assuming a position of victory to try and coax her into surrender.
However, when Tapisa feels the body on top of her, she grabs a tuft of snow and then in her dominant hand, the only one still moving, she quickly reforms it into sharp, jagged icicles. She swings it up and grabs Ty Lee's side, stabbing her with them.
"Wahh!"
She remains on top and delivers a blow with her hand down into the girl's face, instantly shattering her nose and causing blood to splurt all over her mouth and chin. With the shock overcoming her now, she finally exposed her right arm and Ty Lee sends two blows to her chakras to shut her down for good.
"You alright?" Azula asks from afar.
Ty Lee stands up, leaving the girl helpless and alone.
"She stabbed me!"
"I didn't even know Ghosts could get stabbed." Azula jokes.
On Jin walks over with Senna to look down at the woman they had saved and now defeated. Rangi comes to stand beside them. They examine her and measure what remains of the defeated girl. Azula especially tries to calculate the right decision.
"What do we do with her?" Senna asks the obvious question.
Azula squats down so she's near Tapisa's face.
"What about it?" She asks. "Is this how you want to die? Frozen, alone, waiting for polar bear dogs to come eat you alive? Or should we stick you with the pointy end before that?"
The teenage girl spits up blood. She mumbles through some words but no one can understand. Azula gets closer to her face and asks, "Repeat that?"
She struggles with her breath and her words and her mouth filled with blood. She spits out.
"Thr-through Yue… only through her… am I… re… deemed."
Azula stands up straight after hearing this and looks down upon her with new eyes. The young girl fades in and out of consciousness, her head finally throbbing with pain, her arms immovable at her side, the cold becoming warm as she dozes off, potentially to an eternal sleep. Azula bites down on her lower lip and scrunches her face up. She turns to Senna.
"Heal her."
The cyan eyes' child nods and doesn't fight. Instead, the argument comes from the dead woman.
"Huh? N-o. I-I-I'm sup... osed to die. Wh-hy don't, you… kill… me?"
The last thing Tapisa sees are a pair of women standing over her and a child waving water all about to heal her.
Tapisa opens her eyelids. Covered in bandages and wrapped in blankets inside of a dark room, she can sense someone else is there with her. However, she can not move to see them - even the attempt to move is painful.
A specter moves through the darkness and steps into the light above her. The Heathen. She squats down at Tapisa's bedside and she sees her so up close now, the faintest hint of lines creasing her face.
"Why didn't you kill me?"
The Heathen shrugs.
"You fear death. You don't welcome it at all. You're not ready to go. You simply seek redemption."
She pauses.
"And that's something I can give you."
"You're torturing me."
"You may see it as that initially, but I think with time you'll learn that I'm giving you hope."
"Where am I?"
"Home. Specifically, Lonlhai."
Azula stands to leave.
"This place has given me much hope. Something you'll come to understand."
She walks towards the exit but stops. She looks over her shoulder.
"Dying for Yue won't redeem you. Living for her will."
When Tapisa finally recovers from her injuries in the forest, she is allowed to walk free. There was no processing, no examination, no questions. The herbalist who'd done the work had approved her to leave. He just kept marveling how it was a miracle she survived. Tapisa doesn't know that Senna's healing is a secret, and as such she doesn't say anything, thinking it's common knowledge. When she's let go, she walks out into Lonlhai for the first time.
Her spiritually bound community on Gako Island had convinced her this land was once a holy place that has been corrupted over the last so many years and turned into a shelter for heretics. All as a direct result of The Heathen, a gender betraying, fire bending, Agni worshiper. Yet here she stands, in a place well fortified and protected, with food for everyone, all thanks to the ones they call 'The Guardian' and 'The Ghost.'
'Speaking of food, I'm starving.'
People are wary of her as she asks for direction. They assist and point her in the right direction, but it is nonetheless terse interactions. Word has traveled that this Gako Islander is the one who created the cuts all along the side of On Jin's face. For what reason she was rescued is unknown to all but their de facto leaders. As much as she is uneasy, so too are they.
When Tapisa finally finds herself in the mess hall, she's met with incessant whispers. She sits alone and can't help but hear them. It nags at her ears like food stuck in her teeth with no way to get it out. Like a mosquito that she keeps missing at the last second and keeps coming back for more.
'This is a mistake. This was a mistake. I need to leave.'
She rises suddenly, to the surprise of the few watching her, but as she goes to leave she jumps a little at the sight.
"Hello there!" A brunette woman with grey eyes greets her with a warm smile. "Going somewhere?"
"I was-"
"Perfect! You can join me and Senna," she motions to the little one beside her. The girl who has healed her in the forest. "Senna is a little shy though, do you mind if we find somewhere more secluded to sit together?"
"Uh. Sure. Yes."
"Hooray!" Rangi shouts. "Come along, Sen."
The small waterbender sticks close to Rangi, who leads Tapisa away from the crowds and off into a corner. As they are sitting down she explains, "Senna is more introverted by nature, you understand, yeah?"
Tapisa sits across from the warrior woman who soundly defeated her in battle, and whom she tried to murder by stabbing her with icicle claws in the side.
"Yes. Yes, I can understand that."
"But don't get confused!" Rangi cautions. "Though she be quiet, she is fierce. Right, Sen?"
The little girl nods along as she sticks a forkful of broccoli into her mouth. Her cheeks bulge and a smile spreads across her little face. She is so small and so cute. It brings a smile to Tapisa's own face and for the first time, she briefly forgets about the circumstances that brought her here.
Tapisa has been in Lonlhai for about a week now, and the leaders of the village treat her as one of their own. Their lack of reaction has helped to temper the feelings of the other villagers. They do not understand, but they have never understood before either. Many of them remember the Burning of Lonlhai and how the Guardian flew through the sky vanquishing their enemies. On Jin was not merciful by nature, in their estimation. So if she has decided to show mercy upon this assailant, then there must be some grander design at play.
Tapisa, to her credit, has awkwardly and tensely fallen into this role for herself. She has not decided if she will stay long term, but every day her strength returns and she grows closer to being able to run away. She isn't sure if the right opportunity presented itself if she would take it or leave it. Remain here or leave it behind in a puff of smoke. Regardless, for now she plays along, accepting assignments and chores, and at this exact moment she follows Miki along as they head into Lonlhai's Temple, her first time being inside.
"What are we doing in here again?" She asks the 32 year old mother with raggedy hair and cyan eyes.
"Oh, we have to clean it up 'a little bit.'" She explains as they push the doors open.
When they enter, Tapisa dawns a look of confusion. The building is spotless. Utterly perfect. The pews are dusted, the banisters nearly glisten. Everything looks already good to go. There are a couple of people sitting in silent prayer. She does not understand, until Miki explains.
"You're lucky you're with me," she says with a nudge into her ribs. "The best kept secret is that they give me all the easy tasks."
"Hmm?"
"On Jin and Rangi gets final say over all of the schedules and they love me. So they never let me do anything too difficult or hard labor."
"I see," Tapisa trails off, thinking about what comes next. "So what do we do now then?"
"You can spend some time with Yue?" She offers initially. "Or daydream and imagine yourself running away from Lonlhai. Whateve tickels your fancy."
Two older gentlemen are walking towards them as they stand by the exits and they're clearly engaged in an increasingly loud argument, or rather debate. With all of the quiet and solace, it sticks out for its vociferousness.
"It was all of the new technology. The spreading of it, the building of the ships and the cities. That was the final straw."
The other replies, "No. The Fire Nation drove the dragons to being extinct, and that was the last of it. A mythical creature being wiped off the face of the earth was the cause of the Dark Spirits erupting during and after Roku's time."
Tapisa can't help herself from interrupting as they walk past her.
"Actually, the dragons aren't extinct."
The elders come to a stop, surprised to hear from the stranger at the exit. They ask her to explain.
"Well, Avatar Aang and the Fire Lord Zuko are known outside of our lands as being the last dragon riders. They inspire hope to people in the Earth Kingdom, among other places. And as such, those dragons being over a hundred and thirty years later, tell us that more may be out there. But even if they aren't, we can't attribute their 'extinction' as a catalyst to the dark spirits."
"But we can't rule it out, either!"
"Certainly not. Yes, you're right. We can't. The massacre and near genocide of their species likely had a catastrophic turn of events on the Spirit World, but I think much more so has been the straying from the spiritual path by more and more generations of water benders - not just those at the poles."
Tapisa earns their respect instantly and the three of them remain a while in the temple, discussing spirituality and the many factors leading to its decline among their people. Miki takes a seat and daydreams while Tapisa finds a footing in Lonlhai.
Aklaq is walking with the Lonlhai's latest expert on theology. He is talking her ear off about how they need a Guru.
"-and If I was still the Warden I would just appoint you, fuck all those geriatric fucks! But I stepped down so we could keep the leadership in the village growing."
It's been a few days more since Tapisa entered the spiritual conversation in Lonlhai. She showed herself to be exceedingly knowledgeable and impressed all of the village elders. Some of the younger folks, who now consider her competition in this area, are not so keen on the Outsider. Many of them find her impressive for how she conducts herself, but her legend only grows as rumors swirl about her fight with On Jin and Rangi. None of it is accurate, as all of it gives her too much credit for the ass whooping she took by the duo. All the same, people talk and they do not allow her to correct the narrative.
"Anyway, we need someone who is spiritually enlightened. Ever since Guru Achak's death, we've begun to waver in our spirituality. And you-!"
"I…," she cuts him off, truly unsure of how to finish her sentence. "I'll think about it."
"All I can ask." He concedes and they walk on.
A question comes to her that she hadn't thought to ask beforehand.
"What about the Guru though? How did he die?"
A familiar voice juts in and cuts off Aklaq before he can answer. Rangi appears out of nowhere and walks beside them.
"Hold that thought, Old Friend. I need Tapisa here for some Girl Time!"
The former Warden of Lonlhai waves her off and bids them farewell. He peels off and they are alone.
"Just getting you a break," Rangi admits when they're far enough away from him. "Aklaq can be a lot sometimes."
"He wasn't. It wasn't. It was nice."
"Good on you!" Rangi pats her on the back. She tries to pry the girl from her solidarity. "Hey, you wanna get a bite? On Jin is making my favorite: her famous chicken and rice."
"No."
"Oh c'mon, it'll be swell! You two have some big mission tomorrow before sunrise, right?"
"We do. But, no. Besides, there's a theology discussion at the temple tonight that I wanted to join in on."
"That's not for a few hours?"
Tapisa comes to a stop and Rangi does as well. She pauses and looks for the right words. How to explain that she's not ready to be around The Guardian quite yet.
"Thank you, Rangi. But… I can't."
Ty Lee is wise enough to know the inner struggle that the girl faces. Once upon a time she also struggled with the nature of owing something to Azula. A powerful woman capable of killing and caring, purging and protecting. It is a complicated conundrum and not one that is simple to reconcile with your conscience. She reaches a hand out and touches Tapisa's shoulder.
"I understand," she offers an empathetic look on her face. She blesses her, "May Yue be with you."
"Thank you." And Tapisa escapes again.
They set out before sunrise without saying a word to each other. They haven't spoken since the specter of On Jin came to her deathbed and told her she would help her find redemption. Tapisa doesn't have the courage to address her, or even look her in the eye. She's not sure why she feels such a burden of guilt, but she wears it like the parka keeping her warm in this freezing weather. The silence continues as the two of them march out of the gates of Lonlhai and back into the forest where it all began a few weeks ago.
They walk out seemingly aimless through the faint sunlight and shadows, no words exchanged. In the absence of the village noises, or conversation, Tapisa hears the wildlife better than ever and all of the little sounds that tell her about her surroundings. There's almost something comforting about the quiet if it wasn't all so suffocating.
Finally, On Jin leads her into a clearing, where a few trees have been chopped down to their trunks. Leaning against a nearby tree are two large axes, the kind Tapisa can tell will require both hands to wield, even for her and all of her strength. Part of her wonders how the woman beside her will lift it, but she quickly realizes that it's foolish to continue to underestimate this woman.
"We're gonna chop down some trees."
Those are the first words that The Heathen speaks to her.
"Sometimes they start growing too close to our walls. They're a liability to the structure, if they were to fall on their own. So we chop them down once they get to about this size."
She picks up the massive axe with just one hand and examines it. Tapisa just watches her, transfixed by this bizarre turn of events. When she's satisfied with her review, On Jin steps over towards a tree that has grown for the last time. She begins whacking at its base. With all of her strength it doesn't take long before it timbers. Seeing her not waste any time before moving on, Tapisa decides to join the fray. She grabs an axe and starts doing the work.
Over the next hour they work diligently in silence to knock down all of the trees that threaten the outer walls. It's hard but necessary work and Tapisa has no time to think about deeper meanings because she's focused on doing the job and doing it right. When the last tree falls, On Jin comes to stand beside Tapisa. The younger girl wipes the sweat away and then sits her axe against the truck of one of the felled trees. They examine this foliage graveyard and all of the work they've done. Suddenly, On Jin holds her axe out in front of Tapisa, offering it to her.
"Take it."
"Huh?"
"I need to pull this last one back. It's fallen too close to the edge."
"Oh."
The small waterbending teenager takes the axe into her hands. The next moment, On Jin is crouching before her. She uses her hands to pull the body of the tree across the snow and away from the fortified exterior. It is this exact moment when Tapisa feels temptation calling to her with its siren song.
On Jin crouches close to the ground in front of her, back to Tapisa, in a vulnerable state. Tapisa wields a massive blade, capable of cutting down any man or woman, no matter how strong they may be as a bender. No one knows where they are, secluded, out before sunrise. She could swing this axe right into On Jin's head or spine and kill her on the spot. Here in the forest, dark and deep, she could send her to eternal sleep. She could do it and then run. No one would find the body for hours, long after she is free.
All of these reasons, and the axe remains still in her hands. She does not move to strike.
On Jin turns back around, the job complete, surprising Tapisa.
"You didn't kill me."
The Gako Islander's mouth hangs down and her eyes fly open.
"I…"
Tapisa has no words for why she didn't attack when given the opportunity. On Jin waits patiently for a response but finally decides to speak.
"Now we're even. I didn't kill you, and you didn't kill me. I had my chance, and now you've had yours." She explains with all of the calm and pointedness of an axe blade. She continues, "You can stay if you want, or you can leave. But if you stay, the path to redemption doesn't get any easier. Do you understand?"
The sun sticks out over the horizon. The first rays of light breaking over the hills and the plains, reaching out to touch the two women in the woods. Tapisa swallows hard and licks her lips. The words in her head are easier to say. She fights through it and speaks.
"I do."
"And you're ready to work for that?"
No pause this time.
"I am."
Azula smirks at her new protege. She gestures over Tapisa's shoulder before turning around and walking back towards the gates.
"Suns rising. Breakfast will be ready soon. Best that we get back."
Tapisa gladly pursues her new mentor, the Guardian.
[Spring 136 AG]
"So whatever happened to the Watchkeeper? He survived the Burning, right? How did he die? Was it from a broken heart, what with the Guru being gone?"
"No. Not exactly. It's complicated, but…"
Ty Lee and Azula are cleaning some dishes and doing some otherwise mundane house tasks when the knock comes. They turn to each other from across the room with an equal amount of surprise. Azula stops washing and walks out towards the main hallway, while Ty Lee goes to open the door. They're still confused when they find Aklaq on the other side, Tapisa in tow.
"Mind if we come in?"
"I suppose?"
The two come out of the cold and step into their home. Tapisa looks nervous and tries to not make too much noise. Aklaq removes his coat and apologizes.
"Sorry for the late intrusion. But Tapisa and I were just chatting and, well, something came up."
The wives raise their collective eyebrows to this, intrigue and concern mounting with each passing sentence.
"And I thought it was important to get you all involved right away. But I'll let her tell it."
The four stand in the hallway, beside the coat rack. The 19 year old Tapisa can't even raise her eyes to meet them
"I was asking about, erhm. Can, can we actually sit down?"
"Of course. Please." Rangi waves and the group enters the kitchen.
Once they are all seated around the table, the situation for Tapisa worsens. She can't look at them, her beautiful ocean-blues trained on the table in front of her. This moment is perplexing to the Guardian and the Ghost, as she has done far worse, and come so far. After a few seconds she finally inhales deeply and continues.
"So I was asking Aklaq about the Guru, and what he was like, and the job, and The Burning from a few years ago, and we go to the topic of… The Watchkeeper."
"Okay?" Rangi prods her to continue.
"And, um, well, Aklaq told me that he was killed."
She looks so scared.
"He was," Rangi says, knowing that On Jin won't lead any of the conversation on this topic. She wears a pained but loving smile to try and coax the girl into finishing this conversation. "It's a bad memory."
"By the Harbinger?"
'Read the room, girl.' Ty Lee thinks to herself.
"Harbinger Yong was his name," she replies curtly. She adds, with both anger and disappointment mixed in her voice, "He slipped through our fingers and the coward never showed again."
"I met him."
"What!"
"I know where he is."
The mood shifts.
"What?"
What was a beleaguered and dim topic has become a surging and suspenseful moment. Like a wave crashing, the conversation had been dull and then in a flash it became momentous.
"I had dealings with him before coming to the island. I traded with him. He-he took up residency in the Earth Kingdom a couple of months before I came here."
For the first time, Azula speaks.
"Where is he?" She demands.
"On Jin, no." Ty Lee commands.
"Tell me where."
Aklaq and Tapisa take a backseat to this suddenly turbulent and explosive argument.
"We have to leave this behind. We have left this behind!"
In all of the months that Tapisa has been here with them, she has never heard either On Jin or Rangi yell. Rangi has occasionally been hard on people. On Jin is kind towards the villagers but rarely converses with anyone outside of her inner circle, too burdened with the mantle of leadership. No one has ever, in any of the years that the two of them have lived here, ever seen the two of them argue with each other. Until now.
"No. You left it behind. I still carry it with me every Yue damn day."
They are getting louder, the emotions flowing, a deep nerve of pain disturbed by this news presented by the water bending rival turned mentee.
"What about redemption?" Rangi asks, surprising their audience but desperately trying to prove her point to her wife. "Hmm? Remember what he said? Remember what we talke-"
"We saved her to prove him wrong. Now I'm gonna prove him right."
Rangi is hurt by this and quickly reshapes that hurt into anger. She turns to them, rising from her seat and pointing to the door.
"Get out. Now, please," and both Tapisa and Aklaq rise quickly, lightly pushing each other out of the way to leave. "Don't come back to my home raising ghosts from the grave to haunt us!"
On Jin follows them down the hallway as they head for the door, Rangi separating the groups and seeing them out. For the first time, On Jin yells at her protege.
"This isn't over, Tapisa!"
Ty Lee swings the door open and they head out. Tapisa stops and looks back. Amongst the black of night, the door provides light and in it Rangi is framed, a look of anger on her face, On Jin being held back with a fire in her eyes.
"Yes," Rangi has the last word. "It is."
[Summer 136 AG]
It's a few months later when Ty Lee wakes in the middle of the night, stirred by the same nightmare of always watching Azula open the door and get blown away by some unknown entity. In her sleepy haze she reaches a hand across the bed to pull her wife closer. She finds only empty sheets. When she opens her eyes, Azula isn't there. A sort of panic sets in as her nightmare mixes with real life. She sits up and looks around. No light, but a distant, soft, rumbling noise. She sits up and leaves the bed to pursue the sound.
Out the bedroom, through the hallway, and into the kitchen where, finally, she finds a kneeling Azula at the backdoor. The small woman is packing a bag with some essentials, trying to be quiet as she goes about her business. She scratches her head in confusion and then cuts through the silence.
"Hey."
Azula startles, but turns back to look at her wife. She forces a fake smile.
"Hey."
"You, uh, have a rotation tomorrow or something?"
Azula doesn't lie.
"No."
"Oh," she says, feigning some confusion but still having a good idea of what this is really about. She tries to ignore it as she tells her, "Well, come on. Come back to bed."
Ty Lee turns away but Azula won't turn with her.
"I can't, Ty."
Ty Lee stops. She takes a sharp inhale and feels the breath move through her whole body. There is a certain weight to it that drags her down and makes her feel like her feet will fall through the floor. These words by Azula are charged with months of contemplation and days of planning. Ever since Tapisa woke the ghost, Azula has not been the same. She doesn't eat the same, doesn't laugh the same. She doesn't take up space and isn't present anymore. Probably because her mind is elsewhere; wherever Tapisa met the Harbinger. Ty Lee knows this has been hard on Azula. But it has been hard on Ty Lee too. She turns back around, small tears welling up.
"So you're just going? Just like that? Disappearing in the black of night, and leaving me?"
"I can't let him live."
"You let Yakone live!" Ty Lee shouts.
It's such an infuriating thing to hear when she knows the course of Azula's entire life. The people she's wronged and who have wronged her. She can't understand it and has quietly stewed on it for months, years, if not decades. She continues, hands gesturing every which way as she speaks, "You let Zirin and Ukuyi go. Do you want me to keep going? Chyn? Eilore? All those other fucking girls who searched the world trying to kill you? What about Gaaler? Hmm? That pretty boy bender supremacist, whatever the fuck his name was? Xai Bau and his group? Katara? You've let go of so much. But not this? You can't let this go?"
Ty Lee has tried to keep it together, but now the anger and the frustration spill out of her via watery tears dropping out of her eyes. Reminders of all of their struggles and losses in life. She wipes her face and sobs as Azula rises, Moon's Veil at her hip, but does not approach.
"Why can't you let this go?"
Azula of Lonlhai Village is 51 years old. Small lines have begun forming on her face, betraying her youthful body. She has been known by many names in many places. She has lived different lives, as a leader and as a follower. At times, she has loomed so large it was as if she was a colossus amongst mortals. However, as she stands before her wife of over 18 years, she has never felt smaller. She tries to explain the things they do not talk about.
"I haven't." She says meekly, getting Ty Lee's attention. "I haven't let any of it go."
She forces herself to match Ty Lee's eye contact. As difficult as it is, she knows she must face this head on if they're ever to get past it.
"I still carry it with me. Like a bone in my collar, or a vein in my neck. I can't remove it, or else I'll die. I can't move on, it's so deeply embedded in me that the only choice I have is to just keep going, or roll over and die; succumbing to the darkness within that would swallow me whole if I let it."
Ty Lee is stunned. Azula remembers the sight as she hopped off the mongoose lizard.
"He posed the body, Ty."
She doesn't say anything back
"He didn't just kill Ganzaya. He arranged him. He left his sword, this sword, in his hands. He defiled Yerre's body. He has no reverence for death. He can't be allowed to live. So I have to do this, if I ever want to get a full night's sleep again."
They are at an impasse. An impossible situation with no correct answer and no way forward. One of them must bend to the other, or else both swords will break. But this is not just Agni's Lament and Kyoshi's Fan posed against one another. This is the sword at Azula's hip. It's Ganzaya's sword that will shatter if neither yields. As this thought formulates in Ty Lee's mind, she finally understands. She will not let their blades break, not yet, not from this.
"Fine," she sighs, wiping more tears away. She shifts the weight of her foot and shakes her head. "But I'm not letting you go alone. I'm coming with you."
Azula is relieved and surprised and she smiles a broken, shaky, sad smile. Ty Lee continues verbally thinking through things, "I need to pack a bag, and we have to get someone else to protect Lonlhai-"
Azula reaches behind the counter, produces a filled bag, and throws it at Ty Lee's feet. It's packed with enough supplies to last two weeks on a trip to the Isari Mountains of the Chengwan Island in the southeastern Earth Kingdom. Ty Lee looks at the bag confused. Azula explains.
"Tapisa already agreed to do it."
"You knew I'd join you?"
Azula shrugs.
"You always said we'd consume each other before we reached old age. I figured either you'd agree or finally kill me. Either way, Lonlhai was going to need someone to defend it for a few days."
"It's just so hard because he's grown up so fast, ya know?" Katara stresses to her husband.
"Mhm," he mumbles, reading over some documents at his office desk.
"I know you two have your things together, but I just hope some day he wants to go somewhere with me. Him and Kya."
"They will." Aang replies without looking up.
"You think so?" She says, turning her eyes away from the sunset to look at him.
"Mhm."
Katara becomes skeptical.
"Are you listening to the things I'm saying at this moment?"
"Oh yeah. Couldn't agree more."
"Aang, what the fuck?"
"Hmm?" He looks genuinely perplexed. "Wha-wha-what? Did I do the thing again?"
"Yes."
"Ah, I'm sorry, Katara. I just have-"
"So much on your plate right now."
"So much on my plate right now."
They blink at one another a moment as he realizes how predictable he really is to her.
"Alright, point taken." He concedes.
"What has got you so frazzled? What's got your attention?"
"Ugh, you know I don't like to bog you down with all this stuff."
"Since when?" She asks, surprised. "I've been your confidant for like 40 years?"
Aang tries to distract again. "Ugh. Well, I just don't think I want to talk about it."
"Bullshit. What is going on, Aang?" She sits down in front of him, staring into his eyes and demanding his attention.
He grows awkward and tense, uncertain of how to proceed. He hems and haws, making faces as he decides how to address this and explain it. She can see the inner turmoil playing out and she has no patience for his shit.
"Aang! Out with it!"
"Okay! Okay!" He puts his hands out defensively. "There's a new mobster in Republic City."
"Oh? That's all?"
"No, that's not 'that's all.'" he replies, grumbling. "We haven't had anyone really amassing this kind of power since Yakone. And the information on it isn't clear. It's all such a mess and the rumors are all over the place."
"Alright, well, what's his name? What's his deal? Tell me about this New Mobster of the Week."
Aang puts his papers away and gets more comfortable as he falls into a dialogue with his wife. "It's not a 'new mobster of the week.' These guys are serious trouble for so many people living in and outside of the city."
"Okay, okay. I understand. I do. I once fought these guys too, ya know?"
"Yeah."
"So what's their name?"
"He calls himself Lightning Bolt Zolt."
"Bahahahahaha!"
"Katara!"
"I'm sorry! I'm sorry. But 'Lightning Bolt Zolt?' Who is going to take this guy seriously?"
"Me! And Toph!" He replies, but her laughter is contagious and he can't stop himself from chuckling a bit, even as he tries to prevent it. "We're taking him seriously!"
"Okay, okay," she wipes some tears of laughter away. She settles herself before asking, "What has this Lightning Bolt Zolt even done? Something serious?"
"He formed a new gang called the Triple Threat Triad."
"Another new gang?"
"Tell me how you really feel, K."
"I mean! How worried are we about this? There's always new gangs forming or being formed. They're going to cause some stress on the RCPD for a few weeks, then a power struggle will break out and Zolt will get killed or taken out, and another one will take their place. And it's gonna be over!"
"But not this time," he says, foot tapping on the ground. "They've been formed for a few months now. And they're not going away."
"Huh."
"I agree with you for the most part. What you described? That's exactly what it's been like for the last 8 years, since Yakone fell."
"Yeah, yeah. So, what's the deal with Zolt then? How's he doing all of," she gestures vaguely, "this?"
"Well, first of all he's only 17, and-"
"What! How?"
"I know. I know."
"Aang, he's the same age as Tenzin?"
"Yeah. I know. It's, it's something. It's concerning. Mob leaders aren't built like this, not anymore."
"Well, not since. Her."
"Yeah, and that's just it, Katara," he wipes his brow. "There's rumors about, well…"
"About… what?" She notices a change in his tone. "She's dead."
'Or at least that's what Zuko wants us to think.'
"Yes, but one of, ugh. Forgive me. It's just hard to grapple with."
"Out with it. Just lay it on me."
Aang looks to the study door to make sure neither Tenzin nor Kya are eavesdropping. He turns back to Katara with narrowed eyes and a quieter tone.
"They say he's being guided by some ex-Kemurikage. And not the latter day ones that came about while Yakone ruled. One of the originals. They say it's one of her old associates."
"Of fucking course it is," she replies through gritted teeth. "It's always her. She's laughing at us from the Fog of the Lost Souls."
"It does kind of feel like that. Like she's still out there, pulling all of the strings."
"It really does," she concurs. "I feel like everything that's ever gone wrong in the city can be traced back to her. She is to blame for all of it. If she hadn't raised an army, brought them to the city, left them to Yakone, maybe he doesn't stay in power as long as he did?"
"Well, I mean. That's the conventional thinking, but Suki and Toph got that CI that was supposedly one of her most trusted port guys. A fisherman from Baochou."
"I never bought any of that. Anyone could say they were 'one of her top guys.' It's like when people claim they've met the Avatar."
"I hear you," he replies and then trails off. With the momentary break in the conversation, he returns to the original point. "I'm sure it's all just bluster, Katara. I'm sure of it. I'm sure of it."
"Are you really sure of that, or are you trying to convince yourself?"
"All of the Kemurikage are gone. They've been gone for a long time. And, honestly, I don't know why I'm even allowing myself to call them that. It's not who they are! The real Kemurikage lived thousands of years ago and haunted Warlords."
"It's so funny you've always gotten hung up on that."
"I'm not hung up on it! They're not the real thing!"
"Sure you're not, honey." She replies and he finally laughs at himself.
"Thanks for making me giggle. I really needed it. The whole thing has got me in a tizzy."
"No problem. I'm happy to help." She replies while touching his hand. She gets a little full of herself and tells him, "If you need someone to help you take down this 'Lightning Bolt Zolt,' let me know. I'm ready for a fight."
"Oh yeah?" He asks, a whimsical smile on his face.
"You betcha. You're looking at the only person to ever defeat the Princess in battle. After that? I'm not scared of a teenager named Zolt."
They share a laugh, both of them knowing she'll never have the chance to fight Lightning Volt. Still, Katara finds herself daydreaming about it: her, an agent of goodness and light, chasing down darkness wherever it leers, taking down powerful monsters in the name of justice.
The end has come. Darkness has pursued greater Darkness, and here they meet, atop Traveler's Pathway. A moment to be forever marked in history. Azula, the very Spirit of Lightning, wielding the Watchkeeper's blade. Harbinger Yong, lost long ago to a creeping darkness he had once feared so much. Different purposes, different motivations. Yet not so different. One fell to their deepest, darkest fears; the other, survived them.
The sun is high. They stand their ground atop the Pathway, Ty Lee beside her, the wind blowing at her back.
Their eyes lock, and he speaks.
"Been awhile."
Azula and Ty Lee give no reply.
"The Watchkeeper's weapon... his longsword. That was a gift."
The silence held as Azula's finger tips caressed the perfectly worn pommel at her hip.
"An offering from me... to you. Nothing left to say?"
Harbinger Yong left the words hanging in the air.
"I've been waiting for you. For this day."
His attempts at conversation feel mundane when judged against all that has come before.
"Many times I thought you'd faltered. Given up..."
All she had lost, all who'd suffered, flash rapidly through her mind, intercut with a dark silhouette walking toward a frightened, weak, coward of a girl, crying over a dead body in a foreign land.
The fire burns in her.
"But here you are," finishes Harbinger Yong, the cursed swordsman. "This is truly an end..."
As the words leave his mouth, Azula swings her hand up. No, not just her hand. Her lightning. Reflex and purpose merging with anger, clarity and an overwhelming need for just that... an end.
A blinding flash of light. A single line of lightning engulfed in an angry glow.
Harbinger Yong falls. He never once raised his cursed saber, his beloved Every Rose. The forger of his power and his will. The ender of countless lives. It is done. None more will it claim.
Azula and Ty Lee stride across the field, to the corpse of the fallen warrior.
A sadness comes over Azula. She thought back to her earlier days. Of Achak. Of Ganzaya. This is finally the end.
She pulls Moon's Veil from its scabbard, and levels it at his skull. She does not know if Yong is dead on the ground. Her lightning had meant to do so, but it appeared his eyes moved behind his mask all the same. She remembers when Warden Thaki surrounded her with intention to kill. Azula pays one final tribute to her mentor, and her friend...
"Not mine. Yours."
...and she pushes the blade downward, allowing Ganzaya's blade, now her own, to finally have the last word.
A/N: This chapter's OST is "True Faith" by Ashley Johnson.
Love always. Tyzula forever.
Notorious