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Yu Dao
Zuko watched as the soldiers paraded off the naval ship he requisitioned as the sun set in the west. The display was certainly impressive, but compared to the amount of troops they needed to replace those that were lost, it was a paltry force
Following the disastrous attack on Godzilla, the army camp was left practically vacant. The surviving troops were redeployed to the garrison who could handle the few troops they had. Hopefully, these new arrivals could bolster their forces and make the camp actually inhabited for once.
Not that he hadn't been to the camp lately. All he saw were the vacant tents and smoldering campfires. It didn't feel right for him to appear unscathed when he had sent so many to his deaths.
"It's all we could afford to spare, Fire Lord. Until we get those rogue naval groups under control…"
"I understand. You did well," he told the ship's captain. Another headache. First, there were the few holdouts who didn't get the message that the war was over, then the Earth King marched on the colonies. And then a giant monster showed up in the middle of all this turmoil. Could this get any worse?
"Hey, I wouldn't call 'going through drills every day for raids' grounds for a job well done. You figured we were going into battle or something."
A rare smile crept on his face when he saw the most important passenger make her thoughts well known. She glided along the road, her milky white face an impassive mask with her hands in her sleeves. No doubt she was counting the number of knives she had up her wrists.
Zuko chuckled. "Sorry, Mai. At least you weren't cooped up with them for 3 years."
Mai didn't look impressed at his attempt at a joke. Instead, she cut straight to the point as usual. "You. In private. Now."
SLAP!
A sharp pain hit Zuko's good side from Mai's slap. He didn't say anything though. All he said was, "Yeah. I deserved that."
"You bet you did," Mai snarled. "Do you have any idea what I've been through these past few days? I kept hearing that the Fire Lord died from my father. Then I found out you were stupid enough to take on a giant monster. I mean, you were there when La killed Zhao. Right?"
"In my defense, I didn't think it would be anything like La," Zuko retorted, though he didn't have the stomach to raise his voice at his fiancee.
Not that it made any difference as her usually passive face got even angrier. "Okay, let me rephrase the question: did you honestly believe that fighting something that the Avatar was concerned enough about to tell you to stay away from was a good idea?"
He felt something ignite, though he did what he could to keep it under control. "I've been sending too many letters to too many families! I know I screwed up! What do you want from me?!"
"Maybe stop risking your life so you don't scare your girlfriend to death for once."
…the Fire Lord felt his rage simmer down to guilt. He couldn't look Mai in the eye, so he glanced around the room that the mayor had given him for his stay. It was certainly opulent, filled with iconography of the Fire Nation along with trophies of war from the Earth Kingdom. Though it couldn't hide the desk where so many letters sat ready to be sent, and those he still needed to pen.
"I'm sorry Mai. I just-"
"It's okay. I'm…I'm sorry for slapping you. What I need to know is what exactly was going through your head that day before it all went down?"
Zuko took a deep breath, knowing that this was something he needed to do. "I listened to what Iroh and my advisors suggested. I had to. Like, what else was I supposed to do given the circumstances? I had to prove myself."
"Prove yourself to who?"
"To my Uncle? To the Fire Nation? Mai, we're facing civil war. If you can't accept that-"
"You're doing it again."
"Doing what?"
"Making your problem everyone else's problem." With that, the fire was taken out of his words. Zuko wondered how it was that Mai was able to cut through the roaring inferno as efficiently as she wielded her cold steel knives.
"Well, I wasn't…was I?"
"Yeah, you were," Mai just flatly laid out. "I know you want to keep the Fire Nation together. Don't get me wrong. I also know that you're kind of bad when it comes to handling your own problems. So I'm going to ask again: who were you trying to prove yourself to?"
A sigh was forced out from him. "...Azula. Alright?"
She raised an eyebrow upon hearing her former friend's name. "She was there. Wasn't she?"
"Yeah. She was." Zuko explained what Azula had been up to, at least as far as he knew. How she survived. How she escaped custody on Odo Island. How she appeared in Yu Dao, and what she did during the battle against Godzilla.
Mai listened impassively, her face unreadable. The Fire Lord knew better than anyone about his girlfriend's testy relationship with his sister. He only heard about what happened at the Boiling Rock from guards and the prison's warden. Personally, he beat himself up for leaving her behind, but he kept telling himself there wasn't anything he could do. Luck was the only thing that saved Mai from Azula's wrath.
The only thing he didn't say was what he did that day. To do so would be to admit that he had come dangerously close to becoming exactly like his father. That couldn't be true! It was a lapse in judgment! He lost his temper! If only he could apologize, and explain why he did it to her. Then maybe, just maybe things could be only so much easier if she just listened-
"Zuko, I'm going to say this cause I love you: you need to stop trying to outdo your sister."
The words coming from her mouth seemed like another slap to the face, leaving him dumbfounded. All he could ask was, "What?"
Mai let out an exasperated sigh, massaging her temples. "You did the same thing during Sozin's Comet. You followed your ego and got a scar for it. I don't think it's a coincidence that right after Azula escaped, you decided to try and do something she never could. Remember how you tried to hold your swordsmanship over her head?"
"I do." It wasn't one of his most pleasant memories. He had spent countless hours mastering the art of dual swordsmanship to best Azula in one area. He was so proud when he had successfully demonstrated a complex display that even she hadn't been able to manage.
But instead of being impressed, she just shot an arrow right above his head with a bow, saying that fancy displays and posturing didn't amount to much on the battlefield. At least know what your opponent is capable of before making a fool of yourself.
"It's the same thing. You get a confidence boost. You try to humiliate Azula. It blows up in your face. And I have to stand here saying for the umpteenth time to stop wasting your time on her. When exactly did this rivalry of yours do you any good?"
"It prevented her from becoming Fire Lord," Zuko retorted.
"No, it almost got you killed and left Katara to prevent her from becoming Fire Lord."
"Well maybe if she wasn't so difficult, I wouldn't even have to put her in her place!"
"Right. And I'm guessing she somehow woke this Godzilla up from inside a prison ship and sicced him on you. Really showed her there."
Zuko's fire fizzled out. He hated to admit it, but Azula hadn't really done a whole lot this time around. Outside of resisting arrest of course. Still, he had one ace up his sleeve. "Did you forget the part where she tried to take the crown?!"
"I remember the part where she saved your ass," Mai shot back. "Look, I'm not Azula's biggest fan, but even I know that she doesn't hate you enough to want to see you die in a fire."
"She's my sister, Mai. I know her."
"And I was her former friend who kept in close contact with her. I know her better."
Both teens just glared at each other, before they let out a collective sigh. Honestly, both weren't in the mood for a drawn-out argument. Especially since they were trying to actually get back together. It wasn't a secret that Zuko and Mai's arranged marriage was being threatened by their own personal hurdles. Didn't stop them from trying to rekindle what they had though.
"Did you at least talk to Uncle Iroh about this?" Mai asked, wanting to maneuver this discussion into a more productive direction. Zuko knew this. And ordinarily, he would've given one of Iroh's nuggets of wisdom.
Tonight though was different. "We're…not on speaking terms right now."
Mai's eyes widened. For the first time, her voice went soft. "What happened? Is he okay?"
"Yeah. He's fine. It's just…I found out some things he did during the Siege."
The Fire Lord took a breath. It was going to be a challenge to find the words to tell Mai about the latest skeletons he'd found in Iroh's closet.
Aso Island
Azula found the graves right outside of the village in the shadow of the temple.
They were simple. Seven names were carved into seven headstones, with the remnants of incense burnings and offerings smoldering before them. Pieces of armour and weapons were placed before them in respect. One of them had the skulled mask of a firebender.
Behind it was the name Goro.
Her eyes darted between the headstones and the temple where the Admiral was reviewing his plans. She never recalled him mentioning anyone dying on the island. Indeed, she initially believed that these statues were tributes to men that died during the war.
The characters on the headstones told her otherwise.
Fallen in the line of duty on Aso Island
She was so wrapped up looking at these graves that she didn't hear or see the man coming up behind her. "They didn't say a whole lot. Just brought the bodies into town."
Now the Princess of the Fire Nation never forgot a voice. It was a critical tool she learned amidst the cutthroat court of Fire Lord Ozai. So she was surprised because the last time that voice graced her ears was back on Odo Island.
"Lieutenant Kazuma? What are you doing here?"
The teen shrugged, his familiar face looking all the more out of place all the way out here. "Commander Ryuui came to Odo Island shortly after you left, looking for people to join the Fiery Raptors and for any information on Aso. Well, this is my home, so I figured I'd step up."
His words caused her to cock her head. She hadn't known him for long, but she never pegged him as one to get caught up with potential traitors.
Kazuma almost seemed to read her mind. "I…wasn't sure if I could fight for a Fire Lord that got so many of us killed."
Right. Zuko's attack on Godzilla. While she knew his little stunt that day would have huge repercussions amongst the entirety of his people, she didn't think somebody she knew would ever consider turning his back on him. Let alone a grunt.
Just another reminder of how tenuous his position was. And that she could exploit it to her advantage if she wanted to.
If she wanted to . Ozai's last order was to defend their homeland. One of the greatest honors that a scion of the royal family could be asked to do. It was something she trained for during her time in the academy. And finally, she had a chance to live up to that promise.
Yet here she was, wondering if this was something she wanted. Behind her was the temple, the resplendent phoenix on the corners of the roof. Rising amidst the flames that would've redeemed any and all failures.
Before her though, were simple graves of men having died deaths that didn't warrant even a mention in the eyes of Admiral Ryuui.
And she had to know. "You know anything about what killed them?"
Kazuma shrugged his shoulders. "I can't tell you. Nobody knows for sure. All I can say is that they came into town under bloody sheets. They were sent to scout out the old tunnels leading into the mountain. The guys who came to retrieve them when they failed to report in…they just said they found cut up pieces."
Azula blinked, feeling the volcano's presence loom in the distance. "Rodan?" she asked.
"No. Otherwise, that volcano would've erupted already. There's something else up there. Something vicious."
His words gave Azula pause. What was so horrific that could rip Fire Nation soldiers, people who devoted their lives in honing themselves to serve their glorious cause, to pieces? As brutal as the Avatar could've been, as destructive as Godzilla was, their destructive potential and power were enough to kill people without effort.
These men, on the other hand were butchered, not pulverized. Including a firebender not unlike her. Maybe they had been a bit inexperienced, but the thought of it still caused a shiver to run up her spine. And it made her wonder: what exactly was she dealing with?
Cranefish Town,
Loban's Office
"You want to do WHAT now?"
Aang let Loban's shock wash over him. He simply back, refusing to move in the face of the man's outrage. "I want to find Anguirus and try to speak with him. Yangchen said that he's not as vicious as he seems, and I want to see if he can be reasoned with. Maybe I can figure out what's going on."
"Indeed. While he might be brutal, Anguirus does mean well. That's what the scrolls that Yangchen wrote down told us at least," Hei Wan added.
Loban just looked at her in disbelief. "And what exactly makes you an expert? You never saw it! And you just picked up these 'teachings' of yours only a few months ago!"
"She's here on my permission," the Avatar calmly said, letting the steel creep in his voice. Granted, he wasn't sure himself if Hei Wan knew what she was talking about. But she and the Acolytes were the only ones in Cranefish Town that had studied Yangchen's scrolls extensively. Sure, Imana knew plenty of legends about Anguirus, but not one as detailed as the one they were discussing.
They were crowded in Loban's office. It was a bit less ornate than some of the noble offices that they were used to, with a mixture of Earth Kingdom and Fire Nation artifacts. None of them were placed in a position of superiority to one another.
Team Avatar, Imana, Hei Wan, Suki, and the two owners of the Earthen Fire Refinery decided here was where they'd discuss Aang's plan.
He'd already discussed it with his friends. Toph already knew. Katara was naturally a bit worried, but promised to watch his back. Sokka thought he was crazy, but admitted he didn't have any better ideas at the moment. And Suki followed everyone else. She was an ally, but she never really considered herself a close member of the team. So she went with everyone that knew Aang best.
Loban and Lao didn't know him best. Not that Aang could blame them for being incredulous. He was a bit nervous himself considering the last time he faced down a giant monster. Still, it was their best shot.
"He's right. Hei Wan knows this story the best, and has first-hand experience," Katara said, supporting her boyfriend. Aang smiled, knowing that she'd back him up. Even though the look she gave the head of the Acolytes was still a bit wary.
The head of the refinery looked at them both for a moment, before sighing and sinking into his seat. "I'm sorry. It's just, if things go south, Cranefish is going to be the first place that thing is going to go. I can't risk the safety of my people, or take the chance that a monster might to kill them all."
"What about the mines?" Toph suggested.
"Toph, we took a look at the mines ourselves. It's a miracle any of them are still standing in their condition," Suki commented. Loban let her assessment go, knowing full well the risk those mines posed.
The blind earthbender held her ground though. "Hey, you're talking to the best earthbender in the world. Give me a few local earthbenders to back me up, we can easily fortify those mines in case Anguirus goes berserk."
"Just like Odo Island!" Sokka exclaimed with realization. "Toph, I don't say this about you too often, but you're a genius!"
"...I mean, I wasn't thinking of them, but I'll take the credit."
Her father though was not amused. "Absolutely not. Toph, I forbid you from going anywhere near those mines. We'll get some earthbenders to go in your place-"
"I don't recall asking for your permission, Dad."
Katara got in between the two Beifongs before rocks and words started to fly. "With all due respect Mr. Beifong, Toph's one of the best earthbenders I know of."
"Darn straight!"
"Shh!" Katara hushed. "What I'm trying to say is, she's probably the best person to help stabilize the mines."
"Young lady, she's 12," Lao just flatly said, refusing to back down. "And I'm not going to allow a few bouts of luck to get into her head."
"LUCK?" Now both Katara and Sokka had to hold back the comparatively tiny Toph from doing anything even more stupid. "You call becoming a master earthbender by herself and stopping a giant drill getting by on LUCK?!"
In a rather obvious attempt at defusing the situation, Aang stepped up in front of Loban's desk. "Can you get some earthbenders on standby in case things go south? Toph will be there to help shore things up."
His appeasement earned a smug look from Toph and a furious "DON'T GIVE HER ANY BRIGHT IDEAS!" from Lao. Poor Imana and Hei Wan were just trying to make themselves small in the corner and hide from all of this arguing.
Loban kept a surprisingly cool facade, bridging his fingers in contemplation. "Alright. I'm going to need the Kyoshi Warriors to help organize things though."
"I'll give the orders to stand by right away," Suki declared. "If you have any questions while I'm gone, take it up with my second in command."
"...wait, you're not-"
"You're really going to argue with me on this, Sokka?" Suki said, turning around and sizing him up. That was enough to shut the boy up, knowing full well what had happened the last time he tried to question Suki's credentials.
"Right then! Looks like we're all set!" Aang declared with a smile, already moving to the door both to get this day a move on, and to get out of the stuffy room. They had a kaiju to go find.
That had sounded a lot better the day before, come to think of it.
"You guys go ahead and get Appa ready. I'll be with you in a minute."
Toph felt everyone hesitate, but she remained firm in the arms of what was only Sokka and Katara. She'd been with them long enough to recognize their skin textures.
"You sure about this Toph?" Katara's voice asked in one ear.
"Yeah. I'm sure." The blind girl felt the arms slacken their grip and let go of her entirely. Everyone was silent, even the refinery owner. All she could hear was the awkward shuffling of feet as they filed their way out of the room.
Leaving her behind with her father, his breathing as familiar as his voice. "Young lady-"
"What is it going to take?" Toph asked. "I helped save the Earth Kingdom. I taught the Avatar. I even took on Godzilla. How long are you going to keep chalking up everything I managed to accomplish to luck ?"
"Toph, I…" He sighed, the wooden floors creaking as he paced back and forth. "You can't keep throwing yourself into danger like this. Do you know how your mother and I felt when you ran away? We were scared to death, knowing that our little girl was out there alone when there was a war going on."
"I'm not your little girl anymore, Dad," Toph flatly shot back. "And believe me, I never intended to hurt either of you."
"So why did you run away then?"
"To get away from this."
Silence permeated the room. She couldn't see his eyes, but there was no doubt they were riveted right at her face.
"I'm sick of it. Sick of being told I'm some frail, helpless little girl who can't fend for herself. I'm sick of having everything taken from me just so you can play pretend with whatever imaginary family you have in your head. I don't know if you care, but I have friends who do care about me. They don't care if I can't see. They like me for me. Why can't you?"
Toph made the challenge. Back in the ring, it was an old promotion trick to hype up the big match. Now though, the battle was much more serious than a brawl with some muscle-bound thug.
So she waited for the response. The acceptance of the challenge. Something, anything she could sink her teeth into. Maybe, even that sliver of hope she was waiting for.
Instead, she heard her dad sigh and say, "It's like you said. You're not the girl you should've been."
With that, the boards creaked as he walked out of the room, and Toph was left alone.
She didn't say anything in the silence. The wet tears she felt drip down her cheeks were more than enough.
Outside Cranefish Town
Appa flew over the dense jungles, with Momo flying wide circles around them. All around them was an unbroken carpet of foliage. The further they flew away from the refinery, the more the trees grew. Sickly foliage from pollution was replaced by healthy, endless green.
Well, almost. There were a few clearings within the trees here and there. Normally they wouldn't have meant much. Everyone knew that there were natural clearings in every forest.
Natural clearings, though, weren't filled with crushed trees. And they certainly weren't regularly recurring.
"Looks like we're dealing with some kind of quadruped from the way those footprints are splayed out," Sokka mused.
"That is how he's portrayed in the ruins," Hei Wan said cheerfully. "Well, whenever he's not rearing up of course."
Aang began to put more and more of the pieces together, turning towards Imana who had sat by his side. "You think Anguirus is angry about the refinery despoiling the forest?"
The priestess thought to herself. "Possibly. Those barren trees from earlier are a sign of human interference. This is both his territory and the territory of the spirits, so he's got a pretty good reason to be upset."
Can't say I blame him , Aang thought to himself. No matter what Loban's thoughts on what good the refinery brought, it didn't wipe away the damage it caused to the forests surrounding Cranefish. Those trees they saw on the flight out were stripped of vegetation. Hei Wan mentioned that it had to have been the influence of the refinery, but how exactly she wasn't sure.
Both Aang and Katara had to agree with her. Wherever the Fire Nation decided to set up shop, environmental damage was soon to follow.
Out here though? It was dense and full of life. The trees were filled with birdsong joining the chorus of unseen animals. Maybe the whole of the forest could be like this one day if they played their cards right.
They couldn't dwell too much on the future though. Right now they needed to find Tienhaishi, the city that Tienhai helped found. Hei Wan said it should be around here somewhere, though where exactly-
"THERE IT IS!" the Acolyte exclaimed, pointing to a small clearing in the forest. Following her directions, Appa flew down to the break in the trees. Gently, the bison set himself down, letting his passengers down onto the earth.
Or rather the overgrown stone road. Any doubt that this was the city vanished at the sight of the surrounding buildings, broken down to their foundations. Great trees pushed up through the ruins, while grasses and bushes reclaimed what was once theirs, grasping through cracks in the ancient pavement.
"I can't believe how overgrown this place is," Suki spoke for everyone as she lightly leapt down from Appa's back.
Sokka on the other hand didn't seem so surprised. "It has been abandoned for a long time. I remember that back home it usually took only a few weeks for an empty village to be buried completely by snow."
"Guys…"
Aang looked around, his mind flashing with old memories of what must've been the old glory days of this place. "This city was thriving. So many people must've lived here."
"That's the kaiju for you," Imana reminded him. "Such is their power to destroy. Now you know why most remain dormant until necessary."
"Guys?"
"I never thought I would be standing where the great Yangchen once stood," Hei Wan looked dreamily. Katara just rolled her eyes, not all that impressed by the Acolyte's almost obsessive hero worship.
"GUYS! WE'VE GOT COMPANY!"
By the time Toph shouted, everyone looked back towards her. The blind girl was pointing towards an opening in the trees. Appa was the second to sense them, roaring in alarm as a group of Komodo Rhinos came marching through the trees.
Everyone got into battle positions. Old experience told them that Komodo Rhinos were bad news.
Except…they weren't Komodo Rhinos.
They looked like them. Two great horns on the brow of the head, and a long nasal horn on the snout. A tail covered in scales thrashed behind them while four great pillar-like legs kept them above the ground.
But Aang was pretty sure Komodo Rhinos didn't have shields coming from the back of their heads.
The more they looked at the strange reptiles, the less they resembled the cavalry of the Fire Nation. Their legs were more erect. That shield of theirs was ringed with spikes, with additional dorsal spines running down their armored backs.
Not that it gave them any comfort. The largest of these reptiles snorted and growled from its beaked mouth, approaching aggressively. Appa growled in response while the rest of the team either got out their weapons or brought their elements to bear.
"Nobody make a move," Aang warned. "I don't want to spook them."
A snort from the big one cut off his thoughts, along with a deep roar and the stamping of its feet.
"Aang, I think he's spooked already!" Sokka warned. Appa roared back, his huge size normally being enough to ward off an attack. The rest of the herd, though, got riled up, throwing their heads back and forth to shake their shields.
Before anyone could make a move, Imana walked forward. Unafraid, she fished out a stone medallion from her robes, one carved in the shape of a circle. Within, a cross sat etched with rays emanating from it. Aang was about to stop her when the lead-horned beast looked at the medallion.
Warily, it sniffed both her and the medallion, that sharp beak coming distressingly close to her outstretched arm. It looked back and forth from Imana to Aang to the rest of the party, almost as if it were asking for an explanation.
Imana motioned for Aang to say something. "Uh…I'm the Avatar and these are my friends." He watched the breathing in and out of its chest began to slow down. The airbender watched the reptile's legs begin to relax, a universal sign that an animal was calming down.
Mustering his confidence and knowing that he shouldn't back down, Aang stood up straight and lowered his staff. "We come seeking the counsel of Anguirus. Will you lead us to him?" He wasn't sure what to say to a herd of huge horned reptiles, but it seemed right.
The leader looked at them all, giving one more sniff of the air, before turning around and walking back to the herd. He (Aang assumed it was a male) walked through the others before he looked behind him. Almost like he was expecting them to follow.
Aang gave a confused look to the rest of his team before following the herd. They walked behind a good distance from the great beasts, giving them a wide berth in case they got in a bad mood again.
"They're the Horned Ones. Great guardians of the forest. Servants and heralds of Anguirus," Imana explained. Aang decided not to question it. The "Horned Ones" seemed to know where they were going. And from the vastness of the ruins, it was probably better to follow them instead of wandering around aimlessly.
After walking for who knows how long, the herd had led them to a great opening in the jungle. Up ahead seemed to be some kind of courtyard, surrounded by great ruins. There were more Horned Ones grazing on some of the foliage, though some of them were much smaller with reduced horns and larger eyes.
"They were protecting their family," Aang realized. This must've been where the young of their kind were raised. Good thing, then, that they managed to calm things down before somebody decided to get violent.
"And all the more reason we should give them some space," Sokka warned. Aang agreed. While some of those babies were certainly cute, he didn't exactly want to annoy their giant parents. No, he was content to watch from a distance.
He just sat on a broken pillar, eager for a quick break. Looking across the clearing, he saw a small statue of a woman right in the middle. It was surrounded by white flowers, and the light of the sun almost seemed to shine down right on it.
Hei Wan saw it as well, standing beside the Avatar and looking in awe. "The grave of Tienhai. They're guarding it." Even from this distance, she fell to her knees. "All this time, they…never forgot."
She bowed in reverence, which to Aang's surprise, matched the proper posture of the Air Nomads perfectly. "Thank you for bringing me to this place Avatar. Even out here, in the shadow of the Fire Nation, there's still a thing of unspoiled beauty."
Aang blinked. This wasn't just words she picked up or a posture she adopted. This felt real. Like she really knew what it meant. He wondered about her for a moment. Back before the war, there were always a few nonbenders or people of other nations who would take pilgrimages to the temples. They weren't Nomads, but they resonated with their teachings all the same.
He remembered the Lion Turtle saying that long ago, the Nations were once one. That the benders and people blended together. No matter who they were, there were things that brought them together. In all corners of the world, there would be people who would believe in the wisdom of a faith they never grew up in. They just needed to find it.
Was that the case with Hei Wan? Clumsy as she and the Acolytes were, they were genuine. They wanted to learn. Just like he did so long ago.
"You're welcome, Hei Wan," Aang warmly said, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Sometimes, you just need to find the beauty buried deep beneath the ashes."
Behind them, he could feel Katara smile with affection. No doubt she understood what he was talking about.
Perhaps, even if the Air Nomads were gone, someone could preserve and pass down their teachings…
Their tender moment was broken when the adult Horned Ones bellowed to the sky. Sokka and Suki shifted into position, years of training taking over. "Okay, what are they doing now?" the Kyoshi Warrior asked waringly.
"I…don't think they're roaring at us this time," Aang said.
Just as he said that, the entire forest was silenced by a response.
GAAAAAAAAAAAAAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
Everyone was silent.
Nervously, Aang and the rest of Team Avatar, along with Appa and Momo, walked into the clearing, the Horned Ones giving them a wide berth.
They heard something crash through the trees.
Then another.
And then another.
Then, the sun itself was blotted out as a great shadow towered over the trees, its crocodilian maw tipped with a nasal horn sniffing the air. Rays filtered through the spikey crown on great beast's head, its massive fangs gleaming. It was carried upon four enormous legs, each the size of a building. The chest was powerful, its shelled carapace like the crest of a jagged mountain. Behind it, a long, spiny tail swung lazily over the tops of the trees.
Mustering up his courage, Aang stepped forward, giving a respectful bow to the Guardian Beast.
Angurius.
The huge saurian looked down at him, lowering its snout to his level. It sniffed him, each whiff exhaling a huge gust of air that almost took him off his feet. He remained still though. Solid as a rock.
Seemingly satisfied, Anguirus nodded its head. Almost as if it were returning the bow.
Aang felt a wave of relief, confident that he could make his inquiry to the massive reptile. "Lord Anguirus. I've come to your home because you are scaring the people of Cranefish Town. Evidently, you've been coming close to their refinery."
A snort rumbled from the kaiju's throat, making Aang flinch a little bit. Benevolent or not, an animal this size could cause untold havoc if angered. He'd have to play this cautiously. "Now I understand that the refinery has been causing damage to the fringes of the jungle. Is that why you have appeared?"
Slowly, Anguirus nodded before looking in the direction of the town. The jaws snapped a few times, each releasing a loud bony clang with the impact.
"Uh…we're willing to negotiate on behalf of Cranefish Town! That's why I've come," he said hurriedly, wanting to keep the kaiju's attention towards him and not towards the settlement. Thankfully, Anguirus turned back towards him. Those eyes looked over him up and down, sizing him up.
Well, he got its attention. Aang nervously waved Sokka over to approach slowly. Suki naturally came with him, feeling Angurius's gaze shift towards them. They bowed respectfully to the beast. After a few sniffs that nearly barreled them over, Anguirus dipped its head in response. A bit more shallow than with Aang, but enough to show a sign of respect.
Seeing that the huge reptile was NOT about to eat him, Sokka cleared his throat. "Forgive me, Lord Anguirus. But the refinery is vital to the economy and wellbeing of Cranefish's citizens. Granted, it could use a bit of work in a few places, but destroying it would cause everyone there to become destitute."
He cringed, almost expecting the kaiju to snort or roar in fury. Wouldn't be the first time he was on the receiving end of an angry guardian beast after all.
Instead, Anguirus just gazed at him, its intentions unreadable. Neither Aang nor Sokka were sure if that meant it to be a good thing, or some prelude to violence. The Avatar decided to take it as a good thing. A giant monster that wasn't raging was a giant monster that could be reasoned with.
So he decided to push further. "We understand that you're concerned about General Old Iron retaliating for his home being despoiled. Believe me, I don't think anybody wants a refinery ruining their home. That's why we're willing to take a look and see if we can't make some improvements to minimize or reverse the impact. Your territory will be restored. The spirits will have their home. And the people can have their livelihood secure. We'll also be willing to respect and uphold the boundaries agreed upon by my predecessor. Is this acceptable?"
Aang let the rehearsed proposal spill from his lips. Everyone would have something to gain from this, and nobody would be given preference over the others. All in all, he managed to hit all the key points. He patted himself on the back for keeping himself awake while listening to some of the monks' treatise on balance and harmony all those years ago.
Anguirus on the other hand wasn't a monk. The scars on its snout hinted that a peaceful resolution was a rarity in its long existence. If what Imana said was right, it was far older than even the war itself. So the question remained: could a creature such as this be reasoned with if its past was forged in violence?
There was only one way to find out. Aang and Sokka watched nervously, with Suki standing by to drag both of them away if the kaiju decided it didn't like the terms. After all, there wasn't much anybody on the team outside of the Avatar that could stop a rampaging monster such as this.
The saurian just looked back for an agonizingly long time. Then, it nodded.
A loud "Whew!" escaped Aang's mouth despite his best efforts. "Thank you, Lord Anguirus! We'll bring your approval to Foreman Loban right away," he said with a bow.
Anguirus snorted, flexing its legs before turning its attention once more to the smallest of their team. Toph remained locked in place, not moving as the titan lowered its snout and sniffed the earthbender curiously.
Aang felt the earth around Toph harden and compact. She didn't look up, just clenching her fists as the kaiju exhaled huge bursts of air at her.
Finally, Anguirus bowed one last time before raising its head back into the heavens and turning away from the clearing. The long, spiny tail lashed over them as the beast lumbered back into the wilderness. Its footsteps faded away, each causing the forest trees to shake.
"Okay, what was that about?" Suki asked, looking at Toph.
The blind girl just shrugged. "Guess he knows a good earthbender when he sees one."
Nearby, just out of view, a trio of Komodo Rhinos bore riders who watched the whole thing. None of them made a move, watching the great beast stomp away. The Rough Rhinos had seen this thing at least once. It didn't mean that the sight was any less intimidating.
Yet that wasn't what they were here for. Their eyes were riveted by the grave in the center of the ruins. There it was, just as that odd stranger had told them. Sure, the Avatar was an unexpected factor that prevented them from acting right away, but now they knew where it lay.
And its guardians. A whole herd of monsters snorting, thrashing, and each one large enough to give one of their rhinos a fight if they decided to make a move. Even with their whole force, they'd be outnumbered.
The objective wouldn't be to fight the things though. Their leader made a movement, causing them to ride back into the shadows. All they needed to do was defile that grave, and they wouldn't need to worry about those things. Nor the Avatar. Nor that huge freak of nature.
They'd be in some bar, laughing in relief as they slipped out of the trap they were in.
Sea Between the Fire Nation and the Earth Kingdom
"SIR! THERE HE IS!"
The captain brought his spyglass where his subordinate was pointing. There, in the waves, was the back of a large reptile slicing through the water
A smooth back, with its snakelike head coming up to take a breath of air before its four flippers plunged it back into the depths below.
"That's a plesiosaur, lieutenant," the captain exasperatedly said, recognizing the beast from fossils he'd seen from an admiral's house at some party. Not the monster they were looking for. Quite frankly, they've been seeing all kinds of strange creatures prowling around out here. It meant they were in the right area according to Admiral Ryuui, but it also meant everyone on both this ship and the small group of scout ships around them were a bit jumpy.
"I…sorry sir." The lieutenant said with a bow. It wasn't exactly something to blow his gasket over, so the captain waved him off. Though his fear wasn't unfounded. They all knew a full scale assault on their target was a fool's errand. At most, they had a few benders on hand as well as the mines they were trailing behind their boats. Still, the plan wasn't to engage, it was just to catch the target's attention so they could lure it back to Aso.
Hopefully, their light ships could outrun the beast that trashed the false Fire Lord's forces. Nobody wanted to stick around to get a taste of such power.
His thoughts were shattered when an explosion erupted a plume of water behind their ship.
Everyone rushed to the stern to see what had hit them. Most of the animals had been avoiding their ships like the plague, so it seemed odd one of them would run into the mine just haphazardly.
The explosion threw a huge amount of water in the air, but that was nothing compared to the massive swell rising from the sea charging right at them.
At the apex of the swell, the tips of dorsal spines could be seen…
The captain turned around and gave orders to head to Aso Island at full speed. "Send word to the admiral we've engaged the target!" he roared to his communications officer, hoping the messenger hawk would arrive swiftly. With hope, they'd arrive with the great Phoenix emerging to save them.
Behind them though, the only thought behind the glaring eyes of Godzilla was of making these foolish humans pay for their arrogance.
And there would be no Avatar to save them this time.
A/N: …in my defense, my beta reader had some things to attend to.
Anyways, thank you once again to Selpharia for doing the proofreading.
I'll be honest, I was really looking forward to writing Mai. She was one of my favorites from the show and I was happy to take a swing at her. Hopefully, I did her justice.
We also catch up with what Zuko's been doing. Not really much to say here except addressing the elephant in the room about his toxic rivalry with Azula. It wasn't quite addressed in either the series or the comic books, and I'm hoping to deconstruct that a little. Mainly showcase how it's not healthy for either of them.
Before anyone asks, yes the story with Azula and the bow was a reference to her getting archery skills in the Netflix series.
Not a whole lot of Azula content this time around, but we do get a familiar face with Kazuma. His name I actually took from the main character of Godzilla vs Mechagodzilla II who's a self-processed pterosaur enthusiast. Figured it would be fitting he'd come from the island where Rodan is basically a god to the people.
And we also get some more foreshadowing for what lies in the mine. See, the name Goro and the seven soldiers being killed are a reference to the original Rodan film. Goro was one of the first people to die and the seven casualties come from the first few monster attacks that we see on screen.
For anyone who knows what I'm talking about, that's evidence alone to be a bit concerned for what's waiting for our Princess in the volcano…
With Team Avatar, we get a bit more character development for Toph and we meet the Horned Ones. Keeping with the themes of prehistoric creatures and lost world themes, I based them off of ceratopsians. Specifically, Agathaumas, a ceratopsian that was described by Edward Drinker Cope during the Bone Wars before being determined to be a nomem dubium (doesn't exist). That being said, it did appear in the 1925 classic The Lost World which was a predecessor of the kaiju genre. And its appearance can best be described as a hybrid between Triceratops and Styracosaurus. So we have a hybrid animal on top of that.
Finally, we get to the main star of the chapter: Anguirus. As with Godzilla, I wanted to give him a bit of gravitas with his appearance. Like Mai, I wanted to give him the justice he deserved befitting one of Godzilla's earliest rivals and eventual allies. I also aimed to find a balance between his more benevolent portrayals, and the fact that he's a giant kaiju and could easily kill you if angered properly.
Anyways, thank you all for waiting and sorry for the delay. Hopefully, the next one won't be much of a wait. We get more Azula content the next time around as we see the inevitable reaction to Godzilla's appearance. And what waits for our protagonist in the dark of the volcano. As always, make sure to leave a comment to leave your thoughts. Leave a favorite and follow if you want to see more. And as always, have a great day and see you all next time!