Princess Azula would have been sound asleep, but the sudden thumping she heard on the ground just outside of her room woke her from her near slumber; she growled, frustrated that something had woken her, though she raised her head up from the pillow, curious where the sound had come from. She could hear unmistakably what had to be footsteps, making her furrow a brow; she was sure it wasn't an assassin, given that if they were any good, they wouldn't have been so loud.

She decided to pull herself up from her bed, and eyed her doorway, which was slightly ajar, the light of the full moon shining in dimly through the windows of the hallway; she wondered if it was a servant, though she immediately deduced that was unlikely, given that a servant had no reason to be up that late outside. It being a palace guard was another possibility, but then again, they tended to stay away from the personal quarters of the Royal Family, simply guarding the exterior. Making her way toward the doorway, she leaned her head out, and heard more footsteps, this time from the hallway; she narrowed her eyes to the right, taking note of a silhouette figure that was standing by the end of the hallway. She felt a shiver down her spine, unsure what to say or do, so Azula simply shrunk back behind the door, just waiting for the figure to do something.

She waited there, her hand on the door as she kept her eyes on the silhouette slowly moving toward her; since they weren't near any windows, she couldn't get a good look on them. When they got close enough, the moonlight shined on through, and she could finally distinguish something; they were wearing what she knew to be a theatre mask, and remembered she'd seen one very similar to it in her father's room once before. She thought for a moment that it was perhaps her father, but she realised that the figure was far too short to be him; it was Zuko, she deduced, and watched as he slowly strode down the hallway, trying to keep his footsteps silent.

Once he walked past her door, she leaned her head out, and cleared her throat; that immediately caught his attention, and Zuko swiftly spun around and took a firebending form, though no flames came out of his palms. His form faltered once he realised it was her, and he remained there, silent, as if he were waiting for her to just do something. She stepped out into the hallway, and gestured toward his face, confused as to why he was wearing a mask; there was no need for him to do that, though she guessed it would have something to do with him sneaking around.

"What's with the mask, Zuzu?" she narrowed her eyes at him, her brother making a sigh before he took the mask off, revealing his face; his expression looked tired, though the emotion she could clearly see was frustration- he hadn't expected to get caught, it seemed.

"It's none of your business, Azula." he growled, before he stepped back, "Why do you care?"

"I don't." she admitted honestly, "I'm just intrigued why a Prince of the Fire Nation is strutting around at night wearing a mask."

"Because I like to do things outside of this stupid palace." he simply told her, gesturing to the hallway they were in, "You better not say anything."

"I'm not going to, Zuzu." she assured him.

She didn't care for starting a fight with her brother, knowing that his ire, though simply annoying, was something she'd prefer to avoid; she did not fear her brother, as per say, but she was certain that the more he mistrusted and disdained her, the harder it would be to deal with him. Azula always thought in advance, and her brother didn't seem like he was going to disappear off the face of the earth anytime soon, despite what his disguise suggested.

She furrowed a brow, making a guess as to why he would have left the palace and only come back after dark, "Were you with Mai?" she asked, the Prince turning around, taking a deep breath out.

"Yes." he simply confirmed, "Will that make you stay quiet?" he asked her with a slight snarl, the Princess placing her left hand on her hip as she raised her right to her chin.

"Well, I just hope you know what you're doing, Brother." she warned him, "I'm sure that Father wouldn't approve of you going out like that."

"He doesn't have to know," he retorted, before narrowing his eyes at her, "and he won't," he stressed, "because I know you probably do things like this too."

She snickered at his suggestion, which was somewhat accurate; though she did sneak around, she mostly did so inside of the palace and not out of it. Her sneaking was probably a lot more treasonous than his own, if one considered eavesdropping on private meetings between officials and the Fire Lord, or officials and her father as treason.

"Oh, something of the likes." she vaguely worded herself, before waving a hand toward him, "Sleep well, Zuzu." she farewelled him, feeling as she had prodded him enough.

"Don't call me that." he growled at her, before turning his heels.

She raised a finger, cleaning her throat, once again forcing him to turn around, just as he was about to open his bedroom door.

"What is it?" he sighed, obviously not wanting to continue their 'conversation', if she could even call it that- not much of substance had been discussed just yet.

"Where'd you get the mask from?" she asked her brother, whose eyes narrowed at her, before they turned down to the theatre mask he was holding in his hands.

"It was Mum's." he simply told her, before opening his door, quickly stepping inside; he didn't want to continue the discussion, or talk about their mother to her.

She'd never met her mother, who had died giving birth to her; she had wondered from time to time what she was like, and guessed that Zuko remembered her, at least enough to have some kind of connection. She didn't really care, knowing that there was nothing that she could do about the issue, and even if she was curious about what her mother was like, her father had been mostly silent on the matter. Most of what she had known had come from either Lu Ten or her uncle, both of whom knew her well enough that she could trust their judgements; she was supposedly a kind woman, and her uncle stressed that she would have been a great mother, if she'd had the chance. She found it rather poignant that her life had been wasted as it had been; she had lived only to give birth to two children, after which she perished- that was not the kind of life the Princess sought for herself. Azula desired greatness, and she would strive to attain it through whatever means were available; fate was something that she could bend to her will, and if not, she would overcome it, if it really loomed over her like her father had once said.


Princess Azula didn't know where she was exactly, but she knew that the freezing wind and near endless sea suggested she was getting close to the North Pole; not that she intended to go to said place, given it was outside the rule of her nation, and thus, a challenge for her to enter. She knew there was a possibility that the Avatar had sought refuge there, but she didn't think that was very likely; the Northern Water Tribe had avoided participating in the war, purely by their own isolation and tall walls of ice. If they did have the Avatar in their domain, it seemed more likely that they would have done something- the last airbender was a weapon that any of the Fire Nation's enemies could have used against them, and that was something she was concerned might become a reality. Not that the Avatar had done anything of the likes in the past hundred years, though she assumed that was because they were in hiding; those hundred years of hiding would end soon enough, as soon as she found evidence of his movements, or even his actual location.

"I hate the cold." she growled, before turning her heels, deciding it would be better to go inside while she waited for her lunch to be prepared.

Her servants took her meals very seriously, and made sure to give her the best possible foods, both in quantity and quality; she did not want to overeat, because that would not help with her training. Being lean and fit was a necessity if one wanted to reach the maximum potential with their bending, something she was unsure if she had achieved yet. Her lightning generation wasn't as fast as she would like, and though she had learnt many, a number of advanced forms were not as easily understood as those she was taught before.

She decided that she ought to do something productive while she was waiting for her meal, so instead of heading down to her personal dining area, she began to walk down toward her room. The Princess strode down the staircase that led back down into the hull, and quickly made her way down the narrow hallway, walking past a few Imperial Firebenders, who all stopped to bow at her; she would have preferred if they'd just gotten out of her way, as she was forced to slow her pace as she made her way past. She found their deference frustrating when it physically impeded her aims, though she was sure they'd learn quickly enough to avoid her; she did not want to have them standing around, acting like they were necessary- they were tools in her quest, not protection she'd actually require against any potential threats. They wouldn't stand a chance against the Avatar if they found him, only she would, with her apt mind and reflexes; she was prepared to strike the master of the elements down at any moment, and even if her guards were skilled, they ultimately weren't going to stand much of a chance against somebody who could wield all four elements against them, including firebending.

The Princess quickly came to the rear of the ship, where her bedroom was located, and opened the ornate doors to glance inside; her bedroom had been cleaned since she was there last, and though she didn't complain about that, she realised it would be annoying, given her various scrolls and maps would have been put away. She strode inside and closed the doors behind her, glancing over into the bedroom, deciding that she'd go and look over the scrolls she had at hand; there were a number of scrolls that her grandfather had either owned or written himself, detailing information about the Avatar, their powers, and the culture of the Air Nomads from which the last known Avatar was to have originated. She pulled one of the drawers of the desk open, revealing the scrolls she had been looking for; the cleaner must have put them away, she deduced, though she didn't think much of that until she realised that one of the scrolls was missing. She had a scroll depicting airbending forms which she had taken from the Western Air Temple, and it had somehow disappeared; she wondered if she might have accidentally dropped it off the desk when she had been reading another scroll earlier that morning. Azula knelt over, glancing under the desk, and found that the scroll wasn't there.

"What..." she mumbled under her breath, "Where did it go?" she asked out, knowing that she didn't have an answer, not yet at least.

Raising a brow, she turned her eyes toward the door, wondering if the cleaner had been as forward to steal her scroll; the Princess glared toward it, knowing that the cleaner wasn't there, but that they were somewhere on her ship, with her scroll. It was the only thing she could conclude, given that they were the only person she was sure that had entered her room since she was in it last; Azula decided that she would go and retrieve her scroll, knowing that it was something she still needed to study and understand. It wasn't because of some kind of personal tie she felt to the object, but rather what it could teach her. She needed to understand the Air Nomads and airbending; if she could comprehend it with their point of view, or at least, come to understand that point of view, she would have the knowledge to defeat the Avatar. If she could predict his moves, his strategies and mindset, then she would have an irrefutable advantage over him.

Princess Azula thus turned back to the door, opened it up and glanced down the hallway; she didn't know who had cleaned her room, though she was certain that the head servant, a man by the name of Kang, would know their identity, and allow her to get to the bottom of the problem. She strode back downt he hallway, knowing that the head servant would be attending to matters in his office, which was a small room adjunct to the storage hold that contained all the things the servants required to attend to Azula's needs, in terms of her hygiene, diet, clothing and bedding. It was located deep in the hull, along with the other storage holds, in which their arms, mechanical traps, a tank-train, used for transportation across land, when need be, and their steeds, a group of komodo rhinos and group of mongoose lizards, were housed. She didn't know if she'd have to use all of those things, though she appreciated the foresight in having them with her; if she needed to use all of those means to capture the Avatar, she would be sure to thank her Uncle Iroh for providing her with them.

Making her way down the staircase, deeper into the hull, she walked by a number of servants, unsure who, if any of them, were the servant who cleaned her room and stole her scroll. Her glare intimidated them, and they stayed well out of her way as she approached the room where she knew Kang would be working away, ensuring that the servants were following all the required schedules to ensure that Azula's every need was attended to. She didn't bother knocking on the door, pushing it wide open, surprising a servant who must have been retrieving something for her lunch, given he was wearing an apron and carrying some boxes.

He bowed toward her, "Apologies, your highness." he apologised, the Princess placing a hand on his shoulder and pushing him out of the way.

"Get back to your job and stop bowing." she growled, the servant complying without another word, rushing out of the door with his boxes in hand; turning her gaze back into the room, she eyed Kang's office, which only had a curtain between it and the actual storage area of the room.

She strode up toward the curtain, pushed it out of the way, and cleared her throat to get the head servant's attention; his eyes widened as he looked up at her, "Oh, your highness. I apologise, I should have heard the door opening." he cringed slightly, knowing that being punctual and aware was one thing she desired most out of her attendants.

"I need to know who was cleaning my bedroom this morning." she asked him with a cold tone, not having any time for idle chit-chat, "Somebody has taken something that doesn't belong to them."

His eyes shimmered with fear, and he simply nodded at her, confirming that he understood her order; he turned around, pulling out a scroll from a shelf, before unfurling it, his eyes scanning down it quickly.

"Ning." he spoke the name of the person she was looking for, "A servant, specialising in cleaning and first-aid. Age twenty-four." he listed off some facts about that servant which he must have known off of the top of his head, "I know this girl. I'm concerned why she would steal anything of yours."

"Because people are nosy." she narrowed her eyes at him, before snickering, finding another amusing possibility, "Or perhaps, in need of intellectual stimulation. I certainly am." she acknowledged the fact of the matter, though she realised she probably shouldn't mention any of her personal feelings around her servants; she did not want them becoming comfortable in her presence- comfort would only lead to complacency, "Where is she now?"

"I believe she went to clean your personal spa, your highness." he acknowledged, before picking up another scroll and unfurling it, "Yes, she's cleaning the spa as we speak."

She did not thank him, and simply turned to head out the door, but she decided, given the situation there was one question she needed to ask of him, "Do you know how I deal with nosy servants, Kang?"

"I believe expelling them from your service was what you told me." he told her with as calm a voice he could muster; Azula smirked, acknowledging that his knowledge was indeed correct.

"Precisely." she confirmed, before she continued out of the room, knowing she had to get to the spa.

When servants had been nosy or simply too interested in her day-to-day affairs back in the palace, she had them expelled or, at the very least, asked her father to have them moved somewhere else. She was far too concerned with the threat of spies or agents of the enemy, that being anyone that was not loyal to her or her nation, potentially gaining intelligence on her; some might have called it paranoia, but she knew of all people, members of the Fire Nation Royal Family needed to consider such threats. Even if they weren't spies themselves, the potential information that could be bought from those servants was something she knew to be a danger in and of itself.

Making her way back to the staircase, she walked up it to the next floor, glancing around the hallway, noting that there were a few sailors walking by, though they stopped talking as soon as she came into their field of view. She guessed that nobody wanted to talk in her presence; of course, she didn't want to listen to teir stupid conversations, so she had no issue with that. Azula turned her heels, making her way down the hallway toward the rear of the ship, where the spa was located; it used the heat of the nearby engine to warm up the room, as well as allowing easy access to hot towels and warm water for washing without the use of firebending. She personally thought that a firebender masseuse would be far superior to a non-bending one, but just like letting her servants gain intelligence, allowing attendants with firebending near her while she would be vulnerable was stupidly dangerous. It was far better to rely on non-benders, who were practically a non-threat to her as long as she was awake. When she reached the spa room, she noted by touching the metal door that it was cold, which made sense, given that it was being cleaned, rather than being used; she was the only she knew that used the spa, though she was sure that Lo and Li might enjoy the service, if they found it to their fancy.

Opening the door, the cleaner she was looking for glanced right up at her, and looked at her with an understandably concerned face as the Princess strode toward her, "Princess Azula, was there something you wanted?" she asked her, stepping back, presumably out of fear.

"Yes. You're Ning, correct?" she asked her, the servant girl's eyes darting around with fear before she nodded.

"I am." she confirmed, "Did- did I do something wrong?"

"Did you really think you'd get away with it?" she scoffed, amused by her feigning of innocence.

She bowed her head down, "My humble apologies, your highness." she told her with a calm voice, before her eyes darted up, more confused than afraid, "But, Princess, I don't know what you're talking about."

She placed her hands on her hips, shaking her head with disappointment, "Come clean. You stole my airbending scroll." she told her, the cold glare she gave making the girl drop to her knees.

"Please. I didn't do anything of the likes, there has to be some kind of mistake." she pleaded with her, raising her hands up to show her submission, "I filed that scroll away with the rest of them. M-maybe I didn't put it in the right spot." she admitted, before her eyes darted up toward her, "Please... I don't know how it could have disappeared."

"I am unconvinced, Ning." she chided her, sparking a flame in her fingers, "Why would want an airbending scroll? Did you think you would sell it when we reached port?" she asked her, the servant girl covering her face with her hands, as if she was about to cry, "What, now are you going to cry about it? That won't convince me."

"I- I didn't take that scroll." she assured her, "I just cleaned your room, your highness. M-m-maybe somebody else did it." she dared to suggest, making her roll her eyes; trying to deflect the blame away from herself was an amateur move- she obviously hadn't expected this.

"Oh, and who could have done that?" she asked her, only a little curious for what the servant could tell her; she had to be observing what was going on before and after she cleaned the room.

"I..." she mumbled, before her eyes turned up to meet her own, coloured pink from the tears that had come out; her expression shifted to one more that was more serious, "One of the twins came to your room after I cleaned it." she told her, mustering as confident a tone as she could, "I didn't think anything of it at the time, but she went inside."

"Did you see how long she was there?" she asked her, wanting to play with her for a little bit before she decided to give her the punishment she deserved.

"I didn't." she shook her head, before dropping her hands to the ground, opting to beg, "Please, please don't kill me."

"I won't." she assured her, knowing that was a bit of an overreaction for what Ning might have done, though from what she was saying, it seemed like she had not, "I will investigate what you just told me. If it turns out you are lying, then I will not relent to have you thrown off this ship. You will not be allowed to return to the homeland. I'm sure you understand."

"I- I do." she nodded with a fearful face, the Princess turning her heels, deciding the cleaner's interrogation was over; if it turned out she was lying, then she would be thrown off the ship- as annoying as stealing her scroll was, she knew that wasn't something she was going to punish with violence, given she could just retrieve the scroll from wherever she put it.

Making her way out of the spa, she closed the door behind her, and glanced around, noting that some of her Imperial Firebenders had been listening to the interrogation from afar; she eyed them, and they immediately turned their heels- everyone was too damn nosy for her liking. She made her way down the hallway, heading back to the staircase, remembering that her tutors would be having their lunch; she knew she ought to go to her own, but it could wait until after she got to the bottom of the case of her missing scroll. She strode up the staircase, and made her way straight to the dining area where they'd be eating; they too had their personal dining area, which was meant to be for any ranking officers on such a vessel, but seeing that she only had her guards, some servants and some sailors to tend to the vessel itself, the only people using it were her firebending tutors.

When she approached the door, she saw a servant walking by, who looked at her with surprise, "Oh, your highness." she bowed to her, before she made a conciliatory smile, "Your lunch is ready in your dining room." she explained to Azula, who sighed, not feeling overly concerned about that while she had other matters to deal with.

"I'll attend to eating lunch as soon as I speak with my tutors." she clarified, before raising her hand, gesturing for the servant to leave, which she did.

She stepped toward the door, and pulled on the handle, before she threw it open; Lo and Li, who were eating the entree course to their meal, some kind of soup, looked up to her immediately, surprise on their faces.

"Princess Azula." they both addressed her, "What did you desire of us?"

"Which of you went to my bedroom earlier this morning." she narrowed her eyes at them, the two sisters looking at each other with surprise, before Lo spoke up.

"I did." she clarified, "Was there something wrong with that?" she asked, the Princess scoffing.

"You went into my room without my knowledge. Without even mentioning anything about it before this very moment. I had to interrogate a servant girl to learn that." she clarified, placing her hands down on the table before the twins, "Why did you go there?"

"To..." she began, before turning to face Li, "Should we tell her?"

"There's no point trying to lie now." her sister admitted, before she turned to face Azula, "I apologise, your highness, but we have had direct orders from your father, Prince Ozai, to oversee your training. That includes any supplementary readings." she explained, making the Princess snarl, now knowing that Ning wasn't lying to save her behind; she refrained hammering her fist into the table, knowing that losing her cool would not be the wise thing, and instead crossed her arms, glaring them both down.

"So you stole the airbending scroll." she concluded, Lo shaking her head.

"I did not steal it. I was simply requisitioning banned materials." she clarified, making the Princess scoff.

"You're telling me that you took the scroll because my father doesn't want me reading it?" she asked them, the two sisters remaining silent for a few moments before they nodded.

"What did you do with the scroll?" she narrowed her eyes at them, "I would like it back."

"We burned it." Li clarified, making the Princess clench her fists; she was the one with power and authority on the ship, and they had just ignored it, like they owned the place- that infuriated her so much that she bent the flames in the candles that sat on the table, creating two mighty blue torches, the two elderly women cringing back from the heat.

"You miscalculated." she declared with a cold voice, unwilling to scream at them, no matter how much she wanted to, before the flames simmered down, "You will both leave this ship at the next port. I don't want to see your wrinkly old faces ever again."

"But your highness, we are only here to serve-" Lo began, before she hammered her fist down onto the table, finally letting that bit of her anger out.

"No you are not. You are liars and thieves." she snarled, "You destroyed that artefact because my father thought it was dangerous." she deduced their intentions, or more accurately, her father's, "Well, he was wrong to think that. I'm what is dangerous, not any stupid scrolls." she pointed to her chest, "I will learn what I need to to defeat the Avatar, and neither of you can stop me."

"We are greatly sorry for our actions, your highness." the two sisters bowed their heads in shame, Azula raising her hand up as she turned her heels.

"I am not getting up for your training either. I will have my Imperial Firebenders train with me, seeing that they can actually bend." she declared, having had enough of their stupid exercises anyway, before she had learned of their treachery.

She did not need to perfect every form to beat the Avatar; she needed to be smarter than him, something that she was sure was far more important than putting her feet and hands in specific positions in some sequences that she wouldn't even use in battle.

"If you do not have perfect control of your element, you will never succeed." the tutors both dared to speak up, making her scoff; she would not listen to their words anymore; she knew that they had no more useful wisdom, only platitudes and mindless demands that came straight from her father- they were simply his tools, and they could be dispensed with.

"You are both so full of words yet your ears fall deaf. I am the most powerful firebender alive; what I need is knowledge, and you stole that from me." she turned her heels around, deciding she had one more thing to tell them.

"I have no need for your senile proverbs and worthless ideals."


Prince Zuko knew that his father wouldn't leave the Royal Palace without reason, so he decided that it would be wise to follow him; of course, he didn't dare do so plain-clothed and in the open, knowing that his father would see him, and that would lead to a scenario the Prince wanted more than anything to avoid. His father was a cruel and unforgiving man, and if he had known that his son was tailing him, he might have found some way to punish him, perhaps in a way his son could not predict. So instead of walking down the street after him, he dressed in full-black, and put on his theatre mask; he wasn't the Dark Water Spirit, but rather just a boy in a mask, though if anyone saw him, they might actually believe he was some kind of evil spirit.

First taking a tunnel out of the Royal Palace, he made his way out into the caldera city, where it was rather easy to spot his father's palanquin; given that he wanted to remain unnoticed, he opted for climbing up onto the roof of a building, and making his way along, jumping between the gaps with ease. His acrobatics skills were a well kept secret, and he had had a lot of practice sneaking over to Mai's house; he had thought about going to see her that afternoon, but given the importance of understanding his father's intentions, he decided following after him was more important. He kept himself low, pacing along the bends, falls and rises of the rooftops, trying his best to remain out of sight from the main street, down which Ozai's palanquin was travelling.

When the palanquin turned at a side-street, he raised a brow, wondering where exactly he would be going; he thought perhaps his father might have wanted to go down to the port district, given that was where the shadier elements of the city were located. Not that he thought his father was doing anything criminal, at least not yet, but he knew that his father's respect for law and authority was rather weak; it was a tool, like everything was to him, and using criminals to achieve his aims was something Zuko knew he would be capable of. He was forced down to street level, given that he couldn't jump across the main street; the Prince realised that he would need to cross it somehow, and crouching in an alleyway, he glanced around for something that might be of use; he noted a cart, full of luxury goods, being driven along down the street in front of him.

Zuko cringed, realising that the best way across was underneath such a cart, and lunged forward, rolling underneath it; he might have been visible by pedestrians for a few moments, but it was unlikely they would have taken notice of him, just a random dark blur- a trick of their eyes. He then grasped onto the cart's underside before it moved past, hoisting himself up; he wrapped his legs around a beam, and waited patiently for the cart to continue along, moving across the main street, directly after his father's palanquin.

Once it had gotten past the open space of the main street, the cart itself turned to the left, and Zuko dropped down, immediately racing toward the cover of an alleyway once the cart had moved out of the way. He could heard the sound of the palanquin bearers footsteps, and decided to continue down the alleyway, which ran parallel to the route the palanquin had been taking; he listened out for any changes, walking all the way to the end of the alleyway, where he was forced to come to a halt, now at a street again.

He decided to scale the closest wall, stepping up on a windowsill to push himself up onto the roof; moving up to the crest of the roof, he eyed the palanquin, and noted that it was moving around the corner, which confused him; it was as if it were circling around the block. His eyes darted down the street the palanquin had taken, and he noted a tall figure wearing a red cloak that fell down to his feet; he smirked, figuring out quickly enough that it had to be his father- the robe had gold trimmings and by the arms, he could see the distinctive sleeves of the robes that all members of the Royal Family wore. He noted that Ozai was walking down another alleyway, one running away from the street; he raised a brow, curious as to where he would be going.

Zuko turned his heels momentarily, getting some space between him and the edge of the roof, before he charged forward, jumping across to the roof opposite. The clunking sound his feet made as they hit the roof tiles made the Prince cringe, realising that his father might have heard them. He followed on after his father, almost crawling as he moved his way silently across the roof, parallel to his father in the alleyway below. He noted that Ozai had stopped, and glanced up and down the alleyway before knocking on a door; except he wasn't actually knocking on the door, he was somehow using his firebending to open a mechanism. There were a few sounds of parts moving, before the door itself slid open, revealing an entrance. Zuko knew he couldn't follow his father inside, given that the door itself was loud enough that even if he could replicate the bending move, he would be found immediately. Instead, he decided to leap across to the building itself and look for another way inside.

He tensed his legs as he looked over to the building across from him, noting that its roof was higher than the one he was standing on; there was a decent indentation on the windowsill, however, so he decided to take the chance with jumping over to that. Zuko charged forward, leaping up onto the window sill, which creaked as it held his weight up. His eyes brightened as he realised that the window he was in front of was inside the same building that his father had entered, thus, could provide him access to whatever the elder Prince was doing.

He grasped his dagger, which he kept tied around his lower back, and drew it out of its sheath; he jammed the small weapon into the bottom of the window, moving it around to try and feel for the mechanism that would have locked the window closed. With enough slow movements, he found the spot, and pushed his dagger in, unlocking the mechanism. The Prince then slowly reached down to pull the window open, revealing the room inside. It was a lounge area, with a few seats and a table in the middle, where he could expect somebody to eat a meal and drink tea. What he saw suggested that he was inside some kind of house, though he guessed it wasn't his father's; they all lived in the palace, after all.

Zuko slowly began to pace through the room, reaching the door, which luckily lacked any kind of lock; he then pushed it open, glancing down the hallway, which seemed to be empty. He was sure the house wasn't, as he could hear his father's voice, as well that of some other men, downstairs. He paced down the hallway, trying to move slowly enough to ensure that he didn't accidentally make the floor creak, which would give away his presence. When he reached the end of the hallway, he noted that there was an atrium, given the sunlight coming down into the room; he glanced down, realising that his father was right there, sitting with a number of men around a table. He recognised some of them, having been in the war meeting they'd had a week or so prior; the Prince smirked realising what he'd just got himself into. He pulled his mask up and off, so he could uncover his ears and get a better listen in on what they were saying; he leaned by the corner of the wall, ensuring that they couldn't see him.

"Your highness." he heard one of the men address his father, "What you're saying is... well, it's near treason."

"It won't be treason if I'm the Fire Lord." Ozai spoke up, his voice cold and commanding, "You all know why this must be done. The lesser nations grow more eager with each passing day. My brother has refused to move our armies on the rebels and the savages at the North Pole; our strength is being squandered with each passing day."

"What will you have us do, your highness?" another of the men asked his father, who almost laughed, or at least, tried to stop himself from doing so.

"You will serve your Fire Lord, until he is no longer your Fire Lord, after which, I want you all to follow my explicit commands. These commands must be followed through at once, before anyone has a chance to react. We can not give the detractors of our nation any opportunities." he explained, the men all making affirmative sounds.

"Your highness, the burning of these cities, how do you expect us to achieve it?"

"I have spoken with War Minister Qin on these matters. There are machines in the works, and they will allow us to send down fury from the skies." he explained with a cocky tone, "We will destroy all those that stand in the path of our nation, with a weapon that none of them will expect."

"From the skies?" one of them spoke with a voice of awe, "Like the dragons?"

"Oh, far better than a dragon. A dragon only has one head. With a machine like this, you can have dozens of men sending out their power, not to mention the use of explosives." he explained, letting out a laugh, "I am sure you understand I have thought this plan well and truly through."

"And what of Sozin's Comet. It will be here in a matter of months." one of the men acknowledged, "Will you harness its power?"

"That is the wrong question." he scoffed, Zuko shivering at the thought of what it might be used for; his father's words spoke of burning cities from the sky, destroying the other nations- that wasn't anything like the prosperity their national oath spoke of, "It is how we can best use it to destroy our enemies. The Air Temples were a cheap target; there is something far more systematic that I believe to be in order."

The Prince's eyes widened, realising what his father was saying; Zuko had always wanted to serve his country, but what his father was suggesting was insane. He knew his father had always had dreams and aspirations of his future, but the kind of things he was talking about, they were nightmares, not dreams. The Prince could only mutter one thing, unable to think of any other question.

"Why?"