As Azula strode along the table, eyes of experienced men, admirals and generals, were all upon her and her father as they approached their seats; the interest that she garnered through their gazes was more than pleasing, as it assured her that she wasn't just looked over because of her sex and youth. Princess Azula was an heir of her nation, and perhaps, one day, would be its ruler, and they recognised that; after all, it was not her elder brother who was going to sit by her father's right side, but her. When she sat down, she turned her gaze to her uncle, who was sitting across from her and her father, by the end of the table, closest to his father, Fire Lord Azulon, who was overseeing the war meeting with his usual distant, but ever present gaze.

"Prince Ozai, Princess Azula." the Fire Lord addressed them, before clearing his throat, his attention turning to the table of men that had assembled before him, "Now that my sons are here, we may begin the meeting. Admiral Chan, your report." he raised his hand up, gesturing toward one of the men on the table, sitting just across from her.

The officer rose to his feet, and pulled out a scroll, "Thank you, your majesty." he addressed the Fire Lord, before he began to read out his report, "The Fire Navy now has complete control over the Eastern Sea, with the pirates operating out of Lanyanwan captured and their vessels scuttled. The last remnants of the Earth Kingdom's navy still eludes us in the Northern Sea, but our control over all the major ports along the coast means it is only a matter of time before we narrow down their base of operations."

"What if they took refuge with the Northern Water Tribe?" another officer asked him, and before the Admiral could respond, another man spoke up, near the end of the table, but loudly enough for them all to hear.

"They can't." the officer declared, and Azula raised a brow, finding his statement to be rather self-assured.

"They can't?" Chan asked him, before gesturing toward the officer, "Please, Commander Zhao, explain why you believe that?"

"I know it. I have spent years fighting the Northern Water Tribe and exploring their waters, sir. The Earth Kingdom Navy, whatever remains of it, could only be a few wooden junks, perhaps large enough to put a few hundred men on." he explained his guess on what the remaining Earth Kingdom ships might be like, "Those ships would be slow and fragile and would almost certainly wreck themselves before they reached the Northern Water Tribe's sanctuary."

"You mean to say they lack any icebreakers whatsoever?" another officer asked, and the Commander nodded.

"Precisely. The Earth Kingdom is poor, and they've always focused on their ground forces. That's why it took a hundred years to conquer Ba Sing Se, and exactly why they wouldn't have the means to reach the Northern Water Tribe. If they had had it, they would have recruited them to their cause. They certainly had the manpower to force the North into joining their side." he explained his reasoning for why the Earth Kingdom fleet was not in the North Pole, which Azula found to be surprisingly satisfactory.

"Well, the Commander has raised a good point." Ozai spoke up, "The Northern Water Tribe is inaccessible for anyone without ships capable of traversing their waters." he concluded, or rather, summarised what Zhao had already said, "So, I propose the navy focus on the coast, and try to find these last Earth Kingdom ships and destroy them."

"That is what is necessary." Chan agreed with him, before turning to face Zhao, "Thank you, Commander."

The Commander smirked confidently, glad that he had been recognised; perhaps he had a similar intention to her when he came into that meeting. She wanted to be recognised and respected by his superiors, so she might be able to take a greater role in serving her nation, just as her cousin had done before her, even if he had been fighting as a soldier instead of sitting in war councils.

"Admiral, please continue." the Fire Lord spoke up, sounding annoyed by the interruption.

"Of course, your majesty. The Western Fleet has been focused on containing the threat of a group of marauders who are believed to be from the Southern Water Tribe."

"They should not pose a threat." Azulon declared coldly, "I annihilated them." he stressed, the Admiral tensing up, before nodding

"Yes, they are weak, without their benders, but they seem to be continuing their efforts to undermine our war effort and supply chains." Chan stressed his point, "They are the only military force capable of threatening us at sea, and unlike the Earth Kingdom's meagre forces, they can escape beyond our reach by beaching their vessels, or travelling back south to the frozen wastes from where they came."

"Perhaps we should occupy their lands, and destroy the threat at its root." Azula's father suggested, and she smirked, realising she had something she could advise.

"Taking their waterbenders did not break their spirit." she explained what was clear enough, "Maybe they need to be educated about their proper place, Father." she suggested, and Ozai smirked; across the table, her uncle didn't seem to approve of the idea.

"Now, we don't need to act too rashly." Iroh warned them, "Agitating them further may only incite more fervent resistance. What if they come to attack our lands, raid our villages, and kill the people of our nation?"

"They can't, Uncle." Azula suggested, "The Home Forces are ready to face off any raids. They would annihilate them. They couldn't possibly be that stupid."

"Oh, my daughter, you overestimate the wit of these savages." Ozai warned her, and a moment later, the flames of the throne grew brighter.

"Enough of your bickering." Azulon snarled with a cold, seething voice, and he raised a finger, "The Southern Raiders are doing more than enough to suppress the savages. They cannot defeat us, and that is the end of it. Their lands are of little use to be occupied, and their people would, as the Crown Prince just said, rise up against us in fury; wiping out a few poor villages would not be worth the thousands of soldiers who would die in the process of annihilating those savages." he explained the situation, rebuking both Azula and her father, before turning his attention back to Chan ,"Was that the whole report?"

"Yes, your majesty." he confirmed with a bow, before dropping down to his seat.

"Good. Now, I believe that General Bujing had a proposal concerning the Earth Kingdom forces guarding the north-west coast of Omashu Province." the Fire Lord clarified the next matter on the agenda, and the aforementioned general rose up to his feet; the old and seemingly confident general had a smirk on his lips, and held up the pointer staff that would indicate troop movements.

"I do, your majesty." he stressed, before pointing the staff toward a group of Fire Nation soldiers; the twenty-third division, to be specific, as was indicated by the number on the tile representing the group, "This division of soldiers have been fighting in the thick of the Southern Campaign, and took part in the capture of Gaoling six months ago. I believe they would be well suited to draw the enemy out."

"What do you propose the division be used for, General?" Ozai asked him, sounding curious about his plan, if not a little excited, if one could even say her father got excited about anything.

"At Gaoling, the local defenders were holed up in a mountain, and refusing to surrender, mining the ground around our troops, causing grave amounts of casualties." he explained, before smirking, "But the twenty-third division, not directly involved in this fight, decided to seize upon the only power they held against these staunch fighters- their families. They imprisoned the wives, children, elders... everyone they could get their hands on that was associated with the soldiers. They then took each of them up toward the mountain, and set them out for the enemy to see." he explained, and Iroh turned his head, as he seemed to realise where the story was going.

"General, please, you don't need to explain any more." he pleaded, but Bujing continued, in defiance of the Prince's request.

"It is important that the men of this table hear this, your highness. The commander of the division, General Heizi, declared that if the soldiers did not surrender, they would start to beat, burn and torture their families. After a few children were burned, and some old crones died, some of the Earth Kingdom soldiers rose up, killed their commanding officer, and threw his body down the slope, before surrendering." he explained what had occurred, "Their leader would have died on that mountain and fought until the end, but the common man doesn't want to see his children burned alive for the sake of a dead country."

"So, General, you are proposing that we do it again." Ozai concluded, with an impressed smirk on his face, "That ruthlessness is admirable. The enemy's stubbornness will always be their undoing."

"That is what I was told in the academy when I was her age." Bujing gestured to Azula, who was a little amused to wonder that the general before her could have ever been anything other than a conniving old man, "And it has stuck true to this very day. I propose the twenty-third division move toward the base of General Fong, and round up the inhabitants of the villages and towns surrounding it. They will threaten their lives, and if the enemy does not surrender themselves, those innocents will suffer for the defiance of their countrymen."

"That is a sound plan, General." Azulon congratulated him, though he wasn't very enthusiastic in his tone, "I believe that will be the most effective way to neutralise those forces, and leave Omashu without any allies to fall back on." he gave his thoughts, before turning his gaze down to his eldest son, perhaps the most skilled and experienced military commander in the room, barring the Fire Lord himself, "Prince Iroh, do you find fault with the General's plan?"

"I do not doubt that it will succeed." he admitted, turning his gaze toward Bujing, "It is one way we could defeat that force of fighters."

"Do you have a counter proposal?" Ozai asked his brother, who crossed his arms.

"Bujing's plan requires us to shatter the enemy's willpower." he noted, "But, the Earth Kingdom is gone. They need not to fear for their families. I am sure every single one of those soldiers is dreading the day our soldiers arrive, scale their walls and slaughter them."

"And they will, if the stubborn fools don't surrender." Bujing declared confidently; Iroh seemed unfazed by his words.

"They might." he agreed, though obviously not with the plan, but simply with the inevitable outcome, "They are people. People can be reasoned with, and reasoning with them will provide them with a loss far more important than one of men."

"A loss of their morale." Azulon described exactly what his son was suggesting, "That is true. Other garrisons across the Earth Kingdom might feel that the war is lost, as they should, and once they see that they can survive without fighting to the death, they will kneel before my rule."

"They have no other choice, Father." Iroh conceded the fact of the matter; Azula glanced to her left, and noted that her own father didn't approve of the idea, probably thinking a slaughter to be more a fitting fate for their enemy.

Azula, on the other hand, didn't know; she was not a master strategist yet, and she knew that either method would be valid. Threatening the families of soldiers would force them to surrender, just as negotiating their surrender would do the same. Their defeat could also be made certain by destroying them, but just as Bujing and her uncle had proven, it was not the only way; destroying their enemies, such as the Air Nomads, or the waterbenders of the South Pole, was a method that seemed to only be reserved for the most dire of conflicts, where the enemy's survival would itself be a threat to the Fire Nation as a whole.

Whatever was decided, she could be sure of one thing: her father and uncle didn't agree on much, and where the war ought to go, and how it ought to be conducted was probably the most stark area of disagreement. She wondered, just for a moment, what Zuko would think; he might be like her, and remain undecided, unlearned in the ways of war, or perhaps, declare the action of harming the innocent families against the rules of war, and tout Bujing as a traitor; perhaps he was, at least a traitor to the principles of dignity and honour that her nation prided itself on, but he certainly believed and fought for the one thing they all desired- a great victory, one that would be certain and lauded in history. Azula would find that some day, if her uncle was willing to give her the place she would be deserving of, fulfilling his commands and destroying his enemies as a general of their nation; there was no greater honour, and she smiled for a moment, just imagining what she could achieve, and the stories people might tell of her victories.


Princess Azula sometimes just wished she could have had a less dignified ship, as every time she sailed into a navy port, she was immediately greeted by the commander of the local garrison, and any navy officers in the port, who by virtue of her rank, were obliged to pay their respects. She was fourteen years old, and honestly, would prefer if they left the bowing and sycophancy until after she had done something worthy of the respect her uncle had fairly received for his great conquest of Ba Sing Se and long service as a general of their nation. She had captured the Avatar, but let him escape; part of her thought herself a complete failure and a fool for letting that happen, and sympathising in the slightest with a pacifist Air Nomad, but another part of her knew that she had done what was right.

Aang was not her enemy, and he did not stand in the way of her aims, at least not yet; the Fire Nation ruled the world, so there was only one real enemy left for them to fight, which had become more apparent the more she considered what her father had been doing ever since Lu Ten died. The Fire Nation was its own greatest enemy, and the war that was on the horizon was not one to bring prosperity and unite the nations, but to destroy what they had taken, and make their past efforts worthless. The very idea of her cousin's death ultimately having no service to their nation, and perhaps, harming it, was both infuriating and fulfilling. Knowing that with him alive, they would be a stronger, more united country made her feel like he was worthy of everything she desired for herself, and everything her uncle seemed to be squandering.

So as she sat on her deck, with a table to seat the garrison commander and a few navy officers for a tea banquet, she wished that she could be somewhere else, or at the very least, could have been bequeathed at birth a fraction of the patience and affability her uncle wielded as weapons against friend and foe alike. They seemed to enjoy the tea, and that was a good distraction, and meant she didn't have to constantly make excuses ad verbatim about her incidental failure to capture the Avatar, something so degrading to her character that she wished she had kept Aang in that room just to keep the high brass' opinion of her just as great as it was when she advised alongside her father and uncle in war councils.

"Your highness, might I say, there's been much rumours about the events in Omashu." one of the officers spoke up, and she forced herself to not roll her eyes.

Her uncle's inability to control the narrative of the conflict that had been brewing was not helping his plans to unite the nation against Ozai, and without declaring her father a traitor, they ultimately weren't going to be able to achieve much, unless she was bold enough to face her own father off in an Agni Kai, something that seemed so foolish that she doubted Zuko, in all his fury and arrogance, would never even consider.

"What kind of rumours?" she asked the question required of her; he obviously wanted to gauge her opinion on the situation, as perhaps, he already suspected the forces behind the assassins.

She couldn't reveal her father's complicity, at least not until she had her uncle's permission, which she did not. She had not yet heard back from him since she sent a letter concerning Zuko's state, but she guessed that he was having the Order of the White Lotus investigate his and Mai's whereabouts before he decided to make his move.

"That the Fire Lord killed his pursuers... with the help of a Water Tribe warrior." he explained, and her eyes widened; she didn't think officers would be talking about Sokka of all people, though it made sense from the perspective of whoever was supporting her father- it made her uncle look like a sympathiser to their declared enemies, and made his loyalties seem vaguer, something her father would most likely abuse.

"Yes, he did." she decided to be truthful about it, knowing that lying would just garner more suspicion on the behalf of those who didn't know the facts for certain; they might create rumours that were untrue, and that would further endanger her uncle's position as Fire Lord.

"That's... interesting." one of the other officers noted, placing his hands together as he seemed to consider whatever he had already heard about the fight, "Why would a Water Tribesman be with the Fire Lord... how could a savage be in the favour of the Fire Lord?"

"He was not." Azula stressed, "I freed him, because he was an associate of my target, the Avatar. I required him to leave Earth Kingdom territory, so I got rid of the problem by sending his associate on his way, to avoid the Avatar making unnecessary contact with our enemies." she lied through her teeth about her reasons, knowing that she'd have to explain it in a way that made her seem like she was towing the line of containing the Avatar, and was in no way trying to assist him.

"Is the Avatar trying to rile up the Earth Kingdom against us?" the same officer asked her, "That would be... a serious threat."

"One I am considering. The threat is not the Avatar himself in that regard; the warrior who assisted my uncle against his pursuers might have otherwise thought us to be his enemies. Persuading the Avatar against fighting us and threatening our great nation's security is my utmost priority; he needn't be captured if he does not fight."

"Air Nomads were reputed to be extreme pacifists, were they not?" one officer asked the others, and they nodded in agreement.

"That is quite tact of you, your highness." one officer acknowledged her wit, or at least, her lies which she disguised as a complex, well-thought out strategy, "Turning the Avatar to our side... or at least, making sure he doesn't pick one. That involves a lot less resources than a naval campaign to capture him."

"Would have you preferred that?" she dared to ask the officers, who looked amongst themselves, and their expressions told her exactly what she had guessed; they'd all wanted to seize her prize, and now she was telling them it was a worthless cause, they all realised their foolishness.

"We did not prefer anything. It was the will of your father that the Avatar be contained, and if necessary captured, so that he would not threaten our forces in the Earth Kingdom." one of them clarified, and placed her hands together.

"Well, my father trusts me to do what I set out to do. He always has. I will not fail him. Needlessly agitating potential enemies will only lead to further conflict."

"The Fire Nation does not avoid fights it can win, your highness." the garrison commander stressed, obviously thinking highly of their military forces; Azula did too, but that didn't mean she would overestimate them in comparison to perhaps the most powerful being in the world.

"And our nation will not win in a real fight against the Avatar. Do you all recall what it took for the last Avatar to die?" she asked them, knowing that they had only heard the 'official' version of events concerning her great-grandfather's demise.

"I believe it was a volcano, your highness." one officer nervously conceded, "Avatar Roku was a powerful man."

"Every Avatar has the potential to be as strong as a master of all elements because they are just that. Just because they have died and been reborn does not mean their spirit forgets what they have learned over and over. And just like the Avatar Spirit, the Fire Nation should not be forgetful of their power, and the danger it poses to everything we have built."

"The Air Nomads fell to Sozin's Comet a century ago." one officer noted, stroking the goatee he had flowing from his chin, "Would that suffice as a substitute for a volcano, if wielded by, let's say, the Fire Lord himself?"

"The Fire Lord is a master of our element, and I have no doubts that he might be able to win such a fight, even if the Avatar Spirit had all its powers to show for." she conceded, knowing her uncle was undeniably the most powerful firebender alive; he merely lacked the reasons to use his strength in such a violent and forceful manner anymore, "That does not mean that such a battle should be desired. What is to say for all the men who might die needlessly alongside their great leader?"

"That is an honour that any citizen of our nation would be glad to receive." one officer touted something that she disagreed with greatly.

For one, he probably wouldn't want to die in the name of victory for his nation, but instead, be lauded by his monarch and showered with honours, alive rather than dead, so he could enjoy it. Another thing was Lu Ten, who loomed over her thoughts like he was an actual apparition, constantly tapping her on the forehead and reminding her of his completely avoidable death.

"Oh, glad?" she let her visage of calmness and affability break, knowing that she couldn't lie about that; she could lie to her father's face and tell him she would hunt the Avatar to the ends of the earth if it would keep him at bay for just a few moments, but she would never deny the truth about her cousin, because the pain of doing so would break her like a lightning bolt to her chest- dishonouring not her cousin's memory, but the contending some magical, great reason for his sacrifice, "What's your name and rank?" she asked the officer, wanting to make her words a little more personal for a change.

"Commander Houken, your highness." he gave his name and rank, and his eyes told her he already realised what had happened; he had earned her ire, for saying something, that to any other person, would seem like the right and dignified manner to refer to the soldiers of their nation.

"Commander, do you know what a hero is?" he asked him, and he glanced at his comrades, who seemed intimidated by her tone as she rose to her feet, standing above Houken with a hawkish glare.

"A h-hero?" he murmured, "A hero is somebody who fights for the greater good. Somebody who dies for their nation, they are a hero." he admitted, connecting the dots in the exact manner she wanted him to.

"And Commander, what becomes of a hero, once he dies?" she asked, "Does he somehow live on in death... as if his greatness made him special compared to the rest of us, those less enlightened individuals?"

"Everyone dies, your highness." he conceded, "Heroes just the same."

"That's right. So... is there any difference between a peasant man who dies protecting his village, which is being burnt down by our soldiers, to be forgotten as his kin and neighbours die or are scattered across the land, and a man who died serving his country, remembered for his deeds and virtue?" she asked, "Both die for what they believe in, both die in pain and anguish." she stressed, pointing her finger down at the Commander, "Do you think that peasant is a hero?"

"N-no. The peasant is just doing what he needs to survive." he gave his opinion, and Azula raised her chin up.

"There is no honour in death, Commander. Even beside my uncle, the greatest general in our nation's history, there is no honour. There is only pain and anguish. Not just for that hero, but for everyone who wished him well when he went off to fight for his country; his friends, his family, perhaps the one he loves most." she explained the outcome as she knew it was, "Did you know a hero, Commander?"

"No, I haven't been honoured by their presence." he conceded, and Azula scoffed.

"You create heroes, Commander. The men you command to assault a village, or a rebel hideout, they will die in the service of their country. That is a great power you wield, and I recommend you use it with an understanding of what you are creating."

"There is nothing wrong with honouring our fallen, your highness. They are the ones we continue to fight for, in their memory." another officer tried to take the side of Houken, and she raised a finger.

"I am not talking of simply creating heroes. Heroes are a fiction." she stressed the fact of the matter; she would never view herself as a hero, even if she had great deeds to her name, the kind that she would be lauded in history books for; Azula had no care for the image she would receive, but rather, the actual result of her actions.

"Then what would I create?"

"Angry families, weeping for their dead sons and daughters. Broken soldiers, in both mind and body. A populace who knows war far better than you ever will, Commander Houken." she warned him, "What do you think they will think of the men who sent their children, brothers, sisters, fathers and mothers to die?"

"That somebody better should lead them to victory." she heard a voice that wasn't meant to be on the table; Azula turned her head around to see that somebody had climbed the plank up to her Royal Barge.

Though she had invited everyone at the dock to her ship, as was custom, she did not know nor expect the man who was standing before her; Commander Zhao, whose smirk and posture told her that he had more to say than answer her questions on the nature of war.

"Commander Zhao." she addressed him, not bowing as he was far below her in rank and worth as an individual; she knew he was quite intelligent and knowledgeable, as he had proved on war councils and at sea, where he thrashed the enemy of their nations, but he certainly was not a wise man, nor was he a humble one, "I was not informed you were in port."

"I just arrived to resupply my ships, your highness." he explained, stepping closer to the table, "A tea banquet." he observed, "If it wouldn't intrude, could I join you?" he asked rather politely, and the Princess turned around, gesturing to the servants who were standing on the ready.

"Brew some more tea. The Commander needs something fresh." she decided, knowing that she ought to give him the same visage she had held up until Houken's words agitated her; she couldn't refuse a guest, and she didn't want to make an enemy of the man who she knew was smart enough to play into the conflicts that were already brewing around them.

"Thank you, your highness." he bowed to her, before his expression shifted, "Your conversation was... rather interesting."

"Oh, it was not a conversation." she clarified, "I was merely lecturing this man on the nature of his power, and the dangers it poses to us all." she admitted, narrowing her eyes at the other officers, "I meant what I said." she stressed, and they nodded.

"We apologise, your highness." one of them tried to take a more conciliatory stance, "We understand that you only want to advise us on being greater leaders."

"Yes, that is all I desire." she agreed with the proposition, finding it to be a useful cover for her real intention, which was to remind them of the result of their actions.

She didn't want to betray the Fire Nation because of Lu Ten's demise, but she could certainly see that people losing their family like she had would only make them hate the men leading them into war, and the war itself. She did not hate war, but simply was frustrated by its futility, and knew that solving conflicts more efficiently, with less losses, which perhaps was what Zhao thought of when making his comment.

"Those who can should rise to the challenge, your highness. Countless deaths aren't something we should accept as being necessary." he acknowledged, "Victory can be attained through... other means."

She was actually surprised how well his own mindset aligned with her own, and she smirked, gesturing for him to sit, "Please, Commander, I'm sure you have news to tell us from your own duties."

"I do." he admitted, sitting down cross-legged near the Princess, who dropped back down to her seat, "I've been assigned to assist you, actually." he admitted, making her raise a brow.

"Sorry, assist me?" she asked, confused by the revelation, "Why am I learning this right now?" she asked, the Princess narrowing her eyes.

"Did your father not tell you that he was sending me to help you recover the Avatar?" he asked, and Azula clenched her fists, knowing that her father could have only done that on purpose, to catch her off guard, and make sure she couldn't prepare to deal with Zhao; she didn't know if the Commander was in the conspiracy, but it was clear that he wanted to make the most of Aang's return, and her father had just given him the opportunity on a platter.

"Perhaps he did not want to distract me from my search. I have been very busy lately." she described what she might have said if she did not know about what he had done to her brother; Zuko was getting in his way before he had dealt with him forcefully, and Azula wasn't exactly doing what she was supposed to, at least in his eyes.

She had a feeling that her father was not just sending Zhao to help her; he lacked control, with Lo and Li out of the picture, and now, the Commander could make sure she did her job. Azula was going to do exactly what Iroh told her, and this revelation only complicated matters; if she could discern the Admiral's loyalty, perhaps she could sway him to assist her, given that any opportunity to extend his own power would be met with loyalty. She had heard of his plans to invade the Northern Water Tribe, and was sure that he had aspirations far greater than commanding a few ships to patrol the waters of the Southern Sea.

"I apologise if this has come as a shock, your highness. I didn't mean to frustrate your efforts."

"You are not frustrating me, Commander." she stressed, not wanting him to think that his arrival would change her plans in the slightest, "I know that your assistance will be of great use to me, and to our nation."

Even if she would have to work around him, the plan was still the same; the Fire Navy could not capture Aang, and she would do whatever in her power to prevent that from happening. Having a direct line of contact to the man her father assigned to the very task of hunting down the Avatar would prove very useful, assuming Zhao could be fooled. His intelligence was not to be underestimated, though she could certainly play into the man's flaws- his arrogance and vanity.

"Thank you, your highness. I am glad that you and your father have trust in my abilities to get things done." he smiled at her, and she tensed up, unsure if he was being genuine when he said that; he was certainly a liar, like any of the other officers on the table, but his skill in that regard was still in question.

"Well, Commander, have your men spotted the Avatar?" she asked Zhao, who nodded, raising his hand up.

"Twice." he clarified, raising two of his fingers to indicate that fact, "A few days ago one of my subordinates spotted the sky-bison by the western coast of the Earth Kingdom. They gave pursuit, but were unable to follow them inland." he explained, sounding slightly annoyed by the failure, "I ordered them to sail north, but the sky-bison did not appear over the water again." he added.

"And the second time?"

"The sky-bison was spotted by another ship yesterday, but it was flying overland, and disappeared soon after. I've sent out letters to the local garrisons, and hopefully, they will return with some intelligence that may be of use to us, your highness."

"Good." she smirked, wanting to at least seem pleased about the matter; she had been focusing on narrowing down Ty Lee's location, but she had yet to be informed of the location of the circus where her friend was working, "I have been searching the area myself. I already knew the Avatar had been travelling north." she added to try and emphasise her 'plans', as they appeared to be.

Even if that was technically true, she was merely trailing Aang to ensure that he and his friends weren't caught, and if they were, that she could diffuse the situation; what was more important was the fact that the circus was most likely nearby, though where exactly was a struggle for her to determine. She assumed it was the general vicinity of the port where she was, given that Ty Lee had indicated in a letter before her journey that the circus travelled in the area to the south of the main Fire Nation colonies, which she was quickly nearing as she approached the Mo Ce Sea, and so far, had yet to receive any intelligence that would indicate the circus was in the colonies she had passed by.

"Are there any military installations near where the Avatar could pose a threat? Perhaps prisons or labour camps. Those are the kind of places an Avatar would want to seek support... given most of the Earth Kingdom's forces are now in hiding." she asked the men on the table, and a few of them nodded.

"Yes, your highness." one of them confirmed, "There's a shipbuilding rig off the western coast to the north of here where imprisoned earthbenders work, as well as a few forts where we have some non-bending soldiers interned, mostly clearing woodland for the new railroad connecting the mines at Gangpubu to the colony of Shahekou." he explained, the Princess raising a finger to her chin.

"Those are the places the Avatar might pose a threat. Air Nomads are quite... obsessed with freedom and fairness. That's how they operated their society, and the Avatar, being from those people, most likely holds the same values." she explained, knowing her plan was not to actually find Aang, but merely keep Zhao and his men occupied with beefing up the security of some military installations while she went and found Ty Lee.

"Liberating prisoners would be a foolish act on his behalf." Zhao contended, "We have more than enough soldiers to contain a prison break, and that's without calling in the navy." he argued, the Princess nodding.

"That is true, but avoiding such a situation should be our priority. The Avatar cannot be allowed to disrupt our nation's focus. If our enemies gain a chance to strike at us because of a momentary distraction, it will be because we did not treat our occupation of these lands seriously." she stressed, and the Commander nodded, seeming to understand her point.

"I see that, your highness. They will fail, if they try to revolt with his help." he declared, "And we can make sure of it."

"I do not doubt the capability of our nation's soldiers." she stressed, before narrowing her eyes at him, staring into his own sharp glare, "They must be ready to prevent such threats, and, if necessary, to negotiate. Our military strength is unparalleled, but that does not make the Avatar any less of a danger if he sees us as his enemies."

"Negotiating with the enemies of our nation is not something commonplace, your highness." one of the officers conceded, "How do you propose this... situation be handled?"

"There is not much we can do, but I do recommend one thing." she admitted, "The Avatar is an Air Nomad, who were known to be pacifists, averse to violence. However, we should not simply believe him incapable of violence because of that. If we suppress potential revolts too forcefully, we will instigate a reaction that we might not be able to defeat. Escalation is exactly what needs to be avoided when your potential opponent has the power of countless past lives just waiting to be harnessed."

"So, you propose we act... what, kindly to our enemies?" Zhao asked her, seeming skeptical of such an argument.

"Kindness has nothing to do with it. Public executions, forced labour, and the expulsion of civilians is something that the Earth Kingdom most likely despises us for, and the Avatar will as well if those acts continue. We are not in the Earth Kingdom to rob the locals of everything they own and to kill every last earthbender; we are here to rule, and expand our nation. That was always our intention, was it not?"

"We are here to rule." Zhao conceded, "We are the superior nation, and it is only right that we lead the world to a glorious future." he added the token nationalistic argument that was all too common the tables where she sat; she no longer held them with the esteem she once did, but she at least considered the principle to be fair, and if she could use that principle to persuade Zhao to doing things in a less confrontational manner, then perhaps she wouldn't be forced to choose between fighting her own people and fighting the Avatar.

"So, you see what must be done?"

"The war is almost over. Leniency... however much is needed, may provide our men with some breathing room, and perhaps, the rebels will think twice about rising up. When our soldiers slaughter a few bandit gangs and rebuild their roads, perhaps the locals will look upon us as they always should have. Liberators from their pitiful lives under a pitiful excuse of a nation." he argued, before smirking, glancing behind her, "Oh, is that my tea?"

A servant walked past Azula, and holding a pot in hand, and immediately moved to pour Commander Zhao his tea; the Commander's eyes momentarily were on the servant, before he turned back to the Princess, "You are quite different from what I remembered, your highness. I see that your time at see has provided you with new insights into the art of war and governance."

"It has." she agreed, a half-lie, as she certainly had a better understanding of what was wrong with their nation, and how they had been fighting, and how they had governed themselves and the people they had sought to make subjects of the Fire Lord, "Is the tea good?" she asked, and he nodded.

"Oh, it's quite nice. This is jasmine, correct?"

"Only the finest from the palace's stores." she added, "My uncle was sure to provide me with it when I left the capital. He has spoken at length on the merit of a good tea."

"And how is his majesty? I heard you fought alongside him against the fools who tried to kill him."

"In good spirits... for a man who has almost died twice in the past month." she simply put her thoughts to words, "He will have orders for you, Commander." she added, and he raised a brow.

"Personally?"

"Well, if you are to assist me in handling the Avatar, the greatest threat to our nation, then of course the Fire Lord will want to dispense orders to you directly."

"I'm looking forward to seeing his seal in my messenger hawk coop."

"You might be surprised." she warned him, knowing that even if he didn't know what she was talking about, it might help to warn him of what may be coming his way; if he wasn't loyal to Ozai, then 'hunting' the Avatar was not going to be his greatest concern in the slightest, and if he was, then he would soon find a lightning bolt in his chest.

Azula did not hate many people, and if she did the deed, it would merely be to fulfil her responsibilities as a Princess of the Fire Nation. Hunting down and eliminating traitors was something that she was more than prepared to do, long before she had found out about her father's conspiracy; it seemed that sooner, rather than later, she would be putting her skills to the test. Aang would not need to worry about Zhao, or anyone else for that matter coming his way; he would have to worry about getting in the way of her obligations.

Princess Azula would never give in to fear and forget her duties; they came first, before any friendship, loyalties or personal grudges; Zhao could be a friend or a foe, and for now, he would remain an ally, somebody she could never trust, but had to give responsibility to, lest he decide to act on his own desire for fame and respect, which might end up being more dangerous than any loyalty he could hold to Ozai.


The market of Shu Jing wasn't very large, but Mai was glad that she could get what she required from it; with her and Zuko staying at the estate with Piandao and Fat, it was only fair that they went off to acquire whatever food and supplies the sword master would require to ensure the household ran smoothly. He gave them some money to spend, and though she had considered asking where exactly he acquired the money, she just guessed it was from the students he would receive from across the Fire Nation.

Nobody had come to the estate since they arrived, other than the local armourer who bought some swords off of Piandao; the master made some reasonable coin off of the weapons, but she knew that it couldn't be his only source of income. The estate was well maintained, and she was sure that he had money to spend to make sure that was the case; she wasn't necessarily suspicious of the sword master, but she didn't really understand how he got around. Perhaps the Order of the White Lotus, who he was a part of, required weapons, for whatever they actually did, which seemed to be shady, more often that not, and he was paid for the service of supplying them.

She had asked Zuko about it, and he simply told her that Piandao was an honourable man, and that he would only be partaking in business he would find to be right and not the kind that was criminal or dangerous to innocents. He was certainly quite a peaceful man, for somebody who trained with and mastered the art of using a blade, which she understood had been used for fighting for their nation in the past; he reminded her of the Fire Lord, in that way, given that from what she understood, he had forsaken violence after his long service to the Fire Nation as a General. Azula and Zuko both told her that he hadn't fought in battle since Ba Sing Se, and had no intention of doing so, though she had a feeling that with assassins after him, he would more than likely break that streak of non-violence.

The Prince hadn't spoken about his uncle for some time, and she guessed that was because he was nervously anticipating news from the Order of the White Lotus, or from the Fire Nation military itself, about the whereabouts and condition of the Fire Lord. The Prince was clearly concerned about him, and whenever he was mentioned in conversation, either by herself or Piandao, he would shift in demeanour. He was never agitated about him, but merely nervous, and she felt sorry for him about it.

She guessed that her parents might be feeling the same about her, and that made her feel a little guilty that she hadn't left a message to assure them of her status. She hadn't because she knew that if Ozai and his men were watching her father, given his position as a high ranking bureaucrat in the government, working in the palace, it would only be a matter of time before Ozai realised he knew something, or that her father confronted the Prince for his misdeeds.

She was glad for their ignorance, as it protected them from the dangers that she and Zuko had faced; that was why she was concerned about Azula, who most likely was already on the tail of her father's plotting, and certainly so if she had figured out the coded message she had sent. Knowing that if her father could just as easily have his own son attacked, that 'dealing' with her would not be out of the question either, and that unlike her and Zuko, he would most likely know exactly where she was.

Zuko tapped her on the shoulder, taking her from her thoughts about Azula, and she straightened her face, afraid that she had accidentally let her expressions shift and reveal her inner thoughts; she didn't want him being worried about her as well. The goal was to get what Piandao required, and bring it back to the estate at once; it wasn't a large list, and they'd be able to carry it all themselves, so she wanted to get it done, but standing in line for buying some greens from the local grocer had left her lost in her thoughts.

"What's wrong?" he asked her, and she turned her gaze away from him, hoping to distract him with something more oriented toward their task.

"We've been waiting here for too long." she admitted, "Maybe we should split up and you can get some of this." she gestured down to the list their host had written down for them, and the Prince nodded, seemingly fooled by her distraction, and left unaware of her actual feelings.

"Uh, yeah, that makes sense." he almost mumbled, sounding still a little suspicious, but he took the list into his hands, and glanced down it, before he nodded, giving it back to her, "I'll go get the bags of rice. They'll be the heaviest of the things, so I can start carrying them back to the estate. You can get the vegetables, and meet me on the way." he explained, and she nodded, agreeing to the preposition; it would save them time, which she would prefer to spend in the house, reading from Piandao's library, which was offering her a far more interesting selection than what she had read for school.

"Go, I'll be fine." she assured him, and the Prince smiled momentarily, before his expression shifted as he stepped away from her, glancing around the market to go find the stall he intended for.

"Yep." he mumbled, seeming a little disappointed that she hadn't resisted his offer; she wasn't even considering to do so, knowing that her priority was to get their task done as quickly as possible, and not to spend time at the market with him- they'd have plenty of time for that, back at the manor.

As he paced away to go get the rice, she turned her gaze ahead, and noted that there was only one more person waiting in line to buy their vegetables; she leaned slightly to the right so she could check what exactly was going on, and it seemed that the grocer was just checking how many ban the customer would have to pay. Her expression brightened as they pulled the bag of vegetables up and offered them out to the customer.

"That'd be thirty ban, thank you." she requested, and the customer pulled out a few silver coins and placed them in the grocer's hand; she gave him his bag of vegetables, and he was on his way, allowing Mai to step forward and give her request.

"Good day, dear. What do you want to buy?"

She glanced down to the list, and began to read out its contents, "I need a bundle of carrots, a stem of spring onion, a bundle of radishes, two yams, and a bulb of cabbage." she told her what she wanted to buy, and the grocer nodded, seeming a little impressed by her order.

"Well, it sounds like you're going to have a feast." she joked, and the usually stoic girl almost laughed, knowing that it was merely the vegetables that would be divvied up amongst Fat's meals for the next few days.

"Not exactly." she conceded, before straightening her expression, "How much will that be?" she asked the grocer, who held up her hand, counting out how many ban it would cost.

"Six, two, five, two, two." she counted off, before turning her eyes toward Mai, "Seventeen ban, please." she asked, and she quickly reached into her purse of coins, which she had tied to her belt; she pulled out two silver coins and gave them to the grocer, who gave her three coins back as change.

The grocer turned around, and picked out the things Mai had asked for from her stock, and placed them down on the bench between them, allowing her to stuff them into her bag; once she had the bag full, she slung it over her shoulder, and nodded at the grocer, acknowledging her thanks as simply as she could, before turning around.

She heard her call out, "Who's next?" as she paced on into the centre of the market, glancing around to see if she could find Zuko; she couldn't see him around, and guessed that he had walked on down to the stall selling rice, which was lower in the market, by the cliffs that overlooked the canyon which Shu Jing was built beside.

She decided that she would just look around for a bit, knowing that with the leftover coins she had, she could buy something for herself, if she found something good. She wasn't the kind of person to splurge money, especially other people's money, but Mai wouldn't mind a new knife or dagger, which she knew she could buy from the armourer Piandao had sold his swords to. So, with that thought in mind, she began to pace on up the sloped path that led through the market, heading up toward the armourer's store. There were a few people on the path, which forced her to wind around them as she tried to reach the store. A few kids ran past her, and almost knocked her over, making her stumble forward, and tense up as she realigned her footing; they looked back at her for a moment, and though they looked like they were unrepentant about their reckless behaviour. A short, cold glare from her eyes seemed to do the trick however, as the children cringed with fear, and one of them raised his hands up.

"S-sorry, miss." he apologised, before grabbing his friend's hand, and running off with the others, presumably to go play some game of tag; she couldn't imagine why else young children would be running through the market.

"Annoying, aren't they?" she heard a man address her, and Mai glanced over to him, giving a nod, before she straightened her robes, not wanting to look improper or simply stupid while out in public.

As she approached the armourer's store, and with it, the edge of the market proper, she took note of a few men, standing by the entrance, chatting amongst themselves; she recognised one of them as the armourer who had come to the estate, though she couldn't recall his name. As she approached them, she began to listen to their conversation, though not out of interest, and more because she was thinking of asking the armourer if she could buy something from his store, which seemed like it would be a challenge if he was presently on his lunch break.

"There's no way that's what happened." she heard one of the men declare, "That's just unreasonable."

"Kuai told me himself. He was down in the port earlier today and heard some navy men talking about it." another man retorted, "That's what happened."

"Now, my friends, there's no reason to be so suspicious." the armourer declared, "Let's just be glad the Fire Lord is alive."

Mai's eyes widened upon hearing those words, and as she stepped closer, she considered asking them about what they had heard; she wasn't surprised there was news about Iroh, but she didn't know anything other than what she had just heard. As she approached, the armourer's gaze turned up to her, and he blinked.

"Oh were you here to buy from my shop?" he asked, and she nodded, "Sorry, I'm just on my lunch break. The store will be open in-" he explained, before cutting himself off, his eyes widening with surprise, "Wait, you're that girl who's staying with Piandao." he recalled her identity, having seen her when he came to collect the swords.

"Yes, I am." she confirmed, and the men he was talking with looked her way with interest.

"So, are you his latest student?" one of them asked, "Haven't seen a girl come to learn from him in a while." he added, seeming intrigued by her presence; Mai didn't know what cover story to use, but decided that just skewing the truth would best explain her situation.

"No, but my boyfriend was his student a long time ago. We're staying with him." she clarified as plainly as she could, without mentioning her actual reason for staying at Piandao's store; they nodded along, and then she decided to ask the question she had on her mind, "You were just talking about the Fire Lord... isn't he missing?"

"He was." the armourer clarified, "Supposedly he appeared last week in an encampment outside Omashu, and killed some assassins who were out to kill him." he explained, "It's crazy, honestly."

"He was missing for weeks." another of the men noted, "I thought the Dragon of the West might have actually died in the wilds."

"Come on." another man scoffed, "He's the greatest general in Fire Nation history. How could he let the cat-deers eat him?"

"Cat-deers don't even eat people, Wei." the other man retorted, "I was thinking dehydration."

"What was unbelievable was the Water Tribe warrior thing. That can't be true." another of the men explained, and the others, except the armourer, nodded.

"I trust Kuai." he declared, "Why would sailors lie about that? They'd be getting the proper reports from their commanders and everything." he tried to defend his information, and Mai stepped closer, raising a finger.

"What does this have to do with a Water Tribe warrior?"

"The Fire Lord was assisted by a Water Tribesman and Princess Azula. Together they killed the leader of the assassins, who supposedly, could shoot explosions with his mind." he explained, and Mai's heart almost skipped a beat; Azula had been involved, as expected, and from what she could tell, they were okay- all it would take was her letter reaching her, or her reaching Ty Lee for them to step closer to victory.

"That's unbelievable." Wei declared, "How is that even possible?"

"I have no idea." the armourer admitted, "But that's the kind of person you'd have to send after the Dragon of the West. Who else could try and kill the man?"

"Some traitor, obviously." one of the men noted, not sounding happy in the slightest about that fact, "How could someone try and kill their own Fire Lord?"

"Greed." Mai gave her own conclusion, "Why else?"

"No one can be that crazy." Wei argued, before cringing in fear, his expression mirrored on the faces of the other men, "What is our country coming to?"

"Nowhere good, that's for sure." one of them conceded, raising a hand to his face, before turning to face Mai, "Aren't you a little young to be worrying about all this?"

"I am not young enough to be unconcerned with the Fire Nation and the peace we have made." she admitted, "It's been centuries since war has touched these islands, hasn't it?" she asked them, and the men nodded along, seeming unnerved by the idea.

"I don't think anything will happen here." one of them tried to argue, "I mean... this is obviously the work of some extremists. They probably hate our nation."

She turned her eyes away, disappointed by what she was hearing, because she knew for sure that it was false; if anything, Ozai was more committed to the principles that had driven their nation, and the protection of it than his own father had been, and it was clear from how Zuko and Azula spoke of him that Iroh was not intending to destroy the other nations and continue colonising the Earth Kingdom. He probably loved the Fire Nation, or at the very least, loved the idea of ruling it and making it even stronger than it already was; she couldn't comprehend why else would a man try to have his own brother and son killed for merely standing in his way.

"Perhaps people don't love and respect their Fire Lord... but just the idea of the Fire Lord." she gave her thoughts to the men, just curious as to how they'd respond; rural men, presumably not well educated, but not stupid- certainly wiser than most indoctrinated urbanites might be when it came to the fate of their nation.

"He's the Dragon of the West." the armourer declared, "How could anyone not want him as their Fire Lord?"

"I don't know." she lied, simply wanting to get herself out of the conversation, so she could go meet up with Zuko and give him the good news, "I have to go, enjoy your afternoon." she addressed the men as she turned around, and they waved to her in farewell as she paced down the path back toward the market proper, as she was sure that if Zuko had come past on his way back to the estate, he would have gotten her attention.

As she made her way down, she quickly spotted him walking toward her, with bags of rice slung under his arms, and had an exasperated look on his face; he made a small smile as he saw her, though that expression quickly faded as he returned to focusing on his task. His breathing was drawn out as he neared her, and she realised that he hadn't really done anything like it since the explosion. Though he certainly wasn't writhing in pain anymore, and was able to walk and do things, carrying bags of rice up a hill was tough, a lot more so than taking individual crates back and forth off a ship, where at the very least, he had opportunities for breaks.

"Are you okay, Zuko?" she asked, and he shook his head, trying to reassure her that she didn't need to take one of the bags.

"I-I'm... I'm fine Mai, don't worry." he assured her, before narrowing his eyes at her, "You... you look happy." he realised, and she almost chuckled at his response, given that her expression was only ever so slightly pleased after hearing about Iroh's status.

"I guess I am." she conceded, "Your uncle and Azula are alright. They've killed the main assassin who was after them, and I assume they dealt with the others." she explained, and his expression shifted from one of near pain to elation.

"W-wait, seriously?" he almost grinned, "I- oh, we've got to tell Piandao." he concluded, skipping any comments he might have about his emotions; she understood that he wasn't just going to spill out his inner thoughts, and neither would she.

"I agree." she nodded, and gestured down to one of the bags of rice, "Let me carry that. Hurting yourself is not going to help your recovery." she warned him, and the Prince cringed, obviously not wanting to feel emasculated; that was rather petty, but not unexpected of him, Zuko being the proud and determined Prince he was.

"Uh... yeah, I guess." he conceded, seeming unwilling to do so, but even more unwilling to conflict with her, because he knew she was right; she took one of the bags of rice, and held it up against her chest as she began to pace up the slope, walking beside Zuko as they made their way along the path that would lead them to Piandao's Estate.

As they walked by the armourer and his friends, they gestured to her, and she raised a hand to wave in courtesy; Zuko seemed a little confused but nodded all the same, before he turned to face her as they walked on away up the path.

"Uh, are they the ones who told you?" he asked, and she turned her head, giving a curt nod as she eyed the slope they'd have to take; it was going to be a straining climb when they were carrying so much, but she was willing to do it, knowing that Piandao was providing for them with no real benefit for himself.

"They did, and they doubted what had happened, because some Water Tribesman helped your uncle."

"Huh, really?" Zuko asked, seeming a little surprised by that himself, "I wonder how he found someone from the Water Tribes in the Earth Kingdom." he mumbled, before shaking his head, "Well, it doesn't really matter. Uncle is safe, that's what counts."

"And Azula helped too. She must know about what's going on by now." she declared her beliefs, though she had nothing solid to back them up with; Iroh could have been running from the assassins and fighting them without ever having received the letter she had wrote, and he and Azula would be none the wiser to think the assassins were related to some group that opposed the Fire Nation's conquests and policies.

"Maybe not." Zuko countered, "But we can't know until we meet her or Uncle declares my father a traitor."

"That's assuming he got the letter." she warned the Prince, who nodded, seeming a little nervous about the potential that their message may have failed.

"I already told Uncle that Father was plotting against him, the day he left the capital. He has to know." he declared with a confident whisper, Mai nodding to assure him that she agreed; she didn't want him going into a needless panic about whether Iroh actually knew about Ozai's plans, "Azula probably would have figured it out."

"The code?"

"Yeah, the code. She knows Ty Lee like the back of her hand. If she really thought that letter was from her, I'd say she's lost her edge." he assured her, before he sighed, "She's always been smart like that."

She raised a brow, a little surprised that he'd actually admitted a 'good thing' about his sister, who he clearly didn't like at all, so much so that he held back informing her about what was going on with their father until after he had almost got himself killed. He supposedly feared that she'd use the situation to her advantage, to try and place herself as a heir of the Fire Nation, though Mai knew for certain that she would place the safety of her uncle over any ambitions she had. She respected the Fire Lord too much to betray him to Ozai, and even if Azula was a conniving and ruthless individual at times, that did not mean she would really value her own power over the bond she held with their uncle. Perhaps he was really the only person she truly loved, as no one else had shown the same degree of care to her, not her brother or father, and certainly not her grandfather; her cousin was the one person she looked up to as a child, and Zuko felt the same about him.

"Don't worry about Azula." she assured him, "She'll make sure to help your uncle stop Ozai."

"I... I hope she does." he admitted, before narrowing his eyes, "But I want- I need to be there for him."

"So you want to go to Omashu?" she asked, and the Prince cringed for a moment, before shaking his head.

"I don't know if that's a good idea." he conceded, "The Fire Lord is still in danger, and if we reveal ourselves... things could go badly. I want to see him... but we're- Father wants us dead, Mai." he admitted, before clenching his left fist, "I hate this."

"We're safe here." she conceded with a whisper, glancing back down the street as they reached the edge of the village, nearing the winding path that would lead them up to the estate, "I know this isn't where you want to be."

"I want to be able to do... something." he explained himself rather vaguely, before shaking his head, "Urgh, I don't even know what to do. Stopping those conspirators might not add up to much if Uncle and Father start fighting in public."

She recalled what Zuko had told her a long time ago, about his own intentions and desires, "Well, that'll be a chance for you to do what you've always wanted."

"To fight for my nation." he acknowledged what she was thinking, "I would be... a real leader. Not just a sheltered Prince. People would take me seriously." he admitted, before looking down, "But I'm afraid."

"Afraid of fighting your father?" she asked, and Zuko shook his head.

"Not anymore. We don't have a choice." he conceded, his eyes narrowed into a serious glare, "I can't die."

"So you're afraid of dying?"

"N-no." he shook his head, "Death isn't the problem, Uncle is. Ever since Lu Ten died, I've... I think he's teetering on an edge. He wants to be peaceful, he wants to be good, and not give in to his anger, just like how Lu Ten told me." he acknowledged, his tone dark and foreboding, "And if he gives into rage and grief, like he did in Ba Sing Se... then it won't just be Dad who will die. All those traitors, everyone... he'll set this country alight just to avenge me... or Azula, for that matter."

"You're not going to die, Zuko." she placed her right hand on his shoulder, trying to reassure him that he'd be alright; his thoughts were well reasoned, but his fears were a little too extreme- she was no optimist, but she wouldn't let him look at his future like that.

"I'm not invincible. Nobody is." he stressed, before turning his gaze away, trying to cover the tears that were dripping down his cheeks, "I- I learned that a while ago, Mai."