Azula
They raced between the halls of her home and despite the fear there was an undercurrent of anticipation inside Azula, after this was done one way or another everything would be over. Unlike what she thought there was no rage inside her chest just grim acceptance and a little ember of hope.
Her friends didn't seem scared, Ty Lee was ever cheerful but there was an edge to her face that was so unlike her that Azula almost believed she was looking at someone else, her friend was finally going for the kill, it was a very nice look.
In Mai there was nothing but determination ever since she had rekindled her relationship with Zuko there had been nothing but faith in her, she was ready to lay down her life for the man she loved and that would serve them more than Azula let on.
Finally, there was Toph, the earthbender the outsider who had become an integral part of their group and who was Azula's new rival, in her face, there was nothing but excitement, quick to laugh in the face of danger and ready to do everything in her power to win. Toph was going to be her surprise against her father and hopefully that would be enough.
After crossing one last door they had arrived to see her father's soldiers surrounding another group of rebels who were staring at death with grim determination every attempt to take one of them caused the loyalist to lose three more but unlike the rebels who felt keenly each loss her father's army was almost unending and for everyone they killed another two arrived to replace them.
Despite this she could see more rebels waiting in the wings, ready to intervene when an opening presented itself to kill Ozai and bring an end to his reign even if that meant leaving their friends to die, Zuko's forces hadn't disappointed her and she would do her best to make sure Zuko knew that it was Azula who did what had to be done.
"Behold rebels!" Ozair brought forth a charred corpse that drew gasps from the crowd "Piandao master swordsman" her father ended his words with a mocking grin that was only matched by his tone of voice.
Denials rang out and screams echoed in the chamber some of the rebels even abandoned their positions to charge at the crowd and died fruitlessly as they tried to reach Ozai, blood stained the floor and she turned around to look at her friends and gauge their reactions.
Mai seemed as cold as ever but there was now tension on her shoulders, nevertheless, no fear was on her face. Ty Lee looked sad but much like Mai she wasn't afraid and Toph who couldn't see the carnage was simply angry at the whole thing.
"Your father is a bastard, there was no need to parade the corpse of an enemy like that" it showed that there was some of the vaunted honor of the Earth Kingdoms in her but that was only because she hadn't been in the fight such things became more common on both sides but at least this would make the blind girl fight harder.
"It's time for us to intervene, Toph I want you to take care of my father's soldiers, launch the loyalists out of my home, and make a barrier to trap Ozai in the room, I doubt he will escape at first but if he manages to reach his other supporters we will fight a long civil war and there's no telling what the rest of the world would do as even with the help of the Avatar I doubt that many would be happy with the Fire Nation" her friends nodded
Toph then mashed her fists together. "Don't worry princess, no one will be going anywhere as long as I'm here!"
Azula almost snorted at her enthusiasm but that would be unworthy of a princess. Her father was still grandstanding and taunting the rebels then her queue to make her appearance arrived.
"Soon my daughter will join us and we will put an end to your treacherous lives! After that we will show my unworthy son that there is no place he can hide! That the Fire Nation will always follow the rule of Ozai the Great!"
The Fire Lord made a show of force as pillars of fire emerged from behind him, truly awe-inspiring but also a waste of chi.
"Now!" Azula commanded and they fell from their high positions down into the middle of the rebels. Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee fell with the grace of predators, Toph crashed into the ground like a vengeful comet and sank into the earth but as she did pillars sprouted from the ground beneath the loyalist more and more each second and every last one of them hit its mark and sent the group of loyalists into the air some crashed through the ceiling and others were left stuck there.
Azula relished in the sheer surprise that showed on her father's face as it slowly turned to understanding and then anger. Toph emerged form the ground with walls of stone and just like she had expected Ozai didn't run instead preparing himself for a hit that would never come, a great stone barrier had sprung up leaving Ozai alone in a room full of rebels.
"Toph reinforce it as much as you can"
"Don't worry princess by the time I'm done not even one of your lightning strikes will be able to open a hole in this thing" Toph threw her a smirk that soon left her face as the temperature started rising.
"I never took you for a fool Azula, reckless sure but not a fool. I see now that I made a mistake, your mother's weakness permeates even you, and I see now that I need to create a stronger bloodline one clean of the filth that has infected you" Despite the calm analytical tone of Ozai there was no mistaking his anger, the torches and fires that were left had grown and seemed almost malevolent.
"To be honest I wasn't planning on this" Azula twirled a strand of hair in her hand just like she would when talking to Zuko before his change, the dismissive glances she gave the Fire Lord served to grow his anger and while she knew that it was a long shot maybe this time his anger would get the better of him and if not then their deaths would be quicker "You were supposed to be in your airship and die in a tragic explosion, an act of the spirits but well…"
Azula was once more able to see her father be surprised and the fact that her friends also looked at her only made it all more real for Ozai that she had been prepared to betray him, one way or the other.
"You could have had it all Azula but now I don't think I will even grant you a quick death!" Ozai pushed forward like an inferno made flesh uncaring of the rebels in front of him and burning everything in his path while fully focused on reaching her, swords, fists, knives, arrows, and even rocks were hurled his way but nothing managed to make him slow down.
Azula lifted her arms forward quickly and launched a lightning bolt larger than any other before it and only then did Ozai stop. Silence enveloped the rebels and her friends as they finally realized that this was the enemy they had come to face. Azula for a moment regretted her choice until she looked carefully at her father's bandaged face.
Even if he was hurt there was no way he would fight for his life with a handicap like that, in her mind, she quickly connected what happened and his abrupt stop when faced with something as quick as lightning. Her father had lost an eye or it was so damaged that at least for now he was as good as blind.
Azula knew she shouldn't, she knew that any more disrespect would make Ozai even worse but there was no stopping the laugh that came out of her throat. She almost doubled over as she laughed before exclaiming, "Piandao left you with only one eye!"
All her life Ozai had spoken and preached about the power of bending about how even the weakest bender was worth a hundred non-benders, Ozai had done away with most if not all of those that lacked the gift from his court and numerous times he had told Zuko how lucky he was that the sages had stopped him from killing him when Zuko showed no signs of bending at an early age and now here he was, crippled by an enemy he saw so far beneath him that even Zuko would rate a higher threat.
Azula couldn't see Ozai moving after that all she could see was a ball of screaming fire coming her way, the princess threw another bolt of lighting but the sheer wall of heat conducted her attack away from the Fire Lord. Thankfully spikes of earth and metal interposed themselves between Ozai and her at just the right time to change the direction of his stride.
"Hey!" Toph was on top of a pillar of rock, her hands were covered in spiked metal gauntlets and the rest of her body was covered in an armor of rock "want me to even you out and welcome you to the land of the blind?"
Another roar was Ozai's response and this time he charged at Toph, the earth bender threw a veritable tsunami of rock at her father, the floor and everything in it flew for a few seconds before burning, tentacles of fire interposed themselves and burned a hole into the incoming wave of earth which Ozai then used to pass through.
The princess had a front-row seat to the clash of metal and fire, a contest that was interrupted as Toph screamed out in pain and frustration the second her fist met Ozai's face and her gauntlets took on a deep red color.
"Fuck! I know I make you hot but cool it! what would people think of you being so aggressive towards a blind girl" Toph then pushed more waves of earth against Ozai to gain some distance.
This was both good and bad, the Fire Lord couldn't keep this for long not even against Bumi had he spent so much energy and Azula was sure that her father would be receiving some backlash from his own 'technique' There was no way he would have enough air to keep this up even without considering the amount of movement she was seeing.
"Mai, Ty Lee. There is going to be an opening soon we need to gain time for Toph to wear him out. I'm going to be the one that finishes this fight. Mai get as high as you can and throw everything you have at Ozai, Ty Lee you'll be playing messenger, tell those open-mouthed idiots to do something useful anything at all that can give us time, you also need to reach Toph and tell her the plan I don't want her close to Ozai the moment an opening shows or else this won't work"
Azula had heard of what her uncle could do, there were tales of him launching twin lightning bolts and even going as far as to fuse them together into something even bigger and more destructive, she had never attempted to do so but right now it was her only chance to defeat Ozai, she had to use an attack so string that it killed him instantly, something he couldn't just redirect away.
The problem was that if she failed to control the energy correctly, then it wouldn't be Ozai's body exploding in cold fire, it would be Azula who would end up raining all over the room in pieces so little that putting her body together would be a legendary task itself.
"Go!" Azula said before she started gathering her energy, this would finally be over, one way or another.
