The scroll arrived soon. Too soon. Azula and Zuko were in the training area at the time when it got to the ship. Being the one to receive the letter, Ozai went to get the children. Lo and Li bowed once they saw the prince. He was not really paying attention to them. Instead, he was looking at the younger prince. Briefly, his eyes left to meet Azula's, sharing a knowing look that Zuko did not understand.
"We did not expect you to observe the lesson, Prince Ozai," Li said, still in her bow.
"I will not be here for long," the man assured her. "I only came to deliver news. This arrived today from Ba Sing Se."
He unraveled the scroll, catching Zuko's attention even more. After a moment, he read.
"To Prince Ozai, Princess Azula, and Prince Zuko: It is with a heavy heart that I inform you of the passing of Prince and Lieutenant Lu Ten."
Ozai said more, but Zuko could not hear him. He only heard the sound of his heart beating. Everything else was muffled.
"Wait," he said, too shocked to even be worried about interrupting. "Can I see that?"
The man handed him the scroll and he looked it over, waiting for the moment where his eyes would find something that revealed this to be the cruel joke that it was. It was in horrible taste, but it was convincing. He had to give the prankster credit in that regard. The seal looked official. It was even signed by the honorable Captain Jeong Jeong. Whoever did this knew how to copy a signature perfectly. He had seen the man's writing while looking at documents with his uncle.
"This is fake," Zuko said.
"It's real," Azula stated, peeking over his shoulder. "Who would send a letter like this to us without it being real?"
Zuko shook his head and handed her the scroll. "No, it's fake. If it were real, the captain wouldn't be sending it to us. Uncle would have. Lu is fine. He's probably visiting again and just wanted to make a scene."
"When has he ever done something like that?"
"That's what makes it more convincing!" the boy insisted, throat becoming sore. "This is fake. He's fine! He'll show up either later today or tomorrow or–"
Zuko stopped speaking as he felt a hand on his shoulder. It belonged to his father. Looking up, he saw a calm expression on his face. He knew that expression. It was the same one Ozai wore when Zuko learned that his grandfather had been killed and that his mother would be next. Tears ran down the prince's face and he pulled away, running to his room. Ozai only watched him leave, arms folded behind his back and a smirk appearing on his lips.
"Lo and Li, you both are dismissed for the day to engage in your grieving."
"Thank you, my prince," they said in unison. "Our deepest condolences for the nation's loss."
Ozai did not respond to that and waited for them to leave. As soon as they did, he saw a bright smile on Azula's face.
"Uncle won't find out, will he?"
"No trace goes beyond that shop. He'll never know and if he suspects something, it won't matter."
The princess looked content with this information. While she stayed there with her father, another father in Ba Sing Se sat in his chambers. His head was in his trembling hands and his shoulders were shaking. He thought of the soldiers who had delivered the news. They had looked so scared. Even though they had known the firelord was merciful, they had never told him of such news before and worried his wrath would be taken out on them. They had been incorrect in their thinking. Iroh did not attack them or even yell. He had been silent for several moments after first hearing this. The father had to stay calm so that he could gain information.
"What was the cause of…how did it happen?" he had asked.
"It was poison, my liege," one sergeant answered. His expression became sympathetic and Iroh could tell that it was genuine. "Though we can't all experience it the same, this loss is shared with the nation. We lost a great man today."
"If there's anything we can do to offer some comfort…" another soldier offered.
Iroh had lifted his hand and shaken his head. "Thank you. I would like to be left alone."
So, he sat there alone, but more than that, he sat there, miserable. His only child. The living reminder of his dear, passed wife. His friend. His successor. These were all the ways Iroh viewed the prince, but suddenly, the last one seemed insignificant. The sergeant had spoken the truth regarding himself, but the firelord knew that the entire nation would not mourn with him. Some of the Fire Nation had caused his son's demise. Iroh did not need to see his drink poisoned to know this. The two of them spoke of the officials in the town. Iroh had personally investigated them. If they were going to be around his son, he wanted to be sure that Lu Ten would be safe. Above this, retaliation for the nation being there would not have been wise to direct towards the prince. If he died and the Earth Kingdom citizens were responsible, they would suffer. If he died, the positive changes he was enacting with them would come to an end. Only certain people would benefit from the young man's death. As much as Iroh hated to do this, he was going to let those people benefit. It was out of his control.
How could he continue to lead even if given a choice? Lu Ten had wanted him to stop this siege. At the time, Iroh thought it made little sense. It would have been more trouble for it to end. What cost would he have had to pay to see that he was making a mistake? Well, he found out. It was a price he never expected to pay and one he could not handle. Finally, Iroh lifted his head and took out a scroll. Through blurred vision, he began to write.
"Dear Nephew, I am sure you have heard of Lu Ten's passing by now. I wish that I could have told you myself. Perhaps, that would not have been for the best. Having to deliver information like that while seeing your reaction might have been too much to bear. This time, I will be the first one to tell you a drastic change. I am stepping down as firelord. Without an heir, the title falls to Ozai. Even if it did not, I would find someone else to take the position. During my reign, I have accomplished little more than getting my son killed. I will not continue to lead a nation of people who hate the rest of the world and would do anything to see the world burned to the ground. I cannot. I…" Iroh stopped writing and took a breath. He loathed himself for what he wrote next. "–will not be returning just yet. You and Lu Ten have inspired me to learn more about people from other nations. I hope to clear my head and come back stronger. I'm sorry. Love, Uncle."
The letter was sealed and given to a soldier to deliver to the Southern Water Tribe. There, Hakoda was speaking with Bato and the other warriors. Near him was Sokka. It had been fascinating to listen to them coming up with ideas and strategies.
"The admiral can be singled out," the boy chimed in.
At first, the men did not hear him, but the chief did and called their attention to the child.
"Say it again, Sokka," he encouraged.
The heir brightened and stood up straighter. "Admiral Zhao is an arrogant man who makes everyone hate him. It's not just us. Taking him out first shouldn't be difficult because the others won't want to help him. Along with that, as soon as he's gone, they'll be out of a leader and will need time to regroup."
"Time that they won't have because of the attack," one of the other warriors realized.
"Exactly!"
A different warrior approached the chief. "Are we going to be ready, Chief? We won't have any defense for lightning."
"We have to risk it," Hakoda answered. "They rise with the sun, so we'll attack at night. It won't give us an enormous advantage, but anything will help."
"And we might not be able to stop the lightning, but if we don't get shot through the head or heart, we'll survive it," Sokka added.
This eased a few concerns of the people. Hakoda put groups together and before long, they had their date set. They would have their battle. Sokka was excited when the group split up to begin preparing. He left the tribe to return to the shipwreck. The boy stayed there for a few minutes, but no one came. Sokka's stomach formed knots as he awaited his friend.
"Where is he?" he wondered. "I hope he's not taking longer because of his dad."
Sokka decided to practice on his own for the time being. He was not sure if Zuko would show up or not. He was also not sure how much of an issue his father would be in the battle. Sokka had never met the man. The most he had seen was the lightning when it was shot into the sky, but he had never seen or heard him. When he thought of the prince, he imagined someone like a monster with bloodshot eyes filled with hatred, unkempt hair, and a permanent scowl.
"I'll fight with the others," he thought, slicing through a chunk of ice as though it were a soldier. "Dad probably doesn't want me to, but he'll be busy fighting people and keeping an eye on the warriors. If I find a safe spot for Gran Gran and Katara, I'll be able to join him and help." He started to frown as he trained. "By the time I'm done with that jerk prince, he won't be attacking anyone ever again."
That prince of Sokka's thoughts was indeed the cause of Zuko's absence, but it was not the reason that Sokka thought. A funeral was being held. Normally, a few days would be waited for so that everyone could be there. Normally, the entire family would be there; however, Ozai was determined to not leave the Southern Water Tribe. The true ceremony would be held in the Fire Nation, but for the rest of the royal family, they would manage with a smaller funeral. The twins were waiting for their father's arrival and sitting by one another despite what the young prince would have preferred.
"Don't look so down, Zuzu," Azula whispered. "It's practical to hold the ceremony now."
Zuko glared at her. "We just found out today and we're already saying goodbye? Uncle isn't even here. We're making him go through the ceremony alone. We should be there for him."
"The last thing this family needs is for the two of you to be seen crying together. I'd like to not be disgraced by that."
"If you had a heart, you'd care."
"If you had a brain, you wouldn't." Azula kept her eyes facing forward, but a smirk spread over her face. "Think for once. We've got another ceremony soon. Very soon. In fact, it'll be tomorrow, so consider it some sisterly advice to be ready."
"What ceremony?"
"For Dad?"
"Why is he…no, you don't mean…"
Suddenly, the princess's smile became less sincere. "Look on the brightside, Dum-Dum. You're about to be the next heir."
Zuko felt like he was panicking and had no time to respond as his father entered. He walked through the crowd of nobles and soldiers, basking in their reverential bows before sitting down. Several people spoke, but Ozai did not. He had nothing to say about the soldier. Zuko wanted to say something, but he could not think of the right words. What words could sum up the life of someone who was loved? They would never capture the true impact that individual had on others. If anything, he felt that speaking would somehow disrespect his cousin. Still, something changed his mind. Soldiers were speaking. The same soldiers who he knew hated what his uncle and cousin stood for. Even if they were not the ones who were responsible for the prince's untimely death, they were of the same type. They were insincere in their condolences and almost mocking in their tones. He would not let them be the final ones to speak. As Zhao finished his speech of vaguely pleasant words and disgustingly false grief, Zuko replaced him on the stage. The boy could see Ozai's surprise and momentarily lost his nerve.
"Lu Ten was great at a lot of things," he said, taking a breath. "A great firebender, prince, lieutenant, son, cousin, and friend. He would have been a great firelord too." At this, he could see the rage in the older prince's eyes. It was difficult to not let this stop him. "Lu wanted our nation to treat people from every culture with respect. He wanted to work with them so that we could have the best ideas possible. Even though he was taken too soon, I hope he'll live on in the way we interact with the rest of the world."
Zuko went back to his seat, feeling the heat from his father's gaze. He wondered who he had said all that for. Hardly anyone there was an ally. Maybe it was for Li and Lo who did genuinely seem to feel sadness, for himself, or maybe it was for the possibility that Lu Ten was watching from the spirit world. If he were, Zuko hoped he knew that his words were sincere and that he would not go unavenged.
The ceremony ended and Zuko knew Azula had been right about the next day. Had Ozai not been busy with preparations, he would have spent the night roasting him alive for that antic on the stage. Fortunately for the boy, there were many preparations to manage. Ozai could have gone to the mainland. It was customary, but it was also far and would take a few days if their voyage was extremely fast. He lacked the necessary patience. Besides, the people would love him for not having the ego to require an enormous celebration like the previous firelords had done. He was no Iroh who would be surrounded by adoring subjects. He would stay where he was and not leave until his job was complete. Ozai did not need a party–just the throne.
Ozai's coronation was as cold as the man for whom it was held. No one dared even clap until given permission. Some of the soldiers were excited about what this change would mean for them. Some of them did not really care one way or the other. The only people present who truly were happy were the new ruler and the princess. As Ozai was crowned firelord, Zuko felt an indescribable amount of dread. He looked at the man and saw those eyes again. They were the eyes of someone who would show no compassion or mercy, eyes of ruthlessness. They were the eyes of a murderer.
