= Zuko =
12:20 PM
…
…
...Zuko...
…
...Zuko...
…
...Zuko, Honey...I'm here...don't worry...we'll be a family again.
Zuko's eyes shot open with a gasp. Sitting up straight in an instant, he breathed heavily, his face full of shock.
That…That voice...that was...
Shaking his head to clear his mind, Zuko calmed himself down.
It...It was all a dream...
Sighing, he straightens up in his...sitting form?
Zuko blinked at that.
"Huh?"
...Didn't he...wasn't he just laying on the ground a while ago?
...Wait.
He looked around the area he was in.
Everything...looked dark...
"...What?" Zuko looked up at the sky.
It was all dark...black as night, even.
"...Is it...nighttime already?" Zuko asked himself in confusion.
How long did I actually sleep? It felt like...like I slept for only thirty minutes.
Placing his hands on the surface he's sitting on, he felt the cold feeling of metal. The sensation made Zuko jump a bit, and he glanced to his side to see that it looked like he was sitting on a metal bench.
Zuko paused for a moment as he also now realized...
...Wait. I'm on a bench...
He glanced around this area, wondering just where he was...and if he was still dreaming?
"...What the...?"
Everything was pitch black outside...yet for some reason, things were lit over where he was.
Zuko then raised his head up to look at the sky…
His eyes widened and gasped in shock. Getting up from his bench, his attention was on the night(?) sky.
What he saw was...
...A large white moon, that looked too close for its own good.
"Wh-What?" Zuko said in a hushed tone, looking up at the...moon? "How...How could this...is this real!?"
The giant moon couldn't answer him. It could do nothing but just...float there. Hovering in its spot, unmoving in a strange calm as it was surrounded by dark clouds...
Not believing what he was seeing, he shook his head to clear his head. Once he did, he can still see the moon floating there...
"What...What is this?" he asked himself. He looked around the area he was in, and noticed he was near...a lake?
He was on the shore of a lake...and the lake's dark water was reflecting off the moon's glow…
It was also...very still.
No waves have come up the shore.
It looked...really eerie to Zuko.
Suddenly, Zuko thought about the turtle-ducks back at the palace.
I found a lake...
There are turtle-ducks everywhere.
"...Is this…the lake?" he asked himself in inquiry.
…He also asked another question to himself.
"Is...Is this...really nighttime?" Zuko looked up at the giant moon in the sky.
Just…where am I?
When no one answered him, Zuko lowered his head to think about the situation he's been put in right now.
"Okay...I'm all alone, separated from my friends and my uncle, and...I guess I passed out...suddenly? And then...while I slept, everything around me turned into…night?" Even the young Fire Lord was having trouble coming up with a solution. "...Maybe...this is a dream?"
But I woke up from a dream...right?
Shaking his head, Zuko grunted, "This isn't getting me anywhere. I have to find my friends and Uncle...and...maybe..."
Your father and sister are here…
We can be a family again.
Shaking his head again to focus on the task at hand, he walked away from the bench and over to the waters. Once he was near the shore, he gazed at the lake, and surely enough, he can clearly see his reflection a bit...
But the water truly looked still...it felt a little unsettling.
...The letter said that there were turtle-ducks here…
Zuko looked up at the dark horizon above the lake...
"...Whatever this place is...it's not natural...nor do I think this is actually a dream," He looked up at the moon, "Nor do I think this is even night..."
Am I in…
The young Fire Lord's eyes widened as he thought of something dreadful.
Wait...is this...is this the Spirit World?
He lowered his gaze at his hand…
I mean...if it is, then I can't bend, right?
He decided to try to test that out.
With one swift arm motion, he tries to ignite his firebending inside his palm.
FWOOSH!
Zuko gasped and blinked in surprise.
"Wait…so...I'm not in the Spirit World?" he asked himself unsurely.
Either way, the fire in his palm lit up some features, like his reflection being more pronounced while seeing that the water of the lake was still not even the slightest bit moving.
"...Where am I then?" he muttered to himself.
With the fire in his hand, he decided to walk away from the shore and find out where he was...in this town?
Is this even still the town that's on Sairento Hiruzu? What's this place called? Silent Hills? Zuko thought inquisitively.
Zuko paused in his walk and turned his side to look at the moon once more.
…The moon. It reminds him of…
You rise with the moon...
…Katara…
"...I don't know what's going on, but..." Zuko gave out a short mirthless chuckle, "Well, from what I'm seeing up there, I'm betting Katara will have a lot of bending power from that thing..."
...He frowned upon remembering his friends and uncle, as well as his father and sister...and his mother.
"...I need to find them," He looked away from the moon and gazed forward, "But where they could be in this town is the question."
He walked away from the sandy shore and came up onto the grass, which he then walked up into the town's vicinity as he stepped foot on a cobblestone street road.
Upon entering the town, however...
RRRRRUMBLLLLLEEE...
Zuko felt the ground move, as he stumbled a bit on his feet.
"W-What?" He stammered in shock as he felt the ground shift. He turned around to look at the moon again, to see if anything changed...
The moon still hovered there...but...Zuko had a feeling it looked closer than usual.
Then, a flash of lightning bolts came out of the clouds...but, the odd thing was...the lightning looked like it was coming out above the clouds.
RRRRRUMBLLLLEEE...
The moon then shifted...downward…
It was going down!
Zuko looked on, his shock morphing into terror and dread.
Th-The moon! It's…It's coming down!?
Trying to process this, he lowered his attention at the water...
The lake now started to ripple, little waves emerging onto the shore, as more and more of them came, growing even fiercer by the second when the moon began its descent.
But something was different about the water…
It looked...black.
All of the water on the lake wasn't dark because it was nighttime...
It was dark because...the water was black as night.
RRRRRUMBLLLLEEE...
More lighting bolts shot upward at the moon...almost looking like they would touch the surface of the star.
"W-What's going on!?" Zuko exclaimed in fear.
The rumbling continued, the dark waves were getting more violent as they basically began to pass the shore and the bench that was placed there. Soon, the waves reached the town, the water drenching his ankles.
"What…What is happening!?" Zuko shouted as he tried to balance himself from the shallow waves hitting his shins.
The bolts of lightning became even more intense as the flash of electric power came and looked as if they would reach the moon...
A bolt shot up and hit the surface of the star. When the lightning struck the ground of the moon, that spot began to burn...and then another lightning bolt struck another part of the moon. It left a damaging burnt mark on it, the fire then spreading.
More bolts struck the moon...and soon...it was all on fire. Everything on the surface of the moon caught fire.
Zuko's eyes widened in horror.
"What...What?" He softly says, backing away from the scene, the water growing stronger by the second.
Then...he heard a voice.
"Zuko...Zuko...help me...help..."
Surprised to hear a voice call out to him, Zuko instantly recognized that voice.
"K-...Katara?"
He looked around him, but the dark waters were too strong to let him stand for long. A wave hits him in the chest, and Zuko falls over, letting the waves devour him.
"AAAH-AUCK!" Zuko tried to get his head up from the water that was trying to drown him.
The black water then, somehow, started to drag him to the center of the lake by the ankles. Something was dragging him...something was pulling him in.
Zuko submerged into the black water and was dragged further and further in...
For some reason, Zuko looked down at his ankles to see who was dragging him down into the abyss of this black water.
Strangely enough...he could see who was dragging him down!
It was...Katara.
But...it didn't look like her.
Although her hair was down and it was flowing in the water, she looked pale as the moon itself. She also wasn't wearing clothes, and doesn't have any eyes in her eye-sockets!
All in all, she looked like...a ghost...
"Zuko!" Katara exclaimed with an underwater muffle, but somehow, he can hear her rather clearly, with her mouth moving as there weren't any air bubbles coming out. "Help me!"
Not knowing what to do or how to react, Zuko just held onto his breath with wide eyes.
"Zuko...Zuko...Zu...ko..."
It was then Katara's grip on his ankles weakened...and he let him go.
"...Zuko..." the ghastly-looking Katara floated down to the black abyss of the dark hole at the bottom of the lake.
The young Fire Lord flailed, feeling like he was losing oxygen. He then began to swim upward(he hoped), and kept swimming up until he could feel the air rush through his face.
What was that!? That...That wasn't Katara...that wasn't her! ...Right?
He could see the circled moon, large and literally lit above him.
His head emerged out of the water ash he gasped for air. Swimming in place, he looked around in a panic at his surroundings.
The whole town...was set ablaze.
Fire was everywhere. The town and its buildings were set aflame as the fire roared on. The intensity of the fire almost felt like he was in a furnace...and the lake itself was boiling.
Zuko looked up at the moon in a dreadful desperate attempt to give himself some comfort.
The moon...was still on fire as well.
Until it began to crack...and outwardly exploded, letting out a lot of giant debris and pieces fall down...down on Earth.
Down on Zuko.
Pieces of the moon came hurling down onto the town.
It all...came...down.
And Zuko could do nothing but watch...watch in horror while a large piece of the moon was heading towards him...ending his life-
"AAAH!" Zuko yelled out.
"AAAH!" yelled out...another voice?
Zuko blinked and turned to the source of the voice that was in his right peripheral vision.
"...F-Fire Lord Zuko?" said a...a male Fire Nation soldier?
The aforementioned Fire Lord blinked again as he recognized this man.
"...W-Wait...H-..." Zuko shook his head and rubbed his eyes to see if he was seeing clearly, "...Herai?"
"Y-Yes..." the man known as Herai said as he looked at his king cautiously, "You...You are Fire Lord Zuko, r-right?"
Zuko blinked again, "Wha...y-yeah?"
Herai looked at Zuko for a few seconds, almost like he was studying him...
"...Uh, Herai? What is…" Zuko looked around where he was at.
...He was near the lakeshore again...on the bench.
He was where he last woke up…
He looked up at the sky quickly to see...
…Nothing?
Just the black sky...along with the moon, which was far away in its original spot, as well as the stars.
"...What just...happened?" Zuko said as he turned to Herai with a confused look. "Everything...was on fire, and...the moon, it-it was falling! And lightning struck the moon upward, and I...I..."
Was it...all a dream? But didn't I have a dream earlier...a dream about mother?
When Zuko looked at Herai, he expected to look at him crazy like…
Except...he looked...relieved.
"Oh, thank the Spirits," Henrai muttered to himself, "It really is you, Your Majesty."
"Uh...yes...I'm your Fire Lord..." Zuko said with a bewildered raised eyebrow.
Realizing how that sounded, Herai corrected his statement with a grimace, "I-I mean, I-I'm sorry, My Lord, I just...wait..." Now he blinked, "...What are you doing here?"
Zuko realized that he did come to this island unannounced and that it must be a shock for one of the soldiers to see their king here.
But...should I tell him why I'm here? And...wait...
"Herai, before I answer that, what happened to the rest of the squad?" Zuko asked him as he stood up from the bench, worrying what the answer may be.
Herai's eyes widened as he remembered his teammates and captain. "They..." he put a hand to his forehead as he shook his head, "Oh Spirits...I...I don't know at this point. I-I barely escape the assault of the Spirit that inhabited this island."
"Spirit?" Zuko asked in confusion, "Where did you encounter it?" They haven't encountered any spirits when they entered the island.
"In the woods," Herai answered, "When we landed on the shoreline of the beach, we tried to operate a stealth tactic, but we were ambushed by..." the corners of his mouth went down as he tried to think about what happened. Shaking his head, he said, "I...I don't know what my teammates and the captain were seeing, but...they looked to have been attacked by something that the Spirit had made."
"Something made by the Spirit?" Zuko reiterated in surprised interest.
"I...I think it was...making visions of what the others were seeing. They were fighting them, but...I didn't see anything there. It's like they were fighting air itself. It was only then I noticed Torubi was looking at them like how I was looking at them; quite confused and shocked. And then...I saw the Spirit. It ran away right when I saw it. I told Torubi to get some backup before I could follow it..." Herai explained...but he also looked puzzled, "Actually...My Lord, when did you arrive at the island?"
"When did I arrive?" Zuko asked, wondering what that has to do with anything, but he answered him, "I...think I arrived around the eleventh hour."
Herai blinked and looked at Zuko incredulously like he'd just grown a second head.
"Wait...you were basically behind us?" he asked confused.
Zuko looked and stared at him for a moment...until he said in a tone similar to Herai's, "Behind...you?"
"We arrived at the half of the tenth hour...at-at night...I think?" Herai clarified, looking a little unsure of himself.
Zuko blinked again, "At...night? You mean...around last night, right?"
"Um...no, I meant now. At night." Herai clarified.
Zuko looked dumbfounded, "What? No, I meant we came here today at the eleventh hour when it was daytime."
Now Herai looked really shocked, "What? But...that would mean...wait...no, I-I'm sorry, My Lord, th-that's, that's impossible. That can't be. I've just now entered the town a while ago. It's still nighttime...it's still the same day...I mean, Torubi is getting reinforcements. You...You would have been here earlier..."
Feeling a little put off by this, as well as a little disturbed by this claim, Zuko tried to correct him, "N-No, Herai, I-I came here with my Uncle, the Avatar, and my friends. Today we arrived here after you went to retrieve my father and my sister last night. I-I got a letter..." It was then he remembered the letter. He brought it with him just in case, just so he can see if it was really his mother's handwriting and see if anyone could pinpoint her location with it. "It...It was from my mother."
"What? Lady Ursa?" Herai asked incredulously.
"Yes! We're actually here to see if she's on this island, but now..." Zuko then remembered Torubi and his untimely demise. "...Herai...I-I'm sorry to be the first one to inform you this, but...Torubi..." He lowered his head in shame as he replayed how Torubi died in his mind. It hurt him to see one of his own people actually do that to themselves. He tried hard to not think about the 'what ifs' in that scenario...he shook his head and softly said, "Torubi was...he died."
Herai's eyes widened in shock at this bombshell. "What!? H-He died!? What happened!?"
Zuko was about to lie to him saying that the Spirit got him, but…
No...I can't lie to one of my soldiers. That's what my father would do...
"...He...He killed himself," Zuko said with a sympathetic wince.
"What?" Herai's eyes widened even further, stunned to hear this. "But...But why?"
"I...I don't know..." Zuko thought what Torubi said...
I'm manning up for what I've done now, Daddy…
"...He...He said something about…manning up for what he did...it sounded like he was speaking to his...father?" Zuko wondered and asked Herai so he can clarify this.
Herai looked at the young Fire Lord in surprise and confusion at first...but then his face turned into realization, "His...father?"
"Yeah...do you happen to know what he was talking about?" Zuko asked carefully.
"...He…" Herai looked anxious for a second as he paused. It was then he asked again, "Is Torubi really dead?"
"...I…I saw him..." Zuko winced, "...My friends and Uncle and I saw him slice his own throat."
"...Oh," Herai stood there as processed that, "...I...hm..." he looked down at the ground and thought about what to say next, "...Well...his father...I mean, I don't think I should be the one telling you all of this, but...I'll just say, he described his father as...controlling. So much, that he..." he shook his head, "Either way, his father did something bad, and he committed suicide for it. Before he could though, he told Torubi to man up for what he did..." he frowned, "I think his father was blaming him for the situation...it kind of messed him up in a way...he always thought that the whole thing was his fault, which it wasn't. The event, his father's suicide...he just couldn't let that go..." Herai looked at Zuko with a curious expression, "How did you find him?"
"...I...well, we found him wandering in the woods in the fog...he looked like he was lost, and was calling out for his father..." Zuko relayed everything, frowning as well upon discovering this fact about Torubi's life. "...He also said something about...the enemy being within us. In Silent Hills...and then he killed himself..."
The soldier was silent for a second, looking despondent, "Dear Spirits..." his eyebrows furrowed as clenched his teeth, "Damn it! That Spirit must've gotten him!"
Wondering about that, Zuko asked, "What did the Spirit look like?"
"It...It was some sort of...three-headed thing. It walked on its hands and…" Herai grimaced, "It looked revolting, really."
The young king frowned, "Well, right now, we need to find the rest of your team, my Uncle, my friends, and my father and sister...and maybe my mother if she's here."
"Do you really think Lady Ursa's here?" Herai asked him, unable to believe such a notion.
"She has to be," Zuko then dug into his jacket pocket with his hand and got the letter out, "This is the letter. This whole note has her handwriting on it. I know it. Uncle knows it. And she's around here somewhere in this town!" He gives him the letter for him to read.
When Herai unfolded the letter to read it though…
"...Um...My Lord? There's…nothing written here," Herai said, a little baffled.
Eyes widened and mouth agape, Zuko uttered out a "What?"
"I-I mean, you must've gotten...the wrong piece of paper?" Herai tried to rationalize.
Standing there dumbstruck, he grabbed the piece of paper from Henrai and looked to see if there was any clear handwriting on the note.
...No. There was...nothing.
Nothing on the piece of paper...no writing, just...a blank piece of paper...
"...What?" Zuko repeated in a shocked whisper.
"My Lord?" Herai said in a worried tone, "Um...is...well, obviously everything is not alright with all of us right now, but..." he faltered there, unable to finish his unsaid question in hopes of not offending his king.
"...I...I don't know," Zuko answered the unspoken question as he stared at the piece of paper dubiously. Shaking his head, he told Herai, "It-It doesn't matter. I...I just...need to find everyone..."
Herai sees that Zuko looked bothered by the piece of paper, so he tried to reassure him, "Well, maybe it's the Spirit that's making us see these things."
"...Yeah..." Zuko nodded his head at that, but still feel unsure.
"Yes, and...maybe..." the soldier paused in his sentence, his face first showing realization and soon uncertainty as he stared at Zuko.
Zuko looked at Herai's expression with a raised puzzled brow, "Uh...Herai? What is it?"
"...Um...pardon me for asking you this again, Lord Zuko, but…um...you are, uh...Fire Lord Zuko, aren't you?" the soldier asked him.
Looking baffled at his question, Zuko retorted by saying, "Herai, of course I am! I'm your Fire Lord! I'm not a hallucination or anything!"
"...Wait...this...this makes sense," Herai said, his tone feeling on edge and cautious, "It-It's...nighttime, and you said you and your uncle and friends came here today...that-that timeframe is wrong."
"What? No! Herai, we all came today after you and your team went to this island last night!" Zuko rationalized.
"Then why is it nighttime now?" Herai challenged him.
"I…" Zuko paused and hesitated, "...I-I don't know, but I'm telling you, your squad came here last night on the island!"
"But...that's impossible! Why does it feel like I've been walking around for what feels like two hours here?"
"Two hours? I-I've been knocked out and put on this bench for what felt like thirty minutes!"
Herai shook his head again, "No, this...this is wrong. All of this is wrong!" He exclaimed, the panic seeping into him, "It-It doesn't make sense!"
"Herai, calm down!" Zuko tried to reassure him, about to reach out to place a hand on his shoulder, when Herai back-swiped his hand, surprising Zuko.
"No! G-Get away from me! How do I know that you're not a Spirit!? A-A shapeshifting one even!?"
"Herai! Please, j-just listen to me!" Zuko exclaimed in desperation, "I'm not a Spirit! I'm your Fire Lord! I-I want to help you! In fact, I need your help! We can find everyone, including your teammates-"
"My teammates!?" Herai's eyes widened suddenly, "D-Did you kill Torubi!?"
"What? No! Henrai-"
"NO! No, no, no!" Herai shook his head rapidly, breathing heavily, "Oh Spirits, I-I'm going insane...I...I need to find my teammates! I-I-I can't lose them! No, I can't! Not again, not again!"
"Wha-Herai, calm down-"
"No! I can't let them die! I-I can't, I can't! I can't! No, I can't let her and her two poor kids die!"
"W-What!? What are you-"
"Oh no...the flashbacks...they-they're coming back! They're coming back!"
"Herai!" Zuko was getting concerned, "Just-Just calm down! Breathe! Just breathe slowly, okay?"
Herai was doing just that as he took slow deep breaths. After a few deep breaths, he simmered down and said, "W-What is happening? Am I-Am I really going crazy?"
"No, you're not, Herai, you're not." Zuko assured him, "I don't know what you witnessed in your past, but you need to think clearly. You need to-"
"AH! It's the Spirit!" Herai said as he pointed at something behind Zuko.
"What?!" Zuko turned around and saw...
...The black darkness that was around them.
"...Wha-Where? What-"
"You damn Spirit! You killed Torubi! Where are the others!?" Herai said as he passed Zuko and dashed into the darkness.
"WAIT! Herai!" Zuko called out to him, but he was already far in the inky black void. "Damn it!"
So Zuko lit up a flame in his hand and went after him.
As he ran into the darkness to find Herai, his thoughts went back to the dark atmosphere he was in, as well as the dream(or dreams?) he had, along with the timeframe Henrai was talking about...also, there was that bit of information he heard from him a while ago...
A woman? And her two kids? What was he going on about there?
The young Fire Lord passed buildings as he rushed through the cobblestoned street. Once he went to a four-way intersection, he stopped and thought quickly as to where Herai could've gone.
Zuko grunted in aggravation, "Damn. I don't know which way he went...I'll have to go straight and hope for the best."
He ran straight, determined to find Herai...as well as the other soldiers. He couldn't let them die...not like Torubi...he didn't want anyone dying on his watch. He couldn't let more people die. He will not be the reason why people have died because of his amateurish ruling...he will not be the reason he sent these men to their death...
He will not be like his father...never.
As he kept running straight down the path...he sees a red glow in the distance.
"Huh?" Zuko paused in his sprint, "Herai!?"
...The red glow didn't respond...but it did grow brighter just a bit upon Zuko's call.
"Herai! Look, come over here! We need to stay together to find everyone!"
...The red light still stayed there, glowing brightly for a second.
"...Herai?" Zuko said as he waited for him to answer back.
...The red light grew brighter...until it was fully extinguished.
"...Um...H-Hello?"
...Silence...
...
...
...
...You were lucky to even be born.
Zuko's eyes widened at the voice in shock as he let out a soft gasp.
"...F-Father?" Zuko softly said, his tone stunned.
"Fire Lord Zuko!?"
He almost yelled out when there was another voice that pierced the darkness.
"Wha-Herai!?" Zuko called out in his dark surroundings.
Soon...a figure became visible in the darkness, the light from Zuko's flame illuminating the person...
...It was Herai...and he was holding his hand up to his chest, almost like he was carrying something...but they were stained with blood.
In fact...his whole shirt was stained with blood. He seems to be covered in blood in some places...and he had the most horrified and frightful expression on his face.
Zuko also looked appalled, his mouth dropped at the sight. "H-...Herai?"
"...Oh Spirits," Henrai said in a hushed tone, "I...I-I...I killed them."
"...What?" Zuko asked in surprise, "You...You killed them?" he asked, wondering what he meant by that, "Who...Who did you kill? Wh-What happen, Herai?" he asked him in dreaded curiosity.
"...I...the Spirit...it…" Herai's eyes looked like they were far off, like they were in a trance as he stared at Zuko, "...I got close to the Spirit...it...it looked like...it looked like the mother and her two kids. The three heads...it was them."
Zuko eye's widened at this bombshell, "What? Wh-What do you mean?"
"...I failed to save them...back then, when I was an officer...I...no, he...he killed them...I was too late…" Herai gritted his teeth, "I wanted to end him...and I did...but it didn't bring them back...it was all my fault...I...I should've stopped them...he pretended to be that woman's husband and father to those kids...and..." he loosened his jaw as his lower lip quivered, "...I let them go..." he grabbed his head with both of his hands and began to look like he was hyperventilating, "I-I-I've killed...them...I let that maniac kill them, but...I made it happen!" his eyes were getting foggy with tears, "That Spirit...I-I think I killed their Spirit!"
Zuko looked at the soldier, deeply disturbed, "Killed their Spirit?"
"I-I don't KNOW!" Herai yelled out, "D-Do Spirits die? D-Do they bleed!? I don't know! I don't know, I don't know, I don't know!" he breathed heavily once again, his hyperventilation getting worse, "But, I let it happen again! And this time, I was the killer!"
"H-H-Herai, listen. Listen to me," Zuko tried to reassure him as he put his hand out in defense, which he kept his distance from Herai as he inched forward to the man, "I don't know what's going on...but I doubt you killed anyone. Not this woman and her two children that you speak of. Not even a human alone. If what you said was true, then it wasn't your fault. It wasn't. You tried to help that family. You didn't know...that wasn't on you, Herai. It wasn't on you."
Herai's breathing then became an inch slower, until it gradually went to its normal breathing. Upon taking a couple of deep breaths, he asked Zuko, "Then...what...what did I just kill?"
"...I don't know. But I don't think they would turn into whatever spirit you saw-"
PHU-LANK!
Blood splattered forward as it landed on Zuko's palm and arm while he was holding it out. Some have also landed on his shirt and a little bit on his face.
Zuko looked on in wide-eyed horror.
Out of Herai's chest was...the black razor-pointed iron tip of a spear.
Herai's face expressed shock...as he slowly looked down at the head of the spear, he tried to say something, but blood came spilling out of his mouth.
"A-A-A-A-Aaaugh..." he moaned as the blood, mixed with saliva, came dribbling down his mouth and onto the ground.
Then, the spear was lifted up, taking the soldier up with it.
"AUGH!" Herai started coughing and hacking up blood as the spear was turned upside, making his body slide down from the top of the spear. There were two protrusions on each side of the spear, and as Herai slid down, he landed on the two arms of the spear.
The person that was carrying the spear walked into Zuko's viewing vicinity of the flame's light.
Zuko froze in terror.
The person was...a very muscular man. He was wearing what looked to be red long pants with a golden sash that has a hanging front flap that covered the front and hangs in between his legs. He was shirtless and has...burnt marks on his chest and arms.
But the most eye-catching thing about this man...was that he was wearing...a golden statue's mask.
A golden mask of a metal-necked, open-mouthed, and pointy-beaked bird...
A Phoenix.
The design on the Phoenix's neck looked like there were golden flaming feathers jutting out of it, with thin slits underneath the 'feathers'. The face also had a dangerous-looking beak, triangular in shape at the top and bottom parts of its beak. Its eyes though were colored a ruby red, as if they could stare and ignite someone's soul on fire. The only things that were peculiar about the mask, were that the bottom of the mask's edges have screws bolted onto the man...into the man's skin. The other thing was...it was wearing a golden crown headpiece on top of its head that almost looked...Fire Nation.
The man stood there, menacingly, as he carried the spear in his left hand with Herai on it.
Speaking of Herai, he looked to be struggling to try to get himself off the spear, but it looked like he was having difficulty.
"ACK! UGH...AUGH! HE-HEL-HEEELP!" Herai cried out desperately and pitifully, hacking out more blood from his mouth.
Zuko, his shock forgotten as he heard the soldier cry out, got the flame in his hand to grow fiercely and shot a fire blast at the man's exposed chest.
FWOOSH!
It hit the target, the fire-bullet hitting him in the left pec. Zuko then fired another blast at the man in the stomach and then at the right pec, then at his stomach again, and then the left pec, right pec, left pec, right pec, the stomach, the stomach again and again, and then, he jumped and kicked horizontally at the person, the fire swipe hitting him in the chest.
Once Zuko landed after that kick, the embers of the fire he bent died out, once again engulfed by the darkness again...
...He heard shuffling...
Zuko stood there in the darkness, firebending stance ready as he backed away gradually so the man wouldn't get close to him.
...There was a red glow coming from the man…
...It was glowing brighter!
Then, Zuko realized, that the red glow was coming from the golden Pheonix mask! The red glow was also what he saw in the dark distance a while ago.
But the mask now looked lit up, as if…
…Zuko has a very bad feeling.
The Phoenix mask's slits were spitting out flames and smoke…until the mouth of it started to spew out a small fire...it grew and grew until-
WHOOOSH!
Adrenaline kicking in, Zuko dived out of the way just in time for the huge fire stream coming out of the mask's mouth.
Rolling until he landed on his arms, he saw the fire stream was still going, the man shooting fire from every direction from the mask's mouth.
Zuko got up and began to fire his firebending again at the hulk of a person.
As he fired each blast at his enemy, the man only stumbled and shuffled back, but he still remained standing.
It got dark again...
Zuko got into another fire stance and waited for when this masked man will strike again, using only his ears and senses to tell him. He had to thank Toph for that…
...Then he felt something-
WHA-CRACK!
FWIIIP!
Something wrapped around his right leg and-
"AAAH!" Zuko was flipped onto his back on the hard ground.
WHAM!
Now seeing stars, Zuko struggled to get up, but he felt a pull and a tug on the thing that was wrapped around his leg.
Upon reaching and touching what was around his leg, it felt like...leather.
A whip!?
Another tug from the whip lets Zuko know that he's in a dire situation. He also noted that from the smell of it, this whip has been drenched with oil on it, so if he fired his firebending haphazardly, he could very well ignite the whip and fry his leg off. Not to mention, what if he hit Herai as well?
Luckily enough, he didn't have to find where his enemy was, for when Zuko got tugged again, the mask began to glow a bright red, meaning that he was going to shoot fire at him again from his mouth.
As he was tugged closer to the beast of a man, Zuko thought quickly about what he should do to survive. Upon seeing the burnt marks on the person, he can deduce that firebending doesn't affect his enemy's body, so...what could he do?
Wait...that could be the only way!
Taking a deep breath, he let his hands do gestures, and once the monster man tugged at his whip once more, Zuko was close enough to him to ignite his attack…
A flash of light came sparking out of his hands...and then Zuko fired a lightning bolt at the man's chest!
ZZZRT-KRAAACK!
Zuko thrust back from the lightning blast, as the Phoenix Head recoiled from the electric shock, letting go of the whip that was pulling the young Fire Lord. The Phoenix Head(Zuko decided to call this man that) didn't even make a noise or a sound, which almost made Zuko dread that he missed his shot, but once he could feel his leg be freed from the whip's grasp, he got up quickly and was ready to do another lightning bolt attack on this person.
From the slight light Phoenix Head was emitting, Zuko could see the outline of this bulking man as he clutched his chest from the lighting bolt wound that his adversary had made. He looked to be turning around and dragging his two feet onto the ground to walk away from the battle...
Wait, he's leaving!?
"Hey!" Zuko hollered out to Phoenix Head. He apparently ignored him as he kept walking away, "Hey! Get back here! Let Herai go!"
Phoenix Head just trudged on, carrying his spear with Herai impaled on it.
Zuko gritted his teeth in aggravation and growled in anger. He then thought about the whip that was on the ground and considered if he can use it. Not wanting to let this monster get away, he knelt down and thankfully found the whip in time. Grabbing it, he pulled it to get to the base of the whip, held onto it, and rushed to Phoenix Head. Before the monster's light could fade out, Zuko raised the whip over his head and swung it.
FWOOP!
It seems to have wrapped around Phoenix Head's right arm. After feeling a tug, Zuko pulled the whip to let him stop.
Phoenix Head apparently didn't like this, as his mask glowed bright red and fires were coming out of the slits of his mask. Then, what felt like no effort was made for this beast, he pulled his arm forward to make a mighty pull, letting the whip come out of Zuko's hands.
"AH!" Zuko yelped as he jerked forward a bit.
Then, Phoenix Head just turned his back to Zuko with the whip on his arm and began walking away from him again.
"HEY!" Zuko yelled out, infuriated, "Come back here!"
But Phoenix Head continued on, walking further into the darkness, with Herai on the spear…
The red glow was fading away from existence as he walked on...
And then...it got quiet...
Before Zuko could run up to where Phoenix Head had gone off to, something...bizarre happened.
The dark surroundings...started to change.
Everything around Zuko began to look like...well, whenever you put a piece of paper on a lit candle, the fire eats away the paper. It makes a hole, and the fire would grow into a larger hole, making it sometimes morph when the fire spreads in different directions.
That's what Zuko was reminded of when he saw these certain 'burnt holes' in the darkness...it looked like the area was burning holes in the atmosphere, but...it wasn't.
The holes released blinding lights, and as they grew, it looked like...it was turning into daytime again...
These holes spread as they connected to the other holes in the dark sky, and soon the inky blackness of Zuko's environment grew smaller until it evaporated into literally thin air.
Everything...was back to what he, his friends, and his uncle saw after they got knocked out. A cloudy day with fog and all.
"...What the...?" Zuko murmured, stunned at what he just witnessed.
It was daytime again...
Zuko was standing on a cobblestoned street, where he can see outlines of buildings inside the fog.
"...What...What on Earth is..." Zuko shook his head, "What is going on?" he asked himself, at a loss of words.
Just…where am I?
In a desperate attempt to try and see if he can catch up to Phoenix Head, he rushed further into the fog.
"Hey! Where are you!? Show yourself!" Zuko called out to the huge man that attacked them.
After running straight for what feels like a minute and a half, he sees that Phoenix Head...certainly has vanished. He was gone without a trace.
He gradually came to a stop, feeling as if he might've lost the hostile person, along with Herai by now.
It was then he felt utterly alone...with no one by his side.
He doesn't even know where he is right now...despair flooded through his whole body as he felt a little bothered and disturbed by all that is happening right now.
Feeling desperate once more, he hollered out to anyone, "H-Hello?!"
...Silence was his answer.
"...Uncle!? Aang!? Katara!? Toph!? Suki!? Sokka!? Anyone!?"
...No answer.
Zuko felt...so small...so inadequate...he felt helpless.
"M-...Mother?" he called out softly, not knowing why he was even calling out to her. Maybe he was hoping his call will be answered by her...
...There was just no answer.
He honestly felt...alone.
"...I...I couldn't save him..." Zuko said dejectedly, his gaze lowered to the ground with his face in total shock.
It was like Torubi all over again...he let someone go off into their death.
It all felt like he was eleven years old again...
He felt...responsible.
Is he really any different than his father?
Zuko shook his head. No! I'm not like Father! I'm not!
But no matter how much he repeated that thought, he began to doubt it. Grabbing his head both of his hands, he thought of the comforting words of his Uncle, when he consoled him after Torubi's death...
Then...he thought of Katara. How she made him snap out of it. How she told him to stop blaming things for things he didn't do…
He also reminded himself of how he also helped her. How he made her find closure on finding her mother's killer, Yon Rha. How they shared their burdens about their mothers. How he jumped in front of lightning from Azula to save her.
How...How she changed him...
...Yes. Yes, I'm...I'm nothing like Father.
Calming down, Zuko took a deep breath and exhaled, feeling somewhat at ease with himself. Although he may have lost another soldier, it just made his drive to keep going. To save more people from whatever is out here...
It did make Zuko wonder...what was that man? Did he reside here on the island? If so, then...why was his head concealed with a golden mask of a Phoenix? And the burn marks...his whole upper torso, as well as his arms and hands, looked like they had been burned immensely by flames and fires. He wondered how someone could live through all of that...
Whatever that man was...if he ever runs into him again...he will pay.
Having calmed down, he took one last breath and thought about where he needed to go…
Well...maybe I can find my friends and Uncle...or I could find Azula, Father, and the prisoners...as well as whoever brought them here... Feeling downcast, Zuko sighs miserably, Well...which and whoever comes first.
However, if anything, he wished Katara was with him…
Blinking at that in surprise, Zuko corrected his thought.
Be-Because she's good company! Yeah! I mean, we make a good team, and...she's...yeah, pleasant to be around...yeah...
...Zuko decides to just keep walking until he finds someone. So he took a step and moved forward...wherever it may lead him.
As he kept walking down the street for what felt like three minutes, he began to think he might be walking around in circles...
Hm...just where am I right now in this town? I was at the shore of a lake, and now...
He stopped...looking at his left he sees the outline of buildings through the fog. Deciding to check out what businesses are there, he walked to his left to a store vendor.
Healing Touches the sign says on the wall of the building.
Hmm...I'm probably...somewhere in the medical area?
...He then heard footsteps in the distance.
Tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap.
Zuko froze in place and turned to his right to where the footsteps are coming from.
Tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap.
The footsteps grew a little louder...
...until Zuko sees a silhouette of a person.
Feeling on guard and cautious, Zuko slightly got into his firebending stance in case the person was hostile.
...The figure showed itself...
The person...looked like an older man with slightly darker skin...and is wearing a mailman outfit. Even carrying a mailbag over his shoulder.
Zuko blinked at this person.
The old man...just smiled and tipped his hat.
"Well, hello there, youngster." said the mailman.
"...Uh...hi," Zuko said, still a little wary of this man that came through the fog. Sure, he's a mailman, but...what is a mailman doing in a mostly abandoned town and island?
He looks a little dark-skinned...is he...
"I don't see you around here too often. You visitin'?" the man asked Zuko, breaking his thoughts.
"Oh! Um..." Zuko lowered his guard just a bit, "...Uh, in a...in a way."
The mailman nodded with a hum, "Hm...well, welcome to Sairento Hiruzu then! I hope the town of Silent Hills will treat you nicely."
"What do you mean by that?" Zuko now got on the defensive.
The man shrugged, "I'm just hoping the town treats ya right. It was a resort town after all...but, times change, I suppose," he said with a shake of his head.
"Um...okay," Zuko stood there awkwardly for a moment, until he asked the mailman, "Listen, can I ask you some questions?"
"Oh, well sure! Go on ahead!" the mailman urged him.
"Okay...um, is there anybody living in this town? And, have you seen any more people around? Like say, a twelve-year-old boy and girl, a teenage Water Tribe girl and boy, and a teenage Earth Kingdom girl? Also, have you seen an older man that's like, this nay tall and...possibly talks a lot about tea?" Zuko asked, throwing that last one out just for the heck of it.
The mailman hummed as he scratched graying beard stubble. "Hmm...well, for the first question: yes, there are people living in this town. As for seeing other people...well...I think I saw one young kid when I was doing my mail routine. He had some mighty interesting tattoos..."
Zuko's eyes widened at that. Aang?
"I think he was twelve...heh, kids these days. Trying to get tattoos...my momma would be livid if she ever caught me with one." the man chuckled.
"U-Uh, another thing. You're...a mailman, right?" Zuko asked the man curiously.
The older man chuckled, "Well, I hope so."
"Uh, right. So...you deliver mail to these residents in the town?"
Smiling, the mailman said, "That I do."
"Okay...who then...who then lives on this island?"
The man...shrugged, "I don't know."
Zuko blinked incredulously, "You don't know?"
"I never see them around that much. I just drop mail in their mailbox and I leave."
"...Okay," Zuko said, putting his finger and thumb to pinch the bridge of his nose, "So..." he thought about the occurrence he witnessed with the sky being dark and changing into daytime again. "Um...is there...something wrong with this town? Like, is it connected with Spirits?"
The mailman's expression looked confused, "Wrong with the town? Well, the history here isn't all that happy. I mean, sure, there were some good times, but mostly the bad times ruled out those happy ones. As for the town being related to Spirits, well...there is this one priestess that is dedicated to devoting to one Spirit."
"A priestess? A Spirit? What are their names?"
"Well, the priestess is named Mother Daria, while the Spirit is...I think it's named...God? I mean, I don't really know, she's kind of out of it at times. I think she just pretty much serves anything that says he or she is a Spirit."
"God? That's...an odd name."
"Heh, yeah. She goes on about how this God can grant any wish if they believe or something...I don't know, she acts like it's all-powerful and whatnot."
"Huh..."
Grant any wish? It was then Zuko had a peculiar but somewhat possible thought. ...Wait...no, that wouldn't be my father's style...but...I mean, is he that desperate?
"Young man? You alright?"
Zuko shook his head to clear his thoughts, "Um, yeah...and actually, what I meant by something wrong with this town, I meant...well, does it do...anything...odd?"
"Odd? Hmm...like what?"
"Well...does...the sky turn night and day all of a sudden?"
The mailman tilted his head to the side as he looked at Zuko curiously, "Um...well, not suddenly. It takes hours before is turned to night and day."
"Wha...no, I..." Zuko sighed, "Never mind. Look, you met a kid around here, right? He has tattoos?"
"Mm-hm. I think his name is...Oung? No, maybe...Aang, I think."
"Aang? Yeah! I know him!" Zuko said with a relieved smile, "He's the Avatar!"
"Hmm...Avatar, huh? Is that like a title?"
Zuko's smile dropped as he looked confused, "Um...yes? He's the balance between the Spirit World and the Living World. He can master all four elements and go into a powerful state called the Avatar State."
"Oh, well, that's nice. Very rarely do you see anyone bend all four elements," the mailman said with a smile as he says it like it was an everyday occurrence.
"...Uh..." Zuko blinked, a little dumbfounded by the mailman's attitude, "...Yeah, it...it is..."
...Is he...maybe he's going senile? I mean...that could make sense. He's delivering mail to people he said he doesn't know...maybe the addresses weren't houses to begin with...
It was then the mailman broke through his thought by saying, "Well, either way, I think your friend Aang is at the south of town. We're in the northeast of town right now."
"The northeast of town?" Zuko repeated to be sure.
"Yep."
Zuko stood there as he processed this…
I'm in the northeast of town and Aang's in the south of it? So, if we entered where the squad's airship was on that beach, then I'm still a little bit up north...I guess the only questions I should be asking now are how did Aang get all the way down there? And where could I find the rest of them?
He then quickly remembered something else. Two things to be exact.
"Oh! Hey, um..."
"Hm?" the old mailman hummed in question, "...Oh! Oh, yeah, that's right! I'm sorry about that, I didn't introduce myself. Boy, that's real embarrassing, heh," the man then introduces himself, "Just call me Zhong, young man."
"Okay. Then...you can call me...Zu..." He said, hiding his real name for now.
Thankfully, Zhong took the bait. "Alright then, Zu. Were you gonna ask me something?"
"Oh, right! Um...have you seen any new people walk in this town lately? And...is there a woman that goes by the name of...Ursa?"
"Hmm...I think I have on the first question. As for this woman named Ursa...no, son, I don't think I heard that name before."
Zuko sighed in defeat, "Okay then…"
"But hey, I'll keep a lookout for this Ursa...is she a family member of yours or something?"
"Um...yeah. She's...my mother."
"Oh…" Zhong nodded in understanding, "Well, I'll certainly keep an eye out for her then."
"Thanks..."
They stood there for a second until Zhong then asked 'Zu' something, "Mind if I ask you a couple of questions too, young man?"
Zuko stood straight, instantly feeling like he's got himself cornered, "Um...yeah?"
Zhong nodded, "Alright then. Now...how did you get that scar on your face?"
"...I...don't really want to talk about it."
"Okay. Fair enough. Second question...is there a reason you're here?"
Now Zuko felt guarded again. "I...just said it. I'm looking for my mother."
"...Ah. Okay," Zhong nodded, "Well, I won't pry into your business anymore. In fact, I need to get back to delivering some mail."
"Uh...okay..." Zuko then suddenly asked, "Uh, hey, um...can I...ask you one more question before you leave, Mr. Zhong?"
The older man chuckled, "Well, sure! But time is very precious, so I don't want myself to slack off...but, you can tell me one last question before I go."
"Oh, okay. Um...okay, so..." Zuko rubbed the back of his neck a little sheepishly, "...Uh, okay, um, please don't take any offense on what I'm asking you, but...well, your skin is a little dark, so..." Zuko cleared his throat, "Uh...are you...like...kind of Water Tribe?"
Zhong smiled and chuckled, "Funny you should ask that. My father was Water Tribe, while my mother was Fire Nation."
"Oh," Zuko blinked, "Um...wow. Uh, okay..."
"Heh...yep. It was a little hard for me and my parents back then. But they both love each other very much, and that's all that mattered to me...hm...I miss them..." Zhong looked a little downcast for a moment.
Feeling responsible for letting Zhong remember his parents, he winced and apologized, "I-I'm sorry, I-I-I was just-I mean, I didn't mean to-"
"Oh, no worries, Zu," Zhong said with a sad smile, "You were just curious. Like I was curious about the scar. But you didn't want to talk about it, and...well, I respected your answer."
"Um...thanks," Zuko said with a small nod.
"Hm. Well, I need to get going now," Zhong said as he carried his mailbag, "You be good, okay Zu?"
"Uh...r-right," Zuko said with a slight frown.
Be good...I am...I don't breed hate like my Father.
Zhong smiled at Zuko, "Well, see ya later!" and with that, he walked past him and went on his way further into the fog.
Zuko looked back at the mailman until he couldn't see his shape anymore in the fog.
...The Fire Lord sighed once more as he turned his head forward...
"...Well, time to find my friends...and Uncle...and everyone else..." Zuko looked out into the fog.
...He took a step forward and walked further into the mist...
To find his friends...his family...and maybe...something else.
...He just doesn't know what.
Until then...
He'll be walking further into the unknown.
End of Chapter 12
Hey all! Finally got this out! :D
But first, please go to my Twitter account, that being the same name The Samurai Prince (TheSamuraiDude1). I basically tell you some of my life stuff and whatnot, and maybe some updates on stories. :) Also, I will make this announcement: I'm going to try to work on a pilot script for one of my animated show ideas. So...if I get that going, then updates will be sparse. HOWEVER, I will not forget my stories! So whenever that day comes when I finally get off my butt and do it, then wish me luck! XD
Also, how is the chapter? :) We finally got to Zuko, and he seems a little bothered by everything he just witnessed. :O What's gonna happen now? Well, I'll tell you one thing, we are going back to Katara and Jemusu! ;) That's when things will start to pick up!
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Until then, thank you all for reading, and keep on rocking everybody! :D
-TSP