Azula awoke early, as usual, and took some time to explore the palace alongside her Captain. Unfortunately, she didn't know where Mai and Ty-Lee had slept, and she didn't want to take too long since her chest felt sore, but she soon ran into a palace servant, one of the few that remained. "T-The Ruskian leader has requested your presence, Y-Your Highness," the man said, visibly shaking.

Azula smirked. "Very well. Where is he?" she inquired with a cocked brow.

The man shivered. "P-Please follow me," he replied, and she and her men walked behind him. On the way, she passed what looked to be a high-ranking Earth Kingdom officer, who glared at her, though the Princess paid him no mind as she arrived at the door guarded by four Ruskian soldiers. Without a word, the men opened the door and allowed her entry.

"There you are, Your Highness," the elder Grand Duke stated once she entered. Curiously, she noted that the room bore little decor or extravagance, at least by her lofty standards, though the fireplace made up for it. "Please, take a seat."

She sat across from him, noticing the stack of records and other documents written in Ruskian and native characters. When she turned to him, she noticed decently sized bags under his eyes, and his overall posture displayed exhaustion. "You summoned me?" Azula inquired.

The Grand Duke nodded. "Yes, I did," he began, his words slow and deliberate. "So, about the Avatar, what was he exactly?"

"Well, Your Imperial Highness..." And thus, Azula gave him the same explanation she had given Ivan.

"I see... So he was indeed similar to a demon..." He replied once she finished before shaking his head. "I would like to hear more of this later. But, for now Your Highness, I wish to express my gratitude for aiding us in our endeavours. You did not have to aid us. Yet I was informed you had slain an enemy commander, at least according to some eyewitness accounts. Is this true?"

"Yes, I did," she replied. "But I don't see how that's very important. They are our enemies as well."

Nikolai nodded. "That may be, and yet you committed a feat of combat regardless and faced down a foe which vastly outnumbered my forces. And instead of choosing to remain in absolute safety, you were there alongside my son and the Zlachny regiment," he replied.

Azula cocked her brow. "But, you suggested it."

The Grand Duke interrupted her with a chuckle. "That's right, I suggested, as I have no authority over you. I am not your father," he replied jokingly, causing her a moment of pause. Nikolai was right. Yet she'd still listened to him. Why? Was it because he had told her, or did it have something to do with her genuine curiosity to see Ivan in battle?

She quickly shook away such thoughts. "I suppose that's true," she answered, hoping it would suffice. "But what better way to gauge the strength of my allies than to see them in action?"

He nodded in approval. "I couldn't agree more, Princess," he replied, his expression turning thoughtful. "Speaking of which, there was something I wanted to ask."

The Princess cocked a brow. "And what would that be, exactly?"

Nikolai sighed. "I... I know you weren't here for the events which took place last night. But, do you recall General Vassili Alexeev and his brother, Colonel Avgustin Alexeev, the commander of Ivan's regiment?"

Azula thought for a moment, recalling the stern Colonel, and could she forget the only one of Nikolai's commanders she'd interacted with more than once? The smug fool. But considering how effective his artillery proved against the walls of Ba Sing Se, she supposed it was warranted. "Yes, I believe so. Why do you ask?"

Nikolai looked her dead in the eyes. "Both of them are dead."

Azula's eyes widened. "What do you mean? How can that-" Then she remembered. The Avatar had attacked. But that didn't seem like the naive boy she'd faced beforehand. Of course, she'd heard the reports while attending some of the war meetings, and she knew what happened at the North Pole and the defeat at the Northern Air Temple a week before those events. Yes, she'd experienced her first taste of death when General Chi succumbed to his illness, but he was an aging man. So, it was bound to happen sooner or later. But to know those men were dead was a shock. But, as she thought about it, she wondered why he'd told her in the first place. It implied a major setback despite the victory over the Avatar. Besides, it's not as though she knew them that long, yet their deaths felt incomprehensible. After a further moment to allow her mind to calm itself, she crossed her arms. "And why are you telling me this?"

The Grand Duke sighed. "I tell this for the sake of understanding," he stated, his eyes softening as he looked at her. "Your Highness, how long have you known your friends?"

Azula remembered her first year at the Royal Academy for Girls. She recalled meeting Ty Lee and Mai after her mother encouraged her to make friends. Of course, the former, ever the attention seeker, was quite easy-going, if a bit more insecure than she was now. Mai, on the other hand, was always an introvert. Yet she came into the Princess's circle due to pressures from her parents, specifically her father, who always had ambitions to secure a higher station. She never considered her a true friend until a few years later, when Ty Lee invited her to watch her knife-throwing, and from that moment on, the three were inseparable. "Since I was seven. Why?"

The man gazed intently into her eyes, sending a chill down her spine. "Then, how would you feel if they were to die?"

Long Feng sat nursing his forehead, his body trembling, even though it had been many hours since he'd heard the terrible news: The Avatar was dead. He couldn't fathom the most powerful being in the world lying dead at the hands of a mere boy with one of the foreigner's thunder sticks. Yet that was what agent Hei informed him of, a man who, despite being among the newest recruits to the inner circle, was showing his worth, first by bringing him that prisoner and then by aiding the Avatar and his allies in conducting their mission, per his instruction. However, the news of the boy's failure and death came as a great shock to him and the rest of the Dai Li. "How can I deal with this?" He pondered. His whole plan hinged on his Kingdom not giving up despite the occupation. But once the news began to spread, he feared many might see it as the mandate of heaven turning a new leaf, and unlike the Fire Nation, which had made itself into something easily hated, these Ruskians had no such problem. They were new and could introduce themselves in whatever way they pleased. Of course, if they acted as tyrants and bandits, it would be easy to turn the people against them, but from what the head of the Dai Li was hearing, that was not the case. No, instead, it seemed his foes had already planned, as though they had done this before, and they had largely left the people to their own devices and even begun the process of reintegrating veterans, something he couldn't do. After all, it would be difficult to hide a war when veterans freely roamed the streets carrying wounds from battle. Yet, at this moment, it felt as though every sacrifice and every decision leading up to this meant nothing. Worse, of course, was the sheer amount of people who'd died, meaning the capital would be short of young men-

Then he got an idea, an awful idea, a wicked, terrible, awful idea. Yes, that was it! Why hadn't he thought of it before!? The people would be angry about that, and considering that there would be hundreds of thousands of mourning mothers, fathers, siblings, and children, all it would take was a spark, and the King would return to his rightful place. "Is there a problem, Sir?" His aide asked.

Long Feng turned to the man, the smirk already etching on his face. "Inform the King I have a new plan. We shall create a protest, the largest in our history," he began. "Once you inform the King, assemble the junior agents and have them spread the word."

"Yes, Sir," the agent replied before slipping into the shadows.

The man rubbed the grogginess from his eyes as he sat up, his head pounding as he glanced about, finding himself in a hospital ward filled with dozens of beds, each covered with what he recognized as his fellow soldiers. "О, этот проснулся," (Oh, this one woke up) he heard a feminine voice say, and he turned to see a women in all white running toward several others dressed in the same manner, and a man wearing a blue jacket with an apron and a strange hat.

After speaking in hushed tones, the man in the coat, who he quickly learned was a doctor, or at least he guessed he was, checked him, whispered some things under his breath, and helped him get up. "Убери этого, с ним все в порядке," (Take this one away, he's fine) he said to one of the women, who took him aside and guided him out of the room. Upon exiting, he found himself momentarily blinded by the sun, and it took his eyes some time to adjust. Once he recovered, he realized he was in one of the many small villages dotting the agricultural zone. The village square stood packed with men dressed in the standard underarmour all Earth soldiers wore but without any symbols, and the woman pointed to them before returning to the hospital, which he realized was a large repurposed barn. "-I regret to inform you the Earth Kingdom is no more!" He overheard someone shout in an authoritative tone. Feeling a great sense of desperation, he ran toward the men before pushing his way to the front, where he saw something the man prayed would never happen: His commanding officer stood with a bandage wrapped around the left side of his face, with his unit's standard in his hand, the very one he'd nearly lost his life trying to protect before the foreigner his him on the head and his mount kicked him. Suddenly, it all came rushing back to him: That horrible day, the stench of the dead and dying, his wounded arm, the lone bannerman, and the foreign cavalryman who had nearly killed him. As his memory returned, he glared as he caught sight of them, the pale-faced bastards in their fancy uniforms as they stood behind him with their weapons. Yet, even when he found their eyes, he felt shocked by their indifferent expressions. "However, our new rulers have offered you a choice: To return home or to continue your service under their leadership."

As Wei turned his eyes to his commanding officer, he snorted at the man's evident insincerity but quietly stood beside his fellows, many of whom he recognized from his unit. Like him, many had bandages wrapped around their arms or torsos but otherwise seemed to be able to function normally. After considering the state of his comrades, he finally allowed the words his commander had spoken to sink in. The war was over, and now it seemed a choice stood before him: To go home or serve the foreigners. Of course, like many of those who stood beside him, there was nothing to return to: He had no wife, his siblings were under Fire Nation occupation, his sickly mother died on the way to Ba Sing Se, and his father's unit was MIA. Suddenly, he snapped from his reflections as one of the foreigners, one with a sash and a sword, stepped forward and cleared his throat. "Those who wish to go home may step forward!" The man shouted. For a few moments, there was a pause until a few men stepped forward, those he recognized as being from the city. He did not like the idea of serving the people who'd killed many of his friends, but at this point, he had little choice, as aside from being a labourer, there wasn't much work for a poor non-bender with several years sitting inside a barracks. "Very well," the man said before gesturing for them to leave, which they did. "The rest of you, come here."

The gathered soldiers marched up to their commander and the foreigner, who turned to the other uniformed men and gestured for them to bring long sticks shaped like the weapons they wielded. They gave each man one, and once every man had theirs, the commander stepped forward. "4th Banner, 27th Regiment, form column!" Slightly confused by the familiar yet distinctly foreign command, they formed into a column as best they could, and the Captain took his position at the head, along with the foreigner, with the armed soldiers taking position behind. "Forward, march!" The commander shouted, and his men soon began to follow, though where they were going, not even he knew.

Ivan sat quietly in his study, a first for him. Though, it made sense due to his new position. "Guard Lieutenant Colonel," he muttered belatedly. He should have been thrilled, yet the words left a highly unpleasant taste in his mouth. Of those who had sat at that table after the review three weeks ago, only one remained, and it was Dimitriev, who suddenly found himself a Guard Colonel, a position many worked the better part of their careers to attain, but like him, he imagined the man wished for any other fate. Of course, in the aftermath of Bylowa, it made sense. His unit had faced the Kordish and prevailed despite their losses, yet the knowledge that three of his best friends were dead because of civilian CHILDREN!? It made his blood boil just thinking about it! And worse yet, his father, Dimitriev, and himself might have joined them had they not been out of the palace when the attack happened. But he shook his head. It was over. The boy was dead, and the others ran.

Suddenly, he heard a knock at the door, and Ivan turned to find one of his soldiers standing in the doorway. "Sir, Princess Azula has asked to speak with you."

Ivan sighed. But, rather than dismissing her request, he waved his hand. "Send her in."

It had been three days since the incident, and Azula hadn't seen a trace of Ivan anywhere, though considering what Nikolai told her during their meeting, it was hardly surprising. It was still hard for her, given how few friends she had and how rarely she extended the privilege of her friendship to anyone, but soon, understanding turned to boredom and then annoyance. Of course, perhaps a walk on the grounds or training would have relieved that. But she didn't want to risk hurting her recovery, as she still felt weak in her lungs, and as the Princess noted during her walk through the palace the morning after her awakening, it didn't take that much to cause her to feel as though she'd run a race. So, she'd spent the last two days recuperating, for the most part, while also taking the time to familiarize herself with the palace's layout in case she needed to escape. During that time, the Princess hardly saw Ty Lee or Mai, who only showed up when she fell asleep abruptly, and her Captain panicked, fearing she had fallen into another coma. Even then, they spoke of mundane things the Princess couldn't care less about, and she sent them away before they gave her a headache. No, what she truly missed was her talks with Ivan, surprisingly enough. Azula longed for their intelligent conversation rather than listening to Mai and Ty Lee speak about their crushes or question her about her recovery. So, that afternoon, she'd made up her mind, and Azula made her way to Ivan's quarters, located inside the old royal guard barracks. After being let in by the guards, a man showed her to Ivan's room, and after a brief conversation with the guards, followed by the Grand Duke, he stepped aside. "You may enter, Your Highness."

Azula nodded and quickly made her way inside. Ivan slumped in his chair, his eyes downcast, before turning to her once she passed the door's threshold. When he did, she noted he bore a few new crosses on his uniform, with one wrapped around his neck and another added to his chest. He also had full shoulder tassels, as she'd seen on the higher-ranking Ruskian officers. "I didn't expect to see you, Azula. I'm glad to see your recovery is going well," he said, the informality of him using her name and the strange weakness in his voice catching her off guard.

"Well, I can't say I expected to see you either," she responded.

"Then why are you here?" He questioned.

The Princess crossed her arms as she sat down. "Perhaps it was because I wanted someone to talk to? And it's not like your father's available at the moment."

"Then why not talk to your friends?" He inquired.

Azula scowled. "Well, maybe I don't want to talk to them. Did you think of that?"

Ivan sighed. "Azula, as much as I enjoy your company, I am not in the mood to speak with you. Not since..." his voice trailed off, and she swore she saw his glisten with tears before he blinked them away. Without warning, he took a deep breath and faced away from her. "Please, get out," he demanded, though it sounded more like begging to her ears.

Azula's eyes widened, stunned at his audacity and yet she refused. "I'm not going anywhere," she replied.

"I-I see," he said, sniffling. "H-Have you ever lost anyone close to you, Azula?" He asked, his voice sounding so weak. He was vulnerable, she noted. Yet, for some reason that she couldn't explain, she wanted to console him, to do what her mother had refused to do for her. She could easily imagine her father's voice shouting at her to take advantage, to wrap him around her finger and tie him to a proverbial leash. Were it anyone else, she would've been more than happy to, but she couldn't stomach putting a knife in his back, not yet. Of course, as much as she didn't want to think about it, perhaps it was because she understood why he felt this way. So, taking a breath, she quietly sighed as she stood and walked over to the Grand Duke before embracing him, which he didn't protest. They exchanged no words. None were needed, as Azula felt the young man quiver with every sob. It was strange, she thought, as typically, she was to blame for such emotions and would ridicule such displays as weakness, yet here Azula was, giving comfort to someone who, as she vaguely recalled, did the same for her in her time of need. But she pushed away such thoughts. She was only doing this to repay what he'd done for her, and she supposed it was merely another way to keep him under her thumb.

A few days had passed for Soldat Wei, as his foreign commander called him, a gruff man named Captain Yerchenko, though he would generally address him as Ser. At the moment, he and the others in his *vzvod sat inside their barracks, which, while similar to any he'd ever been inside before, there was one difference: It was clean. But not just clean in the sense that he and his men had merely tidied up for some bigshot: No, it was spotless, and he should know, given he and his colleagues spent the first ten hours under their new regimen cleaning the damn place: The old sheets, the floors and the walls they cleaned by hand, regardless of whether Earthbending might have helped, and that was before they got their new uniforms. They were cheap wool, dyed green, and each came with a set of long undergarments, as the wool would chafe the skin otherwise, but that didn't stop them from being itchy and constrictive, making it especially difficult for the Earthbenders, who feared tearing their pants while performing their katas, not to mention the uncomfortable tall leather boots they were issued, which they had to polish every morning for inspection, at least so far. However, if there was one thing he actually liked, it was the hat, a relatively plain wool thing with a flat top, a cylindrical body, and a leather visor. "Tough run, huh?" Asked one of his comrades.

"Y-Yeah, you could say that. I can't believe we just spent four hours marching," Wei replied, his chest convulsing with every laboured breath as he took the lid from his metal can and took a sip, the stale water tasting bitter in his mouth, but at least it relieved his thirst. It had been like this for the past few days, and everyone in the unit was slowly adjusting to this new tempo. Of course, many of them hurt from the battle outside the wall, but considering the pay they'd received once they cleaned up the place, no one thought of backing out now. It was strange, he thought, as he initially thought they would act like the Fire Nation, or at least what the soldier heard about how they handled prisoners, but instead, Wei found himself with more money than he knew what to do with, worth three months of his previous pay. Now, he didn't know where they got that money, but considering how things had played out in the city, he didn't care. From what he knew, there were rumours of a protest concerning those affected by the battle, those who lost family or the means to provide for themselves. But aside from that, life carried on as usual, save the foreigners dotted throughout the city or the queues of civilians lining the administrative buildings to receive their new passports. That was it. Even the damage from the battles hadn't gone any further than the Lower Ring, at least as far as Wei knew. But, aside from spending the past few days marching, training, and then spending what time remained in barracks, there wasn't much going on-

Suddenly, the Ruskian Captain stormed into the room, followed by his subordinates, including the now Lieutenant Xi Ling. "Soldaty, get yourselves ready! There's a disturbance!" Yerchenko cried.

Curious and concerned, the tired men quickly put on their uniforms, took their pikes, regardless of benders and non-benders, and followed his lead, as they had for the past few days. Marching into the street, he found it mostly empty as he and his comrades made their way toward one of the main gates leading into the Middle Ring, and that's when Wei saw them, the largest crowd he'd ever seen. They choked the main road leading to the gate, and even though he, his comrades, and the rest of their *rota were nowhere close to it, it would have proved impossible for them to break through, not that he would want to. People, his people, stood bearing signs or displaying the paintings of loved ones. Of course, he didn't need to guess why as the crowd echoed with shouts once the people noticed them.

"Give us back what's ours!"

"Help us!"

"Where's my husband!?"

"What have you done to my brother!?"

"You killed my father!"

For Wei, it was frustrating to bear their calls. On the one hand, he sympathized with them, but on the other, he couldn't help but feel angered, considering he'd fought beside the very people they were talking about, and he only wore the uniform he did to keep himself fed and off the street. "Soldiers, pikes down!" Shouted their commander, and after a moment, the men did as ordered. "Hold your ground, don't advance!" He hated this. It made his stomach turn, but so long as he didn't have to harm the very people he'd sworn to protect, he would do as commanded. Then, without warning, someone threw a rock, and the man standing beside him screamed in agony as one of his eyes burst open, and he fell to the ground, his pike dropping with him.

I'm sorry for the long wait. I've been busy moving to a new place, and I couldn't figure out what I wanted to include in this chapter, so I decided to split it into three parts, which I think makes sense, given this is the fastest in universe I've ever gone. I also really appreciate the support, as last chapter made me nervous in how it would be seen, but I'm glad its gone over well, and now there are more of you. Also, if anyone has any criticism, please don't hesitate to review or PM me. Anyway, tune in next time to see the GAang's perspective as they venture East.

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