Chương 7: Star-Crossed

Frantically dodging a large arm of vines, every time Zangpo cut a piece off of that large swamp monster, it would repair itself like it was never even harmed in the first place. He couldn't catch a break, the monster was relentless.

Ducking under a speeding thick rope of green vines, they cracked like a whip over his head as they passed. "What the heck is this thing?" The boy uttered exasperated, dipping and diving around the monster's attacks. Figuring it was some kind of angry spirit, he didn't really know how to attack it, being mostly on the defensive as he dodged everything he could.

Zangpo had been fighting this thing for several minutes without much progress. Glaring at the green monstrosity, the airbender got tired of being on the backfoot. Choosing to send wind-blade after wind-blade at the beast, slicing apart vines all over its large body, he smirked as he saw the monster slow its attacks and instead seemed to focus its attention on repairing itself.

Whoosh!

The large monster had thrust out one of its tree-sized arms with surprising speed, catching the young airbender by surprise. One second he was raining down attacks on the spirit, and the next his sight was entirely obscured by a thick green mass.

Launched backwards with what felt like the speed of one of his condensed air attacks, he flew through the trees, narrowly avoiding an unpleasant collision.

Skipping across the murky swamp water, he finally came to a stop a few dozen feet from where he was before. Quickly standing up out of the water before he drowned, the boy fell back to a knee with a hiss, clutching at his chest where the attack caught him. That attack hurt, it hurt a lot. Not even Toph had caught him off guard like that before.

Getting angry at himself for allowing the monster to get a hit in like that, and getting even more angry at the monster itself, Zangpo looked up with a fiery glare as the swamp beast was charging towards him.

Ignoring the aching pain in his chest, he began to wave his arms around in one of the airbending katas he found in Yangchen's journal. Forcing himself to breathe evenly, the boy jumped around in a three-sixty with one of his feet out. When he faced the charging monster again, both of his fists punched outward with a yell, the toes of his foot pointing forwards as he kicked out sharply.

As if he was a master of nature itself, the airbender launched forth a massive concentrated blast of wind that stopped the monster in its tracks. Like it was hit by the force of a hurricane, the swamp beast was lifted out of the water and slammed onto its back with an outstanding splash.

Knowing that he only bought himself a few seconds and the monster would soon get up again, Zangpo began his barrage of wind-blades.

Blade after blade sliced into the monster. The beast tried to shield himself with his arms, but they were soon sliced into ribbons. Zangpo's onslaught was brutal. The monster tried to counterattack, but the boy dodged everything it sent after him. The airbender wasn't going t o let himself get caught off guard again.

With a fierce glare, Zangpo watched the monster critically, trying to see if his attacks were having any effect. And much to his satisfaction, they were. The monster's healing seemed to be slower, not by much, but it was still a noticeable amount and that only fueled the airbender's bending.

If this thing wanted to attack him for no reason, the boy would show the swamp beast its faults. "Mistakes were undoubtedly made." Zangpo muttered to himself with a smirk, increasing his bending speed. If there was one good thing to come of this mess, it would be the valuable fighting experience that he'd get.

When one particular wind-blade struck the monster, the boy narrowed his eyes. He could have sworn that he saw a human arm inside before the slice was repaired. Was there someone inside bending the vines?

Focusing his attacks on where he thought he saw someone, his suspicions were confirmed when he began to consistently see the figure inside. With his smirk shifting into a dark grin, he couldn't help the rush of satisfaction that seemed to flood his being. This swamp thing wasn't a monster at all, this was just a costume put together by a waterbender that bent the water in the vines.

"If you wanna play monster, you're gonna get treated like a monster!" The boy yelled towards the now identified waterbender, not slowing his attacks one bit. Ironically, Zangpo's words could be said right back to him in merely a year's time.

Forming one of his death marbles of condensed air in his right hand, he slipped it in between his blade attacks. The little condensed ball of air flew too quickly to react to, even if its target wasn't a giant vine monster.

The ball blasted towards the monster's 'face', shattering the wooden mask into pieces as it drilled through to its target.

As if it were nothing but a puppet with its strings cut, the vines around the 'monster' dropped harmlessly to the water as the swamp beast collapsed. Not wanting to take any unnecessary risks, Zangpo walked towards the lump of vines cautiously, prepared for any sudden attack.

However, as the boy reached the mass of entangled wet vines, no attack ever came. Using his bending to clear the vines out of the way, he was able to see his attacker in all his glory. There laying face up in the bloody water, was an older man with gray hair. He had a trimmed beard and his hair looked almost like a hat. The man was practically naked, if it weren't for the diaper of green leaves that he wore to cover his privates.

There was a good sized hole that went through his chest where Zangpo's attack had hit him, his face held a look of shock with his eyes still wide open.

And just like with the last man he killed that attacked him, the boy didn't feel any remorse for his actions. The swamp man had picked the wrong fight and he lost, it was as simple as that. Seeing that it was obvious that the old waterbender didn't have anything of value on him, and he didn't want to check that diaper of his, Zangpo went to grab his bag where it lay half submerged.

Taking stock of his supplies to see what was still useful, he couldn't help but sigh in annoyance. "Well that's just great." More than half of his food was no longer good, his spare clothes were soaked, and his sleeping bag was drenched.

Throwing out the ruined food, which was all meat, he continued on his way towards the edge of the swamp.

***

A couple hours later, Zangpo could be found warming himself up with a small fire in the mouth of a cave he had come across. Laying across several rocks were his wet clothing. He had tried air drying them with his bending, but they were still damp, so a fire had to finish the job.

As of now, he's fought non benders, earthbenders, and waterbenders, even if the waterbender only attacked via plants. Only thing left were firebenders, and he had a plan in place whenever that inevitably happened. The boy didn't know if he really was the last airbender, but he felt he was ready if he ever came across one.

The cave he had picked for shelter to rest, overlooked the large swamp, giving Zangpo a brilliant view of the vast biome and the massive Banyan-Grove tree in the center. It was a beautiful sight, he had to admit. "But I am never going back there again." He said ruefully, stoking the fire with his bending.

Zangpo had enough of swamp monsters and vengeful spirits for a lifetime, and he had no intention of ever stepping foot in that miserable swamp for the rest of his life

The vision of his dead father was very impactful on him. Once he left the swamp, that's all his mind seemed to think about. Was that really his father's spirit, or was it just the swamp playing tricks on him?

He didn't know which it was, and he didn't particularly care. Regardless, what he saw in the swamp was the truth. The blind old man had told him the world liked to communicate in strange ways, no doubt that was the world's way of telling him he was still harboring anger for the way his family treated him.

But ever since he had yelled at his father's spirit and had shouted him away, Zangpo really did feel lighter—felt better. It was as if a piece of the sorrow and rage he harbored had melted away, no longer being a burden on his soul. The airbender couldn't really explain it, but since then, his bending seemed to be much more smoother. Almost as if his element was being smothered by his negative emotions, but now it was free to breathe.

Maybe that was the point of airbending? To free oneself from the emotional binds that anchored the air nomads to the world around them? From what he read in Yangchen's journal, they didn't even really have many possessions, believing that materialism was a distraction and only succeeded in weighing them down.

Zangpo could agree with that sentiment. When he left his home, he didn't take anything with him, there wasn't anything that he even wanted to take. All of his possessions were just painful reminders of the life that he used to live before he set himself free.

Maybe that was one of the breakthroughs he needed? He needed to let go of his past and release himself from the emotional shackles that bound him. The boy was already halfway there, so he didn't have too much farther to go on that front. Zangpo had no desire to look back on his life, he felt no need. What happened to him had happened, and there was no changing that. If anything, he was thankful for the hardships that he's faced so far on his journey, thankful for the trials that he was forced to confront and overcome.

If he hadn't gone through what he had, the good and the bad, then he wouldn't be who he was today. Maybe he wouldn't have ever even pursued his airbending as he had thus far? The boy knew for a fact that he wouldn't have met Toph. Just thinking about the possibility of not ever meeting her upset him a little. She was one of the biggest positives in his life, she was his best friend—his only friend…

Zangpo didn't know when he would go back to Gaoling to see her again, but he had promised her he would. Maybe after the boy visited Omashu?

Shaking the thoughts of Toph from his head with a reminiscent smile, his mind began to wander towards the Fire Nation girl that he saw in the swamp. It was weird, Zangpo didn't know her, but he couldn't get her beautiful features from his head. Heck, the airbender could still smell her. The girl had smelt of smoke, spice, and fire lilies. The fragrant plant wasn't native to the Earth Kingdom, so it made sense. When he was back in Gaoling, there was a flower shop that had the exotic plant in stock. Apparently, they were very popular among Earth Kingdom nobles.

Why couldn't he stop thinking about her? Why did the swamp even show her to him in the first place? Nothing made sense to the boy, especially not the words she spoke to him.

Well, that isn't exactly true. What she said about power and him having the strength to take it made perfect sense. But he didn't understand what her role was. She mentioned them ruling together, so she must be someone who wants power as well, right?

Little did Zangpo know, across the ocean there was a raven-haired girl with golden eyes being plagued by his image as well. It started the night before, the same time as the airbender was seeing a vision of her older self.

The girl woke up in a sweaty mess, her silky black hair sticking to her forehead as she took erratic breaths. Frantically looking around, the firebender began to calm down as she realized that she was safe and sound inside her room. "Get a hold of yourself Azula," She voiced quietly, her voice barely audible over the sound of her beating heart. "Father wouldn't be happy to see you in such a state. You're the princess, act like it."

Once her heart rate returned to normal, Azula got out of bed and made her way towards the window. It was early in the morning, still very dark as the first slivers of sunlight peered over the crater's rim. Though it was early, she felt fully awake. All fire benders rise with the sun, after all.

Normally, Azula would be woken up by servants, but it was still too early for that. After dressing herself in a loose training outfit, she quietly made her way to the royal training grounds, her soft footfalls echoing along the empty halls of the palace.

Her father would be having a war meeting today and Zuzu was lucky enough to be invited. Much to the girl's frustrations, her father told her that she was still too young. "Maybe next year." Azula mumbled to herself, mimicking the Fire Lord's voice. Since then, she had been in an irritable mood, but having strange dreams put her over the edge and she needed to release that pent up aggression.

Arriving at the training grounds, she was happy to find it empty. Not that there would usually be many people here, only ever really being used by her father, Zuko, and her uncle… but she wanted to train in peace. Having other people around would only irritate her further.

As Azula began to perform her firebending katas, her mind drifted towards the strange dream she had. The young firebender had dreamt that she was in a swamp, only, she wasn't alone. Standing across from her was a cu- a boy, with the most beautiful eyes she had ever seen.

Internally sighing, she thrust out her fist and released a large plume of azure flame. This wasn't like her. Never once in her life had she ever thought about boys in that way. "Stupid hormones…" Azula grunted, this time performing a perfect spin kick and sending her flames across the training ground.

She knew what to expect as she got older, Lo and Li were rather stubbornly and frustratingly informative.

In her dream, it was strange. She couldn't hear what was said between her and the boy, but she had walked towards him and laid her hand on his shoulder. Smirking to herself, she remembered the boy's reaction to her. He looked like he was infatuated, it was kind of adorable. Still though, those eyes… she had never seen anything like them before.

His eyes weren't just a plain gray like Ty Lee's, no, they were like two pools of molten silver. Just who was he? Her dream had felt so real… it was like she was really there.

Almost an hour had passed as the young firebending prodigy vented her frustrations through her bending, creating awe-inspiring flames as she performed every advanced form she knew. She was proud of her bending, it was what gained her fathers favor over Zuko.

And speaking of Zuko, the thirteen year old boy had just entered the training grounds, grabbing Azula's attention. She smirked at him as he pointedly took position on the opposite end of the wide courtyard. "Up for a match, Zuzu!?" The girl called out, hoping to embarrass him a little before the day began. Unfortunately, he didn't take her bait and just ignored her.

Frowning at his back a little, she couldn't help but feel a little angry towards him. He never liked spending any time with her anymore. However, Azula couldn't really blame him, she was unnecessarily mean to him; not that she would be admitting that to him any time soon.

As much Zuko thought otherwise, she didn't hate him, not really. It was just that when they were younger, their mother would coddle and spend all her time with him and wouldn't do the same with her. In response, as a child she acted negatively, oftentimes doing horrible things just to get her mother's attention, even if it wasn't good attention.

And much to the girl's satisfaction, it worked—it worked a little too well. Her father began to favor her over Zuko, calling him weak and spineless as he took her under his wing. The Fire Lord taught Azula everything she knew, showing her how to be strong, proud, and cruel…

Her mother, all she seemed to see was the cruel side of Azula, as if that was all she wanted to see. She'd never forget the day her mother had called her a monster.

No one knew it, but Azula had cried herself to sleep that night. All she wanted was her mother's love, but she couldn't get it. She just didn't know how. She had tried being like Zuko, but it didn't make any difference. So, eventually, that little girl had become the monster that her mother saw her as.

Though she still secretly sought her mother's attention, Azula decided to become the monster that everyone saw her as. She took her father's lessons to heart, she poured herself into her bending, she became feared.

When her mother had abandoned her and Zuko, that was the second and last time that she had cried herself to sleep. She put up an indifferent and even giddy front towards Zuko, but she was hurting on the inside. Her mother leaving only confirmed what Azula had begun to believe: her mother hadn't cared about her. Zuko told her that their mother had visited him the night she left and that she said goodbye to him. However, she never said goodbye to Azula.

Not once had their mother visited Azula in her chambers, not since she was a toddler. So when she abandoned them and she was no longer there, the young firebender's heart had hardened.

Azula had never let anyone in her heart since then, and she doubted she ever would. She didn't even allow her two best friends, Ty Lee and Mai, past her well constructed defenses. Thinking about her friends, she couldn't help but let her shoulders drop a little.

The young firebender hadn't exactly treated them well, either. They were her friends out of fear, not loyalty, and she knew that. But what else did she have? She didn't know how to be nice anymore, it just wasn't who she was. And besides, what if they decided to leave her if they saw who she was on the inside? Azula couldn't risk that, they were all she had.

After a while, she watched as her uncle came to retrieve Zuko for the war meeting that was going to happen soon. Frowning at her 'lucky' brother, she took that as her sign to go and get ready for the day's lessons. Lo and Li were going to be going over politics and the different cabinets of power beneath the Fire Lord.

She already knew all that stuff, but the two old women were always very insistent with their lessons.

***

Zuko had messed up, he had messed up badly.

Come to find out, the only reason the Fire Lord had allowed Zuko to join the war meeting was because of his brother Iroh's insistence. That made her feel a little better, knowing that her father didn't simply decide that he was ready to enter the war room.

However, it became painfully obvious to the Fire Lord that Zuko wasn't as ready as his brother had portrayed.

Azula was with Lo and Li when a messenger came running into the room with news. Apparently, her brother Zuko had spoken up out of turn during the meeting and had disrespected a general. She knew that type of disrespect could only be corrected via Agni Kai, and Azula became excited at the prospect.

The firebending prodigy had faith that her brother would win, but she wasn't going to lie and say that she didn't want to see him burned a little. He has been annoying her lately.

Arriving at the palace's formal Agni Kai arena, she made her way towards her uncle in the front row. On one end of the stone platform was Zuko, looking resolute and unashamed of his actions, and on the other, her father. She couldn't help but let out a little gasp at the sight, she wasn't expecting her father to be the one Zuzu was supposed to fight.

Having heard her, her uncle Iroh turned to her with a grave expression on his wizened face. "Like many others, I'm sure you thought that Zuko would be fighting the general," He said solemnly. At her nod, he continued. "Though it was the general he disrespected, he did so in the Fire Lords war room, so it was the Fire Lord that he ultimately disrespected."

Azula's eyes widened when her uncle explained it to her. She doubted that her father would kill him, but he would surely give him a lesson he wouldn't soon forget. Their father didn't take disrespect lightly.

She remembered the time she had disrespected her father during training, she had laid in bed recovering for a week afterwards.

The young firebending prodigy wasn't too sure how to feel about this. Ever since her mother had left, her father had been poisoning her mind against Zuko, telling her that she would be his heir instead of him, trying to pit them against one another.

He's still your brother… A quiet voice spoke in the back of her mind. Shaking the voice from her head, she mercilessly squashed the thought. Zuko thought she was a monster just as much as her mother had. He didn't care about her, so why should she care about him?

Deciding to just stand there and enjoy the show, she began to smile as her father's daunting figure approached her sniveling brother. Zuko didn't even bother standing up, he was too weak, just as her father had always said he was.

It was far too late to make her mother proud, but she could still make her father proud—her Fire Lord.

Azula was too far away to hear what was being said, but by the look of disgust on her Father's face, her brother was refusing to fight; disrespecting him even further. Soon enough, the stands were filled with the acrid smell of burnt hair and skin, along with the pain-filled screams of her older brother, Zuko.

Later that evening, a servant came to retrieve Azula from her chambers. Her father had summoned her.

Entering her father's wing of the palace was a rare occurrence. Usually when he wanted to speak with either of his children, he would speak to them behind a wall of flame in his throne room like everyone else. She couldn't wait to be the one sitting atop the throne one day.

Stopping outside the doors of her father's study, the servant that doubled as an escort gave her a deep bow before walking off and leaving her alone. Taking a deep breath, she extinguished that little spark of fear she felt and knocked on the ornamentally carved doors in front of her.

A few seconds later, the deep rumbling voice of her father came out from behind the closed doors. "Enter."

With her head held high, she quietly entered her father's study and closed the door behind her. Her father was sitting behind his desk with his head down, seemingly busy reading a report from a general on the Earth Kingdom front. After a few minutes, he placed the report on his desk and looked up, pinning Azula with the very same eyes that stared back at her from the mirror every morning. She knew that she had received many of her looks from her father, he couldn't help but brag about it to her mother when she was younger.

For a moment, neither of them said anything, choosing to stare at each other. Azula's father's face was difficult to read, he was much more proficient in hiding his emotions than she was. But, just like he taught her, the young firebender didn't let her growing nervousness show on her face. Showing vulnerable emotions was a weakness, he'd often say.

It was Ozai that spoke first, breaking the tense silence. "Azula, my dear," He said pleasantly, motioning to the empty seat in front of his desk. "You were first in your class this year upon graduating from the Royal Fire Academy, correct?"

Taking her seat as gracefully as a princess should, she answered him. "Yes, no one had even come close, father." Azula confirmed with a proud smile. Ozai already knew that she came first, he just wanted her to say it.

Letting one of his rare smiles that he only reserved for his family cross his features, he looked at his daughter proudly. "I think your performance deserves a reward. Wouldn't you agree?" He asked teasingly, knowing very well that she agreed.

Hearing her father talk about a reward, Azula's eyes lit up and she smiled widely. "What did you have in mind, father?" She asked with suppressed eagerness, remaining respectful as she ignored the fact her father had permanently scarred and banished her brother mere hours ago.

"Considering your brother's… inadequacies, I think you're at the age where you should be learning about how our military works. I'm thinking of sending you to the Earth Kingdom next year for a month or two to oversee several different small military encampments. Would you be interested?" Ozai asked rhetorically, already aware that his daughter knew this wasn't really a request.

Whether it was a request or an order, Azula didn't care. She was excited for such an opportunity, this meant that her father was beginning to trust her more with power. "Of course, father." Azula replied, lowering her head in respect as she saluted with a fist against the bottom of her palm.

"Excellent." He expressed dully, dismissing her with a wave of his hand as he returned to his paperwork.

Not needing to be told twice, the young firebender left her fathers study with a face-splitting grin. The only downside to all this was the fact that she'd have to wait a whole year to be able to go. However, that didn't bring down her mood any at all. In a good mood and her mind buzzing with excitement, she knew that she wouldn't be able to go to sleep any time soon. So instead, Azula made her way back to the training grounds.

She was going to show those soldiers what a real firebender was like, and she had plenty of time to get ready.