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Chapter 02

Azula

I am Azula, daughter of Ozai. No, I am also the daughter of John. I am the sister of Zuko, but also Jane. I fought for the Fire Nation and also the System's Alliance. I am...was a tyrant, but also a hero.

Azula shook her head, trying to gather her thoughts. It was hard, her mind always going to the fact that she was back. Her scars were no longer there, which further drove the point home. Some scars Azula had expected to keep for the rest of her life, like the ones she gained after Cerberus was finished with her.

"It can't be true," Azula bit out. Spit flying out onto her unblemished hands. "Shit."
Azula stood, her mind spinning an instant later made her regret her decision. But she powered through it. She moved around the room, looking for anything out of place. She hoped to see a wire sticking out of the floorboard, or maybe an artificial lightsource somewhere. But as she continued her search she found no sign of advanced technology.

"Get a grip." Azula whispered, turning her attention to her body. She couldn't find any of the scars she had gained once she joined the military, or signs of the standard medical injections she had taken. Only the marks from when she was young and still on her home planet. "This is impossible, I went to Elysium. I joined the military, I wiped out the pirates...I joined-"

Azula's eyes widened, she needed to leave. If Zuko was Fire Lord then his opinion of her would be low. Azula had not been the best sister when she was younger, more cruel then loving. As he was Fire Lord he had the power to make her vanish.
He had likely been glad for her apparent madness, it allowed him to keep her locked away at the start of his reign. An easy way to deal with a rival claimant. The old Zuko she knew would not have been so bloodthirsty as to kill her outright, but she didn't know how this older version would act.

"But I am not MAD!" Azula would not die, she would survive and live. Even if the future she knew wasn't true, she would make her own life. Azula would always remember her father and sister - especially Jane. "I need to get out of here."

Azula couldn't force her way through the front door. Now that she knew it. The two Imperial Firebenders that guarded her door would be more then enough to subdue Azula in her weakened state. If she had time to prepare, and get her body back into good shape she might have a chance.

Azula moved to the window, her muscles protesting at the sudden action. She stepped up to the metal bars, sunshine flowing into the room. Azula stood there for a moment, eyes closed as she basked in the sunlight. Her body enjoyed the feeling, a great weight had been lifted by the replenishing strength of the sun.

As if Azula hadn't truly felt Agni's embrace in a long time.

"It makes a little bit of sense, all the windows were closed until just now." Azula's body was malnourished, as if she hadn't eaten anything in a long time. The food she ate earlier sat painfully in her stomach, making her feel bloated. She would need to eat more if she wanted to survive, it would take some time to get her body back into shape.

Azula breathed in deeply, trying to rouse her inner fire. She breathed in and out. It was a weird sensation, her fire didn't respond as wanted. Over the years she had trained her body to near perfection, to now find her bending sluggish made her worried.

"No more," Azula muttered. She opened her eyes, glaring at the metal bars. She wrapped her fingers around the bars, calling forth her fire. The wind rushed past her face, causing her hair to fly everywhere. Azula frowned, examining the scene before her.

Waves crashed onto a rocky shore far beneath her, the spray rising high into the arm before disappearing. The moss covered rocks bore the brunt of the sea's power.

"Shit." Azula couldn't escape this way. She could easily break through the bars, they would likely only be able to keep a Firebender of lesser skills at bay. But she couldn't risk it. She didn't know how long her body would last if she tried to climb down, or if she tried to Firebend her way to safety.

It did look like Azula was in a large fortress, she found a tower farther down one side and the other had a large wall with a rampart above.

Azula needed to find another way, without catching the guards attention or dying by falling from the side of the wall.

"I've escaped worse situations," Azula turned away from the window and examined the room. Beside the two doors in the living room, one which led out to the guards, she didn't have much to work with. She pulled aside the small rug on the floor, hoping to see a trap door beneath. She winced as she straightened her back, pain flaring up her spine. There was no trap door and now her back hurt.

Azula walked into the bedroom, ignoring the window as she pushed open the bathroom door. It was broken, its hinged barely keeping it attached to the door frame.

I must have been in a serious state, Azula thought. She stepped into the bathroom, idly noting the broken ceramic tiling. Even if the future she envisaged wasn't true, she would miss the showers. I can't think like that, I did live that life.

As much as the facts smacked her in the face, she couldn't give up on John or Jane. Azula would never forget them.

"What do I have here?"

Azula knelt against the bathtub, lowering herself as close to the floor as her body would allow. There was a small grate in the corner of the room, probably to drain out water if it overflowed from the bathtub. It would usually be something she would note down, but then ignore for some easier way to escape. Her armour would have been too bulky to allow her through. But right now she wasn't wearing any armour, and was in the body of her sixteen year old self which hadn't yet stopped growing. While wearing only undergarments and a flimsy robe.

Azula pulled the grate open, and peered inside. It looked better then she had expected, the surface was some type of metal plating. Even without a modern plumbing system, the tunnel was fairly clean.

Modern or just a figment of my imagination? Azula didn't fully trust Okun. But the facts spoke for themselves, she was in her old body and apparently back on her home world.

Voices from outside drew her attention. Azula frowned, it seemed like Okun was back. She couldn't stay here, not with Zuko likely making her disappear once he found out she was sane.

She lowered herself to the ground and started to crawl through the tunnel. Once her whole body was inside, which even with her smaller frame was a tight squeeze she heard shouting from behind her. It seemed like Okun had found out she had vanished, hopefully she would be out of the fortress before they found her escape method. She followed the tunnel, squeezing through a few corners until finally she saw another grate in front of her, on the otherside sunshine poured in. She pushed it open, the metal grate falling below.

Azula poked her head outside, finding a deserted rampart below her. She wiggled the rest of the body through. First her arms, which she then placed on either side of the opening, allowing her to pull herself out of the tunnel. As soon as most of her body was out she fell down, she cushioned her landing by moving into a roll. Even still, her back flared with more pain.

"Gods, that...is annoying." Azula gasped, laying on the floor. She didn't know how long she stayed there, only lifting herself onto her feet when her breathing returned to some normalcy.

"Fuck," Azula said. Every direction she looked she found the ocean, rough waves impacted against the cliffside. "How the hell am I going to get out of here?"

More shouts from above her drew Azula's attention. She turned back to the Fire Nation fortress and frowned. There must be a way out, the facility would have to get supplies from somewhere.

Then, as she turned she noticed a small smattering of buildings dotting the coastline in the distance. With a few ships in the bay.

"I'll find a way out," Azula whispered. Her body hurt, her muscles ached. Her firebending would take some time to recover. It didn't stop her from walking forward, intent on leaving the fortress.

None of her worries matterred. She was a Shepard, a Spectre and she would survive.

Zuko

"Shipments cannot continue indefinitely to the Republic, we must stop at some point." Minister Olai said, his bushy beard moving with his mouth. "Decolonisation means we must stop paying for them and move to a more business orientated relationship."

"I still suggest we keep a large naval presence in the bay, it would be our first point of defence against any would be attacker." Admiral Vai said.

"Yet that will cost more, who will pay for them." Minister Olai replied. "The Republic? No, it will be-"

"Gentleman, please calm down." Zuko said, cutting into any future remark by Admiral Vai. "Mayor Morishita has assured me he will comply with any tariffs we place on the Republic, for the continued presence of our navy. That is the end of the discussion, we must now move onto the next order of business. The removal of any non-key personal for the Republic lands, and finally a draw down to all other non-critical military personnel."

Zuko closed his eyes, the last few months had been a tumultuous time. With the Earth Kingdom and Fire Nation almost going back to full blown war. If it wasn't for friends timing, there likely would have been more deaths. Instead, it had been resolved and the Harmony Restoration Movement had turned into the United Republic.

"We just need King Kuei to play ball." Admiral Vai said, taking a sip of his water.
Zuko ignored what Minister Olai's reply was, turning his attention to the side door to the meeting room.

Mai had opened it quietly and now stood in the entrance way.

"He almost-" Minister Olai started, pausing when Zuko raised a hand.

"I thank you two joining me so late in the evening, but I will need to call an end to this meeting." Zuko said, standing as Mai disappeared from the doorway. "I will see you in the morning Minister Olai, Admiral Vai I expect the fleet to move into a ready position for any possible emergency."

"At once Fire Lord." They replied, bowing their heads as Zuko left the room.

Zuko found Mai in one of the side rooms, near the bay window. He frowned, it wasn't like her to disturb him from a meeting. He moved to the small table and started pouring some water into a glass.

"What's wrong Mai?" Zuko took a sip, her dry throat clearing.

"You won't like the news, Zuko. But we received a missive." Mai turned away from the window and narrowed her eyes.

Zuko sighed, not liking Mai's evasiveness. Most people found it hard to read Mai's expressions, but after years of being around the woman Zuko felt like he had a good idea. She was worried, and a little angry as well. Pursed lips and fingers clenched into fists were easy indicators.

"Tell me, it can't be as bad as what I have been facing in the meeting rooms over the last few days." Zuko took another sip of the water and offered Mai a small smile. "Thanks by the way, I don't think I could take Olai and Vai bickering for much longer."

"Azula escaped the asylum, we don't know where she is now." Mai said.

"What?" Zuko replied, his mind not catching up with Mai's words.

"Azula is no longer on the island, she escaped a few days ago." Mai said, walking toward him.

"She's..gone?" Zuko said, strength leaving his body as he stumbled onto the couch. The implications were staggering, if Azula was no longer in the asylum then - "How many people died?"

"None."

"What, how could no one die?" Zuko said, head snapping up to Mai. "Did anyone get injured, do we need to send healers to the island."

"No, Zuko. It seemed Azula escaped via a bathroom drainage tunnel, they didn't think to have it blocked because Azula didn't show signs of escaping before." Mai said, walking and sitting next to him. "She does need to be captured before she can hurt other people."

"Where is she?" Zuko said. "I need to go and find her before she can cause any trouble. The last time I saw her she wasn't in a healthy state."

"The letter didn't state. They closed the island, but they suspect she managed to get onto a boat and leave before the lockdown." Mai said. "They are checking the dockmaster for which ports the ships were headed to."

"I will take an airship to the island and start my search there." Zuko replied, it would be for the best.

"You're not going after Azula, you're needed here." Mai said, clutching his hand in hers.

"What? Obviously I am going after her, she is my responsibility." Zuko said, anger rising in his chest. "If I don't bring her in then she could harm other people, we have been lucky so far."

"She may be your responsibility, but you are also the Fire Lord and you lead a whole nation." Mai replied. "You need to look out for far more people then before, you cannot just go galavanting off when some new crisis appears. You need to sort this situation out with the Republic, it requires the attention of Fire Lord Zuko. While dealing with Azula only requires mine."

"Mai, I can't just let you go after her." Zuko said, frowning. Even if Azula hadn't killed anyone, it could've just been a way to lure them into a false sense of security.

"I'll be fine, you and I both saw the state she was in last time. She won't be able to get away from me. She will likely collapse after a little run." Mai said, a small smile forming on her otherwise stoic face.

"You will take some Firebenders with you, Imperial class." Zuko knew he couldn't stop Mai after she set her mind to a task.

"You don't trust my ability to capture her?" Mai asked.

"I don't trust Azula," Zuko sighed. "Take a team with you, they will be able to wear down Azula."

"Fine, but I think it's a little too much." Mai leaned in and kissed Zuko. "But I will take them for now."