Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender.

Prologue

100 years ago…

The masked shadow stood over the smoking battlefield. No emotion escaped his mask and none dared to approach him. Less than an hour previous the first great battle of the oncoming war had been won by Earth nation forces under the banner of his majesty Behzad III, king and sovereign of Ba Sing Se. Lured into a valley by retreating militia forces, the royal army of the king took them off guard and surrounded the Fire expeditionary force of Fire Lord Sozen. With the high ground and surprise on their side, the earth forces claimed victory in less than two hours of pitched combat.

However, the tragedy of the day was not to be of the fire nation forces, but of the valiant general of the militia forces. His troops had lured the fire nation to its destruction through the brilliant stratagems of his mind. Unfortunately, many of his men were lost due to their bearing the brunt of the fighting. But even so, all would have been well if not for one major issue. During the battle, the experienced commander of the fire nation army had begun to reorganize his troops for a breakout maneuver from the entrapment they were in. seeing the commander rally his men to him, the militia general moved quickly into the maelstrom of troops and destroyed the commander as he tried to save what was left of his men.

The destruction of the commander had the desired effect of creating even more chaos. The lesser commanders could not break out of the ring of destruction that encircled them and eventually were forced to surrender. Again one asks, why such a tragedy? Should the general not be venerated for his heroic and daring accomplishment? He would have been, if not for one small detail. The enemy commander had been obliterated by lightning from the general's fingertips. The general was a firebender.

Six months ago, the (not yet) general had moved around the western countryside gathering men and supplies for a counteroffensive to the invading force from the fire nation. Men from all over came to rally behind the man who had near single-handedly stymied the incoming forces. Under his leadership, the fire nation had been unable to penetrate deep into earth kingdom territory without overwhelming force. No scouts returned, no supplied could be foraged, and any group that was less than one hundred were attacked. At word of the incursion, forces from Ba Sing Se and Omashu began to mobilize, but all knew it would take months to bring troops up to spec.

Surprisingly, the earth forces when they arrived did not have to fight against an entrenched fire nation garrison, but a force that had been unable to spread its influence less than twenty miles into the coast. Kingdom reinforcement came just in time to help fight against a major expeditionary force that had been sent out to reinforce the beleaguered fire nation advance force.

Kingdom soldiers were welcomed with open arms by grizzled militia forces who fed the new soldiers with tales of their already near legendary general. He wore the mask as a punishment they said, for what no one knew, but none had seen his face. His strategies left all who were sent after him bewildered and confused, and shortly thereafter dead. He had slain nearly two hundred troops by himself and then walked away without a scratch. Despite his only middling stature, he could crush a man's skull with only one hand. The soldiers who were new ate these legends up and regarded the mysterious masked general with awe and not a little bit of fear. A man named Baibars, the commanding general of the royal forces had greeted him with respect and trust, a sight nearly unheard of due to professional soldiers and their perceived superiority. When asked why he had acknowledged the "lowly" militia commander, the general replied to the astonishment of his general staff, "It is not wise to insult a lion, especially if said lion is even half as smart and capable as that man over there."

But all had changed with the aftermath of the battle. The still masked general looked over the field where wounded and dead were being sorted and prisoners bound. None would approach him for awe and fear had turned to dread and suspicion. The silent watchers gasped or stiffened when they saw the royal general, Baibars approach the silent spectator without fear or hesitation.

When Baibars had first met the masked commander, he had seen a confident, competent young man whose brilliance was only outshined by his determination. Baibars was once a foot soldier who had worked his way to the top over sixty hard years of work. If anyone respected talent, it was him. He had even harbored notions of taking the young prodigy as a part of his staff to impart the wisdom of experience…but it could not be so now, he did not rise so far by dwelling on things that could not be. Now, as he looked on the masked warrior he saw only sadness in his posture, but that iron rod spine of determination was still very present. Baibars was gruff and blunt like the element he bended in his questions. "Why did you do this?" he asked of the masked man.

"I do this because the fire nation murdered my friends, my mentor, and my comrades on the day of Sozen's comet." The man replied stoically, nothing betraying any pain he might feel on the subject. "I was studying the spiritual arts at the Southern Air temple for several years. I was…away when the comet struck. When I realized what the fire nation had planned, I rushed back only for my mentor to die in my arms."

Baibars raised an eyebrow in speculation at the revelations that the man in front of him had openly discussed. "So you are here for revenge, then?" he queried.

To his surprise, the man shook his head. "No. Geiatzo would not want me to take revenge in his name. I do think that he would not want another nation to face the same pain that his suffered."

The eyebrow rose again, this time in disbelief. "You would do well not to lie to yourself."

A throaty, humorless chuckle broke loose from the warrior. "Let a man have his delusions, will'ya."

The old general could not help a small smile coming to his face at the flippant comment. Considering a possibility he asked the younger man, "Do you look like fire nation under the mask? Because if you don't…" he trailed off, leaving the option open.

The commander turned toward him in mild surprise. He had not expected such an offer and was touched by the respect he was being shown. Unfortunately, he had to shake his head once again. "Sadly, I look like fire nation aristocracy. So much so that I had to wear the mask or they would not trust me at a look."

Baibars sighed. Another hope gone to the wind. "Where will you go now? You won't be trusted with the army or militia after that stunt you pulled. The only reason my people haven't clamored for your seizure is due to fear of your wrath and their own shock, which I believe will be wearing off soon."

The young commander turned his gaze back to the field, the aura of sadness and determination enveloping him once more. Slowly, but with forced calm he responded. "I have…debts that must be settled. And once they are, I will find a place to sit and wait for my friend to return; in whatever guise he may come."

For a long moment Baibars simply looked at the man at the close of his cryptic answer. Exhaling through his nose, Baibars spoke with finality, knowing he would most likely never see the young talented commander ever again. "The most I can offer you is luck, in whatever endeavor you end up pursuing, and some advice. I highly recommend leaving immediately before anyone can raise a stink about you being a firebender. I'll send my steed to you at the western ridge in an hour. It's the least I can give you, though you deserve much more."

The young firebender turned toward the general and bowed slowly and deeply with as much respect as possible. No words needed to be said. But as the younger man turned and began to make for the western ridge Baibars asked one last question. "What is your name anyway? It's going to be madding if I have to keep calling you "The Masked General"."

Without facing him the young man answered. "My name is Kuzon, son of Sozen."

This is an experiment in Avatar that I want to see. I will attempt to insert Kuzon into the main storyline. Kuzon's character was never fully realized in the series proper. I want to add to that. Kuzon is a fundamentally different character from any other of Aang's friends. He's had a much harder life and this may cause friction between him and the other cast members.

Please tell me what you think. Should I continue this story? Or would it be better as a one-shot? Thanks for reading.

-Commedia