Treason
It hadn't taken long to gather the troops back in preparation for the following morning. The news that they would be heading home soon was greeted with cheers and applause...right up until the moment Azula was mentioned. After that, everyone was quiet and thoughtful, and there was more than one muttering about the Princess being untrustworthy. One soldier even went so far as to speak up, "We'd be safer heading home if we got her and hers off the ship and sailed off without 'em."
The notion had so amused Zuko that he'd jokingly replied, "Possibly." Much to his surprise, he then had to spend the next hour talking quickly to discourage the crew from planning a way to pull it off. His efforts in this regard were not helped by Iroh and Cadence laughing themselves sick in the background.
When his argument about it being treason was countered with, "Not if you order it, sir. Then it's just sibling rivalry," he began to realize something that stunned him. He wasn't surprised to discover his troops were loyal to him over Azula. But suggesting they'd risk charges of treason from her to help him...that implied their loyalty was to him before his father, the Fire Lord. After that realization, he'd given a flat order to not steal Azula's ship unless he'd ordered it, then gone off to a corner to think.
Finally, Iroh restored order by insisting everyone needed to be well rested the following morning. As everyone bedded down for the night, Iroh watched Zuko worriedly. He hoped everything would work out.
The amassed group made their way carefully down the cliffs to the dock the following morning. Seeing the Royal Vessel waiting for them, Iroh began to relax. He recognized the man standing at the top of the ramp. General Cho was one of Ozai's top Generals, steadfastly loyal to the Fire Lord. If he was involved, there was unlikely to be any double crossing. As he relaxed, he noticed Zuko, Cadence, and the troops relaxing around him.
Azula smiled as they approached, and nodded as she stepped past General Cho. As Zuko stepped onto the ramp up to the ship, General Cho barked out, "Form up around the prisoners!"
Iroh knew he wasn't the only one to stiffen in shock...but Cadence was the first to act. Before any of Azula's troops could move to obey Cho's orders, she had called up a large wave that nearly capsized the ship and washed several of those troops off the pier. Zuko's troops had all taken Waterbending stances the moment the wave started to form, and maintained their balance and footing as it passed before rounding on the - now enemy - troops still standing. Iroh and Zuko, meanwhile, rushed up to confront Azula and Cho respectively. "Watch my back!" Zuko barked out to Lieutenants Jong and Zhin, who quickly moved to defend him.
General Cho was a master Firebender, as were all of Ozai's Generals. However, like with most Firebenders, it was driven by rage. Iroh, however, drew from the original source of Firebending, and knew exactly how to handle someone driven by rage. However, he also knew the fight would take time. He hoped Zuko could handle himself against Azula.
"What's the meaning of this?" Zuko was demanding as he faced down against Azula, using his double swords rather than Firebending. "You said you were here to bring us home for debriefing!"
"I lied," Azula countered easily as she evaded. "You know how good I am at that. Do you really think Father hasn't figured out what you're up to by now?"
"What are you talking about?" Zuko demanded, once more striking with his blades, trying to cut off her footwork.
"Zhao knew you planned to meet with the Avatar at the North Pole," she replied. "One of his agents overheard the plan being made before he invited your vessel to join the assault. And it wouldn't have been the first time you met up with the Avatar. Uncle Iroh's known to have connections in the other nations...and I've uncovered the evidence to prove he's joined with a terrorist group dedicated to aid the Avatar in overthrowing the Fire Lord!"
Iroh felt his anger stirring at hearing such slander...especially with how easily it could be passed for truth, even if that wasn't even close to what the Order of the White Lotus was about.
"And your ship fled the North before any sign of the Deep One was visible!" Azula continued. "There were also rumors of Cadence's bending abilities...and she could only have learned Waterbending at the level I just saw from one place...the Northern Water Tribe! She contacted the Moon and Ocean spirits, leading to them summoning up the Deep One to sic on the fleet...which you escaped because you were behind it!" Ducking under one sweep of the sword, she unleashed a blast of blue flames at Zuko...only to be shocked when he deflected it by spinning his other sword, traces of red flames surrounding the blade.
"Lies!" Zuko roared as he swung one blade upward, flames leaping from the sword tip in an arc to race at Azula.
She sidestepped it easily. "Perhaps," she replied. "But the truth doesn't matter, Zuzu. What matters is what Father believes!" With a confident smirk, she began to draw out lightning, determined to finish it.
As she started to fling the lightning, Iroh rushed forward. Catching hold of her hand, he unleashed the lightning from his other hand, striking the cliff side. "We are leaving!" he barked out.
"Form up around the Prince!" Lieutenant Jong shouted. The troops immediately responded to his command, and the group was away while their enemies were still recovering.
Azula moved to help General Cho to his feet, staring out at the retreating group...and smirked.
Ozai stared down at the message he had received from General Cho, not wanting to believe what he was reading. However, Cho was one of his most trusted Generals, and had no reason to lie to him. But the idea of what was written here left him filled with disbelief...and rage.
My Fire Lord,
We have just attempted to make contact with Prince Zuko, General Iroh, Cadence, and their troops. We hailed under flag of truce when we spotted them onshore...and they immediately attacked us without warning.
While I have no wish to bear bad news...it becomes apparent that Prince Zuko and General Iroh have allied themselves with the Avatar and are in active rebellion against the Fire Nation. They are traitors.
Your Humble Servant,
General Cho.
As he felt his rage build inside him, he crushed the report in his hand. With a shout of fury, the flames of the throne room erupted violently, nearly scorching the room to ash. When he was close to being coherent again, he made a mental note to redecorate in a fire proof motif.
Aboard the Royal Ship, Azula had ordered all the troops to seek medical attention. She had solicitously volunteered to see to General Cho's injuries personally. She was now in his quarters as he lay on his stomach, his uniform in one corner. "It's all working out perfectly," she purred softly, trailing her sharp nails up and down Cho's back.
"Y-y-yes, My Princess," Cho gasped out, his wizened features wreathed in pleasure.
"Father will see things my way, and you'll be suitably rewarded for your assistance," she promised. "I am ever so grateful..." She let her hot breath tickle his ear as her nails moved to the base of his spine.
"Princess...please..." he begged.
Smirking, she dug her nails into his back near the base of his spine. His back arched, his expression twisted. After a time, he fell limp, breathing heavily. Azula withdrew her hand and carefully stepped to the door. "Rest, General," she instructed calmly. "We have work to do."
As she headed for her own quarters, she smirked. Old fool, she thought to herself. He was almost too easy to manipulate. At least Zhao was interesting. I might have actually gone through with his proposal if we pulled it off. But that's no matter. My backup plan's now in motion. The order to hunt down Zuzu and the Avatar will come before long...and I know just the team to assemble to help me...
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Wow, Azula's a backstabbing bitch, I am so surprised.
First!
Welp, Azula's still a bitch. Guess that hasn't changed. Question, does Zuko still have his direct line to his girlfriend back in the Fire Nation? If so, why doesn't he send a message through her to Ozai?
6663131
Because Zuko has sound reason to believe Azula's aware of it, and if he tried it could get Mai branded a traitor for collaborating with him.
So would you say they laughed themselves... a little hoarse?
6663164 You....raise a good point. Fits within your established universe, and at the same time, still moves the story along roughly the same path as the show.
So much for a 'trustworthy' commander, Ozai. You should have really forced Azula to stay behind and send Cho on his own. Now you have an entire ship's compliment of troops branded traitors, because you sent the conniving witch.
The wise thing for Zuko to do would be to tell the group to split up, and make their ways separately to Ba Sing Se. If they're seen moving in one group, they'll be easy to track.
Of course, let's not forget the Gaang in all of this. It'd be sweet if Zuko and the rest met up with them in the desert village, and Cadence offered to lead the scholar to the Spirit Library.
Azula... You'se a bitch
Always a chessmaster, that Azula...
AZULAAAAAAA!
Fuck you, Azula.
Azula:
Another enjoyable chapter. Good job.
have not read it yet but just wont to say this
I'd be surprised at the wave of betrayal... But I'm not.
Wow, Azula really... Nailed it huh?
Things are really heating up from here now.
If anything, this is just fanning the flames of Azula's downfall to be even stronger...
But in all seriousness, the tapestry sellers in the Fire nation must be making a mint if all it takes is for someone who can bend to get angry, burn it down and buy it again. I mean, it's the Fire nation for crying out loud.
Should have seen that coming.
Btw, Tatsurou thanks for the help with my new writing schedule. I'll be using the week by week schedule. Not much got done today though...chores.
Can't wait to see what happens next!
Azula plotted this whole thing to make Zuko look like a traitor? She back-stabbed them?!
Gee, what a completely unexpected surprise. I never would have guessed in a million years.
Shock and awe.
6663164
Don't messages take time to get from place to place? Last I checked, Zuko's line to Mai is near instantaneous, compared to what is likely to be at least a week for Cho's method. By all accounts, Zuko's message of Azula's betrayal should reach the Fire lord first. Short of having posted her own men to keep Mai from talking to the fire lord, which in itself would be suspicious, I can't see a way for Azula to get there first.
Additionally, the fire lord is already aware that Azula wanted to make a power play against Zuko. Unless that 'trusted' general he sent is standing before him to explain--and be cross examined--it's just as likely that the message was forged by Azula as it is to be true. There's also plenty of much evidence from the past to indicate that Iroh was both loyal, and a tactical genius, as well as Zuko's ability to think things through. With Azula being involved in any way, hearing both sides of the story is a must, as she might have been 'unforgivingly biased' with her report, and possibly left out things of importance.
Still, the story is yours; far be it from me--or anyone else--to tell you how to write it. Even with alternative possible futures in mind, this story still far exceeds my expectations. I can't wait to see what happens in the next chapter!
6663324 Why do you keep making so many puns!?!?
6663338 Because he thinks it's...punny.
Azula will always and forever will be a bitch. I'm glad Zuko beat her at the end of the series.
just finisd and hear are my thaots
for evry star in the sky
if the fire nation actualy declares war on the white lotus aren't they kinda bound to ally with the earth kingdom and the avatar against him?
Yup, this is Azula alright. Lightning, manipulative, all that jazz.
And just like with canon Azula I want to punch her in the face if she doesn't fry me first.
6663337
You're assuming General Cho sent his message after meeting up with Zuko and crew. And as for Mai, Azula could be applying leverage via Mai's father to keep Mai from getting to see the Fire Lord, or to report to one of her men if she gets further messages from Zuko. After all, Mai does have to be 'the good daughter'.
Also, in the time period in question, no one questions written messages, because nobody forges handwriting at that time. It's in Cho's handwriting, the Fire Lord accepts it as Cho's. Not to say he doesn't want a cross examination, but all he has to do to save face and get that is order that they be captured alive. And all Azula has to do to get around it is make sure any news of their movements comes to her before it gets to Ozai...and apologize that they were slain 'resisting arrest'.
I hope the Kraken finds Azula, but I doubt we'd ever be that lucky.
And even if it does find her, odds are, she'll just somehow manage to kill it.
6663337 Azula probably had the message sent a week or two before they even found Zuko. There aren't timestamps in the story, so we typically assume that things are sequential, but that just means that he received it after the situation on the docks went FUBAR.
Though it was intended, I do find it somewhat disappointing that none of the major villains truly get their just desserts in the show. Here's hoping more wind up like Zhao in the fic. Looking forward to more.
Keep up the great work. Deus tecum.
6663338 *Avatar intro music* But everything changed when the four puns collapsed.
6663164 Is Zuko at least going to send Mai one last message telling her not to contact him and that he's not a traitor?
Why didn't Zuko relay a message through Mai immediately following the events with the Kraken? To get word back to the capital as quickly as possible?
6663676 Azula would've planned for that, and we know how she treats her friends if they move against her. If Mai received a letter and went forward to warn Ozai, I'd see no reason for Azula to have her branded as a traitor and eliminated if she can't have her on her side.
So from this point, Zuko will refrain from speaking, further incriminating himself and giving Mai the necessary level of ignorance to stay safe, though in doing so makes her an enemy.
6663394
6663452
Okay, yeah, I didn't think of that. Good points all around.
... Still waiting for that next chapter, though. Oh, and Celestia's story, too, but that's for when Tatsurou gets the time to work on it.
Out of curiosity, were you planning on doing a story with Blueblood or Daring?
6663875
No and no.
6663875
No and no.
6663893 Why not Daring?
AND TEAM AVATAR!
Reading the last bit...
My thought process: ... .... ... Azula, you bastard.
6663902 Spot the guy who's never played Uncharted. Nathan Drake would make a perfect dad for a particularly adventurous filly.
6664268
It's the ponies in question who don't meet the criteria.
You know, if I were Zuko, I'd SERIOUSLY consider it.
Oh come on, it's hilarious! You know you want to.
Wow, guess they really like you.
What?
Clever. I get the feeling Jong and Zhin are kinda like in universe Ensemble Darkhorses, I kinda like them.
Same.
Azula lied, shocker, I swear, he theme should be a cross between the Pyro's theme and the Spy's theme.
You can't be f*cking serious.
You know, her logic is pretty sound, even if she's pretty wrong.
Really?
You bastard!
That may prove to be a good idea, yes.
You clever bitch.
You frighten me.
Oh dear.
6664271 In that case you probably wouldn't care if someone else took that on?
6664293
Not at all.
I am shocked at this completely unexpected turn of events. Who would have ever suspected a sweet girl like Azula could betray her brother like this? Perhaps Zuko and the crew should head to Ba Sing Se, I hear the war hasn't reached there yet, so it must be a pleasant place to hide.
I like how you handled this chapter of the story, Tatsurou. Keep up the good work.
Oh... GOD, what a bitch.
...She's so fuckin' awesome.
You STILL need a way for Zuko to learn that his honour's been stripped.
It's his major point behind his inability to bend lightening.
6664562
shut up azula sucks
she's a raging psychopath
6663534 Are you sure you watched the same show I did? Azula, obsessed with manipulating and controlling everything, snaps under the pressure and loses her damn mind. If I recall correctly, she snaps so much she loses her ability to firebend in the end. All the power she wanted is gone, and she is a mental patient. True she is too deluded to understand just how much she lost, but she still lost it all.
Zaho in canon gets killed by the rampage of the Avatar/Ocean Spirit fusion. He DROWNS. That's a nasty way to die.
Ozai , even more obessed with power and strength than his daughter, loses ALL his power. And unlike Azula he doesn't get off easy by ending up a nutcase. Ozai knows exactly how much he lost, and how close he came to getting everything too. And even worse, he had it all taken away from him by a "weakling" he despised for being merciful. Though honestly death would have been an nicer fate for Ozai. Instead of dying in gloriously battle against a physical god, Ozai gets to rot in a cell as everything he ever worked for is dismantled by the two people he despised most, and there isn't a fucking he can do but watch.
Whoooooo boy... this is gettin' real up in here~ :D
Hahaha!
Nice job, nice job.
6664444
I know right? Who could have told! She seemed so sweet and friendly!
6665153 Azula and Ozai certainly didn't get off easy, and I admire those involved to contain them without killing them, if it were me, I'd of just killed them and be done with it. No fuss, no mess, just done. The only conciliation to keeping Ozai alive would be for Zuko's mother.
If you saw enough of TLoK, however, you'd see that Zhao wasn't killed, but transported to the spirit world.
As much as mercy has it's place, if you kill the evil bastard bad guy then it's guaranteed that he won't do anything else to harm anyone ever again.
Rule's of the Evil Overlord #4: Shooting is not too good for my enemies.
The other point I was trying to make was that it looks like Zhao does die, and I wouldn't have any problem if Azula followed suit. Ozai, in this fic, is looking to be much less of a asshat. I'll restrain judgment on him for now.