Fire and Wind: A Frightful Display

Seng's fitful sleep was broken by the crack of thunder, loud and booming and close enough to rattle her teeth. The airbender shot upright in her bed as she went from asleep to wide awake in an instant. She looked out the nearby window, expecting dim skies full of grey clouds, but was confused when she was met with the pinks and oranges of the sun rising over the horizon.

Since she had agreed to help Azula with her hunt for the Avatar, she had been moved out of the cell that she had been stuck in for the past few weeks. She now had her own room, albeit one that was sparsely decorated, with only a bed and the bars on the window to keep her company. It was an upgrade from where she had been before, but the guard that was constantly stationed outside of her room told her in no uncertain terms that she was still a prisoner on this ship. If she tried to escape, she wouldn’t make it very far. Especially not with her latest accessory.

Seng lightly touched the thick collar around her neck, the iron cold to the touch despite being pressed up against her skin all night. It marked her as Fire Nation property, a servant or slave or whatever the preferred term was, and only Azula had the key. If she was seen anywhere wearing it, everyone would either think that she was with the Fire Nation or had escaped from them and needed to go back. She’d have to get it off before she made her move.

Another boom broke Seng out of her thoughts and she gave an annoyed glance to the window, ‘What in the world is going on out there? Are they under attack or something?’

Deciding to find out, Seng crawled out of bed, shivering at the cold iron underneath her bare feet, before she began to get dressed. Pulling on her tunic and wrappings, she exited her room turning to the guard that was standing silently beside her door, spear in hand.

“I'm going down to the deck, if that's alright.” The guard didn't speak, just staring at her silently. Seng stared back, gazing into his mask as she waited for a reply, before rolling her eyes and walking away. Footsteps followed after her, and Seng looked back to find the guard shadowing her silently. Guess she had her answer.

The salty sea air sprayed Seng in the face as she walked out onto the deck. She was expecting to see some sort of chaos, a ship on the horizon preparing to attack or something else that might point to what was responsible for the sounds that had woken her up. Instead, she was met with an incredibly peculiar sight.

Azula was standing in the middle of the deck, facing away from Seng and out at the open ocean. The deck was entirely empty except for the princess herself and curiously, two old ladies sitting on the nearby rampart, observing the girl intently. Though for what, Seng wasn’t exactly sure. Azula was just standing there, eyes closed and breathing deeply. Wind whispered across the ship, easily audible in the eerie silence. It and the waves gently sliding against its hull were the only sounds that could be heard outside of the creaking metal as the ship sailed across the sea.

Seng prepared to speak up, to ask what was going on and what that noise she had heard earlier was, but her mouth immediately slipped shut as the princess began moving.

She brought her hands up to her chest, breathing in that same deliberate way that she had when she taught Seng how to meditate, before beginning to move her arms in conjunction, stirring the air around her in a motion that reminded Seng of waterbending.

The airbender’s eyes widened as bright blue sparks began to dance through the air, lengthening into long tendrils that followed Azula’s arms as she continued her motions.

‘Is that… lightning?’ Seng thought, completely stunned by what she was witnessing.

It was. Lightning slithered through the air, guided by her extended fingers. It arced between her arms and body, snarling and striking out at the deck and anything else nearby, yet somehow never touching the princess herself. Seng was left standing there in awe as Azula performed this strange dance, manipulating such a raw and primal force of nature to her whim as if she was a spirit herself.

Just as quickly as it began, the dance came to an end. Golden eyes snapped open as Azula pulled her hands back towards her chest, touching her fingers together with a snap and the smell of ozone, before extending one arm outwards while the other pointed at the ground behind her.

Light flashed and thunder boomed as a bolt of lightning exited the princess’s perfectly manicured fingertips. It flew out of sight in an instant, and the only indication that it had even existed in the first place was the burning in Seng’s retinae and the violent explosion of water a short distance from the ship.

Seng gawked openly at the princess, and that's when she finally took notice of her. Or maybe she had just been too focused on her bending to acknowledge her before. Either way, Azula calmed her chi with a quick motion, before turning to regard the Airbender with a cool look.

“You're awake rather early. I didn't expect someone like you to be up until noon at the very least.” The princess turned to the old ladies, gesturing dismissively, “Lo and Li, you are dismissed. I'm finished practicing for the day.”

The old woman on the right frowned, “Your form is still imperfect, princess. You should keep practicing for the rest of the morning at least.”

Her sister nodded in agreement and Azula's eyes narrowed, “If I wanted your opinion, I would ask for it. If you'll kindly take note, I haven't. Begone.”

The two women shared a disgruntled look with each other before standing and bowing to Azula, before taking their leave. Seng stepped to the side as they passed her by, watching them disappear into the bowels of the ship.

“Who are they?” She asked as they left her sight, “More servants?”

“Royal advisors. Father ordered them to accompany me on this trip.” Azula answered, “They may be old and perhaps edging on senile, but they have yet to steer our family wrong in their years of service so their presence is begrudgingly appreciated.”

“And you're just allowed to make them leave like that?”

Azula smirked, “I am the Crown Princess of the Fire Nation, Thief. You couldn’t imagine how far my authority extends. With the exception of the high ranking military and my father himself, I hold sway over the entirety of my country.”

“I was actually wondering about that.” Seng said, and Azula raised an eyebrow curiously, “From what I remember, everyone always talks about there being a crown prince, not princess. What happened to him? Did he die or something?

Azula scoffed, “No. Unfortunately, my brother didn’t die, though he probably wishes that he did. Poor Zuzu was banished from the Fire Nation after failing to uphold his honor in an Agni Kai against our father. He’s probably still wandering the Earth Kingdom like a wastrel.”

“Agni Kai?” Seng echoed, confused by the term.

“It's an ancient tradition. A duel between two firebenders which only ends when one of the parties has been burned. It's an honorable way to solve a dispute, if you actually participate.” Azula looked out into the open ocean, “But my dear brother refused to fight, and as a result he was shamed in front of the entire royal court. He was scarred and stripped of his title which passed down to me, before he was banished from our nation in shame.”

Seng was left aghast by the explanation. The thought of a parent doing that to their own child was something she couldn’t even fathom, “What kind of father would do that to their son? That’s monstrous!”

Azula gave her a sharp look, “Watch your tongue. Fire Nation customs may seem strange or even abhorrent to you, but there is a reason they have lasted so long. Our father did what was proper; had my brother stayed in Caldera, every facet of his royal status would have been called into question. Our family would have lost face and an uprising would surely have followed. Banishment was the right decision, and if anything, Zuzu got off lucky.”

“But don’t you miss him? He’s your brother.” Seng asked, thinking about her own lost family. She couldn’t imagine anyone, not even the cold-hearted princess before her, being completely unfeeling in a situation like that.

“My brother reaped the consequences of his actions.” Azula said staunchly, “Had he fought back with honor, he would still be a prince. Instead, he chose to cower and beg and now he’s an embarrassment. It is as simple as that.”

Seng noticed that Azula didn’t actually answer her question, and behind her tone of conviction was an undercurrent of disappointment, as if she was disappointed in her brother for what he had done.

Not sure what to make of it, Seng shut her mouth and stayed silent. The silence stretched between them, broken only by the waves and the wind. Seng’s eyes strayed down to the deck, catching on the discolored black marks in the iron from where sparks of uncontrolled lightning had struck, warping the metal. The amount of heat needed to do that far surpassed anything a normal firebender was capable of putting out, which only made her all the more curious..

She looked up at Azula as said curiosity got the better of her, “What was that bending you were doing? I’ve never seen anything like it.”

Azula looked away from the ocean, turning her eyes back to Seng, “That was a technique unique to the royal family. The pinnacle of firebending and a technique that I am working tirelessly to master.”

Seng glanced at the ground again, “Looks like you mastered it just fine. I don’t think anybody could survive being hit with something like that.”

Azula scoffed, “You sound like my more inept firebending instructors, praising me for doing the bare minimum during practice. There's more to mastering a bending art than simple firepower. Technique, control, temperance, all of these must become second nature before I even dare think myself a master of this technique. I am nearly there, but I am not so arrogant to believe that my form doesn’t have flaws. I will continue practicing until not a single hair is out of place.”

She then gave Seng an intense look, “But I’ve been practicing my lightning generation all morning. I believe I require something more proper and stimulating to start my day.”

Turning to face Seng fully, Azula held up her hands and Seng tensed, recognizing the firebending stance. She gave the other girl a wary look, “You know, if you're going to execute me, then I'd prefer you do it with a blade and not your bending.”

Azula smirked, “If I were executing you, I assure you I'd go to great lengths to keep my royal garments clean of your blood. Lucky for you, I have no plan to kill you today, we are simply going to spar. You showed quite a bit of talent the last time we battled. I'd like to see it again.”

Seng was confused but didn’t dismiss the idea out of hand. She could use the chance to stretch her legs. There was just one problem.

“If we’re going to fight, then can I have my spear back?” She requested.

“No.” Azula immediately denied, “I’ve already seen you fight with a weapon. I would like to see what you are capable of without one.”

“Not much.” Seng said quietly. It was still heard by the princess who raised a delicate brow in response.

“Come again?”

“My style of bending is extremely reliant on my spear.” Seng explained, “Without some sort of long weapon, I can barely whip up a current.”

It was an issue that Seng never thought she’d run into. She always assumed that if she didn’t have her spear, she would either be dead or very close to it, and so she neglected training without it. She was regretting that now.

Azula stared at her, silent disbelief present behind her eyes, “You are telling me that without your weapon, you’re that helpless?”

She said it like she couldn’t believe the words she had just uttered, and Seng scowled, “I wouldn’t say helpless. I can handle a normal firebender, but your fire’s too hot. You’d sear me like a well-cooked steak even if I tried to defend myself.”

Azula eyed her, and a hint of derision entered her tone as she spoke, “If you can’t use your body to bend, then you are a failure of a bender.”

“I’m so sorry that I didn’t have personal instruction in how to use a dead bending art, Princess. Everything I’ve learned how to do, I’ve learned to survive. I always have my spear and my bow so it just made sense to bend with those.”

“Clearly not always.” The princess rebuked, motioning to Seng’s empty hands. The airbender scowled at the reminder and Azula sighed, ‘Well this is certainly a disappointment. If you can’t use your bending, then you are nothing more than a civilian with some lung capacity. I’ll have to fix that when I get the chance.”

That brought Seng up short, stopping her anger in its tracks. “Are you planning on teaching me how to fight?” She asked, confused by her words, “Doesn’t seem very smart to teach your prisoner how to fight back against you.”

“I’ll decide what’s smart and what isn’t, Thief.” Azula sneered, “I wouldn’t expect someone like yourself to understand, but seeing any bender disregard their bending in such a blatant way is a travesty in my eyes. Our gifts are to be nurtured, not ignored in favor of what’s convenient.”

Seng stared at her in confusion, “So you’re going to teach me how to fight you just because you can’t stand to see me not be able to bend without my spear? What kind of logic is that?”

“As I said, I wouldn’t expect someone like you to understand. I’ve spent my entire life honing my bending, forging myself into the sharpest tool I possibly could. Seeing someone flail around like a clumsy komodo-rhino and call it bending would be offensive in every sense of the word.”

Azula snapped her fingers, gesturing to the guard who had followed Seng from her room, “You. Give me your spear.”

The guard looked at the princess in confusion, before shrugging and tossing his weapon to her. Azula snatched it out of the air and immediately threw it towards Seng, who fumbled with it in her surprise, “Since we’re on a tight schedule, you can use that for now. Make no mistake, you will be giving it back, but I can’t warm up with a sparring partner who can’t shield herself from a basic fireball.”

Seng looked down at this spear with slight wariness, “And you’re sure about this?”

Now Azula was beginning to get annoyed. She narrowed her eyes, glaring at Seng for continuing to question her, “I’m quite sure. I require a proper fight and you are going to give it to me or else I will put you right back in that cell and reduce your meals by half. Is that understood?”

Well when she put it like that…

Gripping the wooden pole with both hands, Seng flourished the spear, twirling it around herself to get a feel for its weight, before turning and sending a ripping gust of wind flying off the side of the ship. The wind was far more powerful than anything she had managed to put out by hand, and slammed into the ocean with a clap, raining water all over the deck and those present.

\Ignoring the liquid soaking her hair and tunic, Seng studied the spear. It was heavier than she was used to and the tip was clearly weighted, but it would work just about as well as her staff would. She nodded slowly, before turning to face the princess who was patiently waiting for her to get ready.

“It is not your personal spear, but I assume you’ll be able to give me a fight with that, won’t you?” Azula asked sarcastically.

Narrowing her eyes, Seng pointed the tip at Azula’s face, “It’ll do.”

Azula smirked, “Excellent. Now then, let’s begin. Don’t you dare hold back or I just might find myself rethinking the terms of our conditional alliance.”

“Trust me, Princess.” Seng tightened her grip on the spear, “I wouldn’t dream of holding back against someone like you.”