The Officer and the Princess: The Flames Of War

Chapter 32

It was another quiet day on Sun Dao for Azula, all her days seemed to be quiet ones and quite frankly she was beginning to get bored with the monotony, if she wasn't in the garden she was in the library reading from Tadashi Yangs Journal. She didn't know why but the man had fascinated her. It was something about his words that made her relate to him. Like her Tadashi had wanted to prove himself a capable leader, he especially had wanted to make his father proud. Tadashi spoke of how in his early years he lacked confidence, and he was especially self conscious of his lack of firebending ability. Apparently he had been the first Yang that anyone could remember that hadn't been born a firebender. When Chins Army came Tadashi had been at a disadvantage.

To get over his handicap he had developed new was to fight, he struck from the shadows, he used the fire flake eggs that Nikkō had talked about, he set traps. He had basically dishonored himself for the sake of his people, he cared more about the safety of Sun Dao than he did keeping his honor. His most powerful weapon however had been the black dragon that was said to have lived on Mount Haigādo, for days Tadashi and his four companions moved across Sun Dao to reach that dragon and Tadashi on hands and knees begged the black dragon to help him save his Island.

The dragon had been impressed by Tadashi's humility and together they burned the war fleet that had surrounded Sun Dao, and the Remnants of Tadashi's forces slaughtered any of Chins Soldiers that had remained. From reading Tadashi's Journal Azula learned that Tadashi's had been furious when Fire Lord Zoyru arrived.

"For days Sun Dao had stood alone, we stood as our people were slaughtered and our homes were burned, our cries for aide went unanswered. It hadn't been the Fire Lord or another Clan that had saved Sun Dao, Sun Dao had saved itself. We stood at the gates and held off a hoard. Only after the fighting had ceased and the invaders had been either driven back into the sea or put to the flame that our Lord graced us with the reinforcements that we had so desperately needed. By then there had been nothing left to fight, or so I had thought. Fire Lord Zoyru stood on the blood filled beach in his ceremonial armor that looked more suited for parade than battle, flanked by his army and smiled. He had the gall to tell one of his subordinates to paint a portrait of HIS victory. I and every Sun Dao warrior with me took offense to this action and I drew my sword and held it to the boy Fire Lords neck. I could see the fear in his eyes as I dug my blade into the soft flesh with enough force that trickles of blood quenched my blades thirst. My warriors stood ready to fight once more as they had for days. Zoyru threatened me, told me I would pay for my transgression. I told him that I wasn't afraid to die, that I knew what a waited me after death, but could he say the same."

Azula was practically on the edge of her seat as she read those passages, to think the Yangs said they were loyal to the Fire Lord above anything else and here was their Lord ready to kill the very man they had sworn to die for. Reading the passage Azula could practically feel Tadashi anger and betrayal. She could see why Nikkō liked him, Tadashi seemed like a man who had loved Sun Dao, who had been proud to be from Sun Dao and would do anything to protect his people and his home. She could understand why Tadashi had been so angry when Zoyru had arrived, Zoyru had after all attempted to take credit where it hadn't been due, Azula would have been angry too.

"For what had felt like hours Zoyru and I stood face to face, and my warriors stood ready to do to his army what we had only shortly finished doing to Chin's. It seemed we had all silently agreed that committing treason was better than letting our sacrifice and the sacrifices of our honored dead be taken away from us by a man who acted as if it had been his home burned, his family killed. If Avatar Kyoshi had not arrived when she had I would have almost certainly slit Zoyrus throat and watched as the life drained out of him. Perhaps then I would have been Fire Lord? I doubt that very much. More than likely I and my warriors would have died on that beach. To this day as I feel my candle slowly burning out I do not know how she had been able to talk me out of killing Zoyru. But I'm glad she did, if I had given into that urge I would have been no better than the invaders. After that I threw my sword down and walked the beach until I found my father hanging from a tree, the Chin dogs had strung him up and used his body for target practice. That is an image that had haunted me then as it does sixty five years later. I screamed louder than I had ever screamed in my life upon seeing my father disrespected in such a way. I can forgive a great many things, but what Chin's army did to my father that day I can never forgive and I will never forget."