Azula, Flames Of Change

Chapter 46: Final battle, clash of ideals

Aang moved with newfound purpose, his movements fluid yet precise, embodying the grace and power of all the elements. His body glowed with the energy of the Avatar State, a swirling maelstrom of air, fire, water, and earth surrounding him. With a deep breath, he channeled Azula’s lightning through his body, redirecting it with perfect control. Rather than aiming to strike Azula down, Aang raised his hands and shot the lightning upward, into the sky. The blue arc crackled as it disappeared among the clouds, lighting up the horizon like a violent storm.

But Azula was already moving, her fingers alight with superheated flame. She sliced the air in front of her, sending thin, burning strands across the battlefield. The ground sizzled beneath their heat, carving deep trenches as they sped toward Aang, poised to slice through him just as effortlessly.

Aang dove sharply, the strands of flame narrowly missing his head. His heart raced, but he didn’t falter. He countered with a powerful gust of wind, blasting toward Azula. She met it head-on, releasing her own wave of fire. The two forces collided, the wind dissipating into the superheated air, and the fire surged toward Aang. Without missing a beat, Aang launched his own fire, meeting Azula’s attack head-on. The flames crashed into each other, deflecting off in all directions.

The battle was relentless. Azula, ever the tactician, kept Aang in the air, constantly launching fire attacks that heated the surrounding air. She knew what she was doing—she was denying Aang access to both the earth and water, two elements that countered her firebending most effectively.

Zuko watched in awe as Azula managed to keep up with Aang, even in his Avatar State. “She’s limiting his options. Keeping him away from the earth and water.”

Katara nodded, worry etched into her face. “Azula's planning everything... even now. She’s not just fighting him—she’s controlling the battlefield.”

Suki, her eyes locked on the fight, whispered, “How is she this strong? Even Aang looks like he’s struggling.”

Sokka, gripping his boomerang, swallowed hard. “Should we... help him?”

Zuko shook his head, though the tension in his posture betrayed his concern. “No. We’d only slow him down. This is something Aang has to face himself.”

---

Hours passed. The sun dipped below the horizon, and the night fell, but the fight raged on. The once-peaceful skies were illuminated by flashes of fire and lightning, each strike lighting up the darkness like fireworks of destruction. The battlefield had moved from the city to the countryside, miles away from any signs of life. Azula’s strategy was clear—keep Aang away from any water source. She knew that if he reached the ocean, the tides would turn in his favor.

Even in the Avatar State, Aang found it difficult to put Azula down. She was relentless, her firebending fierce and unyielding. Aang landed on a spire of earth, summoning rocks and hurling them toward Azula. She leaped from stone to stone with ease, her movements graceful and calculated. As she soared into the air, she kicked a beam of flame at him. Aang raised the earth beneath him as a shield, but the intense flames froze around him, encasing him in a layer of ice.

Aang tried bending the ice, but he couldn’t—it wasn’t made of water. It was an unnatural, solidified flame. With a frustrated shout, he shattered the ice with a blast of fire, sending the shards flying toward Azula. She retaliated with a bolt of lightning, cutting through the debris and striking the spot where Aang had just stood.

Aang twisted through the air, using the currents to propel himself toward her. With a swift motion, he summoned the wind to pull Azula closer. He raised his earth-covered fist, ready to strike, but Azula was faster. She fired a blast of fire that melted the rock before it could hit her.

Rocks shot up from beneath her feet, aiming to trap her, but they melted before they even touched her. The heat surrounding Azula was so intense that the very earth turned molten in her presence. With a series of precise punches, she unleashed invisible flames—her fire so hot that it no longer glowed, bending the air itself. Aang, sensing the shift in the atmosphere, quickly dodged as the rock beneath him turned to molten lava.

Azula continued her assault, her fists sending waves of invisible heat toward Aang. He responded by sinking into the earth, using it to shield himself from her deadly strikes. The ground rumbled as Aang reemerged, launching himself at Azula with all the force of the Avatar State. He slammed his fists toward her, but she blocked with a wall of flame. A powerful gust of wind followed, knocking her off balance and sending her crashing into the ground below.

Aang descended rapidly, but Azula was already back on her feet, firing a deadly grey wave of flames at him. The battle continued, each of them unleashing their most powerful techniques. The landscape around them was altered for miles—trees were incinerated, mountains were reduced to molten rock, and rivers of lava flowed where the ground had cracked beneath the intensity of their fight.

.oOo. One Day Later .oOo.

A full day had passed, and the battle still raged on. But now, the signs of exhaustion were clear. Azula lay on the ground, breathing heavily, her once-precise movements now sluggish. Her body trembled from the strain, her eyes flickering as she fought to stay conscious. She had pushed herself beyond her limits, but even she could not sustain such intensity for so long.

Aang stood a short distance away, his body glowing faintly with the remnants of the Avatar State. He too was breathing heavily, his energy drained from the prolonged combat. Despite all of his power, all of his bending mastery, Azula had matched him blow for blow. His mind raced as he searched for a way to end the fight, but Azula’s resilience left him uncertain.

Sokka, Katara, Suki, and Zuko approached from the distance, watching the two powerful figures who had battled for what felt like an eternity.

Sokka, his voice barely above a whisper, said, “Is it over?”

Katara shook her head, her eyes filled with both awe and fear. “I don’t know. I’ve never seen a fight like this...”

Zuko looked at his sister lying on the ground, his expression conflicted. “She’s not done. Not yet.”

Suki stepped forward, her gaze fixed on Azula. “Even after all this... she’s still fighting. But why? What does she have left to prove?”

As Aang stood there, the weight of his responsibility pressed down on him. He realized that this wasn’t just a battle of strength or bending—it was a battle for the future. Azula, in her own twisted way, was trying to reshape the world, just as he was. But the cost of her vision had become too high.

For a brief moment, Aang closed his eyes and let the elements around him settle. The wind whispered in his ears, the earth hummed beneath his feet, and the fire crackled in the distance. It was time to end this, not with violence, but with the understanding that only the Avatar could bring.

.oOo. end of chapters .oOo.