Carved In Rock || ATLA

Alone

Zuko Alone

"Cause you're running through my dreams, it's like you're on repeat. Feels like eternity and I can't believe I let you in, you left me out. You left me on my own, you left me all alone. I let you in, you bled me out, you left me skin and bone, you left me all alone. You used to run, run through my veins, and to be honest, I know I'll never be the same. I let you in, you left me out, you left me on my own, you left me all alone." - I Prevail

🌊 🏔 🔥 🌪

Never even in his worst nightmares had Zuko imagined that this was what his life would be like. His clothes were tattered, dingy and stolen, his boots threatening to wear through their soles any day now. A thick layer of dirt and sweat coated his skin, his short hair that had just recently grown thick enough to cover all of his head was full of dust. He had no food, little water, nothing to his name but the broadswords on his back and the pearl dagger on his hip. Even the ostrich horse he rode was stolen from someone who had once offered him nothing but friendship and kindness. He had no idea where he was going or why, his mother was gone, his father and his siblings wanted him dead. He had left his Uncle behind weeks ago now and Aelita had left him long before that. As he rode through the dying bad lands of the Earth Kingdom Zuko realized just how alone he was.

Tired of the pain he tried to let his mind go blank the further they rode, one step at a time. He was almost at a numb kind of peace when they came across a deep ravine that stretched on for miles with no end in sight. The only way to the other side was crossing an old bridge made of rope and wood slats that had seen better days. Seeing no other option Zuko urged the ostrich horse on. With every step they took the bridge swayed eerily but the firebender did his best to ignore it. They were in the middle of the ravine when a plank snapped beneath the animal's heavy feet and the whole bridge began to rock violently. The animal reared in fear, forcing his rider to hold on for dear life. Zuko snapped the reins and dug his heels in to urge the animal on. They just barely made it across before the rest of the bridge collapsed into the jagged rocks below.

One step at a time. Zuko and the ostrich horse kept riding out of the badlands and into the grass-filled prairies but still couldn't find a damn thing to eat. The feeling in his stomach was becoming harder and harder to ignore as it drifted from just hollow to plain painful. When the smell of roasting meat drifted past his nose he almost thought he was imagining it until he saw the smoke. Zuko followed the haze until he found himself creeping along the edge of a wide basin. He stayed hidden amongst the shadows as he spotted a small campfire with a slab of meat cooking over the top. Food. But food meant people. That was a risk he was willing to take, no, he had to take. Zuko was reaching for his swords when he saw them, a man tossing another piece of wood on the fire and then turning to a woman sitting in the shade. He kissed her softly and placed a hand on her swollen belly. Love. The man looked at her with a true and genuine love Zuko used to think he once knew.

Dammit. There she was, there she always fucking was. Zuko hadn't seen Aelita since he let her go at the North Pole and she haunted his dreams damn near every night since. Aelita. The Akira. Of all the people in this world, it had to be her. He missed her. He missed the sound of her voice, the warmth of her skin, the feeling of her lips, and the light that radiated from the very core of her being. She had been through just as much hell as him but she still came out smiling. She made him smile. His fingers grazed the metal of her ring hanging from his neck as they did so often.

The rumbling in the firebenders stomach snapped him back into reality. Aelita wasn't here and he was starving. Zuko decided he didn't think that man looked like much of a fighter as he reached for the swords on his back. Maybe there wouldn't need to be a fight, maybe scaring them would just be enough. But when he tried to move he found himself frozen in place, a voice that wasn't there speaking in his ear.