First schemes

A bolt of lightning shot through the air with a crackle, a bright arc of blue lighting up the surroundings brilliantly for a split-second…

Only to go wide of the narrow target by a millimeter, leaving a black scorch-mark on the far left side of the wooden stake.

'Damn it!' Azula seethed, her amber eyes narrowed into furious slits as she stared down the slim wooden post.

That was her tenth try, and the closest she'd gotten was a pathetic black mark.

She should have been able to splinter this miserable plank of wood into a hundred pieces on her first try by now!

A burst of amused laughter drew the young girl sharply out of her thoughts, and she spun around to glare at the young boy standing behind her.

'What's so funny?' She mentally ranted, but didn't have the courage to voice out her thoughts.

He slowed his laughter to a trickle and then stopped it altogether, wiping at his eyes to refocus them.

"You are so funny my dear little sister." He said at last as if reading her thoughts, straightening up and stretching absently his arms. "Actually, you're hilarious. Cut yourself some slack once in a while and spend some time with mother if you're going to keep failing that miserably, Azula. At least you'll have some kind of excuse."

'That fake oblivious woman isn't my mother!' She mentally ranted but kept her composure.

"Well, I'm glad my failure can provide you some amusement, Zu... I-I mean, my Emperor." She said sharply as her brother stalked over towards her, but eventually her tone changed and she spoke more respectfully, but with blazing eyes and gritted teeth.

"Be thankful that we're family, or I'd burn that insubordinate expression right off of your face." Zuko stated as he casually made his way towards her, without losing his smug smile.

By now he was standing at arms-length from Azula, looking down at her face that was twisted into a mask of anger.

Zuko just smiled, reaching down and ruffling his sister's hair.

"Now, if you insist on continuing to continue in shaming yourself, proceed." He said with a casualness that just infuriated Azula even more, but with a smile that took most of the sting from his previous words.

"Go on." He said with a shake of his head towards the singed post. "Let's see if we can't get this right before night falls."

Zuko took a step towards the targets.

Azula followed in his wake and fixed her hair with practiced quickness, a frown on her face.

She was going to make him pay the next time he did that.

Next time.

"Your main problem is your anger." He said evenly, letting his eyes close and taking a few deep breaths to calm himself as his body shifted unconsciously into the stance for lightning formation. "Frustration and other distracting emotions can cloud the flow of your chi, blocking or distorting the creation of lightning. The key is to be completely free of emotion to let the energy flow unimpeded through you. The angrier or happier you get, the more likely it is that you'll mess up the point of release."

Zuko stopped talking and brought one arm up above him while dropping the other down lower, before beginning to move them in opposing half-circles.

Golden chains of lightning appeared at the tips of each of his forefingers, their chirping sound growing more and more intense until he brought both hands out in front of him and released the lighting in a tight spread, shattering the wooden stake that Azula had burned earlier.

Azula swallowed her indignation at being shown up and nodded, turning her attention to the lone remaining target in front of her.

Taking in a deep breath and letting it out in a slow, measured hiss, she forced all emotions from her mind and focused only on her goal of obliterating her target from existence.

Dropping into the stance, she split the energy residing in her stomach in two, letting it flow in positive and negative halves as she performed the circular motion with her arms.

Maintaining iron concentration, Azula brought both halves colliding back into one as she moved her hands together, forcing the lightning out from a single point of focus at her forefingers.

She heard the groaning sound of wood cracking and splintering a heartbeat later and knew she'd done it.

Opening her eyes slowly to savor the moment, Azula saw the smoking wreckage of the former target post and allowed herself a satisfied smile at her accomplishment.

"Not bad." He remarked. "Keep up the hard work. When you can break three posts simultaneously with a single blast of lightning, then I'll be impressed."

He the turned to the posts on their left and proceeded to do just that without needing to perform bending motions with his limbs.

The golden spear of lightning arched swiftly to accurately strike other targets.

Azula dropped her hand back down by her side, her eyes widening slightly in surprise.

She waited for him to laugh it off as to brag, or to order her to do the same… but when that moment didn't come and he just started inspecting his own hands with mirth, Azula felt a sinking feeling in her gut.

Azula's previous sense of accomplishment had all-but evaporated by now, replaced by a dark cloud of anger.

"Don't worry about it, sis." Zuko said consolingly, reaching down and ruffling her hair almost absently. "You'll get there. It just takes practice. Probably a lot more practice for someone that isn't me, but still practice all the same."

Azula huffed and busied herself with her hair, promising herself once more that she'd make him pay the next time he did that.

Definitely next time.

"Impressive my dear." A soothing voice called over from behind them.

Azula turned abruptly to face the newcomer, finding herself looking at the dark brown hair, fair face of Ursa.

"I'm glad for your achievements, my children." She said with a half-bow. "You are prodigies indeed: being the youngest Firebenders ever seen controlling lightning that precisely. Even even your father was years older than you two are now before he had tamed the cold-blooded fire."

As Ursa spoke, she kept eye contact with Zuko just to be sure if she was recalling correctly what he taught her.

"Was he, now?" Zuko asked with practiced innocence, sneaking a glance at his sister to see her looking pointedly in Ursa's direction. "He'd forgotten to mention that."

Ursa chuckled.

"Yes, I would imagine he did." The older woman said with a small smile. "Come my son, your hot bath is waiting for you."

Zuko looked at his mother and gave her a wickedly satisfied grin, but she was unfazed.

As Zuko ruffled his sister's hair again before making his way towards his chamber, Ursa then turned and followed him back inside, leaving Azula alone again.

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After exhilarating nights with Ursa, Zuko kept his training routine.

By morning he made advances in chi-blocking, and by the evening he had some time with Mai.

Frankly, he wasn't really expecting much regarding her "throwing classes", but the feeling of always being armed to the teeth was quite formidable.

His private time with Azula consisted in him slowly molding and manipulating her through fire bending lessons.

It didn't take long for him to notice her bending was drastically improving by staying close to him.

Almost like what Sozin's comet did to every Fire Bender under its effect.

He even enjoyed some time with his young half-sister.

After some weeks cementing his political stance as the supreme ruler, he became more bold with his changes.

Though the Empire had a culture more acceptable of women in the army, it only extended to the ones who were Fire Benders.

Taking inspiration from some of his previous life memories, he ordered the formation of a special elite force composed of women to guard the inner property of the Royal palace.

The Royal Guards were still kept as they were formed by the best Fire benders of the Empire, but the non-benders pretty women will serve disguised as regulars maids.

They will be introduced to the training Zuko received from Mai and Ty lee.

Unfortunately he still hasn't thought about a proper name for his own maid elite guard.

But thankfully he still had time to come up with something, as his regular secret service will still take some time before they properly recruit and train such formation.

Anyways, back to politics.

Zuko's announcement about the rise of the Blaze Empire wasn't ignored by the other nations.

Recently, Zuko had to attend meetings with influential people who for some reason couldn't witness his coronation and pledged their loyalty.

Curiously, his immunity from fire wasn't just a lame party trick. As some of his meetings revealed to him, from the raging inferno, his invulnerable image made people worship him as "Agni's Avatar".

He capitalized on that fact to further indoctrinate his subjects and citizens into showing devotion and loyalty.

Cool portraits of him being blessed by a powerful spirit into the form of the Phoenix Emperor were spread all around the globe.

Some of the meetings mentioned before were special reunions where he announced to his small council what his latest orders were.

Scheming was probably the best way to describe his discussions with them.

As was the case on this night of full moon.

The Phoenix Emperor swept his calm eyes over the table of his top advisers and trusted friends once as he drew a calming breath, preparing himself for the meeting.

That done, he looked over to regard his mother Ursa sitting on his right- and his sister Azula sitting on his left- before speaking.

"Well, now that we're all here, we might as well begin. Admiral, your report."

The high rank militar rose from his seat at the long table and bowed his head respectfully.

"My Emperor." He intoned seriously. "The forces of King Bumi are still capable of resisting our advances—and even though Omashu hasn't allied with Ba sin se,for all intents and purposes, the Earth Kingdom has yet to be brought under our control."

Zuko nodded in understanding, but not everyone in the room was as comprehensive.

The admiral's subordinate, Commander Zhao, was quick to spring to his feet in rebuttal.

"With all due respect to your imperial majesty." The soldier said in a tone that conveyed very little. "I do not believe we have taken every available option."

"Oh?" Zuko said curiously, and if he was angered at all by the presumptuous interjection he hid it masterfully. "And why is that, Commander?"

"I don't trust King Bumi at all, my Lord." Zhao said firmly, standing his ground. "He is as wily as he is powerful, however he might choose to hide it behind false madness. He is a dangerous threat to leave unchecked; dangerous enough, I believe, to cause the Earth Kingdom to unite. We should make dealing with him a high priority."

"I agree with the Commander's assessment." Azula's smooth, sharp voice seconded as soon as the other soldier had retaken his seat. "We cannot allow this small kingdom to jeopardize everything we've worked so hard to build throughout this war. We should promptly focus our efforts on submitting the small king."

"I beg to differ, dear sister." Zuko countered evenly, the young boy meeting his sister's firm glare with an equally-unbending gaze. "Ba Sing Se is still ignoring the war existence behind its wall; however, with some small sized conflicts between the earth kingdoms being detailed in some of our scout's reports. As the commander just mentioned, King Bumi might be pragmatic enough to simply surrender in hopes of preserving his forces. But when the time is optimal, Omashu's citizens will definitely rise up against our stationary army. The way I see, we should first conquer Ba Sing Se."

Some noises were being made by the gathering group of royal advisors as they evaluated Zuko's reasoning.

"And even if King Bumi decided to revolt, without the support of Ba Sing Se, any rebellion of his would wither and die on the vine. The fact of the matter is that, if we decide to storm the city of Omashu, our only prudent option will be to execute all possible threats."

Zuko then smirked as he finished his speech, his amber eyes bright with mirth.

"Does anyone has a better plan? Please, I'm open to have my mind changed." He said while giving his subordinates an inquiring look.

Noticing the agreement nods and that no one presented an alternative strategy, Zuko continued. "While I understand your concerns, Commander..." He said, "waiting for the enemy to make the first move would still be our wisest course of action. If he launches attacks towards our nearby settlements, we will be ready to swiftly destroy such effort while gaining all the justification we need to destroy Omashu completely.

He made another dramatic pause, observing the faces of everyone present.

"But don't presume that I'm lenient." He finished determinedly. "In time, everyone will either surrender to the Empire... or be destroyed."

Commander Zhao praised something about Zuko's wisdom in a time of war. The Emperor casually ignored it, but the admiral gave his former student a stern look that stilled any further complaints.

After a couple of hours discussing the intrinsic matters regarding the war effort on the Earth kingdom, someone changed conversation focus.

"There is one thing I would like to mention, your imperial majesty, if I may." The admiral said, rising to his feet as Zuko nodded. "I noticed something odd in one of the recent reports sent back by our military base in the Southern Earth Kingdom. It would appear as though the platoon you tasked with a mission is having to face strong opposition by the town of Gaoling... just as your imperial majesty wisely predicted."

"A whole platoon?" Azula echoed in surprise, her eyebrows raising. "I didn't think that part of the Earth Kingdom could field enough troops to oppose one of our platoons."

"That's because they didn't field any troops." Zuko broke in, his voice low and calm as interest shined in his eyes. "Not in the strictest sense of the word, at least. Some sources pointed that around the region there is the presence of small groups of Earthbenders who engage in guerilla warfare."

"And how do you know this?" Azul asked, causing the Emperor to shift his eyes to stare at her.

The fire of the candles in the camber turned into a pure shining white, and the temperature immediately dropped as the people's breath suddenly became visible.

Azula immediately flinched under that cold stare and immediately bowed asking forgiveness.

'A wise decision.' Zuko thought as the fire in the candles turned black for a brief moment, enough to warm the room back to its original temperature.

"Quiet, Azula." Her mother Ursa hissed firmly, hushing her.

"As I was speaking, there was one person specifically mentioned in the report as having been a hostile enemy, my Lords." Zuko spoke up as the gathered group went silent in respect to the Emperor. "A blind girl, apparently about the age of nine."

Azula's remark was stopped by her mother's hand politely covering her mouth, but her eyes shone with open disbelief.

Contrary to Azula, the high ranked soldiers and advisors were more open-minded to their Emperor's words, falling silent into thought for several heartbeats, letting their eyes close as they did so.

When they opened again, they glinted with purpose.

"Understood my Emperor." They said with the proper respect in their voice. "By your orders, we will immediately depart forces for Gaoling as soon as this meeting comes to an end. We will find this blind bandit and learn what we can from her: who her accomplices are, what kind of system they have set up, if they have any agents in Ba Sing Se or Omashu—anything that might be of use to us."

Zuko casually raised his hand in a stopping motion and spoke.

"That won't be necessary my lords, I will resolve this matter personally."

The men wanted to protest, but bowed their heads in acceptance. "Of course, Emperor."

Zuko opened his mouth to say something else, but then paused, his hand still in the middle of stroking his chin.

His head then turned to face Azula, and he gave his sister a wide smile.

"Dear sister Azula." Zuko said jovially. "I think you should accompany me on this trip. If the girl we're searching for is really that young, she might open up more readily to you. If mother would allow it, of course." Zuko amended, shifting his gaze over to Ursa.

Ursa simply smiled, nodding in deference.

"If the Emperor wills it, it will be so." She said. "I know that Azula is perfectly capable of looking after herself and with you my dear looking over her shoulder, I have nothing to worry about."

"Good." Zuko said contentedly and he broke his momentary mask of solemn formality to slip Azula a quick smile.

She didn't react noticeably, but her eyes narrowed ever-so-slightly before returning to normal.

"While I am glad to be given a chance to prove my worth, my Emperor." Azula said after the silence had spanned a few heart beats. "There is something important we have yet to discuss: the Northern and Southern Water Tribes."

Zuko nodded, his face turning stony again.

The Northern and Southern Water Tribes were still major obstacles standing between the Blaze Empire and complete hegemonic control of the world, and they were proving to be quite the stumbling blocks.

"I believe we stand to gain the most from a quick, decisive attack on the Southern Water Tribe." Azula offered with eagerness in her voice. "Removing them will keep us from having to fight a two-front war, and allow our army and navy to focus a siege specifically on the Northern Water Tribe."

Zuko did not speak at once, allowing his sister's proposal to hang in the air and give someone else the chance to evaluate it before passing his judgment.

But no one dared to speak against her, so he broke the silence.

"While I agree that splitting the two Tribes apart is a vital piece of any successful strategy." Zuko spoke up. "The idea of laying siege to the Northern Tribe without some exploitable advantage is foolish. Even more so if we waste effort in submitting the fragile Southern Water tribe. I would propose instead that we wait until we gathered more than enough power to, if necessary, annihilate the Northern Water Tribe from the face of the Earth."

Azula forced back a grimace and nodded.

"Let us hope." He said darkly. "That such drastic measures never become necessary. Our poorly executed plan of submitting the Air Nomads is not an episode in history I would care to repeat—there are other paths to total dominion, my lords."

"Of course, Emperor." Everyone replied with a short nod.

"Good, we had that clear. Now...our meeting's final topic should be about the Avatar."

The silence that fell over the room at that word was palpable, and dense as a tigerdillo's armored plating.

"The Avatar is dead, brother..." Azula said at last. "As you previously mentioned, we killed the last surviving Airbenders in our failed attempt in subduing the air nomads, almost a hundred years ago."

"Do you have proof of that, Azula?" Zuko said, his voice sharp. "Besides, even if that is true, I'm also considering the possibility of a new Avatar; the next reincarnation. Water follows after Air in the cycle, earth after that... and eventually fire—I'm completely sure that the Avatar is our biggest obstacle. As I thought I had made sure during my coronation ceremony... oh yeah, you weren't there."

The discussion about the avatar technically didn't go anywhere. Zuko wasn't sure if Aang survived this time.

But contingencies plans were paramount for his plan of conquering the world.

Also, Zuko's plan of keeping the southern tribe out of the empire's radar was successful.

Now, he had to get ready to hunt a blind loli.

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(09/09/2020)

*Apologies for the absence of the "previously on avatar".

Hope this chapter is of your liking. If there's anything you wish to ask, feel free to do so.

Check out my auxiliary chapter if you still haven't.

Thanks as always for your attention and please be safe.

Any problems with my writing, just point them out and I'll correct them as soon as possible.