The air outside the dungeon was so different it almost burned his lungs. Not from cold or fire, but from its sheer openness. After two years of breathing dampness, confinement, mildew, and absolute silence, the free air of the palace had an almost intoxicating smell: imperial incense, torch oil, polished metal… and arrogance. The afternoon sun streamed in from the high windows, illuminating the red and black walls. Ren blinked once, adjusting.
At his side, Azula walked with her back straight and her chin high. The guards patrolling the hallways stopped the moment they saw her; and upon seeing Ren, they tensed as if a spirit had escaped the bowels of the earth.
—"They should be thankful I'm ignoring them," Ren commented in a calm voice, just to see the reaction.
One of the guards swallowed. Azula smirked out of the corner of her mouth.
—"Don't get a big head," she replied without looking at him. "You're not in front of my father yet."
Ren followed her without hurry, observing every detail of the palace he had left behind. It had changed… or he had changed so much that he now saw it with different eyes. There were more guards. More discipline. More silence. Ozai was preparing something. Something big. And Ren knew it.
🔥
The hallway to the throne room
The giant doors of the imperial hall were visible in the distance, like a pair of black fangs waiting to bite. Azula stopped a step from them.
—"From here on…" she said without turning around, "watch your words."
Ren leaned slightly toward her.
—"Advice, warning… or another one of your ways of showing you care?" he whispered.
Azula pushed him lightly with a finger to his chest.
—"Don't test my patience, Ren. Not yet."
The doors opened. The sound of resonating metal marked a before and after.
👑
The throne room
Hundreds of braziers burned in the hall, but the light seemed to lean toward the center: where Fire Lord Ozai waited, seated on his black throne, with the carved fire mask behind him. He didn't move when Ren appeared. He didn't even change his posture. At his side, two ministers and a group of generals murmured amongst themselves. When they saw the young man enter, the murmurs died as if a freezing wind had extinguished them.
Ren walked in a straight line, his feet bare—they had taken his shoes in prison—but his dignity intact. The torches dipped for an instant as he passed, almost as if reacting to his presence.
Ozai narrowed his eyes.
—"Ren," his voice resonated with the same coldness he remembered. "It has been… too long."
Ren bowed his head slightly.
—"You decided that, my lord."
A general coughed, uncomfortable. Azula watched in silence from one side of the hall, her expression studied.
Ozai rested an elbow on the arm of the throne.
—"I have heard interesting reports about you. They say you trained day and night in your cell. They say your fire… has changed."
Ren smiled just a little, slowly.
—"The reports are… modest."
A second of silence. Ozai didn't blink.
—"Show me."
Ren raised a hand. He didn't create a flame. He didn't generate heat. The white light began to gather in his palm like a microscopic point, vibrating with an impossible intensity. The torches snuffed out for an instant. The generals recoiled. Azula smiled. Ozai leaned forward on his throne, surprised for the first time.
Ren clenched his fist, and the light disintegrated without a sound.
—"Absolute control," he said calmly. "You wanted a weapon. Here it is."
Ozai watched him with an interest that bordered on dangerous.
—"The Avatar escaped your brother," the Fire Lord declared, ignoring Ren's comment. "You will bring him to me. Alive, if possible. Dead, if necessary."
Ren bowed his head slightly.
—"And Zuko?"
A shadow passed over Ozai's face, barely perceptible.
—"Zuko is no longer relevant to the affairs of the throne."
Ren hid his satisfaction behind a mask of perfect neutrality.
—"Then I will depart immediately."
Ozai made a gesture with his hand.
—"Azula will accompany you. And your team is already waiting at the port."
Ren turned on his heels. But before he could leave, Ozai added:
—"Ren. Don't forget who gave you back your freedom."
Ren didn't turn around.
—"I would never forget that he gave me back something he took from me himself."
The doors closed with a muffled boom.
On the way to the port
The air outside was fresher, heavy with the smell of the sea and war engines. Azula walked beside him, her arms crossed.
—"Your first meeting with him after two years," she commented, "and he didn't burn you alive. I'm surprised."
Ren looked at her out of the corner of his eye.
—"So was he. He finds it hard to admit he can't control everything."
Azula smiled with dark satisfaction.
—"Good. Then this will be fun."
The military port was bustling with activity: soldiers loading crates, engineers checking valves, captains shouting orders. In the center, a large warship waited with the flag of the Fire Nation flying high. But Ren was only looking at one specific spot on the dock. Three female figures were waiting there.
Azula lifted her chin with pride.
—"Ren… Allow me to introduce you to my team."
🔥
Mai
Standing, with impeccable posture, arms crossed, a dead expression. She didn't blink when she saw him. She didn't move. She showed no emotion whatsoever.
Ren looked her up and down.
—"You're taller than I expected for someone so… silent."
Mai let out a bored sigh.
—"And you're dirtier than I imagined for someone so… important."
Azula almost smiled. Almost.
🔥
Ty Lee
The acrobat literally jumped to the front, doing a flip in the air before landing a meter from Ren, with a huge smile.
—"Hi! You were Azula's super mysterious long-lost brother! I thought you'd be more grim and depressing but you seem… intense! What kind of chi do you use? Because you look like someone who's burning on the inside but not on the outside and—"
—"Ty Lee," Azula cut in immediately.
Ty Lee smiled guiltily and stepped aside.
Ren said nothing… but Ty Lee instinctively recoiled. There was something in his gaze that made her feel analyzed, evaluated.
🔥
Suri
The ex-general stood erect, serious, her gaze fixed on him. She was evaluating him right back.
—"Ren," she said without frills. "I had heard of you. I can see half those rumors fall short."
Ren bowed his head slightly.
—"The first impression is mutual."
Suri's eyes shone for a second. She had found someone who spoke her language: that of predators who know how to recognize another.
🔥
Keiko
She was at the back, sitting on a crate, sharpening a dagger. She didn't even look up when Ren approached.
Azula coughed.
Keiko stopped, looked at him… and an eyebrow slowly rose.
—"Wow," she said in a low voice. "Two years in a dungeon and you still look ready to kill a god."
Ren smiled just a little.
—"Thanks for the compliment."
Azula then intervened, with pride though she tried to hide it.
—"They are my team. With them, and with you… we will catch the Avatar."
Ren looked at the four women, each more lethal than the last. Then he looked at Azula.
—"We won't catch the Avatar, Azula."
She narrowed her eyes.
Ren took a step forward, his shadow covering the four of them.
—"We will hunt him."
Azula smiled.
And the ship set sail.