In the future, this explosion would signal the start of an event that historians would call one of the final battles of the Hundred Years' War. This battle would mark the beginning of a new era and change the pace of the modern world.
It was early morning, a few days after Yue's rise to power. At the urging of a certain sage, the Red Lotus group in Agna Qel'a decided to take action.
Despite the failure of their first assassination attempt against Shisui and their lack of accurate information about the event, they were confident that they could easily achieve their goals with their newfound advantages.
Kill the Avatar! Kill the Sage Shisui! Kill Yue!
They decided to act as a group and attack the people closest to their targets. This time, not only benders took action, but also non-benders who used objects to overcome their disadvantages.
Firearms! They weren't as advanced as the Fire Nation's, but they proved useful on this occasion. They believed that, with their plans, they could free the world from the 'superior' beings limiting its progress.
Ironically, they had the support of two people who were 'special' by their standards. Hama, who had left Yakone alone, approached Agna Qel'a from the air. She observed the few inhabitants going about their business in the streets.
However, Zhao was the one who started it all and gave the signal to begin. He had finally decided to betray his nation because he was obsessed with achieving his goal of invalidating Shisui. Perhaps that way, he could gain an advantage over him.
He unleashed a burst of black flames at the hotel where the Fire Nation delegation was staying. His flames were incredibly hot and possessed an unusual property; even when they came into contact with ice, they continued to burn, using the water as fuel.
Special flames! Vaatu's empowerment altered Zhao's firebending, giving him the confidence to act. He first wanted to fight the most prominent firebenders of the younger generation before approaching the body of water where the spirits of the Ocean and the Moon rested.
However, when he partially destroyed the building with his flames, no one came out. There were no screams or exclamations, only silence. At that moment, Zhao felt a chill run down his spine.
What had happened? Where were the people? These questions ran through his mind as his heightened sense of danger made him jump to the side, avoiding a bone spear heading straight for his chest.
"Zhao! Do you remember me?" asked Sokka, who had emerged from a nearby alley. He was the one who had tried to stab his enemy.
Zuko stood next to Sokka, staring coldly at Zhao as he placed his hands on the hilts of his swords. Zuko knew this would happen, but the attempted murder by that 'Vice Admiral' still bothered him.
If they hadn't always been vigilant of his actions, many people would probably have been injured or killed by him. Among those people could have been Mai!
This made the prince's desire to kill grow. Without a word, he attacked. Flames erupted from his feet, propelling him forward at great speed.
"I'm not interested in pirate scum like you!" Zhao responded to Sokka before creating a wall of fire to block Zuko's path.
"I'll leave you with a scar so you'll remember me," Sokka said as he lunged at Zhao, taking advantage of Zuko's actions.
Demonstrating his mastery of firebending, the prince drew his swords and condensed his flames into them. He used the flaming blades to slash at the wall Zhao had created, opening a crack in it.
"Special flames, but without substance. You're just using a power that isn't yours, Zhao. I'm removing you from the Fire Nation army right now," Zuko said before swinging his two swords in an X-shaped slash against Zhao.
Meanwhile, Sokka followed the path created by his companion and launched quick thrusts toward his target. The tip of his weapon blurred, creating afterimages, as if he were attacking several points at once.
But this is not the only battle today!
...
Hama looked down at Agna Qel'a from the sky with a mocking smile. However, her expression twisted as she dodged a lightning bolt with a flutter of her wings.
Azula had taken flight with blue flames on the soles of her feet. Her golden eyes narrowed as she observed her enemy's fused appearance and the dense, dark spiritual energy seeping from her body. It was visible to the naked eye.
Yue floated freely in the air next to Azula, surrounded by cold mist. She tilted her head and stared intently at the entity in front of her. In essence, Hama was no longer human.
"Wow, to fall so low as to accept Vaatu's influence, mixing your nature with a dark spirit and transforming your body..." Yue shook her head, looking sorry for Hama's fate. However, a big, mocking smile spread across her face, and her blue eyes were cold and indifferent.
To Yue, that was Hama. Yue could see her true self, an aged, twisted, and corrupt woman bearing no resemblance to the beauty Hama had previously 'regained.'
No matter how much vitality she had absorbed, the impure energy she had acquired through her actions manifested itself in her current state.
Hama didn't care about Yue's words or her intrusion because her attention was focused on Azula's lower belly.
"You! It was you! You're the bitch who took away the only person who should be with me!" Hama screamed hysterically. Azula simply shrugged and fixed a loose strand of hair.
"What can I say? My charm is just too strong. That's what comes with being a noble princess like me. Maybe Shisui prefers women his own age, not decrepit old women like you." Although Azula couldn't see Hama's true appearance, she sensed that this woman was much older than she looked.
Azula's hair filled with special fire, and she suddenly understood where that strange knowledge came from. Will-o'-the-wisps were always associated with death.
'Sensitivity to people's lifespans? What an unfortunate ability.' Azula didn't hesitate. She knew people who could discern special things, and even the future, using fire.
It was understandable that her flames had such an ability. Azula herself had tried to venture into those divinatory arts but had never delved too deeply into them.
Now, however, it seemed she had to review that knowledge. Perhaps then she could understand the will-o'-the-wisp much better. Azula smiled slightly before pointing two electrified fingers at Hama.
"But I won't let a bitch like you run around out there. My future children must grow up in a world without enemies for me and Shisui," she declared, firing the lightning bolt.
She wasn't going to allow this 'witch' to remain in this plane of existence any longer! As a kind princess, she had to help the old woman reincarnate and perhaps obtain a better destiny.
Isn't she the kindest princess in the world because of that?
"I agree with you on that," replied Yue, unleashing all her power. Her eyes flashed, her hair flew wildly, and pools of water materialized from the atmosphere.
Yue was going to crush Hama! It seems that Shisui got his tendency to crush everything from her.
...
"How ironic. The things I created are now pointing at me." Shisui could feel the irony of the situation as he saw a group of men with tactical training pointing dark cannons at him.
He knew that, having created modern firearms in this world, this situation would arise sooner or later. After all, who would pass up the opportunity to use something that clearly gives them an advantage?
But Shisui was prepared. With his spear in hand, he focused on the benders in the group: a pair of women, one dressed in Earthbender clothing and the other in Waterbender attire.
"Look, Mei Qi, I knew you would say something like that. We have a similar sense of humor!" said the waterbender Availuk, smiling broadly.
"Focus! The Sage Shisui is no small matter. We can't do anything to him with our lineup. Besides, I have a bad feeling about all this," said Mei Qi, who was constantly looking around. Something was disturbing her, but she couldn't identify what it was.
"It doesn't matter! He's surrounded, isn't he?" Availuk gestured, and a squad of gunmen appeared behind and on both sides of Shisui.
More people with firearms appeared on the surrounding buildings, aiming directly at the Sage. Despite their numerical superiority, however, nervousness was etched on the faces of these men and women.
"I'm flattered that you think you can defeat me with so many people willing to die... for nothing." Shisui smiled, revealing his white teeth. Specks of chi appeared around him, and drops of highly concentrated water floated behind his back.
The fight began when one of the gunmen couldn't take the pressure anymore and fired his weapon at Sage's head. However, a square of ice, formed from water extracted from the air, appeared in front of the bullet and stopped it.
Shisui turned his head to look at the person who had shot him: a woman trembling as she tried repeatedly to cock the bolt of her rifle. He simply looked at her before shaking his head and sighing.
"You have chosen the path of death." Shisui's figure dissolved into a pile of ice slag.
Then, Mei Qi's eyes widened in amazement as she realized something was wrong. The subtle seismic movements representing Shisui were a pure imitation!
The real Shisui wasn't there at all! Shisui appeared behind the woman who had shot him and plunged his spear directly into her back, piercing and impaling her completely.
'Ice clones. It was about time I had my own cloning technique. Together with optical invisibility and illusions caused by the play of colors, it makes an excellent combo,' thought Shisui happily as he used his enemy's corpse as a shield to protect himself from the bullets fired at him.
Availuk's cheerful expression disappeared when she confirmed that her plan had fallen apart quickly. However, she didn't care because all the Red Lotus members acting today had an ace up their sleeves.
Availuk and Mei Qi both took a small bottle containing a single black pill out of their pockets. Without hesitation, they both consumed the medicine, trusting in its effects.
They were going to do everything they could to drag Shisui down, hoping that the remaining teammate would finish the job. As Mei Qi felt her body heat up and her energy surge, her thoughts turned to her remaining teammate.
'Fei, you only have one chance, and we'll give you that chance,' the Earthbender said to herself as the medicine overloaded her body, giving her a surge of power. However, this was temporary.
It would be her death.
...
Finally, there's Avatar Aang, who is also surrounded. The irony is much greater this time because the people surrounding him are wearing clothes from the three existing nations.
Each of them was a bender. Aang could only make a strange face at having to face three of the four elements at the same time as the Avatar.
If he wanted to support Katara, though, he had to incapacitate these people. Despite everything, Aang still clung to the principles of his culture. He wouldn't take their lives, but Shisui had once told him the story of a man who was a non-bender with the same philosophy.
'Although somewhat cruel, Brut Wine's methods are useful in this situation,' Aang recalled. Brut Wine was a non-bender who dispensed justice, even to criminal benders, using drastic measures.
He beat his enemies until they surrendered! Then, Aang leaped, propelling his body with a gust of wind. He was ready to bring Brutt Wine's brutality to this era.
'It seems that this time, violence is the question, and the answer is yes. I hope my next enemies will be more willing to listen,' thought the Avatar as he lunged at his enemies, embodying the wrath of the wind.
These were the loudest fights, but the rest of his companions also fought. However, strangely, Agna Qel'a's security team did not respond.
Shisui's plans were simple yet effective. This time, they would deal a heavy blow to the Red Lotus, so no one unrelated needed to get involved.
They must crush them all!