This long day was drawing to a close.
Exhausted by the sheer number of tasks and plans, the princess entered her chambers with the last rays of the sun.
With mechanical steps, she approached the mirror, sat down, and stared at her reflection. Black hair, a stern gaze from golden eyes filled with fatigue, small bags forming under her eyes, and a perfectly straight posture. Her outward appearance couldn't describe even a tenth of her weariness. She had too many things to accomplish today. No, not just today, but yesterday as well. Azula realized she hadn't slept for over two days.
Exactly two days had passed since her encounter with the detestable demon. This time had been incredibly eventful: meeting the spirit. Futile attempts to get rid of it. Hopeless searches for information with constant bickering and promises of agonizing punishment. A strained reconciliation. False obedience and fulfilling the requests-orders of the disembodied scoundrel. The war council. Gathering information about Master Piandao. Her own preparations, searching for poetry, arranging her personal ship, and other minor details for the journey of an imperial family member… And finally, this day, cursed by Agni himself, had come to an end.
Almost… almost at its end.
Sighing heavily, she focused her gaze on her reflection and began to remove her armor. Usually, servants would help with this, but at this moment, it was far more important to speak with the hated spirit. Azula's strength was waning, and she desperately wanted to sleep, but the conversation was more important!
—You wanted to speak with me, spirit— the princess began first, her fatigue unmistakable, as she started to remove her footwear.
—You're the one who started this conversation, are our relations improving?— her cohabitant immediately responded, with a hint of friendliness.
—I have little strength for long conversations. I've done everything you asked— the girl replied, pulling off her second boot and starting to remove her chest armor.
—And I am pleased with you. Do I need to explain anything to you? Perhaps you have accumulated some questions? Maybe I'll even answer them— the spirit continued in a friendly tone, causing her a strong urge to grimace.
—I would like to talk to you tomorrow, when I've regained my strength after resting. Our acquaintance and confrontation have tired me somewhat— the girl admitted deliberately, not wanting to listen to the talkative spirit any longer.
—Alright. In that case, we'll discuss our further actions tomorrow. For now, you can sleep. I will guard your slumber without revealing my presence— the Spirit replied calmly.
—Fine, if that's how it will be— shedding the last pieces of her armor and tossing them onto the floor, Azula donned her nightgown, climbed into bed, and hid under the covers. With a light snap of her fingers, she extinguished the candles, surrendering the room to the darkness.
Closing her eyes, she was about to drift into the realm of dreams when…
—Azula— the spirit spoke her name.
—What? I'm trying to fall asleep here— the girl responded irritably, showing a portion of her annoyance at the pestering demon.
—Good night— the spirit continued, as if nothing had happened.
—What does that mean?— the princess didn't understand his words.
—It means what it means. I wish you a good night so you can sleep well and regain your strength. In return, according to the rules of politeness, you should also wish me a good night— the interlocutor condescended to explain.
Of course, she knew all of that. His words brought back some unpleasant memories from her distant childhood. Father, mother, brother—a happy family on Ember Island. Warm and bright memories of carefree days gone by, which were now impossible to reclaim. Only her mother had bid her goodnight in this manner in her early childhood. No one else had done so. Not wanting to dwell on her own childhood, Azula hid under the covers, pulling them over her head.
—…Good night, spirit— after a slight pause, the princess replied in an indifferent voice that gave no hint of her inner trauma or emotions.
Night enveloped the Fire Nation, and soon the girl drifted off into the realm of Morpheus, yielding her body to the unknown spirit…
***
Night. The Fire Lord's Palace.
It was quiet in the princess's chambers, as it was throughout the entire palace. Only the occasional patrols of guards, moving with quiet steps, broke the silence of the place. Everything was quiet and peaceful. Lying on the large, soft bed, Azula slept peacefully, breathing deeply with a smile on her face. She was sleeping and having beautiful dreams.
Sleep is an amazing state of mind during which one rests. During sleep, a person can see dozens of different scenes, situations, memories, and then, towards morning, not recall a single one. The amazing mysteries of the human mind. Princess Azula was clearly dreaming when, suddenly…
—Ah! Hah, hah, ha…— Azula woke up abruptly, beginning to breathe heavily, not understanding what was happening.
The chambers, shrouded in darkness, were instantly illuminated by the candles that flared to life in the chandelier. The princess continued to dart her gaze from one corner of the room to another, her eyes scanning her room with a hint of fear. Everything was in its place. Nothing had changed since she fell asleep. The table, the wardrobe, the mirror, the curtains, and the other pieces of furniture stood still in their places. Her heart was pounding so hard that she could hear nothing but its sound and her own breathing. After all, what else could one hear at night? Perhaps the howling wind that swept through the palace corridors.
—Hush, hush, you'll attract the guards again. What is it? You woke up so abruptly, you even scared me! It was an unpleasant sensation, you know— the familiar voice of the spirit immediately responded. Hearing it, she began to calm down, taking her emotions under control.
—Nothing, just a bad dream…— the girl replied, though she didn't believe her own words at all.
Azula's first thoughts were about the spirit's involvement in her condition. It had likely done something imperceptibly to her while she rested, but voicing these thoughts would arouse its suspicion. Deciding to hold onto them until she understood everything that was happening, Azula began to calm her heart, which was trembling with fear. There was no doubt in her mind that the spirit was the cause of her state. Nothing like this had ever happened to her in her entire life. And that unpleasant feeling of fear… All she could do was ponder and guess what terrible thing the spirit had done while she slept. From what she was now feeling such instinctive horror.
—Will you tell me what you dreamed about?— as if not noticing the princess's state, the demon inquired anxiously.
—No— she replied curtly. —I don't remember. It was probably something unpleasant. It doesn't matter.
—Will you continue sleeping? Maybe I should sing you a lullaby? Or tell you a fairy tale?— the tormentor tried to cheer her up, but Azula heard such unpleasant notes of pity in his voice.
—I'll manage— came her sharp refusal.
—And that's good. I can't sing, and I'm not good at telling stories— the spirit admitted easily.
—I have a feeling I should be asking you about what happened? You were controlling the body then, weren't you?— Azula finally decided to ask the question, suspecting the spirit of withholding information. And it's not as if the spirit hadn't given her reason to. The princess didn't trust him at all and wanted to get rid of the demon as soon as possible, but alas, she couldn't.
—I didn't understand anything myself. I was just lounging on my little bed, enjoying the pleasant idleness, when you suddenly woke up, scaring me quite a bit.
—And that's all?— the princess asked suspiciously, running her fingers through her hair.
—That's all. I didn't notice anything else— the spirit admitted honestly, but Azula didn't believe him one bit.
—I need to rest. We're sailing from the capital tomorrow— pretending to be tired, Azula lay back down, wondering what the spirit could have been doing while she slept.
—Sleep well, Azula…
***
The next day, the princess of the Fire Nation left the capital without any problems. Ordering her servants to pack her belongings, she set off with them and the imperial cortege to her personal ship. She took along two advisors who were also her mentors in many disciplines. That same day, her personal ship sailed from the port.
The princess's ship was a frigate class. Such ships were slightly smaller than cruisers—the main mass of war machines led by battleships, which formed the bulk of the Fire Nation's military fleet. At the expense of size, the frigate had greater speed and several other advantages. The main one was its shallow draft, allowing the ship to approach almost any shore unimpeded. The princess's personal vessel differed by being slightly larger, having rich, even pompous, ornamentation, and a special deck design. Particularly noteworthy was the superstructure, made in the form of a pagoda.
—It's immediately obvious that a very important person is sailing. So much pomp… the ship practically screams to be robbed! Your enemies will see and recognize you from afar— the spirit commented when it first saw the princess's personal ship.
Several hours after leaving the port, the ship ploughed through the sea, encountering no one in its path. It moved along its charted course steadily and quickly. Suddenly, a bolt of lightning erupted from the ship's deck, soaring high into the sky amidst deafening peals of thunder. After a while, it happened again, and then again and again…
The princess once again made circular motions with her hands, joining her index and middle fingers in front of her before pointing them at the sky. A bright bolt of lightning immediately shot from her fingertips, disappearing high into the endless blue in moments.
—Almost perfect— one of the old women sitting on an elevation above the main deck commented on Azula's efforts.
—It's missing a little something— added the other twin sister, not noticing how dangerously Azula's pupils narrowed at her words.
—Almost isn't good enough for me— the princess replied sternly to her mentors, continuing to train alone on the ship's deck.
—Am I the only one bothered by the fact that you're being trained by two old ladies who don't wield bending and only know theory? No, they certainly know a lot about the technology and construction of ships, tanks, and other military equipment— I was present at your theoretical lessons, after all— but lightning?— the princess's inner inhabitant inquired, which was predictably ignored.
Circular hand motion. Azula's internal Chi splits into two different energies: positive and negative. Then, joining the index and middle fingers of her hands, the two energies collide, creating a charge within the girl's body. A sharp movement of the hand directs the charge. The energy instantly leaves the bender's body along the designated path, bursting from their fingers in the form of a large, bright blue lightning bolt.
—CRACKLE!
—It seems to me that too much time is spent on preparation, but you're doing well. You're doing everything correctly. All that's left is to get the hang of it and ingrained the technique into your reflexes, and then you can experiment with your stance and guiding fingers— instead of answering, Azula repeated the technique once more, shooting lightning into the sky.
—CRACKLE!!— the deafening sound accompanied the flash of lightning.
—You know, I want to talk to you, but you keep ignoring me. No, I understand that your reputation is valuable, and neither you nor I want rumors to spread that something is wrong with your head. So, I've come up with…— another completed lightning bending technique interrupted the spirit.
—CRACKLE!!!— the deafening sound even overpowered the howling sea wind, let alone external thoughts.
—…a way for us to interact. In short…— the spirit began irritably, only to be interrupted again.
—CRACKLE!!!!
—One more lightning bolt in the sky and someone will lose an arm— the spirit threatened in a cold tone, no longer willing to tolerate the girl's whims.
—Phew— Azula shook sweat from her forehead, approaching the edge of the deck and leaning on the railing.
—Princess?— the old woman asked with interest, watching the royal figure intently.
—I've decided to catch my breath. I'll return to training in five minutes— Azula lied without blinking, gazing into the distance of the sea. The cool sea breeze caressed the girl's face, bringing pleasant feelings.
—Patience. In many endeavors, patience is necessary. Don't rush. You will definitely achieve success if you continue to train this hard— the other twin concluded wisely for her sister.
—So, where was I? Ah, yes… communication between us. In short, there's nothing complicated about it. Just blink once if you agree and twice if you disagree. I'll try to ask you questions that can be answered so briefly. Do you agree to such a plan?— the spirit said, pleased to finally be able to express himself.
*Blink*.
—Excellent! You know, I understand, you're your dad's only daughter, you have a personal ship with a fully staffed crew, a catapult, and a couple of ballistas, not to mention thirty firebenders from the imperial cortege. But are you seriously going to go to Piandao with all this entourage? He might mistake it for an assassination attempt…— the spirit voiced his thoughts, which he had been holding in since morning, when he first saw the princess's personal ship and her dozens of guards.
Azula blinked once, signifying her agreement.
—Oh… so you're serious. Well, I'll save my speech about what a foolish idea this is for the evening. I don't object to the ship and personal guards. After all, you don't trust me, and your people have plenty of enemies. Security is always important. But such a large number of people will attract too much attention and will only be a burden for meeting the master. In general, I don't mind such an escort; they fit with my further vision of our adventures. But think about it carefully. He has refused a great many rich sons of various military men. They undoubtedly tried to use their fathers' status and their money. Of course, you can use your princess status, but that won't be the best option. In any case, we'll talk about it tonight— the spirit expressed his lengthy opinion.
Azula remained silent, contemplating his words.
—You can go back to training. Just try to ignore me less now. It's kind of hurtful, you know… By the way, you did well to take the poetry literature. I can't wait for your poetic apologies— the spirit gave his parting advice, reminding her of his lingering grievance.
Taking a breath in and out, Azula returned to her lightning bending training.
The journey to the desired island promises to be long.