Tai Lung arrived at the Royal Academy for Girls just as the sun dipped behind the palace walls. The scent of soot and ash still hung in the air, the ground scorched and cracked from the earlier explosion. Tai Lung stood silently at the entrance, his golden eyes narrowing.
He began rotating his chi, channeling energy through his body to sharpen every sense beyond human limits. He took a deep breath, inhaling deeply. Every scent, every particle in the air became vivid. His pupils contracted slightly. Then his gaze shifted, north.
He moved.
From street to street, corner to alley, Tai Lung followed the trail. The smell was faint but distinctive, metal, oil, smoke, and sweat. The target had tried to mask his path, looping through crowded districts and backstreets. But it wasn't enough. Not for Tai Lung.
Eventually, his path brought him to the poorest and most neglected part of the Fire Nation capital. Here the streets narrowed, and the buildings leaned like drunks on one another. At the edge of one such alley sat a dimly lit bar, its wood rotting, its patrons rough and uncaring. This was a place of secrets and blood.
Tai Lung stepped inside.
Dozens of eyes turned to him. Some are curious. Some are wary. Some were drunk. He paid them no mind. His gaze swept the room, until it locked onto the far corner.
Two men sat at a table. One was enormous, shoulders hunched beneath a ragged cloak. His hood had slipped just enough to reveal a distinctive tattoo, an eye, right on the forehead.
Tai Lung took a step forward.
His voice rang through the entire bar, cold and sharp like steel. "Found you, vermin. I will rip you into pieces."
The assassin narrowed his eyes, but didn't move. The tension exploded when a patron nearby rose from his stool, swaggering toward Tai Lung with a mocking grin.
"Listen here, buddy. This place…"
He never finished.
Tai Lung extended a hand.
A torrent of blue fire erupted, engulfing the man and reducing him to a charred corpse in an instant. Screams rang out as patrons scrambled away in horror.
Tai Lung advanced, his eyes gleaming with unrestrained bloodlust. The assassin inhaled, then hurled a glowing energy blast straight at him.
Tai Lung didn't flinch. He raised a hand and countered with a blast of his own, his flames burning an unnatural blue. The two attacks collided midair, a violent explosion rocking the bar. Glass shattered. Smoke filled the room.
From the smoke… Tai Lung emerged.
But now, he was growling like a beast.
The assassin's eyes widened in surprise. He braced, but too late. Tai Lung dashed forward, faster than anything the assassin fought before. Despite that, he still threw a punch with his metal arm, but Tai Lung caught it mid-air with ease. His other leg kicked upward with monstrous force.
The assassin flew back, crashing into the wall with a crack.
In Tai Lung's hand was the man's metal arm, torn clean from his body. Tai Lung crushed it in his fist, metal warping and falling in pieces to the ground.
Then his gaze shifted.
To the other man at the table, the one who had been sitting with the assassin. The man trembled, eyes darting between Tai Lung and the money scattered on the table.
"It's…it's a misunderstanding," he stuttered, hands raised in defense.
Tai Lung moved like lightning. His fist struck the man's chest with devastating force.
Crack-crack-crack.
The sound of bones shattering echoed through the room.
The man was hurled into the wall, sliding down it limply. Blood flowed from his mouth, nose, and eyes. He didn't move.
Chaos broke out behind Tai Lung. Screams, boots stomping. A group of men rallied, forming a line. Some fell into bending stances, others raised weapons. Their voices overlapped, all yelling the same thing:
"Stand down!"
"Surrender now!"
"You're outnumbered!"
Tai Lung turned slowly.
His eyes were cold, filled with nothing but rage.
He didn't care who these people were, he wasn't going to spare anyone.
Not a single soul tied to this assassin even if remotely.
___________
The bar had fallen silent, reduced to a blood-soaked ruin. Broken bodies, scorched walls, shattered furniture, Tai Lung stood alone amidst it for only a moment longer, then turned and left. His footsteps were steady, not hurried.
Minutes later, Fire Nation guards arrived, drawn by the screams and smoke that had filled the night. What they found stopped them cold. The moment they stepped inside, their expressions changed. Horror took hold.
One guard, upon seeing the state of the corpses, clutched his stomach and vomited on the spot. The others stood frozen, eyes wide, struggling to comprehend the massacre before them.
Meanwhile, Tai Lung had already returned to the Royal Clinic.
His entire trip had taken a little over an hour. Inside, Admiral Lung and General Iroh stood speaking in hushed tones in one corner of the room. As soon as Tai Lung entered, both men turned to him. Their eyes dropped instantly to the blood staining his clothes.
Admiral Lung stepped forward, voice firm yet edged with concern. "Are you hurt?"
Tai Lung, now composed and calm, shook his head. "It's not my blood."
Iroh studied the young man, his brows furrowing.
"Did you find the assassin?" he asked.
"I did," Tai Lung replied coolly. "And the one who hired him. Both are dead."
A deep, weary sorrow passed over Iroh's face. He had hoped the boy would show restraint. He didn't want to see another young soul devoured by hate, anger and vengeance.
Admiral Lung, however, crossed his arms, his tone sharp with disapproval. "You should have arrested them. There should have been a trial."
Tai Lung's gaze turned cold. "A trial would have saved them from a painful fate I wanted them to have."
Admiral Lung's frown deepened. He opened his mouth to speak again but Tai Lung cut him off.
"Father, they are dead. This is the end of the matter."
The admiral fell silent. He remembered the Agni Kai two years ago, how his son began behaving as if he was someone else, how he wanted to kill the Fire Lord. It was the same now but he was colder. Crueler. And that both frightened him and caused him concern.
That night, Tai Lung sat in silence outside Ty Lee's room.
The moon climbed and fell, and with it came the dawn.
Ty Lee's eyes slowly opened, blinking against the morning light. She found herself bandaged with family surrounding her, her parents, her sisters all filled with relief. Their voices were soft and warm, welcoming her back with love.
Soon, they invited Tai Lung inside.
Together, they gently told her of the assassination attempt. Of how Azula had been the true target, and how Ty Lee had been caught in the blast, injured badly. Their words were careful, not too heavy.
Tai Lung stood by the door, arms crossed. "The assassin and his employer are both dealt with," he said simply, his tone steady and without detail.
His words brought a wave of relief to Ty Lee's heart. Her body was weak, but her spirit lifted slightly. The danger was over, and in her mind, justice had been done. The attacker was caught. That was enough.
Elsewhere, in a grand chamber deep within the Fire Nation palace, ministers and high-ranking officials gathered before the Fire Lord. The room was silent as a grim report was read aloud.
It described the state in which the northern slum bar had been found.
Sixteen bodies.
All in unspeakable condition. Broken limbs. Skulls caved in. Limbs torn entirely off. Several bodies blackened and unrecognizable, burned alive.
The worst among them, the report claimed, was believed to be the assassin responsible for the attempt on Princess Azula's life. His body was mutilated, limbs ripped apart, his head severed as if he was attacked by a wild ferocious beast. Another man was found in the same condition, identified as the assassin's employer.
The ministers, seasoned veterans of war, paled as the words reached their ears. Some shifted uncomfortably in their seats, others looked disgusted. They had seen and heard of deaths before, but not like this.
As for the employer, he had been identified as an ex-member of Azula's royal guard. Everyone believed he wanted revenge against the princess for some past grievance. No one thought too deeply into it, not after the unbelievable gory scene they found.
General Iroh and Admiral Lung sat among them, and neither man could hide the shadow that passed over their faces. They knew who was responsible for this. The report, though clinical, painted an image in their minds of Tai Lung's wrath. Of what he became when provoked.
A storm of unrestrained brutality.
And above them, seated on his throne, the Fire Lord listened in silence. His face was hard to read, but his eyes darkened.
This was not the news he had expected. Nor the news he had wanted, especially not after hearing of Ty Lee's survival.