5 Chapter V: Diverging Path

"Hey there..." Nathan awkwardly greeted.

He wasn't sure on how to approach this situation. Meeting a younger Zuko minutes after arriving in this world was not what he expected at all. And Azula was right next to him, hiding from view, no doubt.

"I take it you're Miss Ursa's son? You kind of resemble her."

Zuko gulped nervously and straightened himself, somewhat regaining his regal bearing. "Y-Yes. My name is Zuko, son of Prince Ozai. May I ask what your name is?"

'So they weren't eavesdropping when I first woke up, huh?' Nathan thought idly.

"My name's Nathan Anderson," he said.

'He's way younger compared to the Zuko I know. Way younger. He's probably not even ten years old yet. Maybe eight or nine at most. After meeting Ursa, I knew the thing had transported me to the time before she was forced to leave, but for it to be this far back? That means it'll be around eight or ten years before I meet Aang and the others, and by then, I'll be around 20 years old,' Nathan thought with some frustration. 'Damn it. I thought I'd be able to meet them way sooner.'

"Uh, d-did I do something wrong?" Zuko asked nervously.

Realizing that his frustration was showing on his face, Nathan shook his head with an apologetic smile. "It's nothing. Just thought about something that annoyed me. By the way, is the other person next to you gonna introduce themselves?"

Zuko blinked in surprise before not so subtly glancing to his left. "Uh, I don't know what you're talking abo—Oof!"

Pushing Zuko aside with her hip, Azula gave him the fire nation's national greeting. The same one Aang was forced to learn in the show. "Greetings, Nathan. I am Azula, daughter of Prince Ozai."

Zuko scowled at Azula while rubbing his side.

Seeing the sibling dynamic between them, Nathan was amused, but he didn't show it. They might take offense to that, and he didn't want to get off on the wrong foot, especially with Azula. Despite knowing that she couldn't really do anything harmful to him right now, what he knew of her actions from the show intimidated him.

Although, it didn't look like Ozai got his evil hooks into Azula that deeply just yet, only hints of it. The man was largely why Azula turned out the way she did. Or at least, those were all his own assumptions and deductions based on what he saw from the show.

Regardless, Azula had this familiar deviousness in her eyes and smile reminiscent of her older self from the show. If he hadn't known of her true nature, he'd think she was just a perfectly normal little girl from a royal upbringing.

"Zuko's sister, huh? Well, it's nice to meet you both," Nathan said with a friendly smile.

"Likewise. However, my brother and I are extremely curious about how you survived falling like a meteor. If it isn't too bothersome, could you please tell us the details of how you arrived here in such a way?" Azula asked eloquently.

At that statement, Nathan could only rub the back of his neck. "Oh… Unfortunately, all I can say is that I'm not exactly sure how I survived something like that. I don't even know how I got myself into this situation in the first place. But I also have a question for you. Did you two overhear the conversation your mother and I had?"

"Yeah, we did," Zuko immediately confirmed. His eyes glowed with curiosity, and they walked inside the room to better converse. "We came here because we wanted to know about how you turned into a meteor and how you managed to survive crashing into our garden."

"Ah… that. I can't remember anything. You did hear the conversation your mother and I had, right? All I saw was a bright flash of blue light before I found myself here. A lot of my memories are gone too. I can barely remember anything related to me."

"I heard you mentioning you were a fighter and that you've fought in tournaments. It's too bad you're not a bender, but exactly how good of a fighter are you?" Azula asked.

That was actually a good question that he hadn't thought about that much. If it was a comparison between the Nathan before getting his powers and perks and those people around his age and weight class, he'd say he was one of the best in America. But if he compared himself to fighters that were way older, way more experienced, and weighed way heavier than him, he probably wouldn't even be in the top one hundred.

The only reason he could beat his dad so smoothly was because his dad was nearing fifty years old and because of how many times they've sparred. After sparring with the old man for years, he had gotten a pretty good grasp of his habits and attack patterns.

"Let me think… I wouldn't say I'm the best, but I'm pretty good for a guy my age. I've only ever lost once—in my first tournament—and I won in every tournament I fought in after that," Nathan answered.

Azula narrowed her eyes ever so slightly. "Is that so? Interesting…"

'Oh no. I recognise that look. What idea is she brewing inside her head?'

"You know… I think have an idea about how you got here," Zuko interjected. "Maybe a spirit kidnapped you and messed with your mind. Maybe it's also the one that turned you into a meteor."

"A spirit?" Nathan played along. "Maybe… But I don't know any spirits that have the power to do that. Wait, one spirit comes to mind."

"Who is it?" Zuko asked.

"I don't remember who told me about this spirit, but the spirit I'm talking about is old. Very old. His name… is Koh, the Face Stealer," Nathan said seriously. Inside, he was chuckling about how he might have some fun giving them nightmare material.

Zuko's eyes widened. A look of fear overtook his face. "K-Koh, the Face Stealer?"

Unfazed, Azula raised an eyebrow, giving Nathan a look of doubt. "Does this spirit even exist? It sounds ridiculous, like one of the horror stories our Uncle Iroh would tell us."

"Oh, he's real alright." Nathan leaned forward on his knees. "Stories of his victims are plentiful, but stories telling details about Koh itself are rare. What I'm about to tell you is what little I know about him. They say Koh is one of the oldest spirits alive. Some say he's even older than the first Avatar."

Hearing this, Azula's eyes were filled with surprise. She joined Zuko on the ground and leaned forward.

'This is actually pretty fun.'

Nathan, now feeling a bit more at ease, began to retell what he knew about Koh and the spirit's conflicts with the previous Avatars. While doing so, he answered questions of theirs that he had answers to, or he made up some complete bullshit. After talking about Koh, they asked if he could tell them about other spirits, and he obliged. If he only knew a spirit's appearance, he'd make up some fake details about it on the spot.

Zuko and Azula hung onto every word, surprising Nathan quite a bit because he expected them to be uninterested. They were eager to hear stories of spirits, and their curiosity only further motivated him to do a better job sharing.

Around ten minutes into the conversation, Nathan picked up a set of footsteps heading their way and stopped talking.

"Hm? Why'd you stop?" Azula tilted her head with disappointment in her voice and expression. "I demand you to continue!"

"Sorry guys, but it seems like we'll have to continue this conversation next time. I can hear the guard your mother called heading this way," Nathan said with an apologetic smile.

Zuko and Azula's brows shot up, and they quickly rose from their seated position, dusting off their clothes. Leaving Zuko behind, Azula didn't bother saying goodbye and immediately ran as quietly as she could.

"Azula, wait for me!" Zuko said, whispering and rushing off, but he quickly stopped in place and bowed to him before rushing off again. "Azula…! Azula! Don't leave me behind!"

Nathan snorted, amused by their antics. Zuko was still his friendly and awkward self while Azula didn't seem as cunning or as manipulative as the older Azula he remembered from the show. It was a bit of a shock to him.

Then, a minor epiphany came to Nathan, and he paused in thought. Now that he was here, was there something he could do to change their lives for the better? He could prevent Zuko from ever being burned and scarred by his father. He could figure out what forced Ursa to leave in the first place. Maybe he could even see if he could improve Azula's situation.

Having experienced being under his father's thumb while also coveting his attention and approval, Nathan could heavily relate and empathise with Zuko, and especially so with Azula. And while his short interaction with her earlier ago didn't allow for much observation into her current personality, it did show him Ozai had yet shaped her into the person she would become if nothing changed.

The issue was that if he did try to change the future, would it help the overall future of this world, or would it just further throw things out of order? Such a big change like Zuko not being scarred would throw almost all his future knowledge of events into irrelevancy and make things incredibly unpredictable.

Before he could delve further into that train of thought, the guard had arrived, imposingly standing at the doorway.

The intimidating man wore a deep crimson armor with intricate golden embroidery, similarly coloured gloves and shoes, and a belt with the fire nation symbol etched in gold. But the most striking feature of their uniform was the bell-shaped helmet. It possessed three small red spikes on top, three eye holes and shard-shaped mouth holes. 

'Holy shit. It's an Imperial Firebender. The ones that guard the royal family.'

"You are… Nathan, correct?" the guard asked, his voice slightly muffled by the helmet. 

Nathan nodded, habitually observing the man's body language. It was a habit he found to be necessary the moment he got into his first fight. The guard's shoulders were rigid and that might be due to him being a complete stranger, causing the man to be extremely cautious and tense. But it could also be just the discipline he acquired from being an Imperial Firebender, similar to how well-trained soldiers acted while serving.

The guard gave a simple bow. "As ordered by Lady Ursa, I am here to serve you and answer any questions you may have."

'There went my chances to explore and experiment with my firebending and airbending. I understand Ursa's precaution since I'm a stranger, but still. An Imperial Firebender might be a bit overboard, don't you think?'

"Nah, I'm good," Nathan said.

"Very well." The imperial firebender nodded before wordlessly walking out and closing the door. Nathan didn't hear footsteps, which meant the man was right outside, guarding his room.

Nathan sighed. 'I wanted to see if I could actually do some bending. I can remember the knowledge about chi-blocking if I think about it and I instinctively feel that I can skillfully do it, just as it was advertised on the power list. Maybe I should… Wait a minute.' Nathan's back straightened, and he entered a meditative pose. He immediately recalled the Mastery Meditation perk he bought. 'There was that mastery meditation thing that I can try.'

Nathan closed his eyes and placed his hands on his thighs. Within a few moments, he felt something change.

The soothing aroma of nature tickled his nose and a gentle breeze brushed his hair, carrying with it the scent of the ocean.

Opening his eyes, Nathan came face to face with a white-haired old man with a long beard, wearing the crimson robes of the Fire Nation and a Fire Nation hair ornament. The familiar old man was in the same meditative pose as him.

Nathan's jaw dropped as things clicked in his mind. "Avatar Roku?"

Avatar Roku smiled and bowed his head. "It is a pleasure to meet you, Nathan Anderson. Although I am not the true Avatar Roku, I am your bending teacher, and I welcome you to your mental world."

Nathan couldn't reply. He was too busy gaping at his surroundings. Around them was an ancient temple composed of polished stone, its architecture reminding him of the air temples from the show. Behind him, he could see the ocean far below and a wide beach leading to it. Looking past Roku, numerous volcanoes of flowing lava were in the distance. Everywhere else were trees as far as the eye could see and simple metal structures similar to buildings dotted around the temple.

'Oh, maybe…'

Nathan looked down at himself, only to be filled with disappointment. He was expecting his clothes or general appearance to be different, like when Aang went to the spirit world. But he looked the exact same as outside.

'At least everything else is impressive,' he thought, marveling at his surroundings.

"I see that you're impressed," Avatar Roku said.

"Impressed? I'm honestly speechless. This is where I'll be practicing my bending?" 

"Of course. This environment is the most suitable for your growth. In addition, if you need anything else for your training, please tell me and I will see what I can do to accommodate them." 

Nathan couldn't hold his excitement for much longer. He could only stay here for up to six hours, but he planned on getting the hang of every element before he leaves, betting on the motion memory and the quick learning aptitude he got from his power and perks selection.

"Can you teach me how to bend each element?"

"Eager to start, are we? Then we may begin now." Standing up, Roku raised his hand. Beneath Nathan, a strong wind rose and elevated him to a standing position. "Which element would you like to start with?"

"Woah, I didn't see anything, but that must have been airbending," Nathan muttered to himself in amazement. He looked back at Roku with restrained excitement. "Well, seeing as we're in something like an air temple… why not airbending?" 

"A fitting choice. Follow me." 

'I'm finally going to learn how to bend an element! Hell yeah!'

-=-

Author's Note: How was the chapter? Did I capture Azula's and Zuko's characters right in their dialogue? If not, comment what I can do to improve. Other feedback would be nice too.

Thanks for reading. Stay tuned for the next chapter.