Book Two Finale

Zuko hums to himself as he pours steaming tea into cups on a tray. There's something quite relaxing about the motion. Ever since the battle beneath Lake Laogai, he'd simply been running his tea shop, waiting for things to coalesce as he knew they would. There was no real reason to push things too fast. He had all the pieces, not that anyone knew it. Smirking, the young Fire Lord glances up and outwards into his tea shop, now set up on the upper ring.

The vast majority of his 'patrons' at this point are Kyoshi Warriors, who arrived just a week ago at his behest. Suki leads them, though Zuko doesn't see her at the moment among her subordinates. He does see Azula though. Azula, Ty Lee, and Mai… all three look quite good in the Kyoshi Warrior's face paint and garb, and honestly, he has to resist the desire to go over there and fuck his own sister silly.

Of course, that might have had less to do with how she was dressed and more to do with the bedroom eyes she kept giving him, her desire for him to notice her and use her very obvious in her lust-filled gaze and the bent of her painted face. She would have to wait though. Azula was not his main concern at the moment, not even really on his radar. She and her friends were simply a force multiplier for the Kyoshi Warriors and his eventual plans to dethrone the Earth King with a coup, delivering Ba Sing Se to the Fire Nation… and more importantly, to himself.

Truth be told, he could have probably convinced the sniveling man-baby to surrender now, if he wanted. Taking over the numerous Joo Dees had led to an inevitably… he now controlled the entirety of the Dai Li, thanks to Long Feng's arrest. With control of the Dai Li and the Joo Dees, as well as all of his followers who had already managed to infiltrate the city… it would take the forces Ba Sing Se currently had guarding its walls to stop Zuko from taking over, and that would just leave the city undefended from the Fire Nation armies that surrounded it.

The Earth King was in check, and he didn't even know it. The thought, as it always does, brings a smile to Zuko's face as he finishes pouring the tea and grabs up the tray, bringing it out into the tea shop proper. The group of Kyoshi Warriors he serves the tea to look at him with lust-filled eyes of their own, their one-time experience with him clearly still fresh in their minds despite all the time that's passed since then. They want him, and the idea of being served tea by him seems to be something of a turn on for the lot of them.

Well, maybe later. He has work to do, but he'll make sure the bevy of warrior women get their itches scratched one way or another by the time this is all over. He already has ideas for how that might come about, when things are said and done, and control of the city falls to him. But that is still a little way off, a couple weeks away at least at this point. It would-

Ah, there's Suki. Though, she's approaching rather quickly, with something of a determined, fearful look on her face. As he finishes delivering the tea, Zuko straightens up just in time for her to place her hand on her arm and whisper into his ear.

"We need to talk…"

Nodding slightly, Zuko leads Suki into the back, away from prying eyes. To be fair, most of the people in the front of the tea shop are under his control, but there's no point in risking inquisitive ears overhearing things. Once they're out of view, Zuko turns to Suki and straightens up almost imperceptibly, going from his person of Tea Shop Owner to his identity as the Fire Lord.

Suki doesn't fail to notice this, and her own shoulders straighten slightly as well in the presence of her Master, even as she presses her lips into a thin line.

"What is it, Suki?"

"I… Katara knows."

Zuko's eyebrows both go up at that, and while his first reaction is something akin to panic or recklessness in silencing the Water Tribe girl, he wouldn't be Fire Lord if he did whatever the fuck came into his mind in situations of stress.

"What exactly does Katara know?"

Seeming to realize she wasn't clear enough, Suki glances over at the front of the tea shop, specifically, at Zuko's sister.

"Katara knows that Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee are in the city, masquerading as Kyoshi Warriors. She just warned me about it. She wants me to work with the Earth King's men to bring them down in some sort of… sting operation, or what have you."

Pondering this information for a moment, Zuko asks the most important question next.

"But she does not know about me yet?"

Suki just shakes her head. That was good. Katara catching on to Azula's presence was a problem, yes… but not an insurmountable one. If she'd found out that the Fire Lord himself was in the city masquerading as a Tea Shop owner, that would have been a lot worse. But then, Zuko had changed up a lot about himself since they'd all met in the North Pole. Azula, meanwhile, had changed nothing beyond painting her face, so it was no surprise that she'd been found out.

"… We'll have to move up our plans, and in the meantime, we need a way to distract Katara from taking this information to the Earth King. Not that he would do anything but send the Dai Li after Azula, but that would then expose my authority overriding his own, as the Dai Li would not fail unless they chose to fail."

Zuko finds himself murmuring all of this under his breath, even as he considers his options. Finally, he settles on a course of action. Suki, meanwhile, has been hovering at his side this entire time. This puts her in perfect range for him to snake a hand through her hair and pull her into a deep, passionate, tongue-filled kiss. Her eyes widen in surprise as Zuko dominates her mouth with his own, but she eagerly presses her body up against his, moaning into his lips.

When they pull apart, she looks ready for so much more, but Zuko just smiles at her.

"Soon, Suki. Soon… but for now, there are things you'll have to do for me."

Suki bites her lower lip at that and averts her gaze.

"Just… I don't want you to hurt them."

For a brief moment, Zuko is surprised. But then he realizes he really shouldn't be. Even if she is addicted to his presence, and utterly loyal, she's still her own woman. If he ordered her to say, wipe out a town of innocents, she would immediately betray him, even likely try to kill him. After all, she was still a Kyoshi Warrior, and no matter how good the sex was, she had her honor. Or some semblance of it.

Zuko was well-aware of that, and he'd taken great pains to avoid losing her loyalty, or the loyalty of those beneath her, after he first gained it under… rather dubious circumstances. These days, she and her sisters were true believers in the cause… but only so long as the cause remained just.

"Does anything about what I've done since you came into my service think I mean to intend them harm, Suki?"

He's impressed when she doesn't immediately back down. Looking him in the eye, the leader of the Kyoshi Warriors juts out her chin.

"P-Perhaps not… but it's the Avatar. She's all that stands between you and finishing this, really."

Chuckling to himself, Zuko nods.

"She has all the power in the world… but at the same time, less power than you might think. I do not fear the Avatar, Suki. And as far as her companions are concerned, I've made promises to more than one mother to keep them safe. Katara, Sokka, Toph… none of them have anything to worry about from me. As for Aang, she will come around to my way of thinking eventually. I won't ruin the chance of that happening by harming her or hers before then. Does that at least make sense?"

Suki nods, her willfulness diminishing and Zuko lets out a soft sigh.

"Good… let's get to work."

There was a lot to do now. Zuko had no doubt in his mind that things had just gotten… interesting.

-x-X-x-

Katara could scarcely believe her ears when the information came to her. She'd been fretting over her discovery of Azula and her friends within the ranks of the Kyoshi Warriors, but Suki had told her not to worry, that she would handle it. Katara would have already gone to the Earth King if she thought he could help, but when she really thought about it, all he could do was command the Dai Li… and she wasn't exactly on good terms with them at this point.

Regardless, after everything that had happened, Team Avatar had found themselves in the Earth King's favor, living it up in the Palace as Aang tried to convince the Earth King that Long Feng had been tricking him all this time, and yes, there was a massive army aiming to break down Ba Sing Se's walls any moment and take over the city. While Long Feng's initial treachery had been easy enough to prove and the man was now locked up as the criminal he was, convincing the Earth King that Ba Sing Se was in danger was proving a little bit harder. The man was weak-willed, and all of Team Avatar had been banging their heads against the problem for a while now.

But this? The Blue Spirit had been following them for a long time, Katara had realized that pretty early on. It felt like almost all of them had had experiences with the masked swordsman by this point, though whether he was a thief or a hero or what, she couldn't say. So, when Suki sent word that the Kyoshi Warriors had captured the Blue Spirit in the middle of a theft in Ba Sing Se's upper ring, Katara really hadn't been sure what to do or say. In the end, she'd demanded that he be brought before her.

The door to the sitting room she's chosen within the Earth King's palace for this meeting abruptly opens, and Katara's thoughts derail. Speak of the devil, and he shall appear. Turning, the young waterbending prodigy watches as Suki and two of her Kyoshi Warriors escort the Blue Spirit into the room. He's still masked, but his hands are tied behind his back. However, in Suki's grip are a pair of swords that Katara would recognize anywhere at this point.

"This is him?"

Suki nods, eyeing the Blue Spirit for a moment. Briefly, Katara wonders why they haven't unmasked the thief, but she doesn't want to appear stupid by asking. Instead, trying to maintain a sense of authority to go along with the new position she has as one of the Earth King's advisors, Katara keeps her head held high and her words crisp.

"Leave us."

That gets an incredulous look from Suki and the other two Kyoshi Warriors, and Katara can tell that they're all surprised by her order.

"Katara, are you sure that's a good idea?"

Biting her lip, she tries not to show her nervousness, but ultimately, she fails. Still, she keeps her back rigid and straight as she looks at Suki.

"I want to speak with him alone. Besides, you have his swords and I have my waterbending. He's not going anywhere. Go on… wait outside."

She softens her tone at the end there. Suki isn't some kind of servant she can just order around after all, she's a friend. And Katara knows that Suki's worry for her comes from a place of friendship. Regardless, the Kyoshi Warrior bows and departs with her two subordinates at her back, leaving Katara alone with the Blue Spirit. As soon as they're gone, she lets out a breath she didn't even realize she was holding.

"You… you are him, aren't you?"

The Blue Spirit cocks his head to the side silently, but Katara doesn't really need confirmation. She's developed a sense for this kind of thing. This IS the Blue Spirit. She's sure of that.

"I want to thank you, for all you've done for us. For Aang, for Toph. Um… but you can't keep stealing. Not here. I can let you go, and we can say you overpowered me, but you have to… you have to leave Ba Sing Se."

Walking forward with purpose, Katara circles around the absolutely still masked swordsman, and begins undoing his bindings. As she does so, she talks.

"I'm sorry about your swords, but you have to write them off as a loss. You need to get out of here, and the Kyoshi Warriors caught you once. If you go after them for revenge, they'll just do it again."

Maybe it was wrong to free the Blue Spirit, maybe it was wrong to give him this chance. But truth be told, Katara had seen the kind of decadence and opulence that ran rampant through the palace and the upper ring. Stealing from those people was… well, it still wasn't good, but it wasn't like he was taking food off their tables. Still, for all that he'd done for her friends, Katara was willing to let him walk away.

The ropes finally come away, and the Blue Spirit takes a few steps forward, away from her, as his hands come up from behind his back and he rubs at his wrists. He stops in the center of the room and looks around for a moment before turning to look at her. Katara senses no hostility in his posture though, her hackles not raised by his presence. He wasn't threatening, not like this. Instead… he was almost curious.

"Why would I leave, Katara? Everything I want is right here."

Her eyes widen slightly as the Blue Spirit finally speaks. She hadn't expected that. Nor… nor had she expected the voice to be somewhat familiar, if a little muffled. What… where had she heard it before? She honestly couldn't say, exactly. She'd definitely heard it though, the face and name of who owned that voice were on the tip of her tongue.

And then the Blue Spirit makes the point moot by reaching up and disengaging his mask from his face, pulling it away and holding it by his side. And there, standing before her, just as she saw him at the North Pole, albeit dressed in tight-fitted leather armor from neck to toe, is the Fire Lord, Zuko.

"Y-You!"

Zuko smiles simply.

"Me. I would appreciate it if you would be willing to hear me out, Katara. There's no need to attack me, no need to run, no need to call for help. I'm not here to fight you."

If not for the meeting in the North Pole, she would have doubted that very much. But then, if not for that meeting, she may not have even recognized his voice and face. As it is, the Fire Lord is standing in the middle of one of the Earth King's sitting rooms, surrounded, though she's not sure he knows it, by several pitchers of water that she's had put around the room. Katara is not in any true danger, she's SURE she can beat him back and capture him easily before he can do anything at all.

So maybe she could listen to him for a little bit, maybe she could hear him out. The thing was… the last time they'd heard the Fire Lord out, Katara knew she and the others had all come away conflicted. He had her mother, after all… and yet, the letters from Kya had never stopped, and their contents made it quite clear that the only reason she was able to send them at all was because of Zuko's kindness, his generosity, and his evenhanded rule.

Those letters were Katara's only connection to her mother. She would treasure each and every one of them until she could be in Kya's arms again, until they could meet in the flesh, face to face, once more. But Zuko had a way with words that Katara admittedly feared, just a bit. She couldn't exactly come out and say that though, now could she?

Lips thinned out, the waterbender stands at the ready, but ultimately jerks her head up and down in a nod.

"Talk."

Zuko smiles and then surprises her by moving to sit on one of the couches. He lets out a sigh, and gestures to the other end of the couch.

"Would you like to sit as well?"

She shouldn't, and she knows she shouldn't. He's supposed to be her enemy, he's supposed to be THE enemy. And yet, their conversation at the North Pole comes back to her as she considers the offer, as does every interaction her friends have had with him in his Blue Spirit persona. There's not even a moment where Katara considers Zuko might have been stealing the Blue Spirit's identity for his own. No, it just… it makes too much sense. She believes it.

And for some reason, she finds herself sitting down on the couch beside him. Not directly beside him of course, as far away as she can in fact, but still, she sits and he smiles, and somehow Katara feels like she's lost a fight she didn't even know she was part of.

"The people of the Earth Kingdom… do not deserve the hardships that have been heaped upon them, Katara. They do not deserve this strife, this grief, this sorrow."

"Then why are you causing all of this?"

The words slip free before she can stop herself, and Zuko smiles wider still as Katara fights back a blush.

"We talked about this before Katara. Or at least, I and the Avatar did. War… war is not so easily ended. If I stop now, if I pull back now, far more people will be hurt by my ending the war in such a manner then if I finished it with a victory. My father, and my grandfather, tyrants that they were, spent the last hundred years destabilizing and wrecking this world that we all live on. My only choice now, is to take what remains in my hands and mold it into something anew, into something that can actually WORK for those who live here."

Katara purses her lips together, trying to find a way to argue against him. But it's hard, because in her travels at Aang's side, she's seen exactly what he's talking about. A hundred years of war have changed the face of the world far too much for things to ever go back to the way they were before. But that… that doesn't mean Zuko's way is the only way, right?

"The Earth Kingdom already HAS an Earth King. Why can't you just negotiate with him? Why can't you make an Alliance with him, like you did with the Northern Water Tribe when you married Yue?"

Zuko seems to actually be considering her words, as he sits back and watches her quietly for a moment. Katara tries to keep herself from being overly pleased by this, but its hard. He really is a handsome young man, and there are several things about him that, well… make him attractive.

"The Northern Water Tribe is strong. Albeit with their faults, especially where the distribution of power among the sexes is concerned, but they have good leadership. And with Yue at my side, I can change their views on the roles of women in society, slowly but surely, simply by leading by example. Yue is as much the ruler of the Fire Nation as I am now, and by showing that, we provoke change. However…"

Katara doesn't even realize she's doing it until he pauses, but she's actually leaning forward slightly, hanging off his every word. The thought of equality among the sexes, the thought of the rampant misogyny that she's been encountering on her travels with Aang being… curtailed, is indeed intoxicating to the young waterbender. Very intoxicating. Of course, there's always a catch, isn't there?

"The Earth King is weak, Katara. The Earth Kingdom's leadership is fragile, and it has been since Chin the Conqueror. Now don't get me wrong, he was a man who needed to be removed in the same way my father and grandfather needed to be removed. But Avatar Kyoshi could have done more than she did. She could have stabilized the Earth Nation and made it into something like the Northern Water Tribe or the Fire Nation. Instead… she left it as it was, and the leadership has festered into this thing we have now, before us."

He pauses briefly, and really looks at her.

"Can you honestly say that the Ba Sing Se is a fair and just place? Even with the removal of Long Feng, can you truly say that those who live in this city are equals? Or are they beholden to the whims of the man-child with a pet bear who sits on the throne?"

Katara… Katara wants to disagree with him. She wants to bristle in offense on the Earth King's behalf. Yet, hadn't she just been thinking disparaging thoughts about the poor man a little while ago? And truth be told, WAS the Earth King really meant to be a ruler, truly meant to be in charge? Her father had been Chieftain of the Southern Water Tribe. Now, HE'D been a leader. Katara, honestly, didn't have many other examples save for the one in front of her… or Bumi. Now that was another example of the truth in Zuko's words. Bumi was strong, sure… but he was also insane. Was he really leadership material either?

"But… would you truly be any better?"

Zuko smiles at that, and Katara realizes that by even asking the question, she's entertaining the idea of him… him deposing the Earth King. And by conjunction, her helping him do so. Before she can open her mouth to take it back however, Zuko answers her.

"I'd certainly like to try, Katara. Ba Sing Se is doomed to fall, one way or another. Be it by my hand, or by the weapons of war that are even now encroaching on the walls outside. Yes, stopping the drill was impressive enough, and truth be told, I was expecting it to happen. It's worked quite well into my current plans. But let's be practical. Let's be fair. Ba Sing Se is one fleet of airships away from the walls being turned obsolete."

Zuko takes in a deep breath, even as Katara feels a pang of fear at the implications.

"My way is ultimately the fastest, and the least bloody. I knew before coming here that there would be cracks that I could exploit… but I doubt either of us expected things to be as fragile and close to shattering as they are now. The corruption in the Dai Li, the crimes of Long Feng… the Earth King's weakness. Only I can give the Earth Nation the leadership and the structure it needs to become great once more."

Katara finds herself at a loss. He's the one leaning towards her now, as he speaks in a fever pitch, his passion clear as day. And yet, she's not pulling back from him, is she? She's not…

"There are people out there who believe bending is what's causing all our problems. But that's not the case. It's the benders themselves, the people who gain these magnificent abilities… and then use them to hide behind walls, use them to build borders and separate themselves. There is no reason that we should be segregated by our unique abilities to bend the elements. The Fire Nation, the Water Tribe, the Earth Kingdom… even the Air Temples… why? Why did we split off and look down upon each other for so long? Perhaps if we hadn't, my predecessors would not have been able to make war and destroy so much of this world so damn easily!"

He's inches away now, their eyes locked together.

"I want to destroy as well, Katara. Perhaps its in my bloodline. But I wish to destroy the things that keep us apart, not the things that bring us together. The isolation that brought about the lack of understanding or sense of equality is exactly what I intend to break apart in my hands. It is time for the people of this world to unite in one cause… the betterment of all."

His voice grows soft by the end, and Katara finds herself leaning in minutely, closer and closer… until finally, their lips touch. Neither of them actually went for the initial 'kiss', to the point that it couldn't necessarily be CALLED a kiss. But the next one certainly was, as they pushed in at the same time, her lips pressing against his and their eyes drifting shut.

Oh, by the spirits, what is she THINKING? And yet, Katara keeps kissing him. She keeps kissing Zuko, and he keeps kissing her back, and he's the Fire Lord, he's her enemy… but he's also a cute boy with so much passion and desire to see the world be a better place, and he's right there and maybe… maybe Katara has been looking for something like this for a while.

Regardless. Their hands inevitably come up and grab at one another, and things escalate quickly, far quickly than Katara would have expected. But she never tries to stop him. Not when his hands slide along her sides and up to her breasts, not when he begins to work at her clothing. If anything, she follows his lead. Her own hands work at his leather armor, though it takes her a lot more time to find all of the ties and what not, and in the end, he does have to help her a little.

Regardless, the dark-skinned waterbender soon finds herself on her back on the couch, with Zuko of all people kneeling between her legs. He leans down over her, and they kiss again, their tongues intertwining as he laces his fingers through her hair and holds her tightly to him. It feels so intimate, but then to be fair, that's exactly what it is. It's the most intimate that Katara has ever been with anyone.

And yet, it seems right. She can't explain why, even as he puts the tip of his… of his p-penis at her slit and begins to push in, causing her lips to flower around his cock. Katara gasps as he bumps into her hymen, and then yelps when he pushes right through it. He's made her a woman, and all she can do is moan as he holds her close, as he lets her adjust.

When he starts to make love to her, Katara reciprocates. She shouldn't be doing this, but no matter how many times that thought runs through her mind, it doesn't change the fact that she is doing it, and she's not listening to logic at this point. Her own passions fuel her, as do Zuko's, and together, they create something beautiful in that moment, a joining between the two of them that has Katara crying out as Zuko seems to know all the right places to provoke all the right sorts of reaction out of her.

Of course, she might have been a little upset if she found out that the reason Zuko knew her body so well was because she was Kya's daughter, through and through. But that was neither here nor there in that moment, and all Katara could do was bask in the pleasure as Zuko took her and bedded her. Not exactly on a bed of course, nor even on top of some furs like was Water Tribe tradition.

No, they were fucking in one of the Earth King's sitting rooms, in Ba Sing Se's palace. That thought alone was enough to give Katara some pause, but by the time it hit her, Zuko was already burying himself inside of her again and again, and she was coming up on her next orgasm. The location washed from her mind, as did everything else… and it wasn't until it was all over and Zuko had seeded her womb that any sense of rational thought came back to Katara.

Just as she was beginning to panic while held in the naked young Fire Lord's arms, Zuko spoke up, his voice a soft murmur as he rubbed circles into her dark flesh with pale thumbs.

"The night that my father and grandfather died by my hand… it happened because I caught Ursa giving my sister a rather cryptic goodbye. I'm glad I did. Confronting my mother and coaxing her into telling me what she had planned was the smartest thing I could have ever done. Azulon intended to have Ozai kill me. I was to die for my father's greed, so that Ozai might learn what it meant to lose a firstborn son."

Her panic begins to fade, unable to escape being utterly captivated by what Zuko is telling her, something that practically no one else could possibly know.

"Ursa was going to stop it, you see. My mother was going to assassinate my grandfather. But then she was going to have to leave. She was going to flee for what else could she do if she committed such a crime? I refused to let her do that of course. But the only way I could possibly stop her, was if I acted in her stead."

Zuko pauses briefly, as if remembering. Katara's breath hitches as she glances up at the young Fire Lord's face. The blazing intensity in his eyes as he stares off into the distance is… well, she already thinks he's hot, doesn't she? Katara blushes at the rather… girly thought.

"Luring my father to the throne room with a false message was easy enough. Challenging him to an Agni Kai in the presence of grandfather was a bit more nerve-wracking. But after they found out I knew, after I demanded that my father work for my death, if I was to die anyways… grandfather was amused enough to allow it."

A soft chuckle leaves Zuko's lips.

"It was the last mistake he ever made. My father was my better in every way, Katara. I was a prodigy, to be fair. I still am, and at this point, I probably could take Ozai in a fair fight, if he were still with us. But back then, I was merely desperate to survive… so I did what I had to do, and I used the lightning that neither my father nor my grandfather knew I could wield."

The chuckle ends, and Zuko's face grows solemn.

"The look on grandfather's face as I struck him down with that first lightning strike still haunts me. He was a monster… but he was also the first man I ever killed. In the moment of surprise that followed, father didn't even fight back as I ended him as well. I didn't want to. I didn't want to kill either of them, nor do I have any desire to kill ANYONE. But they forced my hand. And I like to think… I like to think the world is a better place now that they're gone. I like to think I can make the world a better place, now that they're not doing any more damage to it."

She was spellbound, by the end of it. As Zuko looks down at her, clearly wary of her reaction, Katara finds herself staring up at him, wide-eyed and mouth agape. She's having a hard time processing everything he's told her. And yet… and yet, is he not right? He had to do it. For his family, sure… but also for the world. The thought of killing wasn't something that had ever crossed her mind. Especially not when it came to Zuko, but maybe that was because he'd seemed so… open-minded at the North Pole.

Maybe she'd thought that once Aang fully came into her own, the Fire Lord could be cowed into submission, reasoned with, and ultimately forced to end the war. The Avatar would command it, and Zuko would bow his head, realizing he had no choice. In that moment however, with her sweaty, naked flesh pressed against his own, held in his arms with his seed leaking out from betwixt her thighs… Katara realizes for the first time that it's not going to be that easy.

Slowly, Zuko extracts himself from their embrace, laying her on the couch and standing up. Katara immediately sits up after that, but she doesn't stand. She's still too busy processing everything, from Zuko's words to her own internal revelations. Her hands cling to the couch edge as Zuko begins to get dressed.

"You… you won't stop, will you? Not until you're dead."

As Zuko affixes his leather armor back to his body, he looks at her and smiles sadly.

"No, Katara. I won't. So long as blood flows through my veins and my heart beats in my chest… I won't stop. I can't stop. There's so much suffering in this world, and so much that I can do to alleviate it. I won't let my father and grandfather's mistakes define me or the Fire Nation… and I certainly won't let their actions go unanswered. The world has suffered long enough. It's time to fix what was broken and destroy the old barriers that hold us apart."

By the time he's done speaking, he's already dressed. Katara looks up to say something, but Zuko is at the door, the Blue Spirit mask back on his face.

"Goodbye Katara. I suspect we'll see each other again very soon."

And then he's gone. Katara's eyes go wide when she hears exclamations and shouts and the sound of combat right outside, but even as she jolts to her feet, she realizes she's still naked. By the time she gets her own clothes back on and stumbles out of the sitting room, it's to find Suki and the other two Kyoshi Warriors on the ground, beaten but largely unhurt.

"K-Katara! Thank the heavens you're alright. When the Blue Spirit ambushed us, I feared the worst. How did he get free?"

Katara flushes a deep red of embarrassment as Suki looks at her in concern and a single, succinct thought coalesces in her mind.

Fuck.

-x-X-x-

"Enough!"

As Zuko's commanding tone resonates through the Crystal Cave, combat ceases and those under his command pull back as Team Avatar takes a moment to try and recover from the relentless assault they'd been under. To be fair, they'd all been doing quite well for themselves… they were just outnumbered and outmatched from the very beginning.

Knowing that Katara would get over her embarrassment swiftly enough, Zuko had moved his plans up. The coup had taken place, and the Earth King had been arrested. Ba Sing Se was his… but of course, so long as the Avatar and her friends had something to say about that, it wasn't entirely true. Zuko had kept the Kyoshi Warriors out of things but used Azula and Mai and Ty Lee to the fullest extent.

Even then, it had been the most exhilarating, most challenging fight of his life… until the Dai Li, now completely loyal to their Fire Lord, had shown up and turned the tables. At that point, it had become obvious that Team Avatar was going to go down sooner or later. Yet, rather than pushing the advantage, Zuko was giving them this respite, allowing them a small reprieve.

Katara was looking at him betrayed. Toph seemed confused as well, and he could tell she now knew that the young man who'd taken her virginity and the Fire Lord himself were one in the same. The earthbender would be conflicted, that was for sure. Meanwhile, Sokka had an angry expression, and it was clear that he wasn't ready to talk at all.

Aang was much the same. The beautiful young woman who was also the Avatar looked determined and resolved, holding her staff before her at the ready. Letting out a sigh, Zuko spreads his arms wide and repeats himself, much more quietly this time.

"Enough. Don't you think it's time to stop fighting? There's no point… the battle is over. Surely you can see that."

"We won't just give up and let you take us prisoner!"

That's Sokka of course. Always the hot head. Is it wrong that Zuko can't wait to see the water tribe warrior breed his sister? Given the glances she keeps giving him, Azula certainly thinks so. But he's already told her he's not going to give her another child until Sokka do so. Still, the most she contributes to the conversation is silence. Probably for the best, she's not the most diplomatic person.

"How quickly you forget my words. Do you not remember the North Pole, truly? What did I say? I have no wish to take any of you prisoner. I have no desire to strip your freedom from you. When you come to me, it must be willing."

He pauses briefly, for effect.

"But as I stated then as well, the Avatar and her companions will ALWAYS have a place in my court. All you need do is ask."

"Y-You just conquered a city in front of us! Why would we join you?!"

Zuko just sighs, though he has a wistful smile on his face as he shakes his head. That had been Aang, and it was obvious that the young woman was still struggling with the simple lesson Zuko had learned long ago. Sometimes you had to make the tough choice to help the most people. Ba Sing Se was a festering putrid wound on the world that needed to be excised, not just for those living within it, but for everyone outside as well. Until it fell, nothing would have gotten better, nothing COULD have. Now… now he could begin to put it all back on the right track.

But Aang wasn't going to listen to that. Didn't stop Zuko from trying to reason with the beautiful Avatar anyways.

"Because I did so bloodlessly? Because no one died today as a result of this… changing of the guard? Ba Sing Se has fallen… and yet, no one among the general populace will even realize it. Oh sure, they'll see Fire Nation soldiers in the streets soon enough, but under my rule, they won't be bothered. And unlike before, they'll have all the opportunities in the world to expand, to reach higher than they've ever been allowed to before. Ba Sing Se is no longer a honeyed trap, no longer a gilded cage where the desperate and weary find themselves unable to escape. I can promise you that."

Aang's determination does crack a little bit, but Sokka is there to back her up, and the boy leans over to whisper something to the Avatar. What it is, Zuko doesn't know. Katara and Toph both hear it too though, and from the looks on their faces, he can guess that it's some sort of escape plan. Letting out a sigh, Zuko snaps his fingers.

"The Avatar and her companions will be allowed to leave the city unmolested, so long as they do not make any more aggressive moves."

His words cut through Team Avatar's little impromptu planning session like that, and once they manage to process through Sokka's thick skull, the water tribe warrior spins about, eyes wide as he stares up at the Fire Lord.

"What?!"

Zuko just smirks, even as Azula bites her lower lip beside him. The outrage in Sokka's face is… hilarious. Like he's actually disappointed that he doesn't get to fight some more. To be fair, from what Zuko's seen, Sokka has grown in leaps and bounds as a warrior, since leaving home with the Avatar. It's what made him decide to use the boy as Azula's next cream-filling in the first place.

Alas, it was not to be, at least for now. They weren't ready yet. Maybe with a little more time, Aang and the others would finally figure out that they weren't his enemies, and he needn't be theirs. But that wasn't today.

"What about the Earth King? What happens to him?"

That's Aang, of course. Always thinking of others. Zuko just chuckles and waves a hand dismissively.

"You can have him. Take the bear with you too. He's nothing to me."

That gets looks of incredulity from all four of them, but Zuko just shrugs his shoulders and smiles benignly.

"Omashu has fallen. And now so has Ba Sing Se. What's left for him to run to? Who will rally behind a weak-willed leader, when all now know that he was nothing but a puppet to a disgusting, corrupt bureaucrat for all of his life?"

What goes unsaid, and what Zuko thinks none of them fully realize, is that Ba Sing Se's real power, and thus the last real power of the dying Earth Kingdom, was more centered in the Council of Five then anything else. Said Council of Five were now his, and they would not be going ANYWHERE.

Regardless, with Zuko's decision to let them go free, the battle was derailed. Aang and the others seemed to realize that there was no victory to be had here today, only retreat. So Zuko let them go, and he let them have the King and his bear as well. He had no need for an impotent man-child, when he could install a real leader to run the city in his name instead.

Still, there is some small part of him that wishes the Avatar and her friends had finally been ready. Katara had certainly given herself to him easily enough. But reckless passionate sex was a lot different then submitting to an authority that you had been raised and conditioned to think was evil, he supposed. In the end, watching the flying bison drift off into the distance with Team Avatar on its back, Zuko just shook his head and smiled softly.

There would be a time when they joined him. He knew it, deep in his heart. One day, they would work with him, rather than against him. For now, it was time to enjoy the fruits of his labor.

"Mai."

The young woman, still dressed as a Kyoshi Warrior, steps up to his side immediately.

"Yes, Fire Lord?"

Zuko hums to himself for a moment.

"Fetch Jin for me, well you? Bring her to the palace. It's time to see if she… well, if she wants what I want."

"As you say, Fire Lord."

Mai is gone a moment later, ever the faithful, reliable servant. Zuko just smiles slightly wider and then begins to make his way to the Earth King's throne room. That was where the fun would take place, after all.

-x-X-x-

Jin wasn't sure what was going on, to be perfectly honest. But she'd seen the Kyoshi Warriors walking around the city a lot in recent weeks, and she'd heard they were reporting directly to the Earth King himself. So, when one came around and asked her to come to the palace, Jin went with her. But… the palace seemed off, a little bit. There were a lot of Dai Li, and not a lot of normal servants. Was that how the palace always was? It felt strange, but to be fair, Jin didn't know any better.

However, when they finally made it to the throne room, that's when she knew everything had changed. The Kyoshi Warrior who escorted her has her take the lead as the large doors open, but Jin stops dead in her tracks as she takes in the sight before her. Her eyes go wide, and her jaw drop opens… because as far as the eye can see, it's a massive orgy of decadence and debauchery that Jin could only imagine out of her wildest fantasies. And to be fair, ever since her night with… with Lee, she's had some pretty wild fantasies. Her sexual side has been fully awakened by her encounters with the amorous boy, and she…

But this? This isn't what she was expecting. The orgy is made up of Dai Li and Joo Dees, not that Jin knows what all of the similar looking women truly are. There's also Kyoshi Warriors and Jet's Freedom Fighters in the mix, making the orgy look a little less uniform, giving it a bit more color. Jin doesn't recognize half of them, but everyone that Zuko has brought in to help him with the conquest of Ba Sing Se is currently taking part…

A hand pushes into her back, and Jin yelps a little as she's jostled forward. The Kyoshi Warrior behind her looks almost bored as she nods for her to keep moving, and Jin wonders for a moment if she's seeing what Jin is seeing. But yes, she has to be… she just isn't as shocked by it as the young woman is. Moving into the crowd, Jin is surprised when she finds a path to the throne opening up right before her.

She's even more surprised when she sees who's waiting on the throne for her. Zuko sits upon the Earth King's throne as Azula and Suki attend to him, while a leashed June kneels between his legs, bobbing up and down on his cock. But Jin knows none of this. All she sees is Lee, with other girls… and truth be told, rather than anger, it fills her with a strange sort of desire brought on by envy and jealousy, both burning bright in her belly.

Zuko, noticing the arrival, smiles and beckons her forward. She should be mad at him, but Jin hurries to the edge of the throne, glad that he's at least acknowledging her existence when surrounded by such beauties.

"Jin… I haven't been entirely honest with you. My name is not Lee. It's Zuko. And I am the Fire Lord."

Jin's eyes bulge out of her skull at that admission, and what follows. Zuko goes on to do some introductions and explain everything that's happened to the young woman who's virginity he took, and Jin just kind of stands there and takes it all in. He even mentions things that don't really make sense to her, like that one woman named Smellerbee is now pregnant and there's a betting pool on who's the father.

But she gets the general gist of it. The boy she's fallen in love with is no boy at all, but the ruler of an entire nation… a nation that has been at war with her homeland for a hundred years. He's the Fire Lord… and that means Ba Sing Se has fallen without anyone even KNOWING about it. Jin stands there, amidst the massive orgy going on around her… and she's never ever been more turned on than she is in this moment.

"I want to give you a choice, Jin. It's a rather simple one."

Focusing on him, Jin drinks in his words, biting her lower lip and squirming.

"You can leave, if you like. You can go back to your life in the city and pretend this visit never happened. It doesn't matter if you tell anyone, the city walls are going to fall before the night's end, and the Fire Nation will be occupying Ba Sing Se within two days. It will be a completely bloodless transition of power, I assure you, and you can continue living your life with minimal interruptions, if that is what you wish."

That was not what she wished. That wasn't what she wanted at all. Judging by the knowing grin on Zuko's face, he already realizes this. He always was good at reading her…

"Or… or you can take this gorgeous dress I picked out for you and put it on. Dance for me and convince me that you want to be my pretty little harem dancer, that you want to please me and serve me in any way I see fit… that you want to bear my children, or the children of any man I choose."

The skimpy harem dress is brought out, and while it's in Earth Nation colors, Jin can't help but believe it's from an age long past. And yet, Zuko is asking her to put on the slutty thing all the same. More than that, he's asking her to forsake her freedom and become… become nothing more than his pet, a slave to his whims. She… of course she takes the dress from the Kyoshi Warrior who brought her here, who Zuko has named as Mai.

She strips almost eagerly out of her other clothes and slips the harem dress over her head as Zuko watches on with approval written across his face. He nods at her when she looks up at him, so Jin begins to move. She sways, to the sounds all around her. There's no actual music to dance to… but the moans and groans and squeals and cries of pleasure filling the throne room have a melody all their own.

As the orgy continues on unabated, without fail, Jin dances. She dances, and she shows off her body to Zuko, eager to please the young man who captured her everything. She honestly doesn't care if he's the Fire Lord. Even if he was Lee, he could probably have talked her into this. It's just more REAL, now that she knows he's a ruler, now that she realizes he could have anyone he wanted… and he chose HER to be his harem girl.

Perhaps it's unhealthy, but Jin doesn't care. She's happy, and so long as Zuko keeps her by his side, she'll remain happy.

-x-X-x-

As Jin dances, swaying her hips to the sounds of the orgy and letting her eyes drift shut as she shows off her body to him in every way she can, Zuko smiles and then looks to his left, where his sister lounges against the throne.

"Go, Azula. Prepare Jin for me, will you?"

Azula bites her lower lip and gives him her best puppy dog eyes. Sighing, Zuko reaches up and grabs a fistful of his sister's hair, dragging her in close. She gasps slightly at the discomfort, but they both know she loves the rough treatment.

"Yes… I did tell you that I wasn't going to breed you again until Sokka impregnated you, didn't I? But now he and the Avatar are gone, and this party will have to continue without them. My decree stands, dear sister… but I may have an idea for how you might get to earn my cock, before the end of this all. Another man, no one near as impressive as Sokka, will have to breed you of course. For now… do as you're told."

He pushes her away, and Azula moves to obey. Jin yelps as she's grabbed from behind by the Fire Princess, and then she moans as Azula's hands move all over her body. Meanwhile, even as Zuko watches his sister prepare his new slave girl for his cock, the young Fire Lord reaches over and takes Suki by the arm, pulling her from his right side on top of him.

June is displaced, but she takes it good-naturedly, pulling back and kneeling there as Suki finds herself between Jin and Zuko, moaning as his cock teases her entrance. Zuko holds her by her wrists as she stands before him partially bent over, ready to impale herself on his length at any moment.

"You've done well, Suki. In so many ways… and have I given you reason to doubt me? Have I given you cause to be upset with me?"

"N-No, Fire Lord. Thank you… t-thank you for showing mercy."

Zuko chuckles at that.

"Mercy would have been taking them prisoner here. The more time they spend out there, the more they'll realize I'm right, and that my way is the only way… just as you have. It'll be a hard-learned lesson for them, I'm sure of it. But until then… you've earned this reward."

Zuko pulls her back, and Suki cries out in ecstasy as his cock fills her. At the same time, the Fire Lord stands up from his throne, and Suki ends up bent over before him. This gives him full view of the throne room and the massive orgy taking place within it, but Zuko's attention is mostly focused on Azula and Jin, his eyes staring into Jin's eyes as he fucks the leader of the Kyoshi Warriors in front of everyone.

June makes herself useful of course, licking and nipping at poor Suki's clit even as she fingers her own cunt in anticipation. But most of all, this is about Suki. And Suki has DEFINITELY earned what Zuko is giving her. As she cums again and again around his cock, as she orgasms over and over, Zuko pounds into her with all his might, battering down her cervix and entering her womb itself. He's single-minded in his ultimate goal, and it's not long before Suki cries out and orgasms explosively in a whole different way from the sensation of his seed pumping directly into her womb.

Once he's done cumming inside of her, once he's done BREEDING her, Zuko lets go of Suki's wrists, allowing the Kyoshi Warrior to fall forward onto June, causing them both to tumble away just a little bit as June eagerly falls upon the insensate young woman and begins to slurp and lick and kiss at her flesh. Meanwhile, at Zuko's gesture, Azula brings Jin forward, the Earth Nation girl trembling with eagerness.

Sitting back down on his throne, Zuko allows Jin to climb aboard. She impales herself on his cock and then leans down to give him a kiss, and Zuko allows this as well, wrapping his arms around her, kissing her back, his tongue dominating her tongue as he begins to bounce her up and down on his cock. She moans and mewls into his mouth, and her insides squeeze and clench around his length like never before as she milks him of his next release.

Eventually, he breeds her as well, filling her womb with his seed. Once Jin is creampied just as Suki was, he turns to June and Mai and does the same. Azula is always the bridesmaid, always the midwife… she doesn't ever get his cock inside of her cunt as she so desperately wants, but as the orgy continues on, more than once she has it in her mouth, preparing him for the next woman he's going to pump his virile baby batter into.

Zuko never breaks though, not on this. Azula has earned her punishment… and the way he's going to make her pay up will give him some fun of his own that, admittedly, the young Fire Lord can't wait to engage in. This is the moment of his triumph, this is the climax of all his plans, the instant when he is victorious…

However, there's one other thing Zuko wants to take care of before he leaves Ba Sing Se. One… personal thing.

-x-X-x-

"W-We shouldn't… ooh, I'm a m-married woman, Fire Lord. A-and a new mother besides!"

Zuko chuckles at Ying's verbal protests, because despite her words, she's not stopping him from molesting her. With one hand down the back of her skirt, Zuko is fingering the beautiful Earth Nation MILF from behind, even as he leads her down the empty hall before them. It was a little while later, a good four days since the coup had taken place and Zuko had taken control of Ba Sing Se for real.

The wall had been opened up, the Earth Nation soldiers not yet captured had stood down, and the occupation force had moved in. Things were just about wrapped up enough that Zuko was finally ready to leave the city in Jet and Suki's capable hands. Together, the two were sure to play off one another well enough, and he was sure that the Freedom Fighters and the Kyoshi Warriors could manage things in his absence, along with the number of Fire Nation Soldiers he was leaving behind to assist him.

Meanwhile, Zuko was planning on taking some of the Dai Li and Joo Dees back with him to the Fire Nation, even as he planned the final few months of the war that was effectively already almost over. The Northern Water Tribe was tied to him by marriage, the Southern Water Tribe wasn't even capable of a fight, the Air Temples no longer existed, and now the Earth Nation was laid low.

Zuko would raise it up again though, as part of his new Empire. And then, once the entire world was prospering under his rule, the Avatar would finally have to accept that his way was indeed the right way. For now, though, Zuko had something else on his mind, something he'd wanted to do ever since he lay eyes on this particular beauty while he was still maintaining his Tea Shop in the Upper Ring.

Ying was a young Earth Nation refugee who'd arrived in Ba Sing Se with her husband around the same time as the Avatar and her friends had. She was also a brand-new mother, which meant her breasts were still nice and full, giving her a very curvy appearance. Still, while she wasn't necessarily actively against his advances, she was having a hard time reconciling what he wanted to do with her, with her own morals.

That was alright, because Zuko had planned ahead. And as they come to the end of a hallway, they end up out on a balcony overlooking a large leisure room from above.

Zuko pulls Ying close, and covers her mouth with one hand right as she moans lewdly into it, his finger curling in just the right way to make her climax along the digit while he leads her to the railing. Her eyelids flutter, and it takes her a moment to process where they are, and to finally look down and see what's happening below. When she does so finally, her entire body goes rigid.

"That's right, Than. Fuck her. Fuck the Fire Princess. Breed her tight little cunt. She wants it, can't you hear her moaning? The bitch wants your cum."

"F-Fuck! She's so tight! F-Fire bitch! Gonna… gonna breed you! I've got virile seed! My wife can attest to that!"

"T-Then do it, you bastard! Fucking cum already, d-damn it! It's not like I l-like your cock or a-anything! I wouldn't, ooh, be here if my brother hadn't ordered it!"

Down below, a scene of debauchery is playing out before Ying and Zuko's eyes. Yue is standing off to the side, giving orders, while Than, Ying's husband and the father of her child… is happily and enthusiastically fucking Azula from behind. He's pounding into Zuko's sister doggystyle, and he's very energetic about it.

Exactly as expected. Exactly as planned. Ying is shocked by what she sees, but Zuko just keeps on fingering her with one hand and holding her mouth shut with the other, even as he leans in and murmurs into her ear.

"Your husband doesn't seem to mind. No one's forcing him to do anything, now are they? So… why shouldn't you get to have some fun as well, hm? Why shouldn't you get to experience some pleasure of your own?"

He waits for her to eventually nod in agreement, and only then does he pull his hand away from her mouth. Ying looks to him, a combination of determination and all the lust she's been trying to suppress staring up at him. Zuko just smiles and moves into position behind her. Pulling his hand out from under her skirt, Zuko flips the garment up entirely, showing off a nice, plump bubble butt to his eyes. Tanned of course from all her travel, but still very fat and delectable.

As his cockhead brushes against her slit, Ying hisses. When he pushes into her directly, she moans loudly enough to catch the attention of those below. Than looks up to see his wife being fucked by the Fire Lord on a balcony overhead, and his eyes go wide as he starts to pull out of Azula, starts to fully turn towards the pair.

"Yi-mmph!"

But Yue is ready for that. Zuko's wife and the soon-to-be Empress of his empire wraps her arms around Than's body and presses herself against his back, silencing him with a kiss as she forces him to keep fucking Azula. The Fire Princess helps out with that, pushing back into his cock until he starts thrusting again. Meanwhile, Ying is so lost in the pleasure of Zuko's big fat cock plunging into her insides that she doesn't even hear Than's aborted attempt at her name. When she looks back down again, it just seems like her husband is having the time of his life.

This spurs the MILF on to try and enjoy herself, and even as Zuko pulls open her shirt and reaches in to grope her large, post-pregnancy tits, she moans and mewls and pushes back into his cock. But husband and wife are subsequently convinced that the other is enjoying their sexual encounter more than them, leading to a game of one-upmanship between the two that really just leaves Zuko, Azula, and Yue as the real winners.

Azula, mostly because this is the deal Zuko has made with her. She'll be bred by Than, a man of no real importance and no real status, as her punishment for disobeying his orders. Once she's bore the man's child, then she'll be able to have another kid by him again. Though Zuko definitely intends for her third kid to still be Sokka's. Azula doesn't know that yet, but it all really depends on when he can bring Kya's children, the Avatar, and of course the Beifong heiress into the fold finally.

Regardless, for now, the young Fire Lord focuses on the pleasure before him, breeding Ying for all she's worth as he pumps load after load of his cum into her womb, while below Than is milked dry of his own seed, until Azula's belly is near-bursting with the stuff. And as he does so, Zuko smiles. Because everything, all of his plans… have finally come to fruition.

While the Avatar is still out there, he has plenty of time to convince her that she belongs at his side, bearing him children. And one day, he'll get to experience Kya and Katara at the same time, and won't that be a bit of fun mother-daughter loving? For now, though, the future looks very bright indeed. Ba Sing Se has fallen… and now it's time for the world to RISE!

-x-X-x-

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