Chapter 10: White and Blue

Since Azula had hooked Zhan into the Royal Palace, things had gotten a bit busier. Mostly underground though, uptop in the Palace things went on as usual: politics, meetings and training. Down below a facility was busy, unknown to everyone but a few of people: her included.

Since Zhan had started to work, the Fire Nation military had gotten a few upgrades: the mass-production of his metal-claws was the first. While they originally needed to be made with hand-made precision, he had managed to down-grade them for production. They were replicas, but were weaker than what Azula or Zhan had in their arsenal.

Yet these new close-combat weapons were a great boost to the army: firebenders weren't so vunerable close-range and the regular foot-soldiers could fight-on if they lost their weapons. With the added attachment mechanism, it was also hard to steal one, being that only a Fire Nation soldier knew how to but or remove one. A concealed weapon, and one that was difficult to steal...a win-win in Azula's book.

He had also started to improve some of the armoring of the army. Mainly having to do with finding cheaper or more efficent metals for armors. So far he had done some improvments: combining various cheaper metals with others, gaining the same results with the regular iron used in nowadays metal-working. It wasn't much, but the costs of funding the army were reduced. And according to some subtle hints he got from Zhan, he was already experimenting with new metals aswell, one's that are lighter and stronger than what they're using now.

And also he was still working on his original flying construct that got him here, the Firebird. Azula had gotten the idea, one day while chatting and it stuck to it like glue. The Firebird was still a metal-frame, but it was gaining meat on its bones. The various other tinkers and engineers, he had with him were a blessing. He had more time to focus on other stuff: inventing new war-machines and improving others. But it gave Zhan the time to spend with her.

Changes had happened in the Palace aswell, the most enormous one being the Avatar's return. Most, if not all, had thought he died a hundred years ago. But it seemed he lived, with Zuzu having a head-start, on chasing him...maybe even catch him...hardly.

The second one, was that of Azula. Who, by her age, had gained the opportunity to take part in the day-to-day activities in the Palace. She had welcomed this with open arms, yet soon she figured out why people didn'g like politics - too stressful. What she had hoped for, a chance to plan battles was instead replaced by day-to-day complaining complaints and problems fron nobles and other common problems. If she ever became Firelord, SHE'D get someone else to deal with these problems, because she was by far ready to set herself on fire, from the complaints of high fruit prices.

XXX

Another day, another damned noble complaint, coupled with a long training regime. Azula was pretty much, stressed out right now. Luckily she had someone, who could ease her.

She arrived at the underground facility, opening the metal door, with a fire-move.

"Zhan?" she asked, opening the door.

Azula could see the engineer behind his desk...sleeping.

"What the?!" she asked. Checking on him, Zhan was sound asleep. "Great!"

Underneath his arms, were various schematics for the Tundra Tank, and a few drawn blueprints. It'd seem Zhan was trying to upgrade it.

"Hmmm," she muttered, taking one blueprint, examining it. He had high-lighted various parts and drawn weird other parts onto it.

Largerly high-lighted and written under was something more: Weak - infantry. Siege? Improve!

'What are you planning?' asked Azula herself, putting the blueprints and picking up something else. It was a weird weapon, kinda something Mai would have: a round metal-piece, that had three curved-blades attached.

"Weird," she said. Zhan had alot of smaller scale versions of the stuff, he was trying to improve. Finding a small-scale working catapult wasn't a problem.

"Wonder if this would work?" she asked, putting the small tri-weapon on the catapult, pulling it back.

"Azula?" asked a drowsy voice, startling her, causing her to release the catapult.

"WOAH!" Zhan yelled out, the flying tri-blade missing his hand by inches. Azula didn't expect the thing to even fly, let alone that fast.

"Sorry," she said, putting the model back.

"Again with the touching?" he asked, smiling at her, arms folded.

"Yeah...I got bored. And you were sleeping," she replied. "What's that anyway?"

"This?" he asked, pulling the tri-bladed weapon out of his desk. "Is a glaive. Unique design. I'm trying to find a way to make it fly. A new projectile weapon."

"Interesting. I didn't expect that thing to fly so fast," she said.

"Fly?" he asked, suprised.

"Yeah. I took that and put it on your make-shift catapult," she replied.

"Catapult?...AZULA!" he yelled out, spinning her around by her waist. "YOU'RE A GENIUS!"

"Woah! Yeah I know," she replied, getting twirled in the air. "Put me down now?"

"Alright," he said, putting her down, then went over to his desk, starting to scrible something down.

Azula, seeing that Zhan wasn't going to pull his head out of the blueprints, decided to take her leave.

"Azula?" he said suddenly, grabbing her by her arm. "I know you didn't just come here to watch me work. What's wrong?"

She sighed, at his request. Why could he read her, so well?

"I...I'm stressed out...all these damn nobles...whining like turtle-ducks...it's embarassing and annoying me!" she said, starting to explain. "Couple that with my training...ohhh...it...it...it's hard."

"So the Princess needs a good cooldown?" he asked, grinning at her.

"Don't! Even think of dropping me in a fountain! Or I might singe that pretty face of yours," she replied.

"Wouldn't dream of it," he said. "Something else. C'mon."

Azula got herself pulled to the Testing Grounds, more like dragged. She wasn't in the mood for one Zhan' crazy inventions.

The former bunker/cavern was now full of different metallic contraptions and devices: the Firebird construct, a rail-road track around the cave, a half-taken apart Tundra tank, a warship engine, an armor stand, and the Firebird's engine.

"Come on," he said, leading Azula. "Remember this?"

"It blowing up," she replied. The Firebird' engine was reconstructed, looked different though.

"Try it out," he said.

"I don't want something up blown up...again," she replied. The last time she tried, it collapsed and flew out into the ocean.

"I have upgraded it and...," he said, coming closer to her ear. "And I wanna know if it can handle anything."

"Oh...fine," she replied, shuddering a bit.

Azula got into a stance like before, then poured fire through it. The feeling was like before, concentrated and powerful.

"Okay stop," he said, which she did. "You're trying to control everything. Once you let it flow, it isn't wise to control it. It's too powerful."

"I can handle it," she replied sternly.

"I know you can," he replied, wrapping his arms around her waist. "Put it isn't necessary."

"Let me help you," said Zhan, wrapping his arms around hers, inter-twining their fingers, pressing his chest against her back. "Breath in my rhythm."

"O...alright," replied Azula, her face red. Breathing in rhythm was hard, with him this close.

"Relax..." he said, slowing his breathing, which she tried to follow.

"Breath..." he added, raising their hands.

"Release..." he finished, letting her form a fire in her hands. She dared not look, it was embarassing, difficult and...emotional.

"Azula...open your eyes," he said calmly, keeping her breathing in his rhythm.

She took a small peak, then shot her eyes open, speechless. In her hands wasn't blue fire...it was white fire.

"Im..m..o..ss..ible," she said. White fire. It couldn't be. It was supposed to be unbendable, no firebender has been able to create white fire. Only the dragons could do that.

"It isn't," he said, moving their hands around it. It moved, it grew and it. "It's your fire."

Azula couldn't help but admire the white flame: it was powerful, beautiful, deadly, unique.

He finally brought their inter-twined hands together, snuffing out the fire, a final conformation that it was created by them.

"Feeling better?" he asked, holding her by her waist, behind her.

"Much," she replied, kissing him.

XXX