Yu Dao…
It was to this colony that the princess headed for an inspection. Upon arriving at the port, she acquired transportation for herself and her entourage and set off on the road, riding a komodo rhino. However, the inspection was only a pretext for visiting the city. The main reasons were scheduled meetings with a mercenary and Ty Lee. The girl did not even guess about the impending meeting with her friend; Azula decided to make a "surprise" for her. These meetings were important for both me and Zula herself. It was because of them that we sailed almost directly here, not visiting all the island groups for inspection, but we will get to them.
As I knew from Zula's memory, Yu Dao was the oldest colony, founded at the very beginning of the Hundred Year War. The city was located in the western part of the Earth Kingdom, not far from Yue Bay, and a river also flowed near the city, leading deep into the mainland. Many roads, paved with high-quality cobblestones, led to this colony. This helped merchants deliver goods to the regions faster and with less cost. And that's not to mention the industry: dozens of factories, a huge number of jobs, and the cooperation of benders of two elements. All of this was perfectly visible on the way to the city. Yu Dao was not only the oldest colony but also the largest, most progressive, and most developed, including in cultural terms.
On the approaches to the city, the princess and her entourage were able to observe an interesting picture.
— Is that earthbending?—Mai asked with interest, looking into the distance to the east.
In that place, parallel to the road along which Azula's escort was moving, a new road was being built. And it was being built in a very peculiar way, using firebending and earth flying through the air. Quickly glancing at this miracle, I immediately noted that only half a dozen people were building it, and they were doing it very skillfully and quickly.
It was difficult to make out anything in detail from a distance, but the coordinated work of earth and firebenders was visible even from such a distance. It must be thanks to them that there are so many strong roads here. The colony is almost a hundred years old; it was not surprising that earthbenders appeared who worked for the good of the Fire Nation. Some architectural things in this world were impressive with their monumentality and insane difficulty in construction. It would have been very difficult, if not impossible, to create them without earthbending.
However… I don't remember anything like that in the canon. This only made it more interesting.
"Judging by the looks of it, it's definitely not water or airbending; by the method of elimination, we can assume that yes, it is real earthbending"—I joined the conversation in a cheerful voice, as usual, floating in the air next to Azula and Mai. There were a few dozen more people in the entourage, but I had no business with them.
— Yes, it is. Interesting interactions between two types of bending. The mayor of Yu Dao will probably tell us more than simple workers—the thoughtful Azula replied, honoring the workers with a fleeting glance that they did not even notice, as they were far away and busy with their work.
The escort team, along with the imperial personage, continued their journey. Despite her usual external imperturbability, I saw Azula's interest in what was happening. For her, too, such a thing was a novelty, because history textbooks did not write about such details. Azula was probably already thinking about how to use earthbenders more effectively for her own benefit. By the way, I was also interested in seeing how other bending works and how a bender's Chi behaves inside their body. But I restrained myself, not wanting to leave the princess for long.
Soon I could see the high walls of the city with my own eyes. Hundreds of roads led out of Yu Dao. Behind the walls were residential buildings built close to each other. They were not particularly impressive, but as soon as I was in the city, I noticed a big difference in all the architecture from the Fire Nation cities that had become familiar to me.
The buildings had a slightly different style than the one adopted in the Fire Nation. Their green slate roofs stood out especially. If every Fire Nation city screamed about Chinese culture, then in this city I saw a more familiar European style. No pyramidal roofs, only the usual triangular ones. The houses, roads, arches, bridges, and much more in this city had their own style, different from the one familiar to the Fire Nation.
Having finished looking at the buildings, I switched my attention to the citizens of the city, who, as usual, parted for the imperial procession. At first glance, they were ordinary people, and to some extent, they were. Only the colors of their clothes were much more diverse, and green was the dominant one. I was pleasantly surprised by the variety of hairstyles and different types of clothes, some of which were much looser and more open than the clothes of the Fire Nation. Otherwise, everything was as always, relatively poor people, relatively rich, and a huge mass of the middle class. As always, I did not find any completely poor bums, and the local rich people did not wear a dozen kilograms of gold on them but were just well-dressed citizens.
On the way, I kept turning my head, like a tourist, looking at everything around me. Sometimes, I met Azula's slightly displeased gaze. Not immediately, but I understood what was going on. The princess was also curious, but her pride and upbringing did not allow her to look at everything around her, and she was simply envious, unable to make me change my behavior.
Finally, we reached the city hall itself. The mayor's residence was a cozy two-story mansion. Not particularly big, but you couldn't call it small either. Another meeting of politicians over a cup of tea was not very interesting to me. They met, greeted each other, introduced themselves, sat down to drink tea and discuss the latest news and politics, such an unofficial meeting, close to a home setting. At this time, almost all of the princess's entourage went about their business. Only Mai stayed with Azula, who, as usual, was pretending to be furniture, always standing behind her friend's back.
I involuntarily overheard their beginning conversation out of the corner of my ear and was about to go about my business, exploring the rooms of the mansion, when I suddenly discovered something strange. And I wasn't the only one who discovered it.
— …Ahem. — The princess interrupted, glancing at the doorway, behind which an unknown figure instantly disappeared. — Mr. Morishita, do you not wish to explain yourself?
— I beg your pardon?—the large man, who was also the mayor of the city, did not understand.
— I remember you ordered the servants to leave us alone? One of them could not resist curiosity; she should be punished in full for such disobedience—the princess's harsh voice promised punishment for violating the order, and the mayor hurried to start making excuses.
— No, what are you talking about, my servants would not dare to disobey my word, unless…—the man's eyes widened in realization, and the next moment he yelled with all his might: — Kori!
An embarrassed young girl—basically a teenager—appeared from the doorway, who, as they say, was caught in the act. After Morishita's apologies for his wayward daughter, the princess followed my advice and decided to listen to them before deciding anything. Such a violation of etiquette and simply brazen behavior, of course, angered my Zula, but not so much that she lost control.
During the conversation with the mayor and his family, the following was revealed: the mayor's wife was an earthbender, and this gift was passed on to their only daughter—Kori. There was nothing illegal about such a marriage. Except that it was not accepted and was considered a little immoral: to dilute the blood of fire with the blood of a foreign nation. Racism in all its glory. It was precisely because he did not want to lose face that the Mayor decided to hold the meeting alone, and not with the whole family, as the rules of hospitality would require, but since everything was revealed, he also introduced his wife to Azula.
As for Kori herself, she was a fierce patriot and, as it turned out from the conversation, a true idealist who, with burning eyes, was zealous for her native nation. Which she sincerely considered the Fire Nation. The young girl's pathetic speeches made one want to yawn and roll their eyes, and I wasn't the only one who felt this way, but Azula had to keep her face. Such were the rules of local etiquette.
Kori was eavesdropping on the important meeting for a reason, but with the hope of talking to the princess personally.
— And what did you want to talk to me about?—Azula asked in an authoritative voice, sitting opposite the embarrassed girl, next to whom both of her parents were also sitting. Their faces displayed shame, regret, and fear. Unfortunately, Kori paid no attention to them. The young dreamer did not take her admiring gaze away from the princess.
The girl hesitated a little, took a breath, squeezed her eyes shut, and uttered in one breath: — Please, take me into the army!…
Silence was her answer. And then a heavy "oh" from her mother, and a facepalm from the girl's father. From their appearance, it was easy to see that this was not the first time their daughter had shocked her parents.
— Your Highness, don't listen to her; she's still a child; she doesn't know what she's asking for—the girl's mother intervened in the conversation.
— I am talking to Kori now—Zula replied immediately, pressing the woman with her gaze.
— I'm sorry, Princess.
Having put the mayor's wife in her place, the princess turned the authoritative gaze of her golden eyes back to Kori, who was looking at her with hope.
"Earthbenders could be useful both in the army and in other, more peaceful industries. This colony is an excellent example of the effectiveness of the coordinated work of different benders. I don't see any reason to refuse. But at the same time, I don't understand the reasons why she is asking you for this"—I expressed my point of view to Azula, ceasing to play the role of an invisible observer.
The princess, elegantly raising an eyebrow in surprise, was silent for a few seconds, reflecting on the situation and the words spoken. And only after thinking everything through, she spoke.
— As far as I know, women can go into the army. Of course, the army is predominantly served by men, but there is no law that would forbid a woman from serving under contract. You wouldn't lose face like this, putting your family at risk of my wrath, if you could have come to an agreement with the local garrison commander. The essence of your problem must be somewhat different?—in response to Azula's speech, the teenager's eyes shone even brighter.
— That's right, my lady. The thing is, I'm an earthbender, and because of that, they refuse to take me into the army every time. But I'm strong; I've trained a lot; among the earthbenders of Yu Dao, I'm the best. I can serve for the benefit of our nation! I…
— Enough, I understand your problem.
"What an annoying omission. And yet, loyal earthbenders could easily penetrate or even destroy any walls. Sieges and the capture of fortresses with their help would be much easier. This would not be a bad thing to do, but I don't think we have much time"—I shared my opinion again. This conversation itself unexpectedly became very interesting.
Again, waiting for a pause for reflection, Azula answered with a confident voice.
— I understand your problem. However, the absence of earthbenders in the army is a necessary measure. Or rather, it used to be a necessary measure. At the beginning of the war, there were no patriots like you. In the middle, the presence of earthbenders in the army would have made the work of enemy spies easier. It was easier for them to sow discord in our ranks. As for the present time, we are still at war with the Earth Kingdom and their two rulers, not to mention the waste of effort on maintaining order in the captured lands. The presence of earthbenders is still not desirable in the army, whose purpose is to counter, first of all, the earthbenders themselves.
— But I could be useful; I know how to do a lot of things!
— You can be useful, but not on the front line. Your presence in the army will be perceived as somewhat hostile. And it will be difficult to do anything about this until we win the war. However, you don't have to go into the army to be useful to our country. I agree to look at your skills; you will have a chance to change my mind about you, but the path to the army is closed to you. Especially in the near future, until we win the war.
— No chances at all?
— At the present time, no—Azula answered coldly. But Kori did not even think of despairing, having grasped the main idea.
— You mentioned my skills; do you want to see what I'm capable of?
— Only after discussing some important topics with your father. I suppose our conversation is over; you may be free—the princess again looked at the family, stopping at the man.
— Thank you for listening to me, my lady—Kori got up from the sofa along with her mother and left the room.
— Well, if we have sorted out this misunderstanding, let's get back to the purpose of my arrival…
Another conversation about politics and the effectiveness of the local ruler was not interesting to me. Fortunately, I did not have to endure too much, only an hour and a half. During this time, I managed to fully explore the house. I overheard Kori enthusiastically discussing her impression of Azula with her mother, and that's it. Nothing particularly interesting happened in the mayor's house. But I endured this time, wanting to observe the action of earthbending. And in this, I did not miscalculate.
Having finished discussing business with the Mayor, Zula decided to have a small sparring session with his daughter, and at the same time, see what she was capable of. At this time, I was already inside my princess and advised her to be softer with the girl. The fight itself was not particularly impressive; the teenager had practically no combat experience; she could surprise a few times, but her reaction and speed left much to be desired. As a warrior and as a bender, Kori was a mediocre opponent. At the same time, it was useful for Azula to see the work of other bending and the fighting style of earthbenders in person, and not from books.
At this, the day unexpectedly came to an end.
We arrived in Yu Dao around noon; all the really important meetings had to be postponed until tomorrow. Conversations with the mayor, his family, sparring, and all this took a lot of time. The princess, as it had been in other cities, was offered guest chambers, while her entourage, with the exception of Mai, went to local hotels. The necessary specialists were already working, looking for violations among all the powerful citizens of the city. Over the past time, all the soldiers had managed to gain experience, getting the hang of it. They knew what to do.
Also, taking advantage of the situation, the princess found out something personal. First of all, Azula learned about the waiting mercenary and the upcoming circus performance. As for me, I had my own plans for this night. I wanted to learn and compare the work of Chi in earthbenders; Kori was the test subject. But, something unforeseen happened. When everyone was asleep, I, like an invisible shadow, entered the girl's bedroom. Problems began almost immediately, as I entered the teenager. I almost revealed myself, but luckily everything worked out.
And the thing was that my energy entered into a horrifyingly aggressive conflict with Kori's Chi, beginning to harm the girl as soon as I entered her. I had to hastily leave the teenager's body to avoid irreparable consequences. From such an unexpected turn, I was a little scared for the girl's life, but I quickly pulled myself together and began to look for the reasons. Half an hour later, I had a guess about what happened. And in them, I was more than sure.
My energy is identical to Azula's energy. Previously, I successfully entered firebenders and ordinary people, but with the earthbender, there was a sharp rejection. And the thing was in the completely different energies, which were simply incompatible. This also explains the impossibility for any bender to learn more than one type of bending; the energy is incompatible in one body, and attempts at such a thing would most likely lead to death rather than success. And only the Avatar, thanks to some Raava, can master all the elements. Of course, this may not be the case, but overnight I was able to fully convince myself of my rightness with a few more test subjects. I was not able to enter a single bender for at least a couple of minutes without killing them. Fortunately, distinguishing a bender from an ordinary person is not a problem for a spirit.
This made me think hard and strain my memory. All night I indulged in reflections on energies, their varieties, and their influence on bending. And the next day, Azula and I had truly important meetings.