Chapter 39.6- And So The Dragons Danced

“Maybe if the war was against the Earth Kingdom or one of your water tribes” The man chortled, receiving a glance from his older compatriot.

“What Jeong-Jeong means to say is that contrary to what it might seem like from the outside looking in, the FireLord is not absolute. There are basically four major powers in the Fire Nation- the Noble Class, the Military Class, the Merchant Class, and the Fire Lord himself. The Fire Lord is more politically powerful than any single one of the other classes maybe even two of them working together, but when the three of them come together, even the Fire Lord can be overruled. That is the problem here.”

“Why?”

“Ba Sing Se is under control of General Natsu of the Noble Wu Family. He is a bridge between the Noble and Military Classes as his family has a long history of serving in the military, I even served with his father, General Igneel back in the day. His lieutenant and second in command, is Toji of the Zenin family, a merchant family. And then they have the Princess Azula who the Fire Lord has more or less recognised as his preferred heir. If my brother were to abdicate today and anyone put Zuko on the throne, we would have a civil war in weeks. That is what Jeong-Jeong and I will be aiming to prevent.” He said.

“Civil war?”

“Sozin did not begin this war for no reason. He had been facing the threat of a civil war for years, and the second he started the war, he got the power and excuse to send those who he perceived as threats to the Front line. My people are not a united one by default. Without a war to strengthen our nationalistic spirit, we squabble and fight over scraps until we devolve into war.”

“He’s right” Aang said next, drawing eyes from everyone present.

“I didn’t know you were familiar with the inner workings of the Fire nation” Pakku questioned with a raised eyebrow.

“I once served as the Chief Administrator of the Fire Nation, working closely with the Fire Lord and had to prevent no less than a dozen coups” When Aang spoke this time, there was a weight to his words. Looking closely into his eyes, she was able to notice that they’d gone blank, and then the blank eyes began to glow with eldritch power. The Avatar State, she thought with a gasp.

“Avatar Szeto” Zuko’s uncle whispered with awe, and Katara was left gaping as the man fell to his knees in seconds and assumed a full bow in front of Aang. Both Jeong-Jeong and Pakku joined him quickly and she exchanged a stare with Sokka as Bato began to join the bowing.

“You must not allow the Fire Nation to devolve into civil war. If you fail, dragon will fight dragon, the sky will bleed red, and the world will burn” The voice that came from Aang’s mouth was definitely not his. It wasn’t even what he usually sounded like with the Avatar state, with hs voice being echoed by thousands of others. This was just another voice coming from his mouth. An older, deeper, graver voice.

XXXXXX-NATSU THE ELDER

“How does it fair, North?”

“The Fire Lord remains paranoid and incensed. The coming eclipse does little for his mood at this point. It makes everything seem much more threatening I think”

“Is he still keen on punishing your Grandson for those lost in the taking of Ba Sing Se?”

“He remains set on that foolish course of action, but I have been able to stall him from making a final ruling until after the Eclipse at this point.”

“And are things in place for when he can no longer be assuaged.”

“Initial reports that said the Princess held foul feelings towards Natsu have proven premature. My tools tell me that they are often seen in each other’s company and have taken to sparring at least once every other day in full view of parts of the army.”

“Good. A marriage will happen and quickly once Ozai oversteps and needs to be replaced.”

“And the tools for setting him aside?”

“His cupbearer is my man through and through. A subtle enough poison has been procured from the Ember islands. The Fire Sages have offered their support for when we are forced to attack”

“Not in so many words, I imagine”

“Of course not. Those fencesitters would rather die than give a straight answer, but they will overlook anything suspicious with the death of this Fire Lord, just like they overlooked all that was wrong with the death of his predecessor.”

“Then I feel that is the best we can hope for then, South” He said, bringing the topic to a close.

“And how fair the merchants now?”

“They are chomping at the bit to sell their wares in Ba Sing Se, and are eagerly awaiting a grant of trading leave for the region”

With that, he allowed his mind to drift off from the conversation that was unfolding.