There was an inquest among the sages, the senior members who had guarded the temple destroyed at last by Roku’s vengeful spirit, and those in the palace who had aided Ozai in his mad ventures. The former Firelord had, of course, ordered the research destroyed, but from what the sages could tell him, Zuko could piece together the idea.
At the end of it, he could only curse the sun, the stars, and all those ancient emperors and kings who wished so desperately for immortality that they stole its secrets and found ways to bend their own abilities to the task.
At least he knew why Ozai had ordered such a mad scheme as burning down the Earth Kingdom when its prize jewels were already in his hands. What was a world of broken cities and bitter ashes, when you could stride it as a living god, and simply outlast the damage, sustained by such terrible sacrifice?
While his son went quietly mad trying to find a solution, to even understand what the effects of his father’s scheme would be, Ozai himself was apparently content to wait it out in his cell. The guard on him was doubled, which had no effect but to make him laugh. The sages had claimed that the ritual was incomplete, that without the conflagration of nearly the whole of the world, the Phoenix King’s plan to reincarnate himself into an eternal spirit of flame would simply fail.
And yet, the- child, or stone, or egg grew slowly, and Zuko hated to visit, hated to see that smug glint in his father’s eye or the way he caressed his abdomen.
Whether his bid for immortality was successful or not, the Phoenix King remained triumphant in his own mind.
…
Eight months after his coronation, Firelord Zuko sends discreet envoys to the university of Ba Sing Se, to the secretive outpost of the Sun Warrior civilization, even to the spirit world by way of ritual prayer and begging of his friend the Avatar.
…
Nine months after, he waits anxiously, only to find that the consensus is that Things are in motion, and that Ozai would have to simply be let go to his natural conclusion, whatever that might be. Zuko finds that his father’s smiles have slipped, and now, though he tries to hide it, worry has creased his face as he grows larger.
He wonders if that is a good thing, or a very bad one.
Re: Ozai/Zuko, This Shouldn't Happen (3/4)
At the end of it, he could only curse the sun, the stars, and all those ancient emperors and kings who wished so desperately for immortality that they stole its secrets and found ways to bend their own abilities to the task.
At least he knew why Ozai had ordered such a mad scheme as burning down the Earth Kingdom when its prize jewels were already in his hands. What was a world of broken cities and bitter ashes, when you could stride it as a living god, and simply outlast the damage, sustained by such terrible sacrifice?
While his son went quietly mad trying to find a solution, to even understand what the effects of his father’s scheme would be, Ozai himself was apparently content to wait it out in his cell. The guard on him was doubled, which had no effect but to make him laugh. The sages had claimed that the ritual was incomplete, that without the conflagration of nearly the whole of the world, the Phoenix King’s plan to reincarnate himself into an eternal spirit of flame would simply fail.
And yet, the- child, or stone, or egg grew slowly, and Zuko hated to visit, hated to see that smug glint in his father’s eye or the way he caressed his abdomen.
Whether his bid for immortality was successful or not, the Phoenix King remained triumphant in his own mind.
…
Eight months after his coronation, Firelord Zuko sends discreet envoys to the university of Ba Sing Se, to the secretive outpost of the Sun Warrior civilization, even to the spirit world by way of ritual prayer and begging of his friend the Avatar.
…
Nine months after, he waits anxiously, only to find that the consensus is that Things are in motion, and that Ozai would have to simply be let go to his natural conclusion, whatever that might be. Zuko finds that his father’s smiles have slipped, and now, though he tries to hide it, worry has creased his face as he grows larger.
He wonders if that is a good thing, or a very bad one.
…