Blue Mask

BLUE MASK, TWO SWORDS, AND SOZIN’S COMET
04 – LONG HUNT
BY PAT SQUARED

“Zuko, wo xi wang ni man man si, dan kuai dian xia di yu!” (Zuko, I wish you a slow death but a quick ride to hell)

Princess Azula had planned an exquisite death for her older brother. His cries would ensure that she would be the first ruling Fire Lady since the Fire Empress Mei.

Her father gave a simple task. Deal with Uncle Iroh and Zuko.

However, that sha gua, (stupid melon) just had to taunt her by not upping and dying like the chou wan ba dan (lousy bastard) he was. He was useless. He never had the loyalty of the gallery of lords. He never politicked alliances between rival lords. All he had was his obsolete code of honor.

She was the one father trusted. She was the one to slip the poison in her grandfather’s wine. She was the one to plant the evidence in her mother’s quarters. She arranged for her father’s enemies to have fatal accidents. She took the risks to position herself for the throne and her gou shi (Dog shit) brother was the only obstacle in her way.

For such a zho tou (pig head), her brother, Zuko was a frustrating quarry. His movement patterns did not make any sense. He revealed his presence in the earth kingdom villages. He did not follow the rules and yet he evaded her like great-grandmother’s secret white flame bending technique.

Now if I had that like trick in my arsenal, daddy dearest would already be dealt with and I would already be sitting on the throne.

For being such a yangwei ji bai (impotent pussy), Zuko managed to toy with her and live far too long.

To guarantee her succession, Azula would have to deal with her uncle and brother, capture or kill the avatar, and be back in time to kill her father before he marries her off.

Looking out of her tent, Azula spotted Ty Lee asleep on watch again. Ty Lee was one of her childhood companions and one of Azula’s first personal subjects. The other Mai was the daughter of a Fire Nation governer. Mai was dark as Ty Lee was perky.

Lighting Ty’s toes on fire would be fun, but Mai and Ty Lee had talents that Azula needed. Ty could infiltrate any city and find out what professional spies would not. As a bonus, Ty was a master of Kyusho jitsiu or pressure point striking. With a touch, she could rob a bender of his bending abilities. Ty’s weakness was her short attention span and the fact that she had the childlike innocent of a five year-old.

Mai was dark.

Not a bender like the rest of her family, Mai used sharp little knives to make her point. Azula could trust Mai to punish the boy who destroyed Mai’s change of being the wife of the next Fire Lord. Mai and Azula loved pain more than anything.

Azula was just like her father, a pain giver from the cradle.

Mai learned to enjoy inflicting it.

Azula knew that Mai’s father used Mai's body for his pleasure and force her to bear him a son as soon as the arranged marriage between Mai and Zuko was canceled and any chance of arranging an advantageous marriage was gone. Mai was supposed to bring her father power instead of bringing disgrace. No one would marry the leavings of a traitor, even if Mai was a virgin and her father was the head of the third wealthiest clan in the Fire Nation.

Azula taught Mai how to focus her hated of her loving father and inflict it upon Azula's foes. However, Mai had one bad habit. She would never stop until her guest was dead. Sometimes it was better to leave one’s victims crippled and helpless.

Azula bent down to fasten the buckle on her boots when she noted a large footprint freshly made in the dirt. With a quick motion she signaled her companions to remain still. Azula followed the prints to the animals.

Whomever made these prints was bold enough to steal from me!

The shen jing bing (lunatic) made off with some rations, a knife, a water skin, and a spare blanket. Whoever it was, it was skilled enough to slip in and slip out. Normally Azula would hunt the bastard down and castrate him.

However, to do so would detract her from her quest. If the bandit could sneak into her camp, he might be good enough to sneak into the camps of her quarry and fetch them for her. Today, she would hunt the lunatic down, hire him to hunt down her brother and uncle, wait for the lunatic to come back for his money.

Azula and Mai will take their time breaking him.

However, Ty Lee’s habit of falling asleep on watch had to be dealt with first. This hunt was taking far too long and something had to be done. Azula grabbed the rhino whip and a length of chain. Ty Lee was going to learn about pain.