Sukuna: The Last Sorcerer 17 (Patreon)

The news was a wet slap, everyone in the palace who was apparently recoiling the day the messenger hawk hit the second bird tower. It took all of an hour for Ryo to catch the whispers, the servants who brought his meals loud on the other side of his door as they spoke to each other. 

Guards walking past his door fed each other more information in his earshot; the news that some fancy admiral who was apparently a real big shot, the same one who led the siege of the North Pole was gone. 

Him and his entire fleet, gone. 

Not defeated, not retreated, just… gone.

He almost couldn’t believe it, honestly.

At least, not until he got the official story from a certain amber-eyed royal making her way into his room.

She didn’t burst into his space, mostly because Princess Perfect didn’t make a habit of “bursting” anywhere. No, Azula simply entered with a certain smile on her face that didn’t take Ryo long at all to recognize. 

Yeah, someone’s about to have a bad day. Red eyes narrowed. Hope it’s not me.

Azula marched forward, dressed in her usual outfit of crimson, black and gold; collars high and shoulders pointy. Her hair sat up in a little knotted bun, golden flame-pin holding it up neat and tidy as thick locks of black hair framed her face. As always, she looked every bit the untouchable princess.

“Princess…” Ryo clicked his tongue. “You know people knock, right? Like, that’s usually the polite thing. Courtly manners not include that lesson or…?”

“The Northern Water Tribe siege has ended.” Uncaring of what Ryo had to say, Azula settled into the cushioned chair by his window like she owned the place. 

Which, technically, she did.

“...okay?”

“Admiral Zhao is presumed dead, the vast majority of his fleet resting at the bottom of the Northern oceans.” Azula let out a breath, low and careful. “For the first and last time, the Avatar has made a mockery of the Fire Nation’s entire military.”

Ryo looked up from where he was sprawled on his bed, trying not to die of boredom, raising an eyebrow at the same news he’d already gotten from a few different places already. Hell, the whole palace had been buzzing with war talk for weeks.

Unfortunately, none of it involved him, so he’d mostly tuned it out like the background noise it was.

Huh… “Damn. That sucks, I guess.” He sat up, two fingers scratching at his sideburns. Wait, wait… the Avatar? “First and last time?”Amber eyes narrowed his way. “Yes?”I’m not sure that tracks… Ryo pulled a face, just happy to talk to anyone that wasn't an old four-armed demon eager to burn him in his nightmares. “I mean, the guy kinda went without being caught by you guys for like a hundred years, so I think that shit already sailed, you know?”“...I beg your pardon?”“No need to beg.” He bit back a snort as the temperature in his room spiked a good ten degrees. “W-what I meant to say is that it can’t be the first, and based off that, it’s probably not the last either.”The air was silent and stuffy for a good half-minute, Azula just staring until Ryo cleared his throat loud. “Y-you said the Avatar did that? Like, personally? Isn’t he just a kid?”

That was enough to get her started again. “Despite your own position, you still think of power in such limited terms.” Azula’s face tilted up in a sneer, tone dripping with that particular brand of condecenssion reserved for people who had particularly annoyed her. “Age has little to do in terms of power and ability. One boy against one fleet, no mere single combat.”

The afternoon sun caught the gold in her eyes, her expression all sharp edges.

“The political ramifications are… delicious.”Not the word I’d use, but sure… Ryo nodded his head along, trying to follow her train of thought even as he was still stuck on the first part of this whole thing. “…you’re telling me this Avatar guy took on a whole fleet? I thought his big deal was that he bends all four elements. Like, actually, how, though? He’s throwing rocks at battleships or what?”

“You are not listening.” 

The last word came out almost a hiss, each syllable a dagger aimed his way. “This is not about the prowess of one boy. We face the collapse of an entire political philosophy brought about through the failure of a man my father allowed to taste power even against the advice of wiser counsel.”

…Okay. 

“I feel like our priorities are different, princess.” Stretching his arms over his head, he didn’t stop until he heard the pop-pop-pop of bones and joints. “You’re over here playing 4D chess, and I’m still trying to figure out how the hell a twelve-year-old beat a whole army.”Her eyes narrowed again as she turned her gaze toward the window, Ryo’s question ignored as she continued what she had to say. “The vaunted reputation of the Traditionalist faction decimated alongside the personal standing of the New Guard. Their precious military might, their grand armada, humiliated by children and savages.”

Azula’s laugh was sharp and with no real humor anywhere to be found in it. “To answer your question, he did not defeat them with simple bending. Reports say he merged with the Ocean Spirit itself, becoming a force of nature.” She turned around to face him.  “Do you have any idea what this means? My uncle was there. Zuko was there.”

“Waitwaitwait.” Both hands went up, Ryo waving for Azula to stop. “I thought your brother died last month or something.” Azula had shared the news of a ship explosion the day after their meeting in the garden at night. The princess had been in a bit of a mood about it but nowhere near as much as Ryo expected someone who just lost her big brother. “In like some freak ship explosion or something?”Azula clicked her tongue, turning aside from him for a second. “A simple ruse, to aid Zuko’s attempt to infiltrate the Northern invasion. And now both he and uncle are complicit in the greatest military disaster in Fire Nation history.”

Oh. Red eyes blinked slowly. Oh, that’s why she’s happy.

“So your uncle and brother are in deep shit.” The pieces finally clicked together.

“Such eloquent phrasing.” Azula smiled his way. “Yes. They are, as you say, in deep shit. The first son and the Dragon of the West, both present during our most humiliating defeat. Both somehow surviving when an entire fleet of our finest ships and soldiers did not.”

She stood up, beginning to pace as that smile refused to fade. “The whispers are already starting in the court. Did they aid the Avatar? Did they flee while others fought and died? Did they choose their own honor over the glory of their nation? At best, they are incompetent failures. At worst…” 

Azula paused as her smile widened. “They are traitors.”

“...you sound way too happy about that.”Amber eyes flicked his way. “I have no idea what you mean.”