He observed from his elevated position atop as the masses of Firebending units went through the last of their Fire katas for the afternoon. Each form was simple but effective; bereft of restraint or spirituality.

How he hated the sight of it. Ever since he descended the steps of the Sun warrior temple, after his tutelage under the Firebending Dragon masters Ran and Shaw.

Oh he knew how twisted his current civilization was. He knew it ever since he joined the order of the White Lotus. Before that fateful day he was blind to the many sins of his forefathers. The White Lotus revealed the hidden histories of the past to him.

Only then was he was able to observe the sheer perversion of the art that was Firebending at the hands of his Grandfather: Fire Lord Sozin.

His Grandfather created the Sozin military standard Firebending Techniques- an abomiable, but brutally effective form which was able to be taught to conscripted citizenry easily. It was said his grandfather experimented endlessly to pick the forms most suitable in any environment and under any conditions be it weather, altitude or celestial.

Iroh once held pride and reverence of Sozin's actions. It was true that even now, in this dire situation, the technique was still the most effective. But he ached to see it. The element of the Soul, Warmth and Life, warped into a weapon of destruction and misery.

All in an effort to expand and grow beyond their means. It was hubris at the highest level. His grandfather deemed it right to upset the balance of the world, steering the fire nation and its people from their deep spiritual roots and connection to the world.

With the genocide of the Air nomads and the possible permanent death of the Avatar, there was no one to fix the imbalances of the world. As the heir to the throne and kin to the man who brought about such imbalances, it was his duty to fix them.

This was why he lead the final engagement to conquer the earth kingdom capital as he dreamt of decades ago.

He knew firsthand how much influence and power he would gain after the sacking. His father already favoured him and his position as heir was cemented long ago. With the submission of Ba Sing Ce, the fire nation's ministers and officers would also be on his side.

The little political plots of Ozai would wither and die before becoming monstrous. He loved his little brother, but his plots with nobles and officials were slowly undoing all the previous efforts Firelords of the past put in to finally transition the Fire Nation from a feudal society to an absolute monarchy.

His political favour giving and promises to the few nobles with any sense of autonomy within the Fire Islands were disturbing and enraged their father to no end. If Ozai continued his regressive plots- Azulon would have to step in...

He would have to see his little brother possibly exiled or even executed; continuing the trend of Fire Nation royalty spilling the blood of their own kin... He wouldn't allow it.

But once he gained enough support in the capital; he would reign in the officials, nobles and ministers. Nothing would stop him from enacting his plans for the restoration of the various nation States the Fire Nation had butchered.

At least that was what he believed before the storm appeared and threw him into a whole different world entirely.

In a ironic way, he still had to use the very systems his grandfather and father had used in his previous and current battles. He planned to have this Isle under Fire nation rule. After a brief sint of conciliation his rangers would be deployed to aid in the exploration of the land and the removal of any opposition. With the Isle secured and his people safe, he would establish developmental projects to ensure futher security and order amongst the remenats of the Fire Nation army.

If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

It was then and only then would they begin exploration of the surrounding seas in search for a path back home.

It's possible by that time he would be met with Fire Lord Ozai and not Azulon. He always knew his brother wished to be Fire lord, why else would he so desperately do such vile acts? It was the tragic destiny of the Royal family since antiquity, whole generations of royals had been slaughtered or brutalized whenever a new Fire lord ascended the throne.

Siblings would be pitted against each other and only the strongest and most rutheless would enventually win. His relationship with his brother was such until he saw through the madness of it.

'He must be jumping with joy at this very moment...' Iroh had a random thought that maybe his brother had managed to summon some ancient power to banish him from the world. The thought was both ridiculous and absurd.

But as he pondered on his surly brother's actions his thoughts eventually moved to his beloved nephew.

'Zuko...'

"Your highness. The preparations have been made and Mr. Uzo has arrived." An attendant approached and broke his line of thought.

"Ah, I'll be there soon." He said as he took one more look at the men below before heading inside to clean up.

(-)

Surrounded by his royal attendants, Iroh made his way to the dining chambers. There he saw the merchant Uzo seated and already eating.

"Good Afternoon my Prince! I do hope you don't mind me starting before you, I am quite famished." Iroh could barely hold back a chuckle.

By the rules of royal decorum established by Fire lord Sozin, even in this relatively informal meeting, the man was displaying the height of disrespect and insubordination, but iroh knew the man enough to know he was simply being himself.

Iroh rather enjoyed engaging with people in this way, when people could open their hearts, be themselves and enjoy life. While he could certainly maneuver himself well in political situations and culture, he didn't like to do so.

"No worries, I'm sure you'll be well fed enough to humour me in a game of Pai Sho later on, hmm?" Iroh asked amussed as the man took a deep drink of his sugar-rice Sake in distress.

"I'm an avid player of the game myself, but I must say you outdo me in every way my prince."

Iroh sat on the soft, warm mat around the table and began sampling the food, from steamed dumplings to fried bean-rice. It was then he saw a pecular fish in the spread. It looked like a flying salmon, only it lacked wings.

It was then he noticed the seafood on the table seemed rather strange. Some of it looked familiar, but most of the fishes in particular seemed...off.

"I see you've noticed your Highness." Iroh looked up to the man as he took a bite of octopus.

"This must be to fruits of your labour I assume?" Iroh remembered ordering the man to use his smaller sea vessels to fish in to surrounding seas to supplement the diet of the colony and provide relief from the small number of livestock they had.

"It is my Prince. I must say, my captains claim they've never seen such abundance of sea life before. These waters may be quite cold and unforgiving, but they're teeming with life it seems." Iroh listened to the man as he took a bite of the strange fish.

The taste was alright but wasn't as flavourful as he knew flying salmon to be.

'Just like the...goat.' He contemplated internally. When one ate a goat-pig, you'd expect the taste and texture of pig and goat to blend and offer the natural taste.

"These single trait animals seem to also only have a single taste to them as well. But they are palpable enough." Uzo sighed in lament. It was rather strange to only taste and feel the signature flavor and texture of a animal.

"No matter, we aren't running low on grains yet, but it will be awhile before we even have land for cultivation yet. Though I do hope your men didn't travel out too far." Iroh took a sip of warmed sake.

"Of course not your Highness. The nearby waters are enough. Almost overabundant with seafood."

"Hmm." Iroh nodded. He didn't want to lose anymore people carelessly. Not to metion the potential dangers they may face in this world. Things seemed rather mundane now, but he wouldn't take any risks...

(-)

From his craggy vintage point, Lieutenant Zujok watched the approaching rabble of massive horned goats and their riders. His telescope served well in focusing on the individuals closely. His men further up the path have been tracking the group for days now before sending word of this group's final destination by Dragon-Hawk. It was just about time to ambush them.

This wouldn't be the first time the natives had approached, but this was the first time hed seen them approach in such a serective manner in such numbers, eclipsing even the best barbarian tribes so far. It wasn't as if the previous natives weren't cautious but this group went as far as to dismount from their goats to get closer.

'Scouts...' He thought.

They were both very similar. He was one of the few sorry souls tasked with scouting duty. It was a pain most of the time as he was left scurrying around the rocky and cold wilderness, oft exposed to the whims of this new land's horrible weather.

When he marched onto the Fury, in the capital he thought he would gain glory at Ba Sing Ce's walls. He believed he would watch as the defiant walls of the earth kingdom's great capital fall and march beyond them. If not, then hed die doing so.

Yet here he was on a rocky, cold and untamed island, scouting the perimeter of the base. It was a mostly boring and tedious job-but now, with these sneaky natives he was finally about to get some action!

It wouldn't be enough to work his frustration off but it would count for something.

Zujok watched as they walked into position; unknowing of the trap they'd rat-weaseled into. His men were already moving to surround the group.

Top brass already passed down the order for there to be as few native casualties as possible. Apparently, a team of wise guys were in the works to making sense of the awful garble the natives spoke. But that wasn't his concern.