The evening's meeting is late to start. It isn't proper in court to observe as much aloud, of course. Old traditions and superstitions dictate that the Fire Lord is never late, but that is the reality of events this evening, even if it goes unacknowledged.
General Bujing is not typically a patient man, but open criticism of the Fire Lord is a surefire way to land one in trouble. He doesn't trust himself to speak, lest his irritation get the best of him, in his tone if not his words. Even that much would be courting danger. Certain others waiting to enter the throne room do not restrain themselves in a similar manner, however, particularly the trio of sages chattering away off to the side with General Iroh.
Their inclusion amongst the generals is an oddity, to be sure, especially as all three appear to be rather young as sages go. Bujing wonders at what could have prompted the addition of sages to a war council. Such superstitious nonsense has not been a part of the Fire Lords' courts for centuries. Perhaps that is why General Iroh continues to speak with them. How much of the court's customs do the Fire Sages still teach their own? How many of those customs have become outdated?
Bujing doesn't allow himself to frown as his thoughts turn to the young prince Iroh had dragged into the last meeting. He doesn't know why Prince Zuko was allowed to attend that war meeting, but it is clear from his conduct that the boy was not ready. He had not attended the prince's Agni Kai earlier in the day, but he almost wishes he had made the time to witness it firsthand. He'd heard that the young prince walked away under his own power. The Fire Lord must have decided to be lenient, but that is only to be expected, given the boy's age and the fact that he is the Fire Lord's own son. More to the point, Bujing has heard fantastical tales about spirit meddling. He can only guess what may have actually occurred to create such wild rumors surrounding this past noon's Agni Kai.
Finally, the doors to the throne room are opened by a pair of bowing palace servants. Only for a knot of his fellow generals to clog the entrance. Bujing growls under his breath. These fools are going to get all of them in trouble! As much as he struggles with his own patience, the Fire Lord is known for having a chillingly dispassionate manner as he destroys those that waste his time.
"Move!" he hisses lowly as he elbows his way through the throng. He freezes in his tracks when he gets close enough to the front to see what has caused the other generals' pause.
The flame curtain burns white as in the old stories and a pair of golden eyes pierce through the dim gloom of the throne room as the eyes of a predator cut through the night.
Bujing feels faint. Those impossible rumors of the Fire Lord's possession by rogue spirits are true!
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"Gentlemen, please, be seated," a voice from within the chamber calls. The Fire Lord? Abedni has never met him, but who else could command the generals? "We have much to do."
Abedni looks first to General Iroh, who nods encouragingly, and then to Shadra and Misha. His fellow sages and friends appear as nervous as he feels, but Agni himself has chosen them. Surely they are capable of handling whatever awaits them in the Fire Lord's council if the great spirit sent them. Surely. It would be unseemly for a Fire Sage to doubt the Father of Fire's judgement. He just hopes they don't enter the throne room only to be executed by a Fire Lord unwilling to listen. Agni doesn't usually select sages to deliver easy messages, after all, and it would not be the first time a sage has run afoul of a Fire Lord's temper. Not that any of them have a message for Fire Lord Ozai, exactly. The consensus among the elder sages had been that Shadra, Misha, and Abedni would know what to say in the moment, as it became relevant.
Abedni nearly trips over his own feet as he enters the throne room behind the generals.
It can't be.
But it is.
The Flames of Agni burn bright and undeniable behind the Fire Lord.
Shadra, Misha, and Abedni all fall to their knees in full kowtows.
"All hail the herald!" the three sages proclaim, "Anointed of Agni!"
Finally, after centuries of spiritual drift, their nation is on the path of return! Abedni's heart has never been so full of hope, nor so full of fear. This is a sign that all children of fire are again under Agni's eye.
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Ozai feels his eyebrows shoot up at the sages' display. It's odd to have both sides of his face move equally. Or just to remember he possesses two intact eyebrows, for that matter.
"Rise," he commands. He waits for the sages to regain kneeling positions before speaking again. "You are all... younger than I was expecting when I requested Fire Sages to join this council."
"Agni chose us!" the one in the middle exclaims with a barely contained enthusiasm, a large grin splitting his face.
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"I see," he says. It seems Agni has been busy with more than just him today. He can only imagine what other spirits have been up to today with how active Agni alone has been. In particular, Tui and -- more worryingly -- La had obviously had some kind of business they were leaving to take care of at the end of his visit to the spirit world. He really hopes he isn't going to get any reports of either islands or colonies drowned in the name of La's vengeance. "Did he draw you into the spirit world, or did he meet with you in the temple?"
The sages all have wide eyes at his question and two of them gape at him with open mouths. They... really are very young, aren't they? Not that the generals are doing much better at keeping themselves composed. Is his question that outrageous? He'd been under the impression that was just how Agni operated, but maybe he isn't so direct in his interactions with other mortals?
The sage on the left glances at his compatriots for help, only to realize he is the least affected by the Fire Lord's question. He elbows the sage next to him as he answers, "No, my lord."
The middle sage startles with a blink, sheepishly glances first at the left sage and then at the right sage. He throws a wary look back at Ozai when he spots the final sage's openly dumbfounded expression.
"We never spoke with Agni," the left sage reports, "Spheres of white fire appeared above our heads, without explanation or warning." He gestures to the curtain of flames burning behind Ozai as if to draw a comparison. "None who tried could dismiss the flames."
The middle sage pokes the final sage in the shoulder to break his continued stupor. There is a shared moment of panicked glances before both sages appear to simultaneously decide that denial is the best policy and plaster on poorly constructed blank expressions. Did Agni really choose these three sages? Why? They seem as if they should still be in training, not attending to the requests of the Fire Lord.
"And, although the spheres gave off substantial heat, they did not burn anything that was passed through the flames. The elders came to the consensus that the spheres were spiritual in origin, and almost certainly from Agni himself," the left-most sage goes on, "Then, news reached us that General Iroh had arrived to request sages for this meeting. Only then did the spheres disperse. The elders declared it a sign from Agni and we were sent to attend to you, Fire Lord."
A white fire that does not indiscriminately burn all that comes near it does sound like his own experiences with Agni. That still doesn't explain any reason the great spirit may have had to choose these three, though.
The sage then falls into a second kowtow and his fellows are quick to follow his example. "It is an honor to be among the first in centuries to serve a True Herald of Agni."
And that, that, right there, is very dangerous. Because the implication of being the first in centuries is...
The only sound in the throne room is the crackle of the flame wall. Every eye is on him. Every general and servant remains frozen in place, awaiting his judgement.
"Are you saying that Azulon and Sozin were not true heralds?" Ozai challenges levelly.
The three too-young sages tense and then rise from their kowtows. They are, each of them, varying degrees of nervous, but all now kneel before him with straightened spines and squared shoulders. The sage on the left speaks again, "My lord, we will not blaspheme Agni, nor spread lies about the King of Flames' will. As surely as you have earned Agni's full favor, evidenced by your command over his white fire, it is equally sure that neither your honored father, nor your honored grandfather, ever attained the whole of Agni's blessing. They never wielded Agni's Flames."
Ozai allows the silence to stretch, considering the sage's words. "And the two of you agree with your brother's sentiments?"
"Y-yes," the sage of the right finally speaks.
The one in the middle makes a statement bolder still, "The will of Agni supersedes even the will of the herald. He has chosen you to fulfill the role of herald. He only allowed Azulon and Sozin to hold the title."
Several of the generals make barely restrained sounds of anger and shift in their seats.
Ozai raises a hand. "Peace." The generals all settle back into their cushions, many of them with angry glares focussed on the sages, particularly the one in the middle.
Fearful but firm to a man, the sages remain silent under his gaze. Now he knows why Agni chose these three. How many Fire Sages are left that have the courage to face down a roomful of generals and the Fire Lord himself and remain resolute in their service to the great spirit?
"What are your names, sages?"
"We are Shadra," says the left sage, placing a hand over his own chest, "Misha," he gestures to the middle sage, "and Abedni," finally, he indicates the quiet sage on the right.
"Sages Shadra, Misha, and Abedni," Ozai says and sweeps a hand over the table, "please, take your seats. It is clear that Agni passed over any number of the elder sages and instead selected you three as his representatives because they lacked your bravery and devotion. You can expect to be summoned for further counsel in the future. For the moment, it is time we turn our attention to this meeting."
All three sages smile as the tension breaks. Shadra takes a moment to close his eyes and find his center, Abedni looks ready to pass out in relief, but Misha shoots to his feet with another ecstatic, wide grin and bows low over the sign of the flame. "Yes, your majesty," Misha says as his companions likewise clamber to their feet and offer bows of their own.
As the sages make themselves comfortable on a trio of cushions near the foot of the table, Ozai takes his own chance to draw a centering breath. This news isn't going to go over well with the gathered generals. Not most of them, anyway. A cynical part of him wonders how many Agni Kais he is going to have to refight, and how many of the generals will have second thoughts when their hypothetical opponent is not a seemingly half-blind, half-deaf, once-banished boy-king that was in the process of recovering from a lightning strike.
"If any of you have not heard yet," he says once everyone has finally settled, "I met with the spirits this past noonday and, chief among them, Agni." That causes something of a stir but no one dares to challenge the statement. "Agni charged me with establishing peaceful relations with the other nations. In other words, gentlemen, it is the great Sun Spirit's will that this war end, sooner rather than later. We are here to set about doing just that."
Objections and denials ring out from every side and Ozai prepares himself for the long hours ahead. He's dragged the Fire Nation kicking and screaming into peace once before. He can do it again.