The Fire Lord's Flameo Return [Opeeennnnnn]

Two long years. It had been two long years of war. And here they were. Kano sat back in the palanquin, looking out the narrow curtains at the crowds passing by. He wondered briefly if any of them knew that the man who had destroyed their fleets, helped lead the charge on their capitol, and assisted in the dethronement of their Fire Lord was hidden in the regal carriage. This business of being carried by people... it irked him. Still, Captain Klargith had voiced concern that he would find himself a target to the remaining loyalists if he went on foot. Against his own prideful sense, he allowed this bit of protocol.

The times had changed Kano quite a bit. He looked mostly the same. He had maybe a few more scars since the outset of this whole thing. But the only real difference was the mustache now adorning his face. He found people took him a bit more seriously that way.

Through the gates of Caldera City and on to the palace the palanquin went. They traveled through into the very heart of the palace until they came to a large hall within it. He stepped out of the man-drawn carriage, grateful to be able to stretch his legs.

"Chief Kanoei." said a voice, approaching. He looked around. A young woman with several scrolls tucking in her arm was moving toward him. She was quite business-like. "Sorry to keep you waiting."

"I just got here." Kano said, smiling kindly as he looked around. It wasn't the Blue Palace, but it certainly was a regal one.

"But protocol dictates that a member of the Fire Lord's personal staff should meet any and all dignitaries of a rank comparable to the Fire Lord's herself. Frankly, I was three seconds late. This is totally unacceptable! Ugh! What is your problem, Fon?!"

"Y... you're new at this, aren't you?" Kano said slowly, blinking with concern as she started verbally berating herself.

"Who told you that?!" the girl named Fon snapped at him. A moment later, she seemed to come to her senses. "I-I'm terribly sorry, I--!"

"Think nothing of it." Kano said, holding up a hand with a shake of his head. "Just point me in the direction of the throne room."

"Ah, well, it's this way. Here, I'll show... you..."

"No, just point." Kano said, cutting her off. Didn't keep her from finishing her sentence.

After a staring contest that left Kano wondering why she wasn't hustling people on some staring scam, she gave in and pointed him in the right direction. Per her directions, he wove his way through the palace and eventually found the throne room and, indeed, Shula herself.

"Nice digs." Kano said, pulling a little comment crazy old Pang had provided over the years. He stood framed in the doorway, watching the newly restored Fire Lord pace around.

"Please." Kano said, nodding politely to the servants her were heading out past him as he approached her. It had been a few months since he'd seen Shula. Being Fire Lord again didn't seem to agree with her. Or maybe she was just stressed out. He could sympathize.

He looked around the place as he went. It was a room of many columns. Reds and golds were commonplace, depictions of fire in carved gold relief. It wasn't a surprising theme. At the far end of the hall sat the Fire Lord's throne. Had she been sitting in it, he would likely have been treated to a show of flames wreathing the perch. But then, the Throne Hall of the Blue Palace was no backward relic of a room. It was, however, the first time he'd ever been in this particular room. It was quite nice, all things considered.

"Fire Lord Shula!" he said, smiling around at her as he came to a halt a dozen or so feet in front of the raised throne platform. "It does have a certain... ring to it, doesn't it?"

"While I will never understand the appeal of palanquins," Kano said after nodding his appreciation for the refreshments while he took a seat next to the table. He began preparing his tea as he sat there. "The journey was quite pleasant."

The Seawolf was a smooth ride as always and bore him from the Northern Water Tribe with the speed and efficiency he'd come to expect of Captain Klargith's ship and crew. Aside from a small delay in the neutral zone of the central sea, he'd had no hindrances. Of course, that particular little event had been by choice. He'd been meeting with Admiral Koda, the commander of the Water Tribe blockade on the northern fire islands where most of the remaining resistance to the new Fire Lord's rule was centralized.

After stirring a small measure of cream into his tea, he leaned back in his seat crossing his legs. He looked up at Shula as he sipped from the delicate silver cup.

"So tell me," he said finally, placing his cup back down and resting his hands in his lap. "What's with all the pacing? I've been in here about five minutes and you haven't stopped for more than a few seconds on a stretch. You look uncomfortable. And in this, uh..." he waved a hand lazily about the hall, sparing a passing glance for what he was gesturing at. "magnificent place, no less." he finished, returning his gaze to Shula and his hand to his lap.

"Try living an entire life without it and then being thrust into something you were never prepared for." Kano chuckled, shaking his head slightly. "I was convinced I would be spending the rest of my life teaching young waterbenders, but fate has a way of interceding."

He took another sip of his tea and considered the throne perched atop its platform at the head of the hall briefly. It was little more than a lavish cushion under a magnificent little pavilion, but it was nevertheless the seat of power for one of the greatest empires in the history of the world. Though it had suffered a great defeat, a defeat Kanoei believed was in its best interests, it was little diminished. Its culture was still great, its people strong. The Fire Nation would recover and flourish under its new Fire Lord... if she wanted it to.

"Have you ever been to the Blue Palace?" he continued in a conversational sort of way. "It's quite an exquisite place, really. Filled to the brim with all manner of fine things given to the chiefs over the years or created by the ancient ancestors of the tribe or whatever other thing you could think up. It's really quite over the top. But places like this aren't for us. We're just the temporary inhabitants. They were here before we were born and, in all likelihood, they'll be here after we're gone. No, it's all for the people. It's to show our neighbors of foreign countries what our people are capable of. My advice is take it in stride. It's not for you."

He chuckled to himself, sipping at his tea.

"So what about these chores of yours? Affairs of state?"

"Oh, we're fine." Kano said, waving a hand at the question. "Most of our fleet is currently on the blockade of the northern fire islands per General Zhou's request. He wants the Phoenix Corps. to deal with the remaining dissidents instead of my warriors. Can't say as I blame him. You have a greater chance of ending this whole thing peacefully if it's countrymen trying to talk these guys down. You know Gen. He doesn't let up until the job's done."

He sipped at his tea again, placing the cup back down on the table and looking over at Shula with a determined sort of look in his eye.

"You know, to tell the truth." he said, feeling as though the jig was up. There was nothing to be gained by keeping the charade going on any longer. He figured he might as well come out and say it. "Gen is quite worried about you. He asked me if I wouldn't mind speaking to you, one leader to another. He seems to be under the impression that I'm the best person for the job, though I don't know if I agree with him. The truth of the matter is that it almost never gets any easier..."

He sighed, looking down at his own hands, resting upon one another in his lap.

"My rule began with a declaration of war." he said with a heavy sort of feeling weighing upon him within his chest. "My greatest fear since then wasn't the fear of death, or even the fear of defeat. It was the fear that my people would see me as nothing but a war-monger dead set on conflict. After all... what else could a man who declared war on a so-called ally the night he was declared chief be?" he shook his head slightly, still staring down at his own hands. He'd never admitted this to anyone, not even his own blood relatives, his grandfather, his father, his mother. No one. Not even Koa or Hun-Hun. It was difficult for him to look back up at her for some reason, but he did. "There are things that weigh on people like us, Shula. Things that most people have no idea about. They can't even begin to feel the weight of it all. Letting yourself go nuts over all these things... is not going to help your people..."

"Gen is fine." Kano said. "He also guessed that you'd try to change the subject and said, and I quote: 'Don't let her divert the conversation.'"

He looked over at Shula with a sharp sort of glance that didn't even belong to him. It was the look he knew Gen liked throwing out there when he reigned someone in. He knew Shula would recognize it. Everyone who knew Gen would have. He's famous for it. Shifting around a bit in his seat, Kano rested his hands in his lap once more and then returned his gaze to Shula.

"All other considerations aside for now, my friend." he said, a look of utter seriousness and empathy. "Your people will blame you, but not for those reasons. Novai's rule was hard on your people. You'll be blamed not for his fall, but for his rise. It isn't fair, but... it's what is. If the people of the Fire Nation had truly wanted to fight for Novai, we wouldn't be sitting here now. It's a question of hidden agendas. Your people have secretly wanted to be free of him for quite some time. I knew many of your people under his rule. Gen was one of them. Your concern is understandable, but misplaced. They need a good leader, not a guilty one. The question is... Are you that leader?"

"I've had my grandfather to guide me." Kano said simply. "He is a wise man, a man of great experience and knowledge. And when I felt lost, I turned to him for guidance. My trust in him has made me who I am, Shula. Now, you may not have the guiding hand of Hakano, the Wise Wolf at your disposal, but you do have that of Gen. And he is doing everything he can to restore peace to the Fire Nation."

He reached over and picked up his tea once more and downed what was left in his cup, pouring himself another. He usually didn't chug tea unless he just wanted a new glass entirely. And he'd been talking so long, his had gone a bit cold, so warming it up was in order. He didn't like using bending to warm up teas. Always made them taste a little bitter afterward.

"Gen is dealing with Novai's remaining supporters so that you don't have to." he continued finally, taking a sip of his tea and setting his cup down again. "He knows you. He knows how this is stressing you. And he knows that if you are to maintain your rule, your first duty is to win the love of your people. I'm here because he's afraid you're focusing too much on the minutia of a battle that is all but over. There won't be a victory for Novai. He's finished. Have faith, my friend." he chuckled. "What needs to be done is being done. All you have to do is figure out what needs to be done next."

"A festival might be just what the Fire Nation needs." Kano nodded slowly. "It will tell the people that this conflict is coming to a close and that you don't intend to continue business as usual as it was under Novai. Plus, it may provide the opportunity for the people of the Fire Nation to realize that the men and women of foreign nations who have been patrolling their streets do not mean to remain their enemies and, in fact, do not mean to remain here."

He considered the next point she offered carefully before speaking.

"I also think that this nation needs to hear the voice of its new leader." he said. "However, I would be cautious. There are still those out there who are not happy with this new change in government. If an attempt is made on your life during one of these events, it may do harm enough in simply occurring to weaken your position beyond repair..."

"It sounds wonderful." Kano smiled, nodding. "And each nation can give it their own bit of flair. It could be a valuable tool for ensuring unity and peace. People will not be so eager to fight each other if they are more aware of the human nature of those they are fighting. It may sound strange to some, but you and I understand just how easily you can hate someone you have dismissed as evil..."

He drank some more of his tea as he finished saying this. The spice took a bit of the edge off of the pang of guilt. He didn't even like to think about it. As he placed his cup down again, he looked back around, clearing his throat as politely as he could.

"I, um... I think that we should be quick about the plans for this. It might present a danger rushing into such a public event, but the longer we wait, the more likely it is that the loyalists will get past the blockades. If that happens, their general target number one will be any public event, especially if there are Alliance leaders there... Especially if you're there."

Shula Njoo

Shula held back a chuckle. People were so worried about her...it was funny how no one seemed to realize that she had been quite fine taking care of herself for the past few years. "Alright," she said, for while she didn't enjoy being under the guards' careful watch, she knew it was necessary. Her safety was key to a healthy nation. "Two weeks' time? Three, at the most." she stated, for she would need time to plan this all out and ensure that the other world leaders would attend. "I shall send word to Meili, Kanaryu, and the air council members at once, then," she decided, since it would be best to give them a few weeks' time to prepare.

Mood: Calm Condition: Fine

I'll Put a Link Here....Eventually.

OOC: Is Kanaryu even active anymore? How are we gonna have a festival without the SWT Chief?

"Two weeks." Kano nodded slowly. "I'll send word to the blockade commanders to prevent anyone from entering or leaving the restricted islands. If news reaches the loyalists of this little event of ours, there's bound to be trouble. Hm..."

He sat there in silence for a moment, considering carefully.

"AH!" he growled finally, shaking his head. "But enough of these worries! A celebration should be planned with a smile and a light heart. Even the most lavish festivals are for naught if there isn't the spirit of joy involved! Damn... I sound like the old man..."

He slapped the armrest of his chair as he said this last bit. It was all well and good to become like old man Hakano... he just didn't think it'd be that soon. Well... he'd been listening to the geezer for long enough.

"War over and peace here and still we're fighting." Kano muttered, standing himself and drawing his saber. "I think we announced victory a little too soon. Gen is not going to be happy about this breach. In any case, I'm going to send a messenger to get my elites from the Seawolf. They specialize in this sort of thing..."

He signaled one of the servants, who nodded instantly and backed away to hand off his request to one of the royal messengers. These people were good at following orders when the orders made sense. He didn't even have to explain himself again. That said... he wondered how many other conversations got listened in on when people weren't expecting it.

"Still..." he said slowly, looking around at her. "It's something of a surprise, isn't it? That they could get into the city so easily. I can't believe that Gen let them slip by..."