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[ The post comes across with a name that, really, no one will recognise. It's one word, simple: ＡＤＬＥＲ. Thank goodness for the text option so he has no need to attempt to hide his voice or face; for now his name is enough. ]

Tell me about your world. Your wars. Your powers. Tell me about the things that you fight for, what you continue to cherish even here.

Educate me.

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[ zuko doesn't recognise anything. ]

[ he spends a good two minutes mulling over this question. it's not in a bid to prepare any answers for "adler", not even to write him an essay educating him, as he so pleasantly asks, on the fire nation, the war he had ended, and his own bending. the earth kingdom had wiped his desire to show off his firebending, even to proclaim himself as fire nation royalty; he's no longer eager to show off to prove himself to those who should know him, but can't even recognise the familiar nose shape he has to fire lord ozai. it is a small reason as to why he pauses, but, mostly, he's looking at his locket, trying to turn it on. ]

[ his locket begins with video. zuko's expression is calm, his brows smooth and relaxed. his hair drifts into his face as per usual. ] Why do you — [ and there's a long pause and radio silence. he flickers in and out, accompanied by a very long moment of his video feed being black. ]

[ before his locket picks up and switches to text, instead. ]

— WANT TO KNOW ABOUT THAT?

[ after shaking his locket and yelling at it, it returns. his question had meant to be calmly asked, merely curious and paranoid as to why someone is asking such a specific set of questions he can easily fill with a very long textwall of words. after the bumps in the road they've dealt with with transporting raonil, zuko's cautious. ]

[ he only responds in hopes of momentarily distracting himself from how tired, bruised, and beaten he feels from the journey. ]

Curiosity. Interest. I want to learn a little more about the people I have been forced to spend my time with.

[ any time someone's curious … maybe he just wants a cold cup of tea warmed up. nothing bad needs to come of it. the one time iroh had been curious, he'd almost died of poison. but that was just a one off. ]

[ what's the one thing most people know? ]

I'm a firebender.

I hate the cold. But I like ice in my drinks.

Edited 2014-08-27 11:07 (UTC)

A firebender. Tell me more?

I bend the element of fire.

[ except not everyone knows what bender means, not in the context of his world, at least. ]

Uh, generating and manipulating.

I've known a few people like that in my time. Control of the elements, of other matter. Even mind readers. Were you born this way?

[ what did he do to the thing? ]

Mind readers?

Yes. My sister and father are firebenders. To be a bender, you have to be born a bender. I've never met anyone who wasn't born a bender but became one later in life.

Telepaths. Someone that can read, coerce and influence a mind.

And how do people react to this gift?

And you're not one of them. I don't think I've ever met a telepath before. Would've been useful.

Non-benders know about benders. It's not a secret. The Earth Kingdom even hosts underground tournaments between Earthbenders sometimes. I think they used to attend; non-benders have a champion they like. My friend says she was one, but I don't believe her. She's too short.

Firebenders aren't very welcome.

No, but I a few. I've heard there is one here, too.

How do they react to benders, these humans, the non-benders? Do they loathe you? Harm you? Why is fire the least welcome of the elements?

... I never noticed.

Soccer was a non-bender and his sister was a waterbender. He treated her like a brother would to a sister. But they can't harm us. We can bend elements. They can only wield spears and swords. We win in the end. It doesn't matter if they loathe us. I mean — I was told it didn't matter, but it does —

... That's not how you spell his name.

[ this stupid dictation! zuko's prepared to pronounce sokka phonetically, but it doesn't really matter, does it? ]

The Fire Nation broke the peace among the four kingdoms and instigated a war — Why does any of this matter? People here don't care.

[ about benders, about the fire nation. but zuko does. perhaps that's why it matters — or why he's even answering before he has to physically snap himself out of whatever spell this stupid locket has cast on him. ]

I care.

In my world non-benders hunt those that have gifts, powers. Their technologies developed and they captured us, trapped us, experimented on us, created machines to find us and kill us. Will that happen in your world, I wonder, when humanity grows stronger and envious of your gifts?

That is why I care.

No.

The Hundred Year War is over. The Fire Nation will broker peace. It doesn't wish to expand and build an empire, not when the cost is bloodshed. The people have nothing to fear and nothing to loathe anymore. The Fire Nation will make up for the damage it has done and restore peace — and if it the price is to destroy my father's plans for an empire, then so be it. It'll be worth it.

[ however, it isn't as black and white as zuko wishes to paint it. even the shades of grey appear in his message now. the freedom fighters had been born out of their hatred for firebenders. isn't that the same? jet had been merely a boy with the ability to chew straw and wield two hooks. zuko still remembers how he'd screamed for the earth kingdom guards to open their eyes and see the fire nation royalty standing amongst them. ]

I'm not going to let it happen.

What are you? Not a telepath, but something else.

Not just the Fire people. All of you. When the world rises up against benders what will you do then? Will you fight the humans or will you allow the benders, your kind, to suffer?

How will you stop them? What power do you have to change the mind of the humans, their weak minded prejudices? I've seen it before and I am sure I will see it again.

I am Adler.

[ zuko's becoming so passionate he even forgets to introduce himself with his typical hi, zuko here. ]

No one has to suffer! We will restore peace. It's my destiny to repair what my father and his father and his father before him have destroyed. I'll restore honour to the Fire Nation.

I'm Fire Lord. It's what I must do for my people.

[ but that will do nothing. zuko's even said so — the fire nation has a lot to repent for. being the fire lord, and the son of ozai, means he'll have to repent even harder. ]

[ he's prepared to do so. where pride and a poorly inaccurate perception of herself would only blind azula to what the nation is crying out for, zuko sees it. he's lived it. ]

The Avatar is my friend. Where those who see another Firebender drunk on destruction, he will open their eyes. He'll help me restore balance.

We're not going into another war. It's over.

I am not talking about firebenders by themselves, you're misunderstanding me. Tell me; what will you do when the people that cannot bend rise up, fight, panic due to their own weaknesses, their own insecurities?

What if they create things to fight you? Destroy you?

Will you have peace then?

[ firebenders have already created things to incapacitate firebenders. zuko remembers the cooler quite vividly. but his people are firebenders and non-benders alike ... when he thinks of the fire nation, it encompasses both; he sees men with flames in their hands and women with stilettos and knives grasped between their fingers. ]

[ what would he do if mai and ty lee woke up one morning and decided they were done being bossed around by a firebender? azula had worn them thin, understandably, but what would he do if they were to band together and create a group similar to the freedom fighters? ]

No, I wouldn't stand for it.

But hopefully it won't come to that. It's always been bender against bender. There were the Freedom Fighters, but ...

[ there are too many loose ends for zuko to tie up. he's not even sure he's capable of tying his own shoes without the laces coming undone wiht a mere step of his foot. ]

You said they rose up against you. What did you do?

Sometimes we have no choice. It is not a matter of black and white. The world is grey, shaded. We cannot simple choose one road or another.

I fought for my people. I still fight for them.

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