Outsider's Eye

Howdy folks! Haywire here. Obviously. This is my account...

Regardless, I've gotten a lot of traffic on Outsider's Eye ina really short time. SO I guess I'mma write an actual story this time, not just a One-shot. A few really important things to note before you go any further. This will not be a super straightforward thing. It's not gonna be just "the outsider marks Zuko, powers galore" This is gonna be a little AU. You'll understand more as you read it, hopefully. I'm gonna leave it at that and move on.

Banished.

That's the only word running through Prince Zuko's head right now. He keeps going over in his head the implications of that word, and wonders if there's anything he could have done differently to avoid it. He can't think of anything, at least, nothing that wouldn't make him feel like a monster. My eye should hurt, he thinks, but all he feels there is cold. The doctors said they wouldn't be able to save his eye. He believes them. He desperately wishes they were wrong, but -

A slight knock on the door of his cabin jars him from his thoughts. The door creaks open slightly.

"Prince Zuko?"

Ah. His uncle. At least someone cares. With a mumbled acknowledgement, Iroh steps inside.

"Prince Zuko, I know you are hurting right now. But please, don't let yourself waste away in your room."

Numbly, he nods, before dragging himself out of bed. He moves up to the decks above. His crew acknowledges him as he goes on his way. None of their faces hold any malice for his gruff demeanour. None of them have, over the last couple weeks. He knows it's pity, and he hates that, but he swallows his pride and deals with it, because they're the onlykind looks he's seen since his mother left.

Over the next three years, he comes to realize that his father gave him this task knowing full well it was doomed to failure. Zuko had mostly resigned himself to a life of exile. Despite the constant anger below the surface, he forces that down to deal with his crew; they're the only good thing that's happened to him, the crew and his uncle. Flying off the handle doesn't do anyhing but make everyone stuck at sea with you angry, and that's dangerous when those people need to have your back.

So Zuko bottles that rage up, only releasing it during spars.

His left side is ungaurded after a fireball. Exploit that. His kicks make breaking his root easy. Leg sweep, block the spear, fire at the third one. Pivot, dodge, fire pistol. Sword to the throat of the last one, go for the kill-

"That is enough, Prince Zuko." lingering only for a moment, he pulls the sword away from his adversary's throat.

"Sorry," he mumbles. "I got carried away."

"Agni, Zuko," Jee calls out, leaving his title out. "You're a monster with that sword!"

The sword in question was a gift from his uncle, crafted by a Natural Philosopher and tested by his old master, Piandao to make sure the sword was of sufficient quality. Folding away, it's designed for easy concealment. Engraved on the blade is the inscription: Never give up without a fight. It's been Zuko's philosophy for years, as his life has been one fight after another. He was told by his father once that he was lucky to be born. Might be the only honest words to come from his father's mouth.

After all, when he was born without the spark, it's a miracle his father didn't smother him then and there.

"Sir, we'll be pulling into port tomorrow. We need to pick up more whale oil."

"Of course," Zuko replies. "Make sure to pick up more than usual, we have a long trip ahead of us."

Zuko may not like his father, but he'll be damned if he won't still try to complete his mission, if only so he can see the fire nation again. Serkonos is lovely this time of year. It's a shame I'll never see that summer home again.

At that thought he wanders off to his room to sleep for a bit, he's been sparring all day, and his trip south will be a long one.

A golden eye snaps open. Zuko sits up with a start. Where was he? This doesn't feel like my ship. He gets up and starts moving to open the door. It crumbles to black stone at his touch. What's going on here? Tentatively, he steps out, only to be met with an endless sea of dark clouds and an dim blue glow. Suddenly, he feels a presence, fast approaching. He tries to move but can't. Someone fades into his view, assembling itself out of the cold stone. It- adn he refuses to believe this is a person- gazes seemingly into his soul, with pitch black eyes.

"Hello Zuko. I've been watching for some time. Cast out into the world, you are alone save for a few allies. A non-bending royal. Your own father didn't want you. Your mother, gone at a young age. Your eye stolen from you. Your life ripped away. And yet you press on. I've taken an interest in you. And so, I give you my mark. With it, you will have control over forces beyond other men, forces mortals call magic. It's time for you to leave the void. Know I will be watching with great interest."

As his vision fades yet again, he snaps awake yet again. This time he's in his cabin. For real. Gazing down at his hand, he's stunned. His hand is glowing.

Though, maybe he's more stunned by the fact his hand feels like it's on fire.

As the pain finally settles, the prince finds an ornate pattern seared into his flesh. a pair of semicircles with spikes, surrounding a dot. He runs a finger across it, feeling a thrum of power course through him. For a brief moment he's furious. Some kind of spirit. . . branded him. When his fist clenches though, he feels that surge of power again. He glances down, realizing his hand is glowing once more. Upon releasing the fist, a small pinpoint of light solidifies in his hand. He finds that when he drops it, it pulls him to wherever it lands.

His mind races at the possibilities. This power that has been gifted to him will be invaluable, hopeless though his mission might be. So what else can I do?

What else he can do, Zuko quickly realizes, is nothing. Though he did learn he can dispel his beacons, so at least he has that going for him.

The next day in port is an interesting turn of events. As his crew pulls into port to refuel and restock, Zuko hears...no, feels...senses a sort of pull, off down the docks. A faint hint of whalesong seems to reverberate in his soul, and he follows it. When the singing is so loud he can barely think, he stops. At his feet are several large bits of whalebone. Some small part of his mind tells him to take them, and he finds he has no desire to resist that urge. The singing settles down as he fits them into his bag. Finally shaking himself out of his stupor, he heads back to his ship, and waits for the crew to return.

Several days later, the crew is far out at sea, with little to do but spar and play at music night, which Zuko refuses to do, but doesn't begrudge his crew for needing a way to unwind. As for himself, Zuko is compelled to carve a design into his whalebone. As he does, he feels himself drained of his energy, but he can't bring himself to stop. When he's done carving, he finds that his pattern has burned itself onto the bone in much the same wayit did his hand. The newly carved whalebone sings once more, calling him to put a drop of blood on them. Before he knows what he's doing, he's knicked his thumb and dripped the crimson fluid onto the runes.

The effect is immediate. The runes disintegrate, falling away into flakes of stone from the other world. As this happens, the prince's mind is flooded with both power and knowledge. He's acquired a new power.

Summoning the crystal of power he uses in his teleportation, he instinctivle reaches up to the torched remains of his eye socket. Without a single thought, he jams the crystal in where his eye should be. It's agonizing, but the pain fades as quickly as it came. As the crystal settles in place, he realizes he has depth perception once more. What's more, if he focuses, he can see through walls.

His uncle rushes in just then, in a panic.

"Prince Zuko," He manages to get out around his rapid breathing, "I sensed a large spiritual presence just now! What happened?"

Zuko hesitates for a moment, and then:

"A few days ago I was pulled into the spirit world."

These words make Iroh even more distraught, and it takes far too long to calm him down. When he is finally calm enough to listen, the prince continues.

"As I was saying, when I woke up in my cabin the door fell away to nothing. It didn't look right. I couldn't move when the spirit appeared. He gave me this," gesturing to his mark, "saying I was 'interesting,' whatever that means.

"Zuko, did you make a deal with a spirit? Do you have any idea, how dangerous that is?"

"It wasn't much of a deal. I didn't get a choice; he just branded me and then pushed me out."

Iroh contemplates for a moment. "This is distressing. Tell me, does this spirit brand do anything?"

After a brief rundown of his abilities, Iroh declares he's unfamiliar with any spirits quite like the one that gifted him these powers. For now, they agree that it's best not to dwell on it too much.

In the following days, not much changes, though Zuko learns that his crystal eye has some interesting capabilities, in that it can't be seen by others, and also that it has the ability to show him the most direct path to his goal. This isn't very helpful, as the most direct path usually involves going over obstacles or through crawlspaces.

Finally, several more days in their trip south, The entire ship sees a massive column of blue light. Zuko is hopeful for the first time in months.

"That light came from an extremely powerful source! HELMSMAN! Set a course for the light!"

The Avatar has returned, and Zuko wants to have a word with him.

That'll be all for me. I can't think of a better stopping point. So we'll pick up next time. I'm glad people were interested in this, because it might be fun to see how far I can run with this. I'd like to note that marked are basically unheard of, though they do exist. As such, there's not an Abbey out for heretic blood, though using your powers might make people think you're possessed by a spirit, which isn't as far off the mark as one would like, I suppose. I'm hoping this is enjoyable to y'all, because Dishonored is in my top ten games of all time, and A:TlA is one of my favorite shows. I'm trying to create a blend of the two worlds, with elements from both, while maintaining Avatar's world. ANYWAY, I'll quit talking your ear off now.

-Haywire