There's a firebender in Ba Sing Se. Jet is sure of this. Word on the street is that if you walked past the florist and take a right to the circular plaza, you would find said firebender managing a food stand, selling this "Yakitori" that's becoming popular these past weeks.

This firebender, whom most of the regular customers believe to be a "she" (though her masculine demeanour puts doubt to that belief) has an air of mystery to her. No one knows where she comes from, or what she does other than making Yakitori all day. Though there have been rumours about her temper. A fiery hot temper. Like a firebender.

People here were a bit hesitant to approach her at first, but with the allure of good food and pretty looks, they warmed up to her in time. But not Jet, he sees through the facade, the mask that's fooled everyone but him. She's got the talk and the walk of a firebender, Jet is sure of this, and to top it all off he's seen her use fire before.

He remembers that moment from weeks ago. It was a packed afternoon and the firebender was serving quite the crowd. But, with his keen eyes, Jet caught her manipulating the fire of her grill. He saw her two fingers lift up discreetly behind the stand, and the flames increased in height as if commanded by her. The fool thought she could get away with that.

Now today is a special day because in five minutes Jet will out her as the firebending scum she truly is. Then she'll be on the run from the Dai Li and Jet can rest assured that the streets of Ba Sing Se will be clean once more.

Though the Freedom Fighter is tempted to unravel the mystery that is her, he must focus on the task at hand. But one question nags him to no end, "Just where the hell did she come from anyway?!"

A girl peers into a sizzling pool of black and red, tightly clutching a jar of golden vitality. The heat scorches her skin, but the girl endures, her eyes never straying from the Hourai Elixir within.

She hears the sound of sandal meeting gravel. A man, Iwakasa, stands behind her, panting with bloodshot eyes and a baleful stare. How scary, he had looked so dignified before.

"There you are, you brat!" he screams. "Kicking me down like that... for that jar. You're just as greedy as the rest of them!" He sports a rabid smile and wide eyes, "And now that you're here, I'll just kill two birds with one stone."

In two great bounds, he reaches the girl and shoves her. She falls into the red abyss of the volcano, the jar still within her grasp.

-
That was a millennia ago, her first death is one she'll never forget. She remembers without fail the burning, the pain, and the panic of that day.

First oblivion, then fire. The flames coalesce into the shape of a woman, and Fujiwara no Mokou sees the light, resurrected yet again by the curse of the Hourai Elixir.

The once shamed daughter of the Fujiwara clan stands atop a crater of her own making, the ground now scorched black and desolate. The forest surrounding it now a husk of its former vitality, the burning acrid wood assaults her senses.

A woman is sitting at the edge of the crater, grasping the hilt of her Lunarian Dao, stained with Mokou's blood. Her hair's blacker than the burnt land around her, a contrast to Mokou's white mane. Treacherous murky pools of brown fixate onto Mokou's form and crinkle in shameless amusement.

"Your first death of the day and I haven't had lunch yet!" the woman says, her voice as silky as the kimono she wears, "Have I gotten better? Or have you grown dull perhaps? Lost your edge? Oh, how the mighty have fall-"

Before the woman, Kaguya Houraisan, could finish, Mokou responds with a blast of fire that rends her speechless. The effect is visceral, flawless skin charrs and melts as her long hair disintegrates, burning even the roots. There is no scream, no grunt of pain, nor any curse or taunt as the body burns into nothing. The only sound present, if one could call it that, was the silent acceptance of death born from boredom.

A nagging thought manifests in the corner of Mokou's head, reminding her that she should feel something about another's death. But she's killed Kaguya too many times to even care anymore. The act has become so mundane, as if killing were something one does to pass the time. Come to think of it...it is now.

There's a bright flash at the edge of the crater, and once it subsides Kaguya's resurrected form can be seen standing. Brought back to life by the curse of the Hourai that shackles her to the living. What was previously incinerated now returns unburnt and untouched.

The Exiled Princess jumps down the crater and crosses her arms, "Rude." She grumbles, "Catching me off guard like that won't count to today's score. That was simply barbaric of you."

Mokou responds half-heartedly, her tone subdued and lacking her usual bluster," You were talking nonsense and killing you was the only way to silence you."

Kaguya narrows her perceptive eyes as her mouth becomes a thin line. The Princess notices something wrong with Mokou's subdued demeanour. "what's the matter?" Kaguya asks "You're not as uncouth and vulgar as usual." The Princess takes a step back and sighs, "Something is amiss with you, are you bothered perhaps? If you wish to be alone-"

"Stay" Mokou demands, and the Princess stops dead in her tracks. Kaguya looks to Mokou with wide-eyes and a raised eyebrow.

She rolls her eyes in jest, "Fine...I guess I shall suffer a few minutes with you. "The Princess sports a teasing a smile, "Is it because my presence soothes you that you asked me to stay? I wouldn't blame you, my looks can lift the spirits of the most depressed and bothered." The Princess begins to pose in such a way that would be considered scandalous among other Lunarians. "So please, indulge yourself! Until every wrong you've committed feels right!"

"Shutting up for once would definitely help. I didn't ask you to stay so you could keep on yapping." Mokou blows a cloud of smoke out of her mouth as she sighs, a result of her powers. "There's this place that's been on my mind lately. I don't know if I want to say it."

"Oh just out with it! It wouldn't do to let such things stew. Where do your thoughts bring you Mokou? Not the moon, I hope." Kaguya says.

Mokou opens her mouth soundlessly, searching for a word,"..." Kaguya tilts her head in askance until Mokou finally speaks, "No, not the moon," She says, shaking her head, "just some mountain."

-
"I'm thinking of leaving Gensokyo, maybe for good depending on how things go."

Eirin Yagokoro, the co-creator of Lunaria and a genius doctor who was renowned for her remarkable intellect, had to do a doubletake when she hears the words come out of Mokou's mouth. She gently, but not meekly, places the teacup she was drinking from onto the table.

"That is unfortunate." Eirin begins to say, as she feels a modicum of sadness at Mokou's declaration. Her presence had been a shining sun in Kaguya's life, whether the Princess wants to admit it or not. Now with Mokou leaving, Eirin fears if Kaguya would go back to her old habits now that she has one less companion to stave off ennui.

"I shall accompany her." Said Princess declares with a raised hand, "See to a journey's end and all."

"Pardon me, journey?" Something must be wrong with the Princess's head? Accompany Mokou? Leave Eientei? Eirin of all people should know that Kaguya is a woman that follows only her whims, but even this surprises her. Eirin's mind wanders to possible methods in producing anti-insanity pills before perishing the thought and sighing, "And where exactly are you going Mokou?"

Mokou looks into her tea that she had just placed down, the ripples drawing the stare of her red eyes. Eirin notices the microexpressions that lay bare Mokou's thoughts. Her cheeks relax as the corners of her mouth tugs down imperceptibly, her upper eye-lids twitch downwards, while her eyes lose focus. Whatever reason Mokou has to leave Gensokyo, it's a reason that she has contemplated for a long time it seems.

What could it be then? Why would she leave when her reason for simply existing is here in this very room. Kaguya is the only constant in her...eventful life. Not only that but from what Eirin could deduce, without Kaguya as the anchor that keeps Mokou grounded, she would have wandered aimlessly in the outside world, a ghost without purpose for eternity. What the Princess is to her is everchanging, but her presence has always been constant. For a time she was the source of her father's shame and someone to spite, then Kaguya became the reason to improve herself, and now...now that they are equals, the Princess is now Mokou's eternal enemy whose very existence helps stave off the ennui of eternal life. And most importantly, one of the few that can genuinely emphasize with Mokou's plight.

In some way, Eirin believes this is a fact that Mokou knows too, that without Kaguya she is purposeless and eternity will strip away at her mind. Thus, the thought of simply leaving is absurd, the personal costs would be too high. Unless Mokou has found a way to escape the Hourai's curse.

The woman herself speaks, now out of her reverie "Now I haven't looked into it deeply but..."

"You've found a way to die? Truly and permanently? Or at least you have a sneaking suspicion." Eirin states, sipping into her tea.

"tch, nothing gets past you, doesn't it?"

"I wouldn't be here if such things, 'gets past me'." She brings her hands together and sports a serene smile, "So," she says " dying hm? Mind clarifying for me?"

"Well, I haven't thought of the specifics, but..." Mokou scratches her head, "My first death was in when it was still active. It's where my fire powers come from, " Mokou summons a bright flame on her index finger, an unnecessary act but most likely a cathartic one for her, " I drank the Elixir as I fell onto the volcano, and during the process of my immortalization, I was enveloped in magma. When I came back to life, was emptied of its lava and lied dormant ever since."

"Which...?" Eirin asks.

"Which means whatever was in is now in me."

"hm, quite the leap of logic, though there's evidence to support it. So 's inextinguishable flame is now a part of you, you say?" At Mokou's nod, Eirin continues "It'd explain why a mere human would have your powers, even with the Hourai's effects. Though I had believed it to be Iwanagahime's distancing of her sister that led to the mountain's dormancy, not your death."

" It was a part of Sakuyahime's scheme to have me fall into with the Elixir, I think. I don't know for sure, but what I do know is that I took something away from , something that is now deeply tied to my immortality. Maybe I can return back what I've taken away and even end this life if I'm lucky. That's the purpose of this journey."

A tinge of sadness manifests within Eirin's heart, a sadness that comes from pity, "I had thought you were done with false hopes," Eirin says gently, " We've been searching for such solutions for many millennia and to no avail. You must face it Mokou, the Hourai removes the imperfections within our souls and makes them eternal. There's no going around absolute immortality, not even with entropy. You mentioned 'giving something back' to the mountain, and that will somehow give you a real death. But how exactly will you go about that? Will you simply die on 's crater? Or will you die within the mountain itself and let your soul be absorbed by whatever spiritual energy is left within ? How thoroughly have you planned for this?"

Mokou 'hmphs' in defiance, "I'll cross that bridge when we get there, Eirin. Besides, this journey shouldn't be too much of a hassle, if I'm wrong," she shrugs, "nothing changes, but if what I think is true, then I'll finally die right."

Kaguya covers her mouth with the sleeve of her kimono, before chiming in, "Everything to gain, and nothing to lose."

Eirin could only sigh in exasperation, seems like the two have made up their mind, and as Kaguya's loyal retainer, Eirin must follow the Princess wherever she goes. 'Everything to gain, and nothing to lose'...what nonsense, this was a lose-lose situation to begin with.

-
Leaving the barrier was less of a hassle than Mokou had thought. In fact, the hardest the part was finding Yukari, but the Gap Hag had found them instead. After some explaining, Yukari had allowed them to leave if the three immortals promised not to tangle with matters of the outside world. She became even less uptight when Kaguya had worded the excursion as a 'simple' vacation. Which was confusing, to say the least...Her easy acceptance had thrown Mokou a bit off-balance since the Gap Hag is known for her penchant for schemes and convoluted plans. She had half-expected to end up owing the Yakumo matriarch a favour or two.

Though there is the possibility that Yukari allowed them to leave as part of an elaborate scheme. It would explain the fake IDs, the cash, and these strange clothes Yukari had lent them. To go this far for them... there must be something Mokou's missing.

Kaguya's hand grasps Mokou's shoulder, bringing her back to the present. On her other hand is a stick skewering two dangos, she speaks with one in her mouth, " sho, how closh are we?"

Eirin replies with exasperation, " Please maintain some sense of decorum princess, we're not a gathering of hooligans after all."

"Thersh noshing rong with..." She gulps, " Nothing wrong with being a bit lax now isn't there?"

Mokou looks away from the pair to examine the trail ahead. She notes the uneven dirt road and the massive crowd of hikers. She had thought there would be some snow present, but the heat of the summer sun seems to have melted them away.

She looks past the people to see the summit ahead. She's almost there, it's so close.

The Fujiwara girl steps up her pace, unheeding of the other climbers she bumps into and the exclamations of the other immortals. Mokou's feet becomes a blur that hovers above the pits and mounds of the dirt road. So fast she ran, that by the time she realized it, 's caldera was right in front of her.

There, right in front of her was the place of her first death a thousand and three hundred years ago, and hopefully, her last. The cold breeze brushes her soothingly as if to welcome her back. The sight of this expanse that stretches across the foreseeable horizon hits Mokou with a wave of nostalgia.

Then came the inklings of a faraway memory, from a different world, a smaller one. A memory from the life of a child that lived as far from the court as a royal can. Where sticks and fists were the tools she's used to solving disputes about stolen toys and childish vices, rather than fire and death.

Feelings of peace and excitement give way to sombre sobriety. In the thousand years since Mokou took 's fire, it had never erupted once, lying dormant ever since. It's time to give back what was once taken.

Eirin catches up to Mokou and stands beside her, "There it is," she says, " your final destination." Mokou nods at that, too deep in her thoughts to formulate a reply. " Time strips away at everything, and eternity brings a fate worse than death. I have doubts that this will work, but know that I hope you'll find your rest here."

"It's a long time coming" Mokou responds, "Thirteen hundred years is more than enough for someone like me. Let's get to work, shall we?"

Thanks to Lunarian illusion magic Eirin employed, the three of them were able to reach the centre of the crater unnoticed. Mokou and Kaguya sit next to each other as Eirin slowly forms a magic a circle.

Kaguya looks to the sky, a blank look on her face, "It'd be boring." Mokou shifts her head towards the Exiled Princess and looks to her in askance. "I'll have to find a way to die too then." Before Mokou could reply Eirin interrupts them with a shout.

"I'm finished!" She exclaims and Mokou transforms into a flying trail of fire that darts to the doctor. Kaguya follows her in a brisk pace.

"What do you want me to do?" Mokou asks.

"I want you to lay down on the centre of this circle," Eirin points towards her finished circle, replete with winding shapes, designs, and Japanese characters. "and spread your arms and legs apart." Mokou does so, " Good. Now I'm going to disintegrate your body and have your soul captured by this circle. After that, it'll act as a conduit to the energies of the mountain and your own soul. If there's a strong enough sympathetic connection, the two will seek to be united. Two things could happen by then, your soul will be absorbed into the mountain and you'll experience true death of a sort, or your soul will instead absorb the mountain's energies and nothing changes other than a little power-up. Now, are you ready? Any last words just in case?"

Mokou shakes her head before all she could see was white.

There has been a setback, that firebender and her stall could not be found anywhere. A quick interrogation of some of the regulars led Jet to realize that she has been gone for days.

Damn it all. Last he's seen her was six days ago. Who knows where she is now. He questions more people, and he finds out that she lives somewhere near the slums.

Hours later, he finds a quaint dilapidated shack that's placed in the alleyway underneath one of the railways. This must be it, the location matches. He puts his ear by the door before deeming it empty.

He slowly opens the door and enters it. The interior's a mess, no furniture, and with pots, scapulas, and other equipment strewn about recklessly. And don't let him get started on the smell.

With two fingers closing his nose, he searches the room to conduct his master plan. Infiltrators usually have essential documents and correspondences stashed away in the most unsuspecting places. If Jet could find them, then he's gold.

He turns to corner into another room and nearly falls over thanks to sight in front of him.

On a mat is the still corpse of that Yakitori seller. Her emaciated form sports grotesque sunken cheeks that makes her nearly unrecognizable if it weren't for the clothes. Speaking of her clothes, they look so loose, so baggy. As if someone dressed up a stick in the biggest garments they can find. Her arms and fingers might as well be bones.

The corpse looks so delicate and fragile, as if it would collapse with a poke. There's an indescribable sadness that Jet starts to feel, due to the sight of a fellow person suffering in such a way, whether they are a firebender or not.

He sighs and resigns himself to report to the authorities to clean this up.

He's about to leave until the corpse started moving.