The aftermath of the invasion left both victors and vanquished exhausted and hollow. The joint armies of the Earth Kingdom and the Northern Water Tribe had fractured under the weight of their losses. By the time the remaining troops withdrew, nearly two thirds of their forces lay dead or wounded, the slaughter of the assault had been terrible, and for all that sacrifice the campaign had ended in failure. The invasion had not toppled the Fire Nation; it had only bled both sides.
Team Avatar returned with General How and the battered remnants of his army to Ba Sing Se. They arrived to find an unexpected face waiting for them: General Iroh. The old general had heard the news of the assault and its cost, and he had come in person. He offered himself as a teacher to the Avatar, firebending instruction and the wisdom of a lifetime. Iroh's presence carried weight beyond the lessons: he had also facilitated a meeting between Zuko and the Avatar team, allowing old grievances to be aired and set aside. In quiet, earnest tones Iroh told them the old story of Avatar Roku and Sozin, about the comet, the rage, and a fateful friendship that had tilted the world, and he made the larger truth plain: to restore balance they would have to work together. Aang had to stand against Ozai; Zuko had to find a way to undo his house's ruin and take up the mantle of leadership so the world might heal.
Yet forty days after the failed invasion, shocking news arrived. Azula had seized the throne and proclaimed herself Fire Lord. Her first act as a Fire Lord was to dispatch an army led by Tai Lung. Reports claimed the army was meant to attack Ba Sing Se.
Iroh moved fast. He sent messages to White Lotus members scattered across the Earth Kingdom; the order went out to gather at Ba Sing Se. Many of the elders were already in the region preparing for the coming Sozin's Comet. Iroh used the opportunity to brief the Avatar on the White Lotus and on the gravity of the moment; he asked Aang to arrange a council with the Earth King and the Council of Five at once.
Three days later the royal council chamber was full: Team Avatar, the White Lotus, the Earth King himself, and the Council of Five. The Earth Kingdom leaders and team avatar were shocked to see the members of the White Lotus, especially Team Avatar who had met many of these faces during their travels, like King Bumi.
Iroh opened the meeting. He spoke plainly about the extraordinary turn of events "Ozai is gone and Azula is the Fire Lord now, but what worries me is Tai Lung leading the incoming Fire Nation army."
The room fell quiet at the mention of that name. Everyone knew what Tai Lung could do. After a moment of silence, Iroh continued.
"I admit I am bewildered by the turn of events, knowing Tai Lung," he said, "he would never lead an army willingly or attack others. But whatever the reason, Tai Lung must be stopped, preferably without fighting. He has a strong sense of honor and is quite sensible; if we can talk with him and reach an agreement, he might step away from the war again."
A pause followed. Then General How spoke with pragmatic confidence: "We can negotiate with him. We'll ensure his father is returned to him alive, and in return he should step aside from the war and never join it again" The words should have been conciliatory but they landed like a stone in Iroh's chest.
Iroh's expression hardened. "Admiral Lung, Shulian Lung, was he captured?" His voice was flat, the question tight with dread.
General How nodded. "During the invasion, he was taken. He is being held in a secret prison, under Dai Li watch."
The words hit Iroh like a physical blow. Color drained from his face. He said, barely above a whisper, "No… we must release him immediately."
General How slammed a fist down on the table. "Release him? He is a prisoner and a hostage. We cannot simply surrender him."
Iroh leaned forward, voice low and edged with urgency. "You don't understand." He let the words hang. "The consequences could be dire. Tai Lung does not seek war. He avoids needless killing. He values neither achievements nor fame in the ways you imagine, that is why he refuses to participate in invasions and why he steps in to save retreating soldiers only. Holding his father as a bargaining chip is the worst thing you could do. If you think to trade the life of Admiral Shulian Lung for a truce or compliance, you mistake the man before you. If he agrees, he would be dishonoring his father, instead he will stop at nothing to retrieve his father and I mean nothing."
A hush fell over the council chamber after Iroh's blunt warning. But it didn't last long, Sokka broke it.
"If only we'd encountered him on the day of the Black Sun," he said, voice tight with regret, "we could have ended the threat then." The thought of missed opportunity hung in the air.
Iroh answered calmly. "Tai Lung is not a threat to anyone," he said. "He fights to protect. Kidnapping his father is an intentional provocation." His eyes swept the room; he wanted them to understand that this was not a mere strategic problem, it was a moral fuse someone had lit.
Master Pakku, who was also present, raised his hands, palms showing burn marks. Every face turned to him, confused. Pakku's voice was quiet but steady as he spoke. "Meeting him during the eclipse would not have changed the outcome. If anything, you were lucky"
He lowered his hands and explained: he had run into Tai Lung down at the South Pole, the man alone and training with a girl. Pakku had recognized him and chosen to avoid fighting him, Tai Lung had agreed to let him go. But then the eclipse began. Despite being ashamed of his actions, Pakku admitted he had gone back on his word and attempted to take advantage of a powerless opponent. He had been wrong. Tai Lung had still been able to firebend; he had not been weakened in the slightest.
The new information landed like ice. If Tai Lung could still bend through the Black Sun, then the encounter Sokka had imagined would likely have ended the same as any other day.
But the revelation also carried another bitter edge, General How's face twisted in anger. "Tai Lung was in the South Pole during the invasion?" he snapped. "if we had pushed through to the Royal Palace, this war would have ended. Dammit." Frustration and self-reproach flared among those who had planned and participated in that campaign.
Bumi, who had met Tai Lung and heard tales of him, leaned forward in his chair. "Iroh is right that he has a sense of honor," he said slowly, "but I'm against leaving him unchecked." The old king's eyes flashed. "He's too dangerous to be ignored and left alone. What if he decides one day he will rule the world? What if he decides the world needs to burn? He must be brought down regardless"
Iroh's face tightened. "This is madness," he said. "The Avatar holds similar power. You can't simply decide to remove someone because of potential. We can reason with him."
Bumi bristled. "The Avatar is a force of balance; that is his destiny. Tai Lung answers to the Fire Nation, his loyalties could change him."
"I know him," Iroh said, voice steady but edged. "His father raised him well, to be honorable and with a clear moral code. He never oppresses the weak. He helps those in need and only fights when attacked or when many lives are on the line."
But Pakku, old, rigid, and still seared by the mark of his own failure, shook his head. "I am with Bumi on this," he said. "I don't trust keeping the fate of the world in the hands of a person who could change over time." One by one others in the room nodded in agreement; a consensus of fear built like a dam.
Iroh stared at them, shock and disappointment folding his features. "Your fear blinds you to reality," he said softly. "You are making a mistake by antagonizing him."
General How's impatience flared. "Why do you defend him so badly?" he demanded. "Is it because you know him and his father personally? Or because this is related to the Fire Nation? You were the Dragon of the West, after all."
Iroh sighed "Because I know what Tai Lung can become if driven to fury. None of you have truly fought him at the edge, no one here has faced him when he is out for blood. Tai Lung never fights with the intent to kill or destroy indiscriminately, and that difference matters."
Silence settled, thick and sober. Iroh pressed the point, voice low and heavy horrifying memory. "Back in the Fire Nation, Tai Lung is feared not only for his strength but for the brutality he can unleash when enraged. Ozai once sought to shame his father,Tai Lung nearly killed him. If his father had not asked to show mercy, Ozai would have died years ago."
Faces tightened as Iroh continued, recounting episodes that stripped away the polite veneer of myth. "Once, there was an assassination attempt on Princess Azula," he said. "Tai Lung's fiance was wounded. Without waiting to see her state, Tai Lung hunted for the culprit. In his wake, corpses were ripped apart and burnt. Even wild beasts could not unleash that kind of carnage."
The room was still. Iroh's hands curled into a fist.
"The carnage was so horrifying," he said, "that no member of the Fire Lord's council dared question Tai Lung. Even the greatest and most experienced generals left that scene terrified, some puked at the sight."
He looked at them all, each weary face: king and veterans, masters and strategists. Iroh's voice dropped to a near whisper, but it carried like a bell. "If you continue down the path of provocation, you will truly be facing a monster. Sozin's Comet is approaching. Can you imagine the scale of destruction Tai Lung might unleash if pushed to that edge? He can be reasoned with, but the moment he lets his rage take hold of him, you will truly understand what kind of monster you awakened."