Chapter Text
Kyoshi was used to not hearing good news ever since the coronation. But today was different.
Jinpa and she spent the entire evening checking and rechecking the law books of the Earth Kingdom. Actually, really, it was he who did this. Kyoshi was, well, just there. He told her he was on the right path now.
As no Earth Kingdom ruler surrendered power voluntarily, unlike with almost any other city in the Earth Kingdom, and even in the Fire Nation, Firelords could abdicate, it didn't exist in the Earth Kingdom because, well, it was literally called the Mandate of Heaven. Heavens gave her the mandate. Or at least in beliefs, it was that.
But there was an exception now.
Jianzhu got the throne by force. If there was any way to end her rule without it being reincarnated into a Fire Nation Avatar, in which case she would probably also curse her future life with the function, if she had no children.
Jinpa shouted, "Eureka. I found it."
Kyoshi yawned and spoke, "What have you got now? Another false positive?"
Jinpa scowled to read it fully, and spoke, "Not necessarily. I mean, Kyoshi, this never happened. I read all about every Earth King and Queen, and not a single one gave up the throne voluntarily."
Kyoshi rolled her eyes "I can't believe it."
Jinpa gasped, "Wait, what's this?"
Kyoshi rolled her eyes "Another one, already?"
Jinpa scratched his head and spoke, "I might be on a path. I'll need to consult another source. But I have a theory."
Kyoshi rolled her eyes and lay on the chair "Sure."
Jinpa frowned "Since Jianzhu came to the throne by a coup supported by Tagaka, we might have a conflict of interest."
He scratched his eyes and continued, "So, we can use that excuse and claim his rule was illegitimate. But..."
Kyoshi was now interested "But?"
Jinpa scowled, "But there is no way to sue the Earth King. In fact, it's explicitly protected."
Kyoshi groaned, and Jinpa spoke, "Wait, I have an idea."
Kyoshi rose slightly, but then Aju barged in, visibly distraught "Kyoshi, tell your guards not vet regulars like me, I can't go through the same shit again and again."
Jinpa spoke, "That's for security reasons. It can't be removed. I also have to go through this, despite being employed here."
Aju spoke, "Kyoshi, we need you. In clinic. Right now."
Kyoshi now rose fully "What's going on? Who is hurt?"
Aju's eyes were wide as she spoke, "Hei-Ran."
The first thing she saw in the clinic was screams and cries, and smoke. A lot of it. She recognised it as Rangi's.
Inside the room, there were Rangi, Atuat, Gao, and now Jinpa, Kyoshi and Aju. The atmosphere was sombre, like at someone's deathbed. Except for Rangi's outburst.
Atuat was in the corner, crying silently. Rangi was fuming and crying at once. Gao even barely suppressed his own tears as well, he had come to see Hei-Ran as a friend.
And on the table was Hei-Ran. With a large scar on the neck. Kyoshi didn't even need to check her to confirm that she was dead. Atuat spoke through tears, "I told you, there was no pulse. It's over. Not even Avatar can revive dead people."
Kyoshi covered her mouth with her hand, felt tears forming, and spoke, "What happened?"
Rangi came to her pleading, "Kyoshi, my mother... Help her... Do something... Kyoshi!"
Kyoshi embraced her tightly, led her trash around and cried on her. She spoke, "I'm sorry..."
Rangi screamed, "Please do something. I only have her. I have no one else. Kyoshi! Please!"
Kyoshi had no answer. She was too late...
I cannot cry cause the shoulder cries more.
As Kyoshi went to leave and allow Rangi to cope alone, she encountered Burak and his soldiers. Holding up another person.
Zoryu. He didn't get his throat cut, but his head was badly bruised and from what Kyoshi could see, broken in one place. He was still alive, though, if unconscious.
Kyoshi spoke, "What happened?"
Burak stopped "My troops saw two people breaking into his house. Once they entered, those people escaped. The troops found Zoryu badly beaten."
Kyoshi scowled, "He is alive? Did you capture the culprits?"
Burak frowned "Still alive, I checked." He turned to his troops, seeing them stand uncertainly, and shouted, "What are you waiting for? Bring him in!"
Kyoshi frowned as the troops shuffled near her, bringing Zoryu inside, "You didn't get the attackers?"
Burak frowned "No, they escaped too fast. The troops didn't see them bending, and they wore Earth Kingdom soldier uniforms from Gao's army."
Kyoshi whispered, "You think it was his deed?"
Burak rolled his eyes "Almost certainly not. Gao reported three of his soldiers missing to me yesterday. Perhaps they were killed, and their uniforms got stolen."
Kyoshi scowled, "Catch the culprits, I don't care how."
Burak bowed, "Of course, your majesty."
Gao then came and spoke, "Your majesty, I have good news for once. My troops captured the guy they left behind."
Kyoshi's eyes flared "Where is he?"
Gao spoke, "In a prison hospital. He is badly wounded and unconscious."
Kyoshi scowled, "Let's go then."
"She did what???" shouted Quin.
Ryuko frowned "Yes. We killed Hei-Ran and Zoryu. Now we request political asylum."
Quin spoke, "Were you followed?"
Ryuko rolled his eyes "Tried to get followed. Had to kill two people that saw us near the embassy."
Quin scowled, "You left a loose end."
Ryuko rolled his eyes "What?"
Quin scowled, "The plan necessitated three people. There are two of you. Where is the third one?"
Ryuko spoke, with a hint of sadness, "Dead, the witch killed him."
Quin spoke, "Are you fully certain all three are dead? Are you sure you haven't left any leads, any trace?"
Ryuko scowled, "Yes."
Quin scowled, "Did you burn your friend's body?"
Ryuko scowled, "Fuck."
Quin rolled her eyes "Figures..."
Ryuko frowned "The only thing they will get from him is that he is Fire Nation. Could be anything really."
Quin glared at the man, "No! It means exactly one thing. Huazo is cleaning the opposition. And Hei-Ran is very close to Gao, the butcher of Hujiang. And to Avatar as well. She is the mother of Avatar's girlfriend!"
Ryuko raised an eyebrow "Avatar has a girlfriend? I thought Avatar was a woman."
Quin scowled, but then her servant came and spoke, "A letter. Huazo."
She spoke, "Stay here. I'll come in a minute."
The man was a wreck. No amount of splashing or slapping him led to him opening his eyes and waking up. The only thing that signalled that he was still alive was that he had a pulse and breathed. Gao scowled, "Why isn't he waking up?"
The medic spoke, "We assume he was knocked out. Until he wakes up on his own, we can't do anything."
Kyoshi scowled. The man was obviously Fire Nation, considering the colour of his eyes and the tip of his topknot found in his pocket, but it could have meant anything. A part of her told her it was Huazo's doing, and part of her said it was unrelated.
She was lost. People were committing high-ranking murders, and she had no information about anything. Two promising leads were both unconscious.
She just had to wait until one of them woke up.
Chukagnak showed up on Tagaka's ship with a few papers, an unusual scene ever since she took over the North. He spoke, "I have news."
Tagaka lazily raised her head "Big or small?"
Chukagnak made a face "Big. And confidential."
Tagaka hit the desk drawer with her boot, and all of the guards and servants immediately bowed and left the room, the last one closing the door behind him.
Tagaka spoke, "Well?"
Chukagnak rolled his eyes "Not that confidential. Doesn't matter now. I got word from the Fire Nation. The conspiracy has triggered. Capital has fallen, government is massacred, firelord is on the run."
Tagaka stood up "Keosho? Or peasant uprising?"
Chukagnak frowned "Keosho. Their goal is the restoration of firelord Zoryu."
Tagaka rolled her eyes "Figures. I expected that. Well..."
Chukagnak spoke, "We support Saowon?"
Tagaka grinned "Of course. Send people to the Fire Nation colonies. Tell Erchtei to board his army. He will be going to the Colonies."
Chukagnak raised an eyebrow "We support militarily as well?"
Tagaka rolled her eyes "No. But the Earth Kingdom has barely any navy. Let's change the ratio by a lot. Blockade the entire ocean between the Earth Kingdom and the Fire Nation. Protect Huazo while she evacuates. Offer her more ships to evacuate the army."
Chukagnak frowned "No military intervention? We could crush the conspiracy right now."
Tagaka spoke, "No, that won't be needed. Let Huazo do something on her own."
Chukagnak scowled, "What if they get the firelord?"
Tagaka frowned "That is the most regrettable part of this. It's a gamble. Huazo can't become firelord, and Saowon has no other claimant."
Chukagnak spoke, "Another thing. Our sources in the Fire Nation confirm that Huazo sent assassins to get Hei-Ran and Zoryu."
Tagaka rolled her eyes "Can't believe that woman would fall so low, then claim the high ground."
Chukagnak chuckled, "Same. Well, what do we do?"
Tagaka paused for a bit and spoke, "Easy. Support the Saowon, with enough plausible deniability in case the conspiracy succeeds. Make sure that our ships don't have flags, or at least use plain red. In case of conspiracy succeeding distance from Saowon, we lost, and that's it. Don't have Saowon drag us into the mud."
"Your majesty, the prisoner has woken up from his coma. He is already trying to escape," spoke a guard.
Kyoshi was on the throne. There was no sleep for her, at least until she knew if Huazo was genuinely behind this. She tried to continue the previous business with Jinpa but they gave up, neither war able to concentrate. But now they are closer to the answer.
Kyoshi rose from the throne "Did you increase the number of guards around him?"
The guard spoke, "Of course, your majesty."
Kyoshi scowled and turned to Jinpa "Do we have people trained in interrogation?"
Jinpa spoke, "Of course. But your presence might affect him to speak out."
Kyoshi rolled her eyes "Seriously? Fine."
Jinpa spoke, "Make sure you look scary. I don't like the idea of resorting to torture; scaring him will be enough, probably."
Kyoshi frowned "I thought to hand him over to Rangi. She would have more experience."
Jinpa rolled his eyes "She is the most hurt in this. She would have killed him on the spot."
"Come on retard, don't make it harder. We already know you are Fire Nation. Your own friends left you behind. The sooner you confess for whom you work, the sooner this agony will end," spoke one of Gao's soldiers.
The man said nothing throughout the entire interrogation. No amount of threats or bargaining could move him. They couldn't have deciphered that he is a firebender until one brought a paper to his mouth and it burst into flames. Considering the amount of weaponry, Gao might have expected him to be nonbender, trained in knife throwing.
The doors opened, and an airbender entered and announced, "Her Majesty, Earth Queen and Avatar Kyoshi."
The soldiers immediately bowed, even the ones holding the prisoner, as Kyoshi entered.
Jinpa, seeing the man stand defiantly, spoke, "You stand before the Avatar."
Kyoshi, who had her full regalia on, said nothing as the soldiers forced the prisoner to bow. The man interrogating the prisoner spoke, "See, it's that easy."
Kyoshi was instructed to just stand in the corner. The prisoner's panic was already becoming visible. On the other hand, she should probably have put on the face paint she had when she was with the Flying Opera company. If she came in like that, the man would have spilt everything. Then she would have handed him over to Rangi.
The prisoner spoke, "I am not telling you shit!"
The interrogator grinned, "See, cat didn't eat your tongue. Come on."
The man gulped, the entire time looking around Kyoshi, not daring to look at her directly. Kyoshi might have laughed at it if there was anything worth laughing at. If the situation were different, she would have laughed so much.
The man was seemingly superstitious enough. Or too scared of her, she had to give it to Jinpa; his choice of what to wear made her actually look scary.
Interrogator spoke, "Come now, wanna talk with Her Majesty perhaps? You made her angry, and you know what she could do to you. Imagine you die and spirits decide, on their own, to give you the worst afterlife known to spirits."
Kyoshi rolled her eyes. The man was obviously bluffing. But that belief stuck with Yangchen. Why not just repeat it?
The man was sweating hard, so much that Jinpa had to cool him down once with airbending.
The Interrogator then spoke, after he recognised the man wasn't scared enough to talk without a filter, "Consider this. Yangchen is her past life. You betrayed the Avatar. You betrayed Yangchen. You betrayed Szeto. What will people say? What will history say about you?"
The man was now trembling, and even Jinpa realised they were close.
And suddenly, the man who claimed to face impending death with dignity broke.
The confession came then naturally. The expected confession was brought to them like a river breaching a dam.
Kyoshi then spoke, "Leave us."
Everyone scurried to leave the room, leaving only her with the prisoner.
He immediately went to his knees, "Forgive me, Avatar. My family was in debt, so I had to do it. Huazo told me that if I do it, all debt will be forgiven."
Kyoshi lowered to face the man, unfazed by his pitiful begging, "You know what you did. You know what your fate is. There is no use in delaying it. Your sorry won't bring Hei-ran back."
She opened the door, revealing Rangi with a darkened expression. She created blue fire knives in both hands. Kyoshi looked at her in awe. Despite knowing she was stronger than her, she would still be scared if Rangi's rage was directed at her.
Kyoshi spoke, "Your friend said that she is next, right? Well, Rangi, he's yours."
Rangi nodded, and Kyoshi spoke, "Make it fast. We extracted confession, do with him what you will."
Despite the semi-soundproof walls of the prison clinic, everyone outside the room could hear every scream the man released.
"Your Majesty, if I may," spoke Gao timidly, now that they were outside the room. There were only two guards at the doors, Jinpa, he and Kyoshi.
Kyoshi nodded as the air was pierced by yet another scream of the prisoner.
Gao spoke, "I propose the implementation of martial law in the capital. And a curfew."
Kyoshi nodded, "I approve. I have an operation to suggest to you, in fact."
Gao raised an eyebrow, then winced as another scream pierced the air "What do you have in mind?"
Jinpa raised an eyebrow "Really, Kyoshi? Now?"
The scream of the man interrupted her before she could speak, but she continued, "Siege of the Fire Nation embassy."
Gao rolled his eyes "No. You should expel the ambassador."
Kyoshi spoke, seeing Jinpa slap himself on the face, "I can do it? I don't need to force them out?"
Jinpa rolled his eyes "Of course! You don't kill a messenger because you dislike his message."
Kyoshi frowned "Oh..."
Jinpa sighed, "I'll prepare the necessary documentation."
The screams drowned in a bloody gurgle, signalling the man's final death. Then Rangi's scream, fireball screaming through the air, the smell of burning flesh, and approaching footsteps. Kyoshi gulped, not being ready to face her now.
When the doors opened, it revealed Rangi with blood on her face, hair and clothes that weren't hers. She was very composed, considering that she just killed one of her mother's killers, just looked at everyone, then came to Kyoshi and whispered, "I need to shower. Fast.", then departed without another word.
Jinpa glared at Kyoshi, "Why did you do this?"
Kyoshi shrugged, "It felt fair to do it."
Jinpa spoke, "Why kill him?"
Kyoshi rolled her eyes "What was I supposed to do then? Let him go? Keep him in prison for life and feed him on our own finances? Deport him back to Fire Nation?"
Jinpa scowled but said nothing.
Kyoshi brushed past Jinpa, "I need a moment in private."
After Chaejin escaped the general staff headquarters through tunnels, the first thing he did was to say a prayer for Koulin.
He could hear her getting strangled and multiple times thought about returning to save her.
But the bigger picture required him to be alive. For Saowon's victory, he was needed as firelord.
After arresting Caoli, Koulin knew that it would only trigger a revolution, contrary to his expectation that it would only collapse. As the fighting started, they jumped out of the window and rushed to headquarters.
The part he will never forgive himself for was Koulin's sacrifice. He could hear her screams from the tunnels, then collapsed them once through by lighting explosives tied to them for the exact case he was in now.
He had to make sure Koulin's sacrifice wasn't in vain.
Chaejin went through the forests of the southern part of the continent, and at the first base he reached, he had to rush as far from it as possible, as they were loyal to Zoryu.
When he arrived at second base, the entire base knew nothing about the conspiracy. Obviously, they offered their firelord a place to stay. But those from the first base then attacked those from second base; second base was overran, and he was on the run again.
At third base, he had more luck. The base had dragons, and was led by General Shu, one of Huazo's most loyal, a 55-year-old general with large sideburns.
Considering Toska's dragons and trebuchets, Hira'a's sheer manpower and Frota's makeshift, enormous navy, the only thing he could do now was survive and wait for his mother to return.
He began to write. The letter won't have the Firelord seal; it was left in the palace and probably destroyed by traitors. He hoped his mother would be able to recognise his handwriting out of the bulshit they probably were writing from the palace to trick her.
TO FIRE NATION AMBASSADOR, HER EXELLENCY AMBASSADOR QUIN
CONFIDENTAL DIPLOMATIC DOCUMENT -> DO NOT CIRCULATE
Dear Quin,
Well, it has finally happened. The mainland is in flames. Our favourite chancellor, along with a disgraced fire sage, disloyal clans and parts of the army and navy have revolted, killed my niece Koulin and forced His Majesty Firelord Chaejin on the run. The location of the Firelord is unknown, but assumed to be safe. The nation is in deadlock, and until we get assured that Earth Kingdom has no aggressive intent against the Colonies, it will be such, as homeland forces are as of currently unable to break the blockade by the 39th Homeland Division and so called Patriotic Naval force occupation. The assets and resources from the colonies will not be available for relocation until Earth Kingdom shows enough signs that they have no reclamationist intentions aganst Fire Nation and it's colonies.
You have received the instructions regarding the three assets in the city. In case of discovery, it is of utmost importance that their mission be aborted. If the mission is already executed, spirits help us. If the mission becomes compromised, expel the assets from the safe houses. The war is of utmost importance to be prevented, until the conspiracy is dealt with. In case of successful deterring of the war, Fire Nation will have a chance against Avatar.
If the war sparks, which is likely to happen, be ready to leave the capital in shortest possible timeframe.
Dowager Fire Lady Huazo
Quin scowled, created a fire knife and struck at the paper, which vapourized instantly. The aide spoke "Ambassador, there is still time to surrender the agents."
Quin spoke "Not now. Send them to safe houses. If we surrender them now, Kyoshi will know that we are directly responsible. If she doesn't know it already."
Kyoshi didn't know what compelled her to do this, and definitely didn't know what made her actually succeed. Perhaps she was desperate enough to succeed.
When she started meditating, she only spoke, "Avatar Yangchen, I need your wisdom." Yet the air nomad woman showed up almost instantly.
Yangchen didn't smile, just nodded her head slightly. The action happened so fast that Kyoshi had no time to properly prepare what she wanted to ask, yet Yangchen knew, as if she could read parts of her mind, compile it and turn it into a question: "You are lost. I can see it. But honestly, you should ask us for help more often."
Kyoshi rolled her eyes "If I knew it was this easy for the start." She turned towards the door and hoped she locked it correctly. Gao or Jinpa barging in now unannounced would have ruined everything.
Yangchen smiled slightly "It is. Or at least it was for me. So much that I didn't need to reach out, they reached out to me."
Kyoshi sighed, "You had a gift. You were a perfect avatar. I am a failure."
Yangchen rolled her eyes "You aren't. Not yet. Losing a friend doesn't mean you failed. I lost a lot of my friends. I am responsible for Jetsun's death. I got scared in the spirit world, docile spirits turned dark and stole my Jetsun from the world."
Kyoshi gaped, "But..."
Yangchen spoke, "I understand what you went through. But you must not let grief take over you. You, of all people, are particularly susceptible. And it may have devastating consequences on both you and the world."
Kyoshi bowed her head "I don't know what to do. We know Saowon is responsible. What should I do now?"
Yangchen spoke, "Do you want an Avatar politician or Avatar Air Nomad answer? Because those differ by a lot."
Kyoshi rolled her eyes "Avatar politician. I am the ruler of the largest country in the world. I can't behave like an air nomad."
Yangchen spoke, "You can. But I don't think it would be a good idea considering everything."
Kyoshi rolled her eyes "What should I do? Do I declare war now?"
Yangchen rolled her eyes "That is one thing I can't answer for you. I have an interest conflict there. As an air nomad, I know the answer is always no. But over my life, I realised some wars are unavoidable."
Kyoshi spoke, "What about Saowon. They took over the Fire Nation. Zoryu is probably on a deathbed now."
Yangchen frowned "Your general has named his invasion after the spirit to which Saowon surrendered. I surrendered to the spirit to save Saowon."
Kyoshi raised an eyebrow "Eel-Phoenix? Didn't know Gao knew your history."
Yangchen spoke, "For once, the invasion name may actually make sense. Saowon was forced to shave their head for 50 years in order to prevent the suffering of their children by the eel-phoenix spirits. And most surprisingly, they endured. I never imagined they would be able to take the throne after that. Perhaps the suffering made them stronger."
Kyoshi spoke, "What do I do then? They endured the penance and came back stronger than ever."
Yangchen spoke, "You know that I can't give you an order. Or solve moral dilemmas for you. There are a thousand generations of past lives in the Avatar cycle. You could spend a thousand years talking to us, and you still wouldn’t know how best to guide the world. This is what you must forgo, Kyoshi, the easy answers. You must give up your desire for someone to tell you your choices were correct in the end."
Kyoshi bowed her head, and Yangchen spoke, "But I can give you one piece of advice. One that I learned from all of the avatars preceding me."
Kyoshi spoke, "Yes."
Yangchen spoke, dissipating away, deciding the conversation is over "The one thing in common all avatars have is their shared regret of not acting sooner. Not a single Avatar regretted that they didn't wait enough for something. I applied that knowledge by heart to everything. One thing they don't mention in my history is that I was impulsive. Very impulsive for an Avatar. Made a lot of decisions in an instant. And I didn't regret it."
Kyoshi spoke, "But what does that mean?"
Yangchen was gone.
She closed her eyes and tried to reach Yangchen again. She felt Yangchen redirect her. Towards Szeto.
She didn't want to talk to him. She was about to invade his country. She didn't want a lecture or insults, but still, she faced a tall Fire Avatar in sage clothing.
He gave a small smile and spoke, "Greetings, Avatar Kyoshi."
Kyoshi spoke, "I didn't know if I would be able to connect to you. I actually tried to get to Yangchen."
Szeto smiled, "It is expected. She led you to me for a reason. But first, I am sorry about your friend."
Kyoshi nodded. "What can you tell me? You were Fire Nation chancellor. The first in existence. Second in power to the Firelord. You know how to help me rule?"
Szeto chuckled, "Of course. But Yangchen could help as well. She was also a world leader. Did you know that? In fact, I kinda taught her."
Kyoshi frowned "Well, I have an uncomfortable question. Should I-"
Szeto interjected, "Invade my nation?"
Kyoshi gulped, "Yes..."
Szeto grimaced, "I am here at a conflict of interest. This is not the Fire Nation I left. If I were in your spot, I couldn't say no and be certain that I chose correctly and not insult my nation, but I can't tell you, yes, kill my people, destroy my life's work. Avatar Yoshiko created a dangerous precedent of earning a throne through violence that I worked painstakingly to end, but as we can see, I failed. My work was rendered as a failure by the new establishment."
Kyoshi frowned "What did she do?"
Szeto spoke, "Yoshiko didn't earn the throne by birthright. She conquered her right to the Dragon's throne by defeating firelord Tagaki in Agni Kai."
Kyoshi spoke, "Zoryu told me something like that. Can I speak with her somehow?"
Szeto grimaced, "It will be hard. You will need to find a place to which she is connected. But I doubt it will be easy. She has been dead for half a millennium. Or you can try going deeper in the Avatar cycle, but only Avatar Yangchen managed to go far into it."
Kyoshi frowned "Will you also leave me without a direct answer?"
Szeto spoke, "About invading my country? Of course. That is your decision to make. Not mine, Yangchen's, or Kuruk's, or anyone else's. I can give you a warning, though. Diplomacy should be conducted with a level head. Leading a country should be done with a sober mind. Declaring war is a serious decision. I see the grief Huazo caused both to you personally and your country, so the decision is harder."
Yangchen showed up alongside Szeto, on his right side "But a weak reaction might embolden your enemies. The tensions are higher than during the Platinum affair. But then again, the entire old order is uprooted."
Kuruk then showed up on the right side of Yangchen, never seeing him sadder than ever before when they communicated. He spoke, "Restoring the world to the original state is no longer possible. The only question that remains now is, what is the world you wish to leave to your successor? Do you leave it to crumble, or do you restore as much as possible?"
Yangchen spoke, "But it is your decision. Not ours."
They all faded away into the mist, leaving Kyoshi gaping at the space they had been in.
She wiped her tears and stood up, the movement painful as if she sat there for hours, and approached a window. Outside, it was pitch black, and the moon was low in the sky. Early signs of the sun emerging on the other side. She yawned, but knew there was no sleep for her. She knew Rangi was definitely not sleeping. Probably crying the entire night.
Kyoshi would have as well, had she energy for it. Still, she had cried for some time. Kuruk cried with her; she could feel it.
Despite the tiredness, she still broke down. Silently, probably much less than Rangi, but Kyoshi still loved Hei-Ran.
She was gone. The first person with whom she spent so much time, rebuilding Earth Kingdom, was gone. Rangi had no family left now. Kuruk had only one friend remaining alive.
She succumbed to despair. If there was any good time for her to cry and release the bottled up grief, it was now. Before the sun came out. Afterwards, she was supposed to behave like a stern Earth Queen.