Art by OmnicidalClown1992 on Deviantart
Prelude[]
Two combatants who only use violence as a last resort. Who would win, Iroh from Avatar The Last Airbender or Zenyatta from Overwatch?
Iroh[]
Wizz: Tea loving uncle of the prince of the Fire Nation, Iroh is a calm and peaceful man, serving as a mentor to the young Prince Zuko.
Boomstick: But don't let that chill nature fool you, he's a renowned general of the Fire Nation, with perhaps his greatest military success being the siege of the impenetrable city of Ba Sing Sei. In a span of six hundred days he managed to breach the city's outer wall, a feat that was never equaled!
Wizz: While the city was ripe for the taking though, his son unfortunately died in the front lines, sapping Iroh of his fighting spirit and abandoning the siege.
Boomstick: Yeah that sucks, but hey, the dude can breath fire, he's even called the Dragon of The West!
Wizz: Iroh is indeed one of the best fire benders of his time, perhaps thanks in part to his easy going and spiritual nature. Normally fire benders harness their energy from negative emotions such as anger or hate, but Iroh, his focus on inner peace and balanced made him an incredibly capable and resourceful firebender.
Boomstick: Like when he used the waterbending style to deflect f*cking lightning! And on't let his age fool you, he's bested powerful opponents like Imperial Firebenders and even Earthbenders that had previously chained him up, which he cleverly escaped from by the way! Resourceful, tranquil, and powerful, is there anything this guy can't do?!
Wizz: Well, while Iroh is incredibly powerful for his age, let's not forget that he's still rather old and out of shape. Not to mention that despite his wisdom, the man has a weakness for tea. He once accidentally poisoned himself trying to brew some leaves he thought were safe, and nearly blew his and Zuko's cover when he heated up cold tea he was served when they were travelling to Ba Sing Sei in secret.
Boomstick: Despite that, Iroh is certainly not a guy you want to mess with, granted given how easy going he is, that'd probably be pretty tough, unless you served him some bad tea or something.
Abilities[]
- Legendary Fire Nation General
- Master Firebender
- Calm, rational, and wise
- Well versed in a variety of martial arts
Feats[]
- Broke through the wall of Ba Sing Sei after a 600 day siege
- Bested numerous other skilled Firebenders, including Princess Azula
- Mentored Prince Zuko to help him become a skilled Firebender
Flaws[]
- Old and out of shape
- The loss of his son sapped him of most of his fighting spirit
- Crippling tea addiction
Zenyatta[]
Wizz: Zenyatta, an omnic originally built for war, was one of the many others who somehow managed to break free of their programming and pursued a more spiritual life in the mountains of Nepal. While most of the monks believed the means of dogmatic teachings would help restore the balance between humans and omnics, Zenyatta instead sought to establish a more personal connection with people, and left the monastery.
Boomstick: Now a lot of the world in Overwatch isn't exactly welcoming of omnics thanks to the war, but Zenyatta is not a monk to be trifled with! Provoke him into a fight, as difficult as that might be, and you'll be on the receiving end of his giant metal balls!
Wizz: Actually Boomstick, that's just the energy from the orbs he shoots out. Still, balls or not, he fire these projectiles with amazing speed and accuracy! Given a few seconds, he can even charge up to five of them in a powerful volley!
Boomstick: How powerful are we talking? Base damage from full volley alone is enough to kill almost all of the human crew of Overwatch! And he can make his damage even worse with his Orb of Discord, which also makes the target see their worst memories or fears too somehow.
Wizz: And if he's in a tight spot and has enough energy, he is able to activate his Ultimate Ability: Transcendence. While in this mode, Zenyatta not only moves much faster, and heals from any damage he received, he's also invincible! Even outside transcendence, Zenyatta has shields that protect him from what some pretty powerful attacks
Boomstick: Unfortunately he kinda needs all that protection though. You see, without those shields or Transcendence, despite being made of metal, the dude is more like a glass cannon. That, and for whatever reason the guy outright refuses to use his legs unless it's for kicking some poor soul in the face. Also, while he's in that transcendence mode, he's not able to fight.
Wizz: Those issues aside, Zenyatta is capable of being a very powerful and formidable foe when he needs to be.
Abilities[]
- Able to fire orbs of destruction and unleash an orb volley if given a few seconds to charge
- Orb of Discord assaults the target's mind and has them take more damage. This ability also has no cooldown
- Transcendence allows them to heal all injuries they've suffered, give them a speed boost, and makes them invincible for the duration
Feats[]
- Helped Genji make peace with his new cybernetic body
Flaws[]
- Incredibly weak without his shields
- Slow
Pre-Death Battle[]
A bell above the door rings as Iroh walks in. He looks down, gazing at his reflection on the clean floor. While he's stayed the same, Ba Sing Sei has certainly changed in the time he's been away. Strange metallic people, called omnics, are walking around the tea shop, taking orders. Fortunately, Iroh isn't here for much, only a simple cup of tea. In front of him is one such omnic, who turns upon hearing the bell ring.
"Peace and blessing, my friend, what brings a man such as yourself here today?" Zenyatta asks Iroh.
Iroh chuckles, "I heard there was new tea shop in town, and you won't believe the lengths I go to get a fresh cup of tea!
Zenyatta laughed, "Well then, how about I get you a cup. You look as though you've had a great journey, and I would be happy to be able to give you some rest."
Iroh was surprised at the omnic's kindness, on his way here most of his kind had kept to themselves, "Oh there's no need for that."
Zenyatta held out his hand, but his voice was as calm and still as ever, "I insist, my friend."
Without another word, Zenyatta floated over to the nearby register, and orders a cup of tea before returning back to Iroh. The old man gratefully takes the cup and begins to drink.
"I've believe one such way for humans and omnics to come closer together is through food and drink. While we omnics can't eat or drink ourselves, it's important to show that we care about our fellow man. How are you liking the-"
Iroh spits out the tea in disgust, "What is this?! This tea taste like frozen leaf juice!"
Zenyatta tilts his head, "Isn't that what tea is?"
But Iroh wasn't listening, and all eyes on the tea shop followed him as he grabbed the tea container, carrying it with ease despite it's massive size. Iroh hadn't spent years in the spiritual world, devoid of tea for centuries, only to come back to the physical world for a day and consume what these omnics had the audacity to call tea.
Right before he reached the front doors, he felt a hand on his shoulder, it was Zenyatta.
"My friend, I understand that you're upset, but where do you think you're going with that?" His voice was calm, but Iroh could sense something stern underneath its metallic tone.
"What does it look like, I'm dumping this out. I'll show you all how to make real tea!"
"I'm afraid I can't let you do that." Zenyatta said, the sternness in his voice becoming more apparent.
Iroh sighed, placing the container down on the floor. "Fine then, we'll settle this outside. If I win, I'll make a tea so great even omnics can drink it! But if you win, I'll pay for the whole container and gladly guzzle it down!"
Zenyatta paused for a moment, "Very well," he said as he followed Iroh outside.
Space had been cleared for them.
Fight![]
Iroh and Zenyatta stared each other down in front of the tea shop, patiently daring the other to make the first move.
Zenyatta was the first to strike.
The speed was blindingly quick, but Iroh new these omnics weren't too different from humans. Motion starts from the shoulder, travels down the arm, and finally out of the hand, and from that knowledge, he saw the omnic fire a beam of energy from one of his orbs, which Iroh evaded without much difficulty.
Iroh continued to move as the omnic continued his assault, keep track of his foe, but failing to keep up. Then, before Zenyatta could react, that man punched, unleashing a great stream of fire from his fist. Zenyatta tried to evade, but wasn't quick enough, and the flame made contact with his pants.
Iroh did not let up with that first strike however, and continued his firebending, all the while evading Zenyatta's attacks. But he couldn't keep it up for long, as fatigue was beginning to take it's hold, and the omnic refused to let up, even when the flames were beginning to spread across his body. Soon, Zenyatta's strikes found their mark, and to Iroh's surprise, the pain was immense.
Yet that did not compare to what Zenyatta had up his sleeve.
"Darkness falls." The omnic said, as calm as ever, despite the flames on him.
Zenyatta unleashed another strike, but this time Iroh did not see a blue light, only a darkish red one, and while it made contact, he felt no pain.
Then Iroh clutched his head in anguish, memories of old were stirring up. The death of his son, Zuko nearly dying the Northern Water tribe, his brother's obsession for power, any and everything unpleasant that Iroh experienced in his life had returned to haunt him in full force.
But Iroh took a deep breath, and steadied himself just in time to hear a faint humming noise. Five blue lights appeared over Zenyatta, Iroh dove out of the way, but the strikes still grazed him. It was enough though, to send pain rocketing through his body.
His mind assaulted, his body battered, Iroh had had enough of this metallic monk. Standing up, he noted his foe seemed somewhat worn was well. While the flames had ceased, it was clear the omnic was reaching his limit as well.
Good, he though, this won't take much.
In one last swift motion, Iroh left out a lightning bolt from his finger tips, striking the omnic before he had any time to react. Zenyatta fell to the ground with a gasp as electricity jolted throughout his body, arms and legs randomly seizing.
Iroh stood over him, "Well, ready to call it quits?" He asked breathlessly. "Pass," Zenyatta murmured.
The lights on his head suddenly began glowing gold, Iroh was quick to switch into a fighting stance, unsure of what the monk was about to do. He let out one last shot of fire in an attempt to subdue Zenyatta, but the fire suddenly disintegrated in a burst of golden light. "Into the Iris!" Zenyatta said as he arose. His body was washed in a golden radiance, and Iroh could clearly see that six arms of light had somehow sprouted from him. To Iroh, it almost looked like this monk was the Avatar. He smiled, recalling the warm memories he had with Aang and his friends. He then noticed that his wounds, as well as the monk's, were healing. As the light faded, Iroh bowed to his foe.
"Well, looks like you win, my friend." Iroh said.
He turned to the tea container, still sitting on the floor in the shop, and shuddered. He wasn't sure his stomach could take whatever that hideous concoction was, but he was a man of his word.
KO[]
Boomstick: Wow, that was a close one! izz: While Iroh, even in his age, was more agile than Zenyatta, Zenyatta still had a few advantages.
Boomstick: Not only did his shields help, well, shield him from the worst of Iroh's blows, his Orb of Discord reminded Iroh of his the death of his son, which greatly weakened Iroh.
Wizz: Iroh was close though with his lightning strike, but Zenyatta was also smart enough to conserve his Transcendence until the very last moment, allowing Zenyatta to outlast Iroh.
Aftermath[]
To Iroh's relief, while the tea was quite hideous, it managed to settle fairly well. Not to mention, after their fight, Zenyatta and even the patrons were curous as to what tea Iroh could make. Business for the shop boomed that day to try the new tea made by Iroh, and while he wasn't able to truly make a tea his omnic friend could enjoy, they still both enjoyed each other's company.
Night fell as the two had a moment to relax on one of the table outside. They both enjoyed the cool crisp air under the full moon as they conversed with each other.
After sometime, Iroh stood up, "Well, I think I must be going." He said.
"I see, I wish you safe travels on your journey then, my friend." Zenyatta replied.
Zenyatta tried to sound as calm as ever, but Iroh picked up on the loneliness of Zenyatta's voice and chuckled, "Oh, don't worry. I'm sure we'll see each other again sometime. Farewell, Zenyatta."
Iroh then walked away, crossing the street. Zenyatta watched him the entire away, but couldn't help but jump as he noticed when a car drove past in front his friend, that Iroh seemed to vanish into thin air.