Bom dia everyone! I'm back! As always Thanks for coming, Read and Review!
Insert same old, perhaps unnecessary disclaimer
Step…feint…lunge…roundhouse.
A truly strange combination of blows in my experience, especially since the man in question stood almost five meters away.
However the vast majority of my experience has not been with imperial fire benders.
The aforementioned roundhouse kick was accompanied with an impressive wave of fire that spanned the distance between us, the lunge that preceded the kick had also sent a streak of flame towards me; the combination of the two was quite brilliantly designed to first force one into a defensive stance and therefore limit the ability to dodge the following kick and fire wave, it worked very well against earth benders and their firmly rooted stances, not quite as effectively against water benders and their fast flowing forms, but against fire benders and their lack of defensive blocks? It was devastating.
However, I am not a normal fire bender.
With a move showcased most by MMA fighters I turn while raising my guard up as if to ward off an actual blow but unlike said fighters I exhale sharply and bring down my arm in sharp motion bisecting his flame with my own. Taking advantage of the momentary lull in combat I take a quick step forward and snap off two quick fireballs followed by my own straight kick that shot a more powerful stream of flame at my opponent's midsection.
He batted away the first two flames as I expected but was caught off guard by the stream that followed and resorted to rolling clear before quickly regaining his feet and circling me once more.
My opponent was Captain Shen, the commander of Princess Azula's guard, which I find to be exceptionally humorous as she has thus far demonstrated a complete lack of need for any assistance in battle. I suppose it's more a show of strength than anything else. That being said, the Captain was not by any means a poor fire bender, in fact, he was one of the most accomplished of the royal guard and the only one Azula herself will spar against.
True to his reputation, he snapped back into action with a wicked combination of fire balls, prompting me to duck and dodge more than anything else. He managed to keep at it for another minute before finally halting his relentless barrage leaving me panting in the afternoon sun, sweat dripping down my body. Tentatively I sent a flash of fire his way only to be met by a familiar set of movements.
Step, feint, lunge, roundhouse.
Employing the same set of blocks from before I decide to change my avenue of attack by ending in a roundhouse of my own sending the largest wave of fire I could manage, using the distraction that comes with having a wall of flame hurl towards you, I close the distance between us while sending a series of smaller fire burst aimed at his feet in an attempt to break his stance and rob him of his ability to perform more power powerful fire bending forms.
Unfortunately for me, decades of training and experience came into play for him and he skilfully evaded all my attacks without losing balance and he snapped out a fiery kick to ward me off. But while my initial offensive was not successful, my main goal of engaging in close quarters was. I threw out a combination of fiery punches, careful to reign back the power to non-maiming levels, to which he stepped back trying to make space between us, in fact every move I made forward was evaded as he threw sharp jabs and kicks to try force me away.
My face may have been impassive enough to pass as a relative of Mai but internally I was grinning like a fool, in every spar or fight I have been in with a bender I have noticed one striking similarity…they don't really know anything else. Of course there are exceptions to this rule such as the Princess but on the whole, benders spend so much time getting their forms right that they neglect other important skills.
Exhilarated to find even one such as the captain still had a vital weakness I surged forward just as Joe had drilled into me since I began training, I let lose a series of punches, with only to barest of flames so as to not harm him while none too gently knocking aside any attempts he made at attacking. Eventually he realized that I was in my element and he needed to disengage and get some distance.
I threw an intentionally wide punch and he stepped out of the way, I saw the muscles in his shoulders tense as if to throw a punch but he instead feinted and stepped back before lunging forward with a flaming fist extended.
It was exactly what I was waiting for. Step, feint, lunge…
I saw it coming, I saw him plant his foot and spin, I saw his body tense in preparation to bring his foot scything across; the foot began its arc towards my head…only to flail in shock as I snapped out my own kick to take his planted leg out from under him the moment he lifted the other from the ground.
That was all the opportunity I needed to pounce on him while he lay momentarily stunned on his back, I landed straddling his waist with one hand holding his neck and the other upraised and wreathed in flame.
We stayed in that position, panting with exertion for a few moments as we began to chuckle at each other before a small clap interrupted us. Both of our eyes shot towards the source of the sound only to find the Princess herself gazing at us with her default 'unreadable' look; a small smile playing on her lips.
"Bravo, I must say that was quite the performance." She says as she makes her way towards us.
Instantly Shen and I shoot to our feet, Shen going to attention with his fist clenched over his heart. "Hunter is indeed becoming a formidable fire bender, his unique combat style makes his fire bending quite unpredictable." He states, eyes forward.
"Indeed." The princess replies before turning her gaze to me. "Tell me Hunter, how did you manage to best the greatest of my fire benders?"
That caught me off-guard, "Um, well it was only a spar so I don't think I would hav-" I started before the look on her face cut me off, "…He's by far the better bender and I wouldn't have stood a chance in that alone but I've noticed that benders don't have much training in close combat where they can't use their bending effectively, up close and personal is my area of expertise. I also noticed he favors a certain set of moves, so when I got in close I provoked him into using it so I could trap him."
I noticed Shen looking at me in surprise, he obviously hadn't anticipated how far I thought ahead. It did however seem that Azula had noticed, it was scary how little got past this girl.
"Very good, you are making commendable progress." She said. What kind of fourteen year old talks like this?
"Thank you Princess, there's still a lot left to learn but I can feel way more confident." I reply quite proud of myself.
"Indeed. Now, I'm sorry to interrupt your lesson but I'm afraid there are things I must discuss with you, Mai and Ty Lee." She stated, indicating the entrance to the palace.
"No problem, I think we were just about done anyway." I say smiling as I move to pick up my discarded shirt.
It was only a few minutes before I found myself in what I dubbed 'The war room', Mai and Ty Lee were already there waiting for us, the former sat picking her nails with an ever present dagger; an equally ever present impassive mask on her face, the latter stood in a perfect handstand, evenly balanced on a single finger of each hand. I couldn't help but smile at the sight, these careless displays of acrobatics always lightened my mood.
"Now we are all here, we can discuss our next move." Azula began as she unfurled a large map on a nearby table. "Clearly our original mission still stands yet a target as important as the Avatar cannot be ignored."
That caught my attention, those kids were certainly a handful but what was so important about them that we would ditch the original mission?
My inner dialogue must've shown on my face because Azula's next words were directed at me. "Thoughts Hunter?"
"Sorry, I just don't understand the importance of capturing a pre-teen kid when we were already hunting dangerous traitors." I respond.
"Young and foolish the Avatar may be but he is the most dangerous enemy of the Fire Nation, he has already demonstrated such." She replies, thankfully without any anger at me having questioned her.
"Really? But he's just a kid, how did he manage that?"
Azula stared at me for a second before jabbing her finger down on the map pointing at the icy mass of the North Pole. "This is the Northern Water tribe, one of the two remaining enemy strongholds. A newly promoted Admiral was convinced of a grave threat from this tribe which had up until recently been quite inactive in the war, when the Avatar fled towards the pole the Admiral's request for an invasion fleet was approved to prevent said tribe from becoming an active threat in the war effort."
She looked up from the map to stare me directly in the eyes. "His tactics were sub-standard yet he still brought to bear the largest naval fleet since the sea wolves almost a millennia ago and should have had no trouble bringing them to heel. The few survivors we found all told the same story of the Avatar himself raising a leviathan from the water to wipe our soldiers from the ground then crushing our ships with a single tsunami wave. Hundreds of ships sunk, over ten thousand dead. Do not forget that while he is a child he is also the single most powerful bender in the world when he accesses the avatar state."
"Shit." Was the only word that my brain was able to spit out.
"Indeed, so while our original mission is still active we will first pursue the avatar and his…company, In fact, this has the added benefit of aiding our original mission, where the Avatar is, my brother is never far behind." She finished with a satisfied smile on her face.
"So where do we start then?" Mai asked, still leaning back casually in her seat while absentmindedly twirling a knife.
"That is the current problem." The Princess replied, a small frown forming on her face as she peered down at the map. "His bison makes pursuit difficult, we cannot rely on reported sighting like my dear brother or we will always be a step behind as he was."
"Uh…question?" I ventured, raising my hand slightly, continuing as she nodded at me. "If he fled to the north-pole, why would he then leave?"
"He was certainly seeking a waterbending master there, once he mastered water he would have left in search of a…" she trailed off slightly before continuing. "Ah and there we have his reason for being here, who better to train him in earthbending than the king of Omashu?"
Reaching over I pulled the map a little closer to me and pointed at the impossibly large city labelled 'Ba sing se', the last major unconquered city, "Then wouldn't he head here to find another one since his first choice is now gone?" I asked.
"That would be the most likely choice" The Princess agreed, "But he has shown thus far a remarkable lack of directness in his travels" She indicated a faint set of lines drawn on the map from Kyoshi island zigzagging up the western coast, "Scouts report that he fled south so we can assume that they'll turn and follow the mountains up towards Ba sing se, possibly stopping at the major townships along the way."
"But how are we going to catch them on their bison Azula?" Ty Lee's voice from right beside me nearly made me jump, I swear, these three girls are ninjas.
The princess favoured her with a grin as she fully raised herself up. "That's a good question, why don't I show you all? I do believe it is ready for us." She said before turning to leave, obviously expecting us to follow. Somewhere behind me I heard Mai sigh once more.
The palace seemed to be a bit of a mess at the moment, I thought to myself as we made our way through its halls, with many of the doors being activated by earthbending it looks like the governor decided to simply knock some of the walls down…Also, the red banners clashed really badly with the green walls, just saying…
After a few more minutes of roaming the palace we arrived in the rear courtyards where all the supplies were brought in and my eyes near bulged out me head when I saw what awaited us. In a world of small ostrich drawn carts, this thing was a monster, painted pitch black, it just oozed badassery and the sheer size of the…Train….Tank…Thingy in front of me was amazing, I couldn't even begin to imagine how it would work in this technology challenged world.
"Impressive is it not?" Came the princess's voice, "A marvel of Firenation ingenuity and while it lacks the speed of our smaller tanks it's certainly fast enough to keep up with a certain flying bison."
"This thing looks like it could carry half your guard in there." I agreed still awestruck by what was essentially a more ferocious looking steam train on tank tracks.
"In short distances It could but it has only enough supplies for the four of us and our mounts." She replied, turning to face Ty Lee. "I suppose you'll like them."
And like them she did, if her squeal of joy was any indication as we entered the rear of the train and saw the four large lizards that I assumed would serve as our mounts, having never ridden an animal before in my life I could safely say I was not savouring the prospect.
"Ah, Princess?" I asked, thinking it was probably better to let her know of my lack of experience in this area. "I've never ridden a…" I stopped realising I had no idea what they were even called.
"A mongoose lizard?" She asks, "No, I suppose you wouldn't have…well ill have a servant show you how." She said raising her hand and snapping her fingers.
"Wait, what…now?" I stuttered.
"Of course now." She replied with a smirk. "So learn fast, we leave tomorrow."
Now let it be said that the royal servants are extremely good at what they do, one moment I'm standing there gaping at the princess like a fish and the next I'm perched atop one of the aforementioned giant lizards with no recollection of how exactly I arrived at this point. I see the three girls standing a fair distance away with expressions that can only be described as near sadistic expectancy, it did not inspire confidence in me.
"So…what's the key to riding one of these?" I asked the stable hand below me.
"Riding a mongoose lizard like Ling here does take a little practice, they're far faster than komodo rhinos and they have a tendency to make sharp turns." He began while placing my feet into the stirrups. "Just keep your back straight, don't yank on the reigns and try to feel the rhythm to her movements, it'll help you to stop slamming your ass on the saddle."
"Oh, ok then. So how do I get her to start?"
He took a few steps back and looked up at me before replying, "Ling is well trained, just give a slight flick on the reigns and say go."
Alrighty then…here. We. Go. "Go ling!" I say loudly as I flick my wrists. I wasn't sure what to expect having never ridden an animal before, I saw the lizards head perk up, I felt its muscles flex under my legs, I felt the jerk as she shot forward….and I felt the ground rise up to meet me as I landed in a slight daze staring up at the bright afternoon sky.
This is not going to be pleasant.
'Agni, for such a big guy, Hunter was rarely an easy one to find' Ty Lee thought as she strolled through the palace grounds that night. Azula and Mai had both retired for the night and left her to entertain herself and while this was never a problem for her, she was in a talkative mood tonight. She had checked Hunter's chambers thinking to find him still there after his rather embarrassing lessons in riding earlier that day, even Mai had cracked a smile while watching him get thrown multiple times from the saddle; yet he was nowhere to be found and so Ty Lee found herself out on one of the many garden paths savouring the night wondering just where a giant like Hunter could possibly be hiding himself.
She had almost completely circled the palace when she heard a voice carry through the night.
"It's been a long day without you my friend and I'll tell you all about it when I see you again…"
Turning her head from side to side only to find that it was coming from above her. She glanced around and saw tree leaning towards the palace roof and within seconds she had scaled it and leapt onto the roof, her suspicions were confirmed when she made out Hunter's figure lying on the roof tiles looking up at the night sky.
"…I'll be waiting right here for you till the day you're home, Carry on…"
Something about the song stopped her from approaching right away, she had heard a lot of the music from his nation on his little music pod before it had run out of power- she didn't really know what he meant by that, she just hoped he found it some power soon, she missed it already- but she had never heard Hunter himself sing, the emotion in his voice gave weight to the song and she just stood there as he sang.
"…so let the light guide your way. Hold every memory as you go. And every road you take, will always lead you home, home, home… it's been a long day without you my friend and I'll tell you all about it when I see you again, we've come a long way from where we began and I'll tell you all about it when I see you again…"
Ty Lee was unsure of what exactly to do, Hunter had thus far proven difficult to talk to when emotional and from the sound of his voice, he was most definitely emotional right now, however her life was dictated by her curiosity and drive to help people see the happy side of life and she soon found herself standing and looking down on him as he lay there with his eyes closed.
"That was a nice song" she said eventually when he didn't seem to notice her.
In hindsight, it perhaps wasn't the best course of action to have taken being perched up on a slanted roof. Hunter shot upwards into the air as if he had been struck by Azula's lightning before falling into a barely controlled roll down the roof, it was only Ty Lee's quick reflexes that saved him from yet another impromptu meeting with the earth.
"Jesus Ty Lee! Can't you give a guy a warning?" he asked in an indignant voice.
She at least had the grace to look embarrassed as she helped him into a sitting position. "Sorry, I didn't think I'd scare you that much".
"Hey! I wasn't…well it was more…damn ninja." he finished awkwardly.
"What's a ninja?" Ty Lee asked, curious to hear about anything from his home.
"Really? You guys don't have ninjas here? I would have thought with the whole…never mind, ninjas are pretty much legends where I'm from, known for being unnaturally sneaky." He replied, seemly not wanting to give a full explanation.
"Oh, I guess I can see why'd you say that" She said giggling before continuing, "That song, Is it another one from your home?"
His face fell at the mention of it and she wondered if it was the right thing to ask, fortunately he took a deep breath and forced a small smile.
"It's a slight variation of one of the more popular songs of the last few years." He began, looking up at the sky. "It was written in the memory of a famous actor who died in an accident and it was played at the end of his….show, it got really popular after that." He trailed off as if deciding whether to continue.
"It's ok if you don't want to talk about it." She said, seeing she was touching on a sensitive issue.
"No, it's about time I told someone I guess…The night I came here was like a bad dream, I got home and had a big fight with my dad and It didn't end well…after that it's hazy, I remember running to the first place I could think of, My best friend owned a martial arts gym and he was supposed to be there waiting for me anyway…."
She could see his jaw clench tightly as he struggled to reign in his emotions. "He wasn't there, which if you knew Joe, you'd know was not right, he's always on time and he always does what he says he will…he said he'd be there…so I ran to his house, it wasn't really that far away but when I got there I couldn't even see the house properly though the crowd, there were police - I mean guards…" He took another deep breath. "They told me he had just died in his sleep, He wasn't old, he wasn't sick! It didn't make sense and I wasn't thinking right so I just…ran. I ran and I kept running until I didn't even recognize where I was and I could barely stand up and well…I told you the rest."
"Sitting up here reminds me of when we used to sit on the roof of his gym and look at the stars, it was one of his favourite things to do. The stars here are so much nicer even if I don't recognize them but still, it just made me think of him, it's only been a handful of weeks but it feels longer."
Carefully Ty Lee sat down beside him and leaned her head on his shoulder. "I…I don't know what to say Hunter." She started, "But you have friends here now to help when you need it too, Mai doesn't show it on her face but she's secretly a very caring person."
Surprisingly that got a genuine grunt of laughter from Hunter. "Well I know you're my friend, it's still a little early to say for Mai and I don't think the Princess knows what friends are sometimes but I appreciate it." He turned and graced her with a small smile. "How about you explain to me which stars are which?"
"Oh boy, where do I start?" Ty Lee replied, flashing her trademark grin.
Hey Everyone! I guess in comparison to most stories this isn't terrible late but i'm still sorry it took this long. The metaphorical Sh*t has hit the fan multiple times since the last update and with the start of Uni, Finding time to write has been hard. I wont promise that updates will be more regular but i will do my best :)
Pretty much a filler chapter as i don't want to neglect developing the characters in a rush to show the more action packed scenes. I plan on showing a lot more from Azula's perspective and possibly exploring Mai's character more.
As always, any input is welcome, any comments on how i can improve just throw em my way...assuming they're phrased nicely.