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Post by belated valentine on May 8, 2011 17:20:20 GMT -5
Aang landed on the ground, ducking from the rock she thew in his direction. He kicked up another rock and jumped into the air, hiding from her sight for a second before he used his foot to kick the small boulder toward her. He landed back on his feet, doing a back flip to get further away from her. He ended up landing on a tree in the distance, smirking because he knew she was unable to see him now.
Smellerbee nodded. "Okay," she replied, starting to walk down the isle between the stands. "What else do we need?" she asked, crossing her arms as they walked. She knew they probably needed to bring a long some non-perishable foods, but she was also pretty sure they could hunt down or fish for whatever meat they really needed. Fruits grew all over the place and were safe to eat if you knew what to ingest and what not to. They knew that well enough too. The only thing she could really thing of bringing along was water in case they didn't run a long a river.
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Post by Fateful on May 9, 2011 14:48:38 GMT -5
Toph paused. He kicked off the rock in the air, which she saw, only because he touched it long enough. Then, he disappeared. She paused, thinking. The air currents were still and her hair wasn't moving. That meant he wasn't airbending, or was too high in the air for it to touch the ground. That sounded just like him. She caught the smaller rock and held it, rather than throwing it. Sending out another sonic wave, she paused, waiting. There was three trees around them, two of which were behind her and were too small to support any substantial weight (Aang was light, but he was still a person).
Grinning, she kicked the ground, causing it to slide forward, shaking the tree in the hopes of uprooting it. If he wasn't in the tree... well then it was going to grow at an angle from this point forward. Normally she never would have thought of it, but after hearing that the cult Suyin had belonged to used trees against her, that was the only option she had. That, and Aang couldn't earth bend correctly in the air.
"We should get containers for water, and maybe a bag to carry them in." Jet voiced out loud, as if reading Smellerbee's mind. He had chosen her to be the leader because she was the most competent. Not that Longshot wasn't, he just wasn't as direct about things and wasn't leader-like. Though independent, he followed and was better suited to do what he was told. He realized they should get some flint stones to start a fire, but then came to the realization that Suyin was coming with them. They wouldn't need them. But... she wasn't staying, so he decided to buy them without telling Longshot and Smellerbee, but had no reason to avoid telling them... So why did he decide that? Ugh... great. "We should get flint stones too." he muttered, irritated with himself.
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Post by belated valentine on May 11, 2011 15:43:44 GMT -5
Aang smirked, finally feeling as though he'd managed to beat her. Yeah, he's used airbending, but it wasn't like he could stop using it. It was his natural element and it would always be his strongest. Even though they were earthbending, he managed to find a way to tie it in somehow. Suddenly, though, he watched as Toph sent a rock in his direction, hitting the tree he was on and causing him to fall over. He shifted the air and landed on his feet, unharmed. "How did you know which tree I was in?" he asked, confused but curious all the same. "I thought you couldn't see through wood."
Smellerbee nodded. "You read my mind," she answered as she repeatedly tossed a copper piece up into the air, catching it each time. "Flint stones, yeah we'll probably need them too," she said, glancing around the shops. "We just need to figure out where they are now..." she mused to herself as she began to eye the stands, trying to see if any of them sold flint. It would be easy to find since it was a such a common tool.
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Post by Fateful on May 11, 2011 17:14:15 GMT -5
Feeling him hit the ground made her smirk. Walking toward him she shrugged. "I didn't know and I can't see through it." She answered honestly. "I just know that that tree was closest to were you were standing, and considering what those fire nation soldiers did last time, I thought it would be a good tactic." She stood in front of him, a broad smile across her lips. "Which means I'm unstoppable." It wasn't true, but it still made her feel better about not knowing about the attack. But that didn't stop a nagging at the back of her mind. She wanted to learn to see through wood because it was an extension and was usually rooted to the earth.
"Great minds." Jet teased as they walked through the stands. He found what he needed and bought two of them, just in case he lost one or he wasn't there. He put them in his pocket and started to walk through the stands with Smellerbee and Longshot. They found a few stands that sold what they wanted, but Jet was picky about things. Not to mention he knew which one had the better deal. Once finding what they walked, he got empty ones, knowing they could fill it in the hotel before they left. No sense in carrying something so heavy around now when they didn't need it. Then they moved to the stands that had clothing and bags. One shop had nice bags that blended into most scenery that they could use even when they got home. The girl that was working was sweet and instead of buying one (which was all they needed) Jet ended up buying two "just to make sure."
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Post by belated valentine on May 11, 2011 17:57:27 GMT -5
Aang laughed. "I already took the title of unstoppable, sorry," he replied, wiping off a line of sweat from his forehead. He looked up toward the sky, trying to decide what time it was. It had to be near noon by now, maybe even an hour or so passed it. "Want to keep practicing?" he asked, looking over at her with a smile. "I wonder if there's a lake around here, I really need a drink." He looked around, stretching his arms above his head. His gray eyes shifted back to her though, realizing it was better to keep them planted on her before she threw another boulder at him.
Smellerbee nodded. "Yeah," she replied, smiling. Her dark eyes scanned the bags as they stopped to look at them, smiling at the lady behind the stand as she talked to them, showing them which ones were better for what.
Up ahead, dressed in elegant, red clothing was a young man, his hair slicked back into a smooth pony tail at the base of his neck. A few dark brown strands fell onto his forehead, but other than that, there was not a hair out of place. His face was exposed, a thin - seemingly fresh - cut adorned the right corner of his lower lip and stretched when he opened his mouth to mutter something.
Beside him stood two other figures, their faces masked and impossible to see. They were dressed in equally red garments, though their clothing was not as elegant or rich as the robes of the man that in front of them. An aura that screamed dominance oozed from him as he browsed down the isles of the market, gold eyes as analytical as that of an owl-cat's.
They were searching for something and it was obvious.
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Post by Fateful on May 11, 2011 18:10:46 GMT -5
"Unstoppable my ass. I could have defeated the firelord." She was kidding, of course, but bragging didn't suit him. Being Aang, it was weird to here him do it, but she liked it all the same. It meant that he was growing more confident. Or maybe he was just more comfortable around her now. "Naw, we go to where Suyin wandered off to. I feel a pressured void not far from where she is." The pressure what what felt like a large stream that ran between the mountains, so it was a place to start. As she started to lead them were where Suyin was, the tree she's hit fell to the ground and she grinned. "Like I said." She teased as they wandered to where she was. "Hey!" She called over to her. "I thought you hated water?"
Seeing the men walk inside, the hair on the back of Jet's neck stood up and he felt the instant urge to fight them. But, he knew that this man was an aristocrat, and since the peace between nations it would end in him just getting arrested. He had never seen masks like that before and they interested in him. Once he paid for what he wanted, he walked over to Longshot who was looking at something and motioned his head for them to leave. They walked out of the sales tent and Jet looked over his shoulder at the two masked men that were now watching him. "We should get back home. Come on." He stated, alerting both of them that he didn't trust these people and that "home" isn't where they were going.
Something hitting the ground shook part of the edge of the city, near where the mountains where. Once out of sight of the masked men, who he made sure were still in the stand, he looked at the two of them. "Smellerbee, go back to the hotel and bring this stuff with you." He handed her the bag with the water in it. "Longshot, you go with her. Pack stuff up. I'll be back after that." He didn't give them time to argue before he walked to where he had heard earth bending. Aang was around he and he had some sort of authority to either question or watch the fire nation noble that didn't belong in this town. If they were looking for something, it had to be Suyin...
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Post by belated valentine on May 11, 2011 20:27:20 GMT -5
Suyin turned around, startled. She nodded. "I don't like being in deep water," she answered. "Sitting around the shore isn't bad though." Leaning back against the tree, she pursed her lips as her eyes traced the constant waves. "It's hard to believe that I'm an entire ocean away from the Fire Nation," she muttered, spinning a leaf between her fingers.
The young man allowed a small smirk to embrace his lips for a mere moment when he listened to the Earth shake. The Earthbender, that had to be here. The little blind girl. He gave a glance to the two other figures behind him. "We're close," he said in a crystalline clear voice which held equal firmness. "Do not attack until I call upon you, understood?" he asked, but didn't bother waiting before he began his stride forward in the direction of the shaking.
Smellerbee sighed. "What.." she muttered, slightly annoyed at the fact that he was sending them away even though they had clearly shown they could handle themselves in the face of danger. She didn't want to leave, especially considering there was probably no one else back at the hotel. "I don't see what the problem is though," she said, watching as he eyed the men. "You're stereotyping again though, and this is what got you in trouble the last time. I'm not going to leave if you're going to go after those men."
Aang looked at the two of them and then back at the water. "Great day for a swim, huh?" he asked, pondering whether or not to jump into the water. "Hey, maybe I could practice some waterbending too, right? I do need to cool down a bit before I start firebending," he replied.
Suyin laughed. "Cooling down would be the last thing you would wan-"
There was a moment of complete silence before a shadow sprang from one of the trees, landing directly behind Suyin just as she turned around, hand straightened and on fire, directly below the man's chin. His own hand was already at her throat and the two allowed their eyes to lock, a moment of familiarity though neither lowered their inflamed hands.
"Xian," the male greeted.
"Mao-Lu."
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Post by Fateful on May 11, 2011 20:44:54 GMT -5
Jet sighed. "Smellerbee..." he complained. "You don't see it, do you? What fire nation royal walks around with masked guards? He has a cut on his face, and he's looking for something. He's looking for someone. Who do you think that could be?" He asked, very quietly, bending down to be face level with her. "I'm telling you they're up to something. Fine. Return that to the hotel and them come after me, but stay at bay unless I need you. Longshot, you shadow me." He knew that it sounded like he was making it up, but he honestly thought they were in danger. This wasn't like before. He felt like he had to do something. And besides... he was going to tell the Avatar.
"You can't fight carrying that Bee, just do it, okay?" he asked, resting his hand on her shoulder. "I promise I won't do anything unless they start it, okay?" he asked. "And I mean it this time."
Toph sighed, leaning against a tree. "I don't like water at all." she stated in irritation. Then she felt footsteps and her body straightened. "Someone..." She stopped when both he and Suyin took fire bending stance. Damn it! They did it again! She gritted her teeth and was about to attack when Aang grabbed onto her and held her wrist. "You want me to do nothing?" She asked, confused. Oh yeah... he was a pacifist. He never thought that violence was the answer. Ever.
Longshot perked himself in a tree, hidden from view, and was surprised to see the male fire bending a ball into his hand. Looks like Jet's instincts hadn't faded. he hated to doubt him, but much like Smellerbee, he had. When coming here, he left markers that she would see and know where his, but to anyone else they would look like markings in the landscape. They'd long since established their own system of communication and trail making.
Jet was at a distance from Longshot, to keep him hidden, but was able to remain hidden himself, out of sight of the two fire bending males. They weren't in plain sight, but lingered in two trees, staying out of Toph's view. A loud whistle of a mountain bird ripped through the area. Under most other circumstances, that would be calming, but now it was just background noise. Another softer whisper replied, from the trees. From the sound of the two, it was a male and female calling back from the nest to where the male was gathering food. Then a bird darted through the clearing and fluttered into the trees with something in it's mouth.
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Post by belated valentine on May 13, 2011 0:30:34 GMT -5
Smellerbee sighed, "Whatever," she replied and walked off to go back to the hotel. Hadn't he just said she would have been leader had he not been able to? He still made it seem as though she was incapable of handling herself in a situation such as this one.
Aang put an arm in front of Toph to keep her from going forward. "You can't spring into attack the moment you see someone. Wait for a moment, contemplate what is going on around you." He looked ahead.
"Wei, Tao," Kai ordered, calling for the other two while keeping his eyes on the girl. He listened as two shadows dropped from the trees beside him. "It appears as though we have a crowd. Would you two be so kind as to keep them busy?" he asked, politely. He looked at Suyin. "What are you doing? I hope this whole thing was your attempt at befriending them in order to launch another more successful attack on the Firelord, otherwise you would really be the scum which you have been so commonly called amongst your former brothers and sisters."
Suyin tried to keep a straight face, but a small glare escaped. "Where's your father?" she asked, bitterly.
"Where he always is, in the shadows of course." He looked down at her, flicking his tongue over the small wound on his lip. "The leader of the Shadow must stay within his own environment. But either way..." He moved his hand to the bandage on her neck, attempting to burn it away but she grabbed his wrist with her inflamed hand and moved back.
Aang moved forward. "I'm the Avatar and you are disrupting the peace that was created in this world. I won't allow you to continue you that."
"Peace? Paha! There was never peace, Avatar Aang! Peace is something that has been instilled in the minds of the people by the higher ups who themselves know nothing of this world. Peace will never exist in this world. Not until the countries become one, under one king and one rule. That is when the world will experience true peace, and that is what we are trying to accomplish here! The Fire Nation will assimilate everyone into their nation, because our nation has always been the one who was superior, it only makes sense. We already have a ruler awaiting the throne after Firelord Zuko."
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Post by Fateful on May 13, 2011 8:33:20 GMT -5
Toph gritted her teeth when Aang stopped her. Access the situation? Really? He was such an idiot. These were the same men that attacked the fire nation palace. "Twinkle toes! I never forget a voice, and they're avoiding my sight lines. What the hell do you think they're here for? Tea? Their footsteps aren't like that of normal people. They're here to kill."
I knew it... Jet thought, back pressed up against the tree. But he wasn't stupid enough to move yet. These men were here to kill, and though he wasn't one to agree with Aang, he knew that he was right. This was not the time to attack someone blindly. He'd learned that lesson a long time ago, and it was a hard and painful lesson; one which left a claim to his flesh and burned his lungs.
The bird call repeated, this time softer as if it was further away. This call, higher than the previous was more of a whistle and sounded like a mating call. The response was almost non existent, but it was there, all the same, muffled and quiet.
Damn it... Jet thought. There was only the three of them, but it was still an aggressive force. From his point of vantage, Longshot could not see the faces of the two masked men, but he could see that one of them appeared to have a cut or burn on his wrist from a previous battle. It had already began to heal. So, they were the ones from the battle that had taken place that landed Suyin in the fire nation palace. What the hell did he just get himself into?
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Post by belated valentine on May 16, 2011 21:05:40 GMT -5
Aang turned around. "Toph," he said sternly, hoping she would understand. Because he was the Avatar, he needed to try and find a peaceful way out of a situation before he decided to add violence into it. "You realize that the other nations don't WANT to be a part of the Fire Nation. The world can live just fine under their own constitution, we don't need to assimilate everyone. It's like the elements, they're all different. They can't be combined."
Kai paid no attention to him. "That's where you're wrong. You see, fire is the most aggressive and powerful element of the four. It is the only element which can completely disintegrate it's prey until they are nothing but ash."
"That's not what we learned!" Suyin shouted.
"That's what I was taught, and my father, and his forefathers. That's what Firelord Sozin and his followers were taught. That's also what our future Firelady was taught, and that is how she will rule her nation. And you and I, along with our brothers and sisters are soldiers and protectors of our Firelord. We aren't preachers, Xian, we're Shadows."
"You guys made it clear that I wasn't one anymore, so I'm not going to act like one!" she yelled, punching him in the face with her hand which was still lit on fire. Above her, there was the sound of a bird, distant but clear.
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Post by Fateful on May 20, 2011 21:15:12 GMT -5
Okay, so Twinkle toes had a point, but Toph didn't think this would end without violence. She was certain that their intention was to fight. after all, they tried to kill her because her mask broke off. Why would they let her life now? And they had given her the choice in staying with them for information. Knowing that she could turn was too drastic of a risk, especially if they parted ways and Toph couldn't read her lies (assuming it was a lie). This was her life, wasn't it? At least, before her execution style injury. All the nations being one? Please. That would never happen. That COULD never happen. All bending forms would fail and the avatar would cease to exist. Wait... If... damn! They were smarter than she thought.
"This is all super interesting, but I fail to see what it has to do with you in the earth kingdom. In MY kingdom!" Toph yelled, punching the ground, making the three warriors slide backwards so they were standing in a line, all facing them. "The Avatar is giving you the chance to run now. Either you take it, or I attack you." She knew that they weren't going to run, but giving them the option might appease Aang. If not, screw it.
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Post by belated valentine on May 27, 2011 15:24:55 GMT -5
Kai stumbled and nearly fell over from the small earthquake, but grabbed onto a tree and managed to stay up. He turned his flaming gold eyes to Toph. "Your opinion in this holds no worth. You think we're going to run away after all of this? Never. This is a dream that will be followed to the very end." He turned to Suyin. "Imagine what your father would say had he been here now. I imagine he would look after you even though you were old enough to look after yourself. But you've never done that, have you?"
"Don't bring my dad into this, you never even knew him that well!" Suyin yelled over the grumbling of the Earth as she stumbled backward, scraping her palm on the bark of one of the trees.
One of the posse members launched forward, going against orders and directly attacking one of them. He shot a ball of fire out of his palm.
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Post by Fateful on Jun 4, 2011 15:36:24 GMT -5
Toph's milky green eyes narrowed in the direction of the voice that felt an undeserved superiority. "I have all the day because this is MY nation!" she yelled, moving her hand outward to send a boulder at him. It wasn't until after this that one of the others moved and took a fire bending pose. he directed it toward Suyin rather than herself, so she didn't bother moving, but she erected a rock wall to stop the flames from engulfing her. it was in their best interest to run, not fight. Suyin was still hurt and though they were about even, the fight wasn't likely to end well.
The fire benders attacked, and so Jet took that as his cue. One of his hook swords wrapped around the fire benders wrist and twisted his arm behind his back before kicking his legs out from under him. He'd surprised him and he jumped back. "Run!" He instructed, turning to face Aang and Suyin. "I'll be right behind you." He drew his swords in front of him, crossing them and then slicing through a blaze of fire, separating it, causing it to dispel in the air. Jumping backward, Jet looked around, trying to figure out the best way to slow them down and run at the same time. This couldn't end the same way Ba Sing Se did.
The ground shook violently and a gash ripped through the Earth, separating them. The fire benders could jump over, but continued to open, getting wider, making it harder for the benders to follow as they ran toward the mountains.
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Post by belated valentine on Jun 7, 2011 18:19:30 GMT -5
As the earth shook and tore around them, there was a moment when Kai grabbed Suyin by the wrist and it almost seemed as though he would save her from the crumbling of the ground around her feet, but he only leaned down and with a cold and promising voice whispered, "They'll find you, all of you, in a pile of ashes." Letting go of her wrist, he jumped backward, finding a stable portion of ground to stand upon and casting his attention to the others as they ran off.
Suyin stumbled, falling forward into the pit that had been created. She summed up whatever strength she had with her at that moment into a blast of fire that sent her backward and onto her feet, stable once again. In the midst of the madness, she twisted in the wrong direction and pulled something in her shoulder, the one that had been struck by lighting not too long ago. She ignored it, instead focusing on moving backward as the Earth below her continued to split. She cast her eyes away from the man and did what she believed she had mastered, running away.
Aang didn't like to run away from conflict, especially not when he could do something about it, but he knew that there was not much left here to do. For the time being, all they could do was get away. These men knew that Suyin was alive and willing to spill whatever secrets they had, there was no doubt that they'd come after them again at some point. In which case, Aang would intervene then. But as of now, there wasn't much to do. He looked over at Toph before he grabbed her arm. "Come on, that's enough to keep them away. We need to leave!" he shouted through the nearly unbearable sound of the trembling earth. All he could do now was make sure everyone got away safely.
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