The halls and war rooms bustled with activity. It was midday and most were taking to afternoon tea or breaking for lunch. It was a routine Kei would usually be a part of, that was, until yesterday. Apparently, a top general wasn't too keen on "being made an ass" in front of the other officers and advisors. Kei shrugged it off as he aimlessly wandered the now empty halls and terraces of the main city. Everyone was busy working, while he suddenly found his schedule quite open. His mother was a brilliant healer and so could get into a few war meetings. Kei was following after her in profession but also had a knack for strategy, and the discussions in the war rooms always drew him in. He had gone so often that they started asking for his input on certain battle strategies. Of course, Kei jumped at the chance, but yesterday had been different. Things were becoming tense in the political sphere. News had spread quickly of the death of the last Avatar at the time of his death about fifteen years ago. The fire nation had been scrambling ever since since it was known from the cycle that the next Avatar would be a fire bender, born into the Fire Nation. The Fire Nation was a powerhouse of industry and war machines. They were hellbent on finding the new Avatar and using them for their own gains. Unfortunately, Kei had made the mistake of apparently insulting a general's strategy, and now he found himself with a lot of free time.

He absent mindingly flicked his middle finger against his thumb, producing a small flame when he'd do so. He admitted that he wasn't the most physically strong fire bender, but he had strategy and skill on his side. This allowed him to excel in combat to the point where other fire benders were a bit afraid of him. It seemed like when he was heading in someone's direction along the street, they'd avoid him at all costs. Well, that was everyone except for Kaito.

"Hey, Kei!" Kei turned slightly when he heard the familiar voice and stomping footsteps that indicated that he was indeed running over.

He couldn't help but wear a smile as he watched his friend waving and running towards him.

"Hey! Didn't expect to see you just walking around. Aren't you usually in the war rooms or by the palace?" he asked, slumping a bit as he caught his breath.

"You didn't hear? I got kicked out yesterday. Apparently they don't like hearing opinions from others, especially from a kid."

"Well, that just means you said something so genius they didn't know how to take it," Kai chuckled and placed a hand on his shoulder. "I'm free today too. We should go do something. We could get a bite to eat and maybe I could watch you train. I love seeing you fire bend. It makes me wish I was a bender, but oh well."

"Well, not sure if this helps, but you can still kick my ass even though I can fire bend."

Kei nodded at the invitation and started to walk down the street with Kai. There was a peaceful silence between them as both of them just enjoyed being in each other's company. It was a gorgeous, clear day out. The sun was almost a bit too harsh as it shone brightly in the sky. The streets were bustling with traffic of all different kinds of creatures pulling carts. On a day like this, it was easy for Kei to lose track of exactly where he was going as he let his mind wander elsewhere. He mostly just followed Kai, knowing he already had a place picked out that he wanted to go to.

He had been blissfully following Kai, currently crossing the street when a piercing shriek broke him out of his daze. The two of them froze in the middle of the street, watching in horror as a automobile that looked to be going much faster than the others was careening towards them. Faster than Kei expected, the car was charging right towards them. He knew they should run and get out of the way, but the two seemed frozen in place. Kei hadn't even noticed that he instinctively grabbed onto Kai's hand. He knew there was no possible way they were going to get out of the way in time, so he changed his stance.

"Stay behind me," he whispered to Kai.

When he glanced over again, he let out a soft squeak when it was closer than he expected and instantly threw his arm up as a form of protection, forming a fist even though he knew that wouldn't do him any good.

It seemed like a few minutes had gone by when he heard Kai calling out his name, though it sounded muffled like he was behind a thick curtain. He squinted as the harsh sunlight stung his eyes. It seemed like everything around them was frozen. Cars and people had stopped and gawked over in their direction.

"Kei..look in front of you."

Kei did so slowly and gasped as the earth below them had broken through the street and formed a wall between them and that vehicle which had crashed right into it.

"You..you earth bended? I didn't know you could do that," Kai gasped, walking forward and feeling the earth wall in front of them. "You saved us."

"I didn't know I could, either..but, wait..doesn't that mean?"

His heart skipped a beat as he noticed all the stares. People were whispering amongst each other while some were running towards the palace.

"If I can bend fire and earth..am I? I mean, I can't be..the new avatar?"

By the way things were going around them, he knew once the news got out, the Fire Lord would most certainly not let him go. Ever since Republic City had been growing and becoming more powerful, the individual nations had been much more at peace, though each nation still had its schemes. He didn't know what a life like that would be like, but he wasn't too keen on finding out. His thoughts were broken by Kai grabbing his hand and pulling Kei after him as they started to run.

"Kai, what are you?"

"If you are the new Avatar, then you need to get out of here fast! We need to get to a neutral zone!"

Kei glanced around as Kai pulled him along. Kai didn't dare look back or around at the other people, keeping his eyes forward at the gate he was aiming for. It wasn't long until there were shouts calling for military officials and cries of "the Avatar is here!" It was certainly enough to make things chaotic which was actually quite favorable for the two of them. As people started to crowd the streets, blocking traffic and the officers, Kai and Kei were able to duck down and weave in-between people easily. Soon, the streets were a vast sea of people, some looking around for the one that was the Avatar and others utterly confused and wondering what was happening. To only increase their luck, the guards at the gate had ran inside to see what the commotion was.

"Alright, they won't be this confused for long, so for now, we're going to take advantage of it and get out of here as far as we can get," Kai panted and started to untie the bridal on a Komodo Rhino. "We'll start by commandeering this."

"Can't we just take a vehicle. It'd be faster." Kei looked from the Komodo Rhino to Kai with an unimpressed look.

"Cars can't go off road easily. This is our best way to make it through the terrain without getting spotted."

Kai didn't hesitate to hop on and taking the reins in his hands. He extended a hand out to Kei. Kei was a bit more hesitant. He had a family here and a life. It might not have been the most exciting life every, but it was his. He thought of Eriko and how she seemed to get more ill with each passing day, and his mother too. Of course, if he stayed here, who knows what would happen to him. He'd be under the custody of the Fire Lord.

"Kei!" Kai's sudden shout broke him from his thoughts. "I know you're scared, but there's no time to stand here and think about this. We need to go..now."

With a gulp, Kei begrudgingly agreed and took a hold of Kai's hand, hopping onto the saddle behind him. As the Komodo Rhino started to move, he leaned forward and wrapped his arms around Kai's torso to secure himself as Kai urged it into a run. They were clearing the outer wall of the city now, turning to take the back roads through the plains and into the forests ahead. Kei watched as the city grew smaller and smaller the further they went.

What are you getting so sad for? They would've figured it out eventually.

Kei frowned at the thought. He knew it was true. Even if that incident hadn't had happened, as he grew older, it would've become more apparent that he was different. He had heard that the Fire Lord was thinking of taking in any young boys who could fire bend in the nation and testing them to pick out the Avatar. This was for the best. If he gets captured by the Fire Nation, he'll never be free.

"Kai, um, thanks. You didn't have to help me, you know. You had a job and a life back there too. I feel kind of bad dragging you into this. This is my problem after all," Kei muttered, holding onto him tighter whenever the ride would get bumpy as they ventured further into the wilderness.

"Don't worry about it, Kei. You're my friend after all. I'll always help you and be there no matter what. I promise. Now, we're in this together."

"Sometimes you say the dumbest things," he sighed but chuckled a bit. "Thank you, so what's the plan anyway?"

"The plan? To get as far away from the main city and palace as possible. I don't think we'll be able to get out of the Fire Nation completely in one day, but we can at least take advantage of the confusion and get as far away as we can before they start sending someone after us."

"Who do you think they send once they figure it out?"

"Mm, maybe Prince Tanaka? Hasn't there been something about the Fire Lord wanting him to get more military experience?" Kai asked and took the right side of a fork in the road.

"Possibly. They have been talking about that at least from what I've heard in the war rooms," Kei said. "But they probably won't send him all on his own. They'll probably put a trusted military officer with him. There is one..that they might pick. He's pretty ruthless, but he's good at getting the job done: General Tosaki."

"The name sounds familiar." Kai nodded, keeping his eyes on the road.

He occasionally glanced around, ensuring they were alone and not being followed. Kei shivered at the mention of him, remembering hearing him speak in the discussions.

"Yeah, let's just hope it's not him."

They kept riding hard through the afternoon, only stopping if the Komodo Rhino needed water or a quick rest. By dusk, Kei felt like he didn't have a butt as he had been sitting on the saddle all day. As Kai peered up, he saw a few stars beginning to shine in the darkening sky. Looking back, Kei looked absolutely miserable with dark shadows under his eyes. He was leaning heavily on Kai and trying to keep his eyes open.

"Alright, we're going to stop for the night at the next town. I'm guessing if they have found out, the news hasn't left the palace and city yet. They'll want to stop us before we reach Republic City because they know they won't be able to have control of you then."

Kei answered with an exhausted nod and a heavy yawn, resting his head on Kai's shoulder. Kai smiled as he slowed the Komodo Rhino down as they reached the outskirts of the town. Komodo Rhinos were mostly used by Fire Nation soldiers as mounts. Just riding one into this town was bound to attract unwanted attention, so Kai ditched it, having it run off into the forest for someone else to find. He pulled Kei along and into town, going for a small inn. With the money he had on hand, Kai got them a room. As soon as he saw the comfy looking bed, Kei immediately walked over and plopped down on it, thankful to be on solid ground and not on some gigantic beast.

"Thank you, Kai," he said, muffled from his face being buried in the pillow.

It wasn't long until he quickly fell asleep right there, not bothering to take any of his clothes off. Kai chuckled and took his shoes off then pulled Kei's off as he was sleeping.

"Sleep well," he said softly, patting his head before going in on the other side of the large bed and falling asleep, though he kept his small knife handy even as he slept.

The air was tense in the throne room as news had spread quickly about the Avatar. The Fire Lord made sure the information and rumors were kept inside the city for now. It would be a disaster if the other nations found out that the Avatar is out there, possibly crossing the border if not now then very soon.

"They're just kids, my lord. I doubt they've gone very far," Prince Tanaka said as he bowed.

"They may just be kids, but one of them is the Avatar, which is no ordinary kid. Tomorrow at dawn, you will venture out with soldiers of your choosing along with General Tosaki. Find them before they leave our borders and get to Republic City."

"Yes sir." Tanaka bowed once more before taking his leave.

He breathed a sigh of relief once he was back in the hallway, glancing over at Tosaki who had been waiting for him.

"So, our Avatar is Kei Nagai. Amazing that the next Avatar has been living here right under our noses. I vaguely remember him joining in on the meetings." Tosaki glanced through the records and notes they had gathered from eye witnesses.

"I'm having some people talk to Nagai's mother and sister. Like I said, they're just kids. They won't be hard to catch. If these reports are accurate, Nagai earth bended completely on accident. He's a rather proficient fire bender and top of his class. He'll truly be useful to us as an Avatar."

"Indeed, now, we should prepare for starting the mission tomorrow. We should get them as soon as possible before they can go any further. I'll have messenger hawks sent out to the outlying territories and towns. I'll ensure that they won't get far."

"Right, I'll see you tomorrow then."

They bowed to each other and went their separate ways for now. Tanaka was still rather uneasy about all this. They were just kids after all, but the Fire Lord was treating them like enemies of the state. He understood the importance of securing the Avatar, but the Avatar wasn't just some tool to be used. He was a person. He shook the thoughts from his mind as he went on with the preparations.