Chapter 3: Mare Demonicus


The Wooden Trireme, Ventinis', flag ship was called the Orb of Janis, the patriarch god of the Reme Pantheon. It was several meters in length and was driven by a mixture of man power (rowers) and sail. It had a large prow with eyes painted on the hull. Three sails drove the ship in fair weather, but the smell of a storm was not far away.

Over several weeks, sailing on this leaky Trireme, but little by little Lu Ten managed to gather what little knowledge he could about the Reme tongue, its culture and its story. From what he could gather from Shiya and the others, it was a massive empire stretching three continents and subjugating a single culture with various significantly smaller nations as its vassals.

The whole ship stank of vinegar though. Always that stink. Lu Ten could only do his best to keep the smell from getting to him. Barbarians!

In terms of technology – it was both very advanced and very primitive, employing a mix of high industry similar to that of the fire kingdom and a bureaucracy rooted in an entrenched religion.

These people were a mix of extreme intelligence and extreme stupidity.

A good example were the soldiers he was traveling with. Half of the time, they were either gambling, drunk or fornicating with each other. One of them even tried to rape him. It was a good thing that he could defend himself.

Also, not a day goes by when the entire crew – Ventinis and Avinis included – were engaged in ritualized prayer. They would capture a poor fish and rip open its entrails to see what the future holds. Lu Ten couldn't help but laugh at this. As if the fortunes of fate relied upon how the liver of fish falls to the ground. Everyone knows that you need special tiles and cards to tell the future. There was also much fighting, gambling, arguing, and as a consequence of these, floggings.

In contrast to the common sailors and marines though, their robed officers, strutted about like priests, and from what Shiya told him, engaged in constant philosophical and metaphysical debate. There was even a small area in the ship were experiments were being conducted. Lu Ten found their knowledge of mathematics and science to be extremely advanced, certainly better than anything that he could conceive. What they were trying to do with this knowledge though was yet a mystery to him.

He also began to know his captors/hosts better. Ventinis became his student in the Fire Nation's tongue. He was a fast learner, and would toy around with phrases and words as if they were jokes. The guy was noncommittal, and he did not venture to offer much in terms of information, no matter how much Lu Ten kept probing him.

Avinis was the quintessential soldier and would strut about with a stiff back and a pointed chin. His aquiline features a constant challenge to anyone who would stand before him. Lu Ten did not like him. His pale-ish olive skin as well as his large nose reminded him of a monster.

He would look at Lu Ten gruffly every now and then, but overall he did not bother him. Something in Lu Ten made him fear Avinis. The man had a darkness about him, the kind that explodes in battle. He saw it in some of the soldiers under him. And of course, Lu Ten never forgot how he had subdued him in only days before. Any man resents defeat.

And then there was Shiya. The semitic beauty continued to teach Lu Ten about the Reme and her own tongue. She was the one who he talked to most often, and although he did not really know much about her, nor did she volunteer much information herself, Lu Ten found out that she was the daughter of merchants, which explains her ability to speak his language and that of his unknown captors. Aside from what he could piece together, Shiya never volunteered to speak of her past. What little Lu Ten knew was that her family had been killed and that she was sold into slavery. Did the Reme do that? Did they kill her family and enslaved her? Or was there more to her story than she'd care to let on? Either way, she never spoke of it.

And then there was young Quintis – or wide ears as he was called. He was a crazy little bastard. Sometimes, he would remain completely quiet, while later on, he would start running around the deck screaming nonsensical words and madness. The crew – being the superstitious lot – would keep a respectful distance, while their officers would grab the child and drag him back to his cabin.

Ventinist said that this was because Quintis suffered from prophetic visions, a gift that was also a curse. Ventinis refused to speak beyond that, and Lu Ten made sure to stay away from the boy, no matter how much he reminded him of his own cousin, Zuko.

Weeks slowly became months as they kept sailing. Lu Ten did not know whether he'll get back to his father. He did not know what happened to his unit or even if they had been successful in taking Ba Sing Se, but he would not surrender to despair. He was alive and there was still hope – a fool's hope perhaps – but still hope.

He was the heir, the rightful heir to the fire lord. There would be an explanation to whatever conspired to bring him to his current situation. He will find out what that is, and when he does…

"Wake up!" Lu Ten heard Shiya's voice rousing him sleep.

"Shiya? What's happening?"

"No time to explain. We need to get to the deck!"

Lu Ten had been sleeping soundly in his small cabin when he was roused by Shiya. Above, noise of battle can be heard. Around him, he could hear the noise of water slowly rushing within the vessel. Something was attacking the ship, something big. When they reached topside, they found the source of the trouble.

Several of the masts had been damaged, and some sort of creature or animal was attacking. The Reme soldiers were trying to kill the creature but they were losing. It appeared to be some sort Squid, several of its tentacles lined with bladed teeth. The Reme fought for their lives, and tied their bodies to the deck to avoid falling overboard. Nevertheless, the monster kept attacking. Three men already died from the attack.

In the distance, Lu Ten saw soldiers manning the cannon like weapons he saw earlier. The cannons were firing high velocity projectiles at the monster, punching holes in its skin, wounding it but not sufficiently enough to stop its rampage.

"Lu Ten!" Ventinis called out his name and he quickly ordered Shiya to say something.

"He says to tie ourselves to the deck and keep together. The lower decks have been damaged and are filling with water."

"Damaged!" Lu Ten exclaimed. "Are we sinking?"

"I… I don't know."

Lu Ten looked at the massive creature and decided that he needed to do something. He couldn't just stand here and do nothing. He had to fight. He quickly ran from Shiya and towards the fray with the other Reme.

His first act was to unleash a series of flame attacks on the tentacles griping the masts. The fires managed to make the tentacles fall away, allowing the men to push their attack. Spears struck the tentacles as Lu Ten lead the way for the attack.

It took Lu Ten a few seconds to discover the low flying wraiths attacking the giant squid as well. The flying figures were not demons. They were the Reme officers. Wherever these people came from, they had their own version bending, but it's not like any type of bending he's ever seen. The Reme were attacking the creature with a combination of with what appeared to be some sort of energy blasts and spears.

Lu Ten shook away his surprise and his training took hold of him. He proceeded to rally the Reme foot soldiers as he would fire nation troops. There were three tentacles attached to the ship. One by one, he and the troops managed to extricate the tentacles before they could do any permanent damage to the ship.

The troops exclaimed their victory and Lu Ten was being hailed a hero by the men he lead in battle. It seemed that the creature was retreating and back to the watery depths from where it emerged. Their joy was cut short, however, when the waters became very violent and a giant tentacle sprang out from the depths.

It went straight for Lu Ten even as he attempted to get out of the way. He flung a blast of flame at the tentacle but it didn't even scratch it. Sailors and marines cleared out of the away as Lu Ten was hauled away from the deck of the ship and into the water.

For a few moments, Lu Ten thought that he was dead. But the Giant Squid slowly swam upwards until it surfaced from out of the water and began flying!

Unable to do any fire bending with his hands tied, the tentacle which held Lu Ten held him close to one of the squid's eyes, as if examining him.

The squid said something in what sounded like the Reme tongue. This scared Lu Ten even more. The squid began saying several more things and Lu Ten wished he had Shiya to translate for him.

Instead, he got something better. As the squid spoke his incomprehensible gibberish, a massive blast smashed into its body, forcing the squid to falter and nearly fall back down into the water.

Lu Ten scanned his horizon to find the source of the attack, and found it in Ventinis – in full armor - flying straight at him and the squid which held him. Ventinis spoke to the squid and the squid spoke to him. They spoke to each other as if they were old time comrades.

"A squid, Gallis? Surely you can find a better monster to possess than a squid. They seem so cliché for someone of your imagination." Ventinis said.

"Ave Ventinis. You're a long way from the Imperium."

"So are you Gallis. Unhand him, degenerate." Ventinis commanded.

"Degenerate? Oh my dear Frater. You really should learn to stop giving orders like that. Tell me, why is this little addition to your entourage so important, hmmm?" The specter began shaking Lu Ten like a rag doll. "No matter, I'll simply dispose…"

Before the squid could finish the sentence, one of the cannon/ballista managed to score a direct hit on the tentacle holding Lu Ten and he quickly fell onto the deck. The monster screamed its pain, the being which had possessed it left due to the agony on the tentacle.

Ventinis wasted no time. He quickly flew into the air, and with his bare hands summoned a lightning bolt and smashed it into the creature, killing it instantly. Lu Ten had never seen so much power. That was not bending. It was raw power – something else entirely. The demon sank back into the depths of the ocean, gone.

Ventinis then fell on the deck, blood was pouring from his mouth and he was barely breathing. The robed officers went for him and tried to rouse him, applying whatever passed for first aid among them. In the distance, someone was calling for a physician, and more of the soldiers came to their leader's aid.

Lu Ten found that the other Reme officers were exhausted as well. They fell down to the deck in exhaustion. Some were even coughing blood, while others collapsed. It seems that whatever power they used to fly and manipulate the world around them also sapped their strength. Ventinis was no exception.

The sky was still dark and Lu Ten felt that this was but the beginning of something more dangerous than he could possibly understand.


After the incident, everyone on board the ship celebrated and sang praises to the gods, which with the Reme, was synonymous with getting horribly drunk.

Lu Ten retreated to Ventinis's cabin where the other officers were situated. Since the attack on the ship by monster, Lu Ten had gained the approval of much of the crew. Their ship was falling apart. Its mast had been damaged. Its hull is leaking despite any repairs. They were in the middle of the ocean. They were limping their way through what appeared to be stormy weather. They needed to make repairs fast otherwise the ship was sunk.

Ventinis – who was being confined to his bed - said that the plan was to rendezvous with another vessel, the Coriolanis. They already sent the Coriolanus a missive – whatever that meant – telling them their coordinates. Lu Ten hoped so. They weren't going to last long in the damaged Trireme. But Ventinis patted Lu Ten on the shoulder and told him that all would be fine. The crew were making as much repairs as they can while officers recuperated from their battle.

And so the drinking continued, for surely, what else was there to do?

Lu Ten and Ventinis continued trying to learn about each other. At any rate, Lu Ten still did no know why he suddenly turned up in the middle of nowhere, and more interestingly, why and Ventinis found him.

The Reme was a coy about what he knew and the only thing he would tell Lu Ten was that his dreams told him, as if anyone would believe that. Still, Lu Ten decided not to push anything. There were other things to worry about.

Lu Ten in particular was interested at the power Ventinis and his officers wielded. It was so unlike anything he had ever found or encountered before.

After what seemed like two weeks of floating, Ventinis and his officers were healed of their ordeal, and Lu Ten finally found the courage to finally ask Ventinis upfront. "How you… How you do it?" Lu Ten asked haltingly in what little Reme he knew.

"I'm a Psychic." Ventinis answered.

"What's that?"

"Don't you have Psychics among you?"

"I answer you… sorry, I might to answer to you if explain to me. Pardon my Reme."

"We can talk in your tongue but I fear my skills at languages are worse than yours. You want to summon Shiya?"

As much as Lu Ten would like Shiya here, he shook his head.

"Okay. Okay. In the empire, we have several cults and religions operating harmoniously," Ventinis took a swig, "but they all have one thing in common, and it's their search for spiritual enlightenment."

"No interest in… uh," he thought of a word, "lecture spirituality Prince Ventinis."

"It isn't." Ventinis stood up with wobbling legs and reached for his guitar like instrument, and shoved it before Lu Ten. "What is this?"

"That musical instrument. You play me song?"

"What? By the gods no. Can't make music to save my blue blood ass. No, this is an example. A human being is basically like a musical instrument. You can use other examples, but we'll use this one. A Hyletic, that's a materialist, is your common human being who only lives to eat, procreate and fart. Basically, a Hyletic is just this." Ventinis held out the instrument quiet and idle. "It doesn't sing. It doesn't make a sound. It's just an object – a musical object – but still an object. Here now, gone tomorrow. Like a shadow."

"Nothing." Lu Ten agreed, but uncomfortable at the last words that were popped out of Ventinis' mouth.

Ventinis raised a very drunk finger, and strummed the cord. "Now, we move to the second phase. The Psychic. Psychics are people who reached out beyond their pathetic existence to make something of themselves - to actualize their potential. In the case of this beautiful instrument, music."

"The sound from musical instrument. Psychics. Fire benders. Water benders. Earth benders. Air Nomads."

"Now, you're getting it." Ventinis smiled. "Psychics are psychics because they are able to connect with the world and the world connects with them. They are no longer isolated in their own little worlds. Just as music is a form of communication."

"So every person… Hyletic has potential of become psychic?"

"Can every musical instrument play any song?"

Lu Ten nodded his head, understanding now.

"Perhaps, not the same song but we all have something to sing about. And the song is what binds beyond the physical. It's an awareness of a world beyond what our senses tell us, just like your… bending."

"Yes, like 'my' bending," Lu Ten agreed.

Ventinis nodded his head. "And finally, the Pneumatic," Ventinis smashed the guitar on the floor. This surprised Lu Ten, "Where's the music?" he asked.

"You just broke it!" Lu Ten answered with annoyance, taking another drink from the wine skin.

"No, I broke the guitar. Where's the music?"

"You can't play music without instrument…"

"No, I can't but the instrument is not the music. It's just the medium. Now, answer me. Where's the music?"

"Yes, but surely… there has to be… One needs to…" The revelation dawned on Lu Ten.

Ventinis smiled. And his finger pointed at Lu Ten's chest and head. "The music is there." He then pointed at the broken instrument. "Not there. The joy you feel. The love and sorrow that is evoked when you hear a loving song. The power which inspires that music to be created. The imagination. That is music. Not a series of sounds on a little instrument. It's not even the music itself. Those are toys and tricks. The person who reaches that level is a pneumatic – divine."

"Love and Beauty that is true music," Ventinis had told him, "But more than just music. It is your soul. It is the part of you that goes beyond this world, and becomes the key to enlightenment. That is the pneumatic. The enlightened ones… like this avatar you speak of."

"So everyone can be all three?"

Ventinis laughed out loud. "You may think that we can all become pneumatics, but it isn't that simple. Sure, each sentient being has the potential, but I assure, not everyone can do it."

"Why?"

"Free Will."

"I don't understand."

"Neither do I, but that is the truth as I have seen it."

Lu Ten then asked, "why do you get hurt by your… powers?"

Ventinis raised an eyebrow. "Don't you?"

"No, firebending only hurts the firebender if he foolish." He paused to remember the correct right word. "Otherwise… Yes, otherwise, firebending harmless."

"Hmmm. That's strange." Ventinis answered. "Well, perhaps your bending requires less power than ours. Yes, that's probably that."

Lu Ten shook his head. "Not really. I know of firebenders who can raise an inferno."

"Hm… strange. Perhaps we're not the same after all."

Ventinis and Lu Ten continued talking about this peculiarity and little by little Lu Ten came to understand a portion of the Reme mind. He explained this to Ventinis. He learned that the Reme had something similar to bending. Except it wasn't really bending in the strict sense of the word. They called it tuning or at least that's the best translation he could make. What they did was to attack – not synthesize - reality around their will. The problem of course, is that if you push reality to do your will. It pushes you back down, which explained why Ventinis collapsed after unleashing so much power.

"What of it?" Ventinis responded almost indignantly to a comment Lu Ten made about the Reme worldview.

Lu Ten repeated his rhetorical question. "Why would you want to take the world apart? If I Reme… sorry, if I were Reme, I no dissect world learn knowledge." Lu Ten wanted to add, "that's idea of bending. You don't tear up reality to tame it. You flow it," he wanted to add more but he did not know enough words.

"That's where you're wrong, prince," Ventinis answered. "You cannot truly learn something unless you are prepared to push and fight your way to it."

"Maybe you right, my friend, but look at price such way of thinking do to you," Lu Ten responded courageously with his rather silly accent. The talk continued for hours, most of which Lu Ten could scarcely remember due to the wine. When he woke up, he had a major hang over. He walked from his bunk and stumbled around the deck. He wanted to talk to Shiya, but she was sleeping soundly. Luckily, most of the crew were passed out drunk.

To pass the time and to lessen the misery of drinking a little too much Lu Ten began humming a song to himself – a song that Iroh once sang to him. Little soldier boy… Coming Home… Love. Hope. He liked what Ventinis told him, but at the same time, it scared him.

Once more, for the hundredth time, Lu Ten pondered how he got here. What sorts of powers brought him to this ship, for obviously there were powers involved. Lu Ten decided to bury that problem in its compartment. For now, he had to be patient. If there were answers to be had, Ventinis will help him find it… or at least he hoped he will.

Ventinis was not his friend, he corrected himself. The man was alien, a barbarian, including Shiya. He smiled and acted with courtesy because that is what is expected of him.

"Nice tune," Ventinis remarked from behind him, and for a moment, Lu Ten wondered if the foreign devil could read his mind.

"My father song to me when little… uh, boy once."

Ventinis nodded his head thoughtfully. "You miss him?"

"Yes. Do you miss your father?"

"My father's dead," the Reme answered, a shadow passing over his face.

"Oh, I sorry.

"Don't worry. It's not important, at least not anymore." Ventinis answered and began walking towards some of his officers.

Lu Ten looked at Ventinis once more, gauging what is in his head. He recalled the talk they had and he wondered if this knowledge held some secret as to the purpose of his… displacement here.

Someone shouted something and Lu Ten could see the shape of ship approaching them. It was the Coriolanis.

"Rescue ship?" Lu Ten asked Ventinis.

"Yes," Ventinis answered but his face darkened, "rescue ship."