Chapter 3: The Fire Style Of The Rebel

8 Years ago….

"A new Firebending style?"

The young nine-year-old Zeo looked sceptically at his master, Aku. It had only been two years since we'd last seen him running down the burning streets of Nameda, but he was very different to how he was then. His appearance wasn't all that different, his hair was still the untidy black it had always been, his skin was still pale and he had not grown much in height

No, it was his expression. The fear and innocence he once held in his face was now long gone

"That's right Zeo! You and I will develop our own style of Firebending, which you will be the first master of! Pretty exciting, right?" Aku said with excitement to his young pupil. Zeo could only raise an eyebrow at his gleaming master

The two sat to the side of what looked like an indoor training dojo. It was tatty and old, but far from unusable. The two sat on a bench in a corner, watching twenty boys-all a few years older than Zeo-practise move after move in almost perfect unison, an elder master watching the students as they trained.

Their movements were stamped into Zeo mind, despite his age. He had studied and practised these movements for well over a year. They were the movements of the dragons, the standards movements of a firebender, and despite how little training Zeo had had compared to these boys, he was already as proficient-or for many even better-as them, thanks to Akus' personal training

But now…Aku was telling him to abandon it all, and this did not sit well with Zeo. He raised an eyebrow at his master, his face calm, but with a hint of mocking "what's the point?"

"The point? Zeo, how can you be so unenthusiastic? Think of the advantage you'd have over your enemies, who would have no idea how to fight your unique style?" Aku urged his pupil. He held in his hand a bottle of what seemed to be Sake. He quickly took a swig and swallowed in one quick movement

"But you're able to overpower most of your opponent in mere seconds, and you use the standard style of firebending…" Zeo replied dryly "…can't you just teach me to fight just like you? You're teaching Hei how to fight exactly like you"

"You're not Hei, Zeo" Aku stated, his voice and demeanour less excited, but it was still the calm and caring voice Aku always seemed to have "you and Hei have your own unique strengths and weaknesses. You have to understand those if you ever wish to become strong"

"So you're saying I can't fight like you because I don't share you and Hei strengths?" Zeo spat spitefully, his anger getting the best of him as he stood up from the bench. Zeo then looked to his right, having noticed he had caught the attention of some of the students, the training master included. Embarrassed, Zeo sat back down on the bench

Aku could only sigh "to be bluntly boy…that is pretty much it" Aku looked down at Zeo, seeing the boy was sulking. He realised the message hadn't sunk in "show me your arm Zeo"

Zeo look hesitantly at Aku, but slowly raised his right arm towards Aku, who grabbed the arm and pressed his finger down on his muscles. If the average person saw his muscles, they would be surprised by how big they were for a nine year old. Zeo was in the finest condition he could be for his age

"Yes…you have very good muscles for your age Zeo" Aku mused, looking at Zeo face "but the truth is Zeo, when Hei was your age, his entire physique was significantly bigger than yours"

"W-what?" Zeo spat, his voice sounding almost offended as he snatched his arm back. Of course he was used to Hei being bigger than him, but he was two years older than Zeo. To hear he had been bigger than him at his current age was discouraging for the boy

"Yep. Sorry to upset you kid, but not only is Hei naturally bigger and stronger than you, but this also means he is far sturdier than you. He can hold his ground without losing his stance from enemy attacks far better than you, and that is his strength"

Zeo could only grumble under his breath, feeling angry. Not so much at his master, but at himself. He joined the Phoenix Rebels to change his homeland for the better, and he was prepared to fight for this cause. But now he felt like this was impossible for him

Looking down at his sulking student, Aku could only chuckle. He patted his student hard on his head "but…with a strength comes a weakness. And the exact same is said for you Zeo. You have two strengths that will form the basis of this new firebending style"

"I-I do?" Zeo asked, looking up at his master. His face was still confused, but Aku was relieved to see he no longer looked angry or disappointed. His face showed a hint of hope, and he was on edge to hear what his master had to say

"Of course Zeo!" Aku nodded "for starters, you may not be as strong and sturdy as Hei, but you are fast, nimble and as you grow, your acrobatic skills will be unmatched in the Fire Nation! That is what I believe"

"And…and what's my other strength?" Zeo asked quickly, his voice surprisingly excited. Surprising, because Zeo rarely got excited about anything

Aku took a swig from his Sake bottle, and chuckle "you've got an insane amount of energy!"

The Captain couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at the Blue Spirit. He could tell that the masked rebel intended to fight him, but his stance was unlike anything he'd ever seen before. Normally, a Firebender would stand with their legs spread apart, their right arm held back like it was about to throw, while the other was held straight forward like an arrow.

But this Firebender was different. He held both his hands up close to his chest, ready to block or swipe whichever was necessary, while his left leg was lifted slightly off the ground, almost like he was about to sprint forward. The Captain had never seen a Firebender positioned like this before in either books or personal experience

"Your stance is unusual boy" The Captain remarked "in all my years of service, I've never seen such a fighting stance"

"Then it sounds like this fight is already in my favour" Zeo replied. The Captain had difficulty guessing whether the boy was being serious or sarcastic, could've been both

"Hmph, do not get cocky boy!" The Captain boomed, launching his right arm forward

To the normal eye, his attack would seem quick, but to Zeo-who through his training with Aku and Hei, had seen even faster-the movement was almost in slow motion. He could see The Captain draw fire into his right hand as it launched forward, while at the same time bringing his right leg forward to add force to the fire he was about to launch

Zeo had studied these kinds of movements over and over…but not just so he could perfectly imitate them

"So tell me Zeo; how do Firebenders fight?" Aku asked his pupil. We return once again to the nine year old Zeo, inside the small training dojo. Now however, it was all alone, and the two stood in the centre of the room

Zeo pondered this for a second, before replying "a Firebender…relies almost completely behind aggressive and powerful strikes. Firebenders win by overpowering their opponent through vicious, relentless onslaughts"

Aku clapped his hands "very good, right on the mark! But now tell me Zeo, what is a Firebenders weakness?"

"Well…in order to gain greater offence, we sacrifice nearly all of our defence. Unless the Firebender is very talented, we have literally no form of defence"

Aku smiled "exactly"

Zeo sprinted forward, like a lion ready to pounce on his prey. Zeo closed off the distance between him and the Captain in but a mere second, but he did not get up close to him. When he was but a few feet away, Zeo slid to the ground feet, and from his feet flew a small blast of fire directly at the Captains still leg

The Captain noticed the blast in time to stop his attack and jump back, but despite this he still found himself staggering backwards, almost falling off the edge of the speeding cart. When he regained his composure, the Captain gave his opponent a surprised but alert stare He…moved so fast

The Captain shook his head, and prepared himself again, getting back into his fighting stance. With quick movements, he swung his right arm forward again, this time managing to fully extend his arm forward, but Zeo was once again quick to disrupt his movement. This time Zeo moved directly up to the Captain, instinctively moving his body slightly to the right to block the incoming fire blast, before running forward down the Captains arm

The Captain felt a strong heat hit his chest directly on his armour. Before he knew what was happening, he was thrown backwards violently, fire roaming around him as he fell hard on the cart. The Blue Spirit had just hit him directly in the chest with a blast of fire. The Captain was speechless, using fire in such short distance was unlike he had ever since in battle. Just what kind of style was this guy using?

The Captain, growling slightly, swung his left leg sideways, sending a blazing fire arc directly at the Blue Spirits face. At such a distance, it would be near impossible for someone to dodge such a close attack, but the Captain was once again left amazed, for the Blue Spirit threw his whole body backward like he was falling, but through managing to keep his feet stationed on the floor, dodged the arc, his dodge like he was playing limbo

The Captain rolled backwards, landing back on his feet. He wasted no time sending a fire blast forward, but Zeo dodged under. The Captain fired blast after blast, but almost mockingly Zeo dodged each one. His movements were fluid and almost instinctual, each blast missing only by inches, but at the same time it seemed as though Zeo was having little difficulty dodging each blast

Why is he only dodging…The Captain thought curiously. Firebenders fought by viciously and relentlessly attacking his or her opponent until they were defeated, the one with the stronger attacks and skill simply won. But this Bender was different. He spent most of the time dodging each attack with flexible and almost instinctual movements

And…judging by his last two attacks, he only attacked when-for only just a split second-the Captains defence was down

Stopping his barrage of blast, the Captain span his body around, sending his left leg sliding in a circle across the cart as his body pulled a complete 360 turn. Through his left leg, a large arc of fire, coursing just over the cart roof. He was good at dodging while on the ground, but how was he from attacks below

The Captain was honestly not surprised to see Zeo jump and dodge high into the air

While in the air, Zeo swung his leg downwards at the Captain like a swinging kick, and a blast of fire flew out towards his face. The Captain quickly held out his hands forward, extinguishing the flame with his own hands, but Zeo was not done. He landed on his arms and knees, before using his left arm to push his body upwards and send a fire blast from his right hand directly at The Captains unprotected chest.

The Captain was still agile for his age, but he doubted anyone could've blocked such quick succession of moves properly. The Captain only just managed to move his arms down in time to take the heat of the blast, but still he found himself thrown backwards onto his back. When he regained his composure, he realised that the first attack from the air had just been to get his arms in the air, in order to leave the rest of his body unprotected. No matter how much force the Captain used, this young man was taking him down by hitting him where he was venerable

It was infuriating

The Captain was almost always a calm and composed individual, but deep down right now he was boiling with anger. Not so much at his opponent, but at himself. He had little doubt his opponent was younger than him, and therefore more agile. But normally his several years of experience helped to defeat his opponent

Inexperience was the cause of all this, but not the Blue Spirits, but his own. He had never fought a firebender like him!

"Man, this guy's not doing too good against Blue, is he?" Riki chuckled. The fighting had only been going on for a few minutes, but Zeo had completely dominated. He looked down at Hei, who was still melting through the hook connecting the cart with his blue fire. The hook had been stronger than they thought it would, but Hei was nearly finished melting the hook

"But of course little one…" Aku chuckled, hints of pride in his chuckle "…Zeo is the only user of this style, and Zeo designed it to effectively defeat all other styles after all"

"Didn't you help create the style master?" Riki curiously asked Aku. Aku innocently pointed at himself

"Me? Oh no no Riki!" Aku stated, turning back to the fight with a smile "all I did was…push Zeo in the right direction"

"I have one more question Zeo" Aku asked the nine year old Zeo, as we are again in the small dojo "how do we Phoenix Rebels fight?"

"I-I don't understand" Zeo replied unsurely

"Let me rephrase that. What would happen Zeo, if our forces went head on against the Fire Nation in an all out war? It's not like there's an Avatar around to stop it!" Aku laughed loudly. Zeo stared momentarily at his master. He noticed sometimes when his master laughed like that, he was hiding something

Zeo pondered the question, his face become even less sure with the answer he got "yea but…the Fire Nation army outnumber us almost 4-1, even with our influence over the working class; simply put we don't have enough soldiers of our own to stand a chance!"

Zeo decided not to mention that the idea of war made him feel uneasy inside

"As always Zeo, right on the mark! If we were to fight the army head on, it would be a massacre!" Aku laughed. Zeo didn't see what was funny about that, though nowadays nothing seem particularly funny to Zeo

"So then…how do we Rebels fight?" Aku asked rhetorically "we blow up their factories, assassinate figureheads, take over villages, towns and even cities without the Royal family even knowing it!"

Aku spread out his hand "to put it simply Zeo, we attack their weak spots"

Zeo took in all he said, and understood what he was explaining. For centuries this was how the Rebels had fought. But, Zeo had one question left for his master "what has this got to do with this new firebending style you want me to create?"

"Zeo, in the few years I've known, you've shown to be smarter and more mature beyond your years" Aku smiled at his pupil, giving him a thumbs up "you'll figure it out what I'm trying to tell you"

"As I expected of him…he figured out what I was trying to tell him" Aku said slowly "Zeo could never fight like me or Hei. He does not-and never will-have the superhuman strength that either of us have"

"But what Zeo has is speed" Hei suddenly spoke. He had apparently been listening to the conversation too

"Aye, and tons of energy to boot" Aku added "and through my advice, Zeo taught himself to fight virtually opposite to the norm. Instead of relentlessly attacking his opponent, Zeo bides his time, finds flaws in his opponents stance, and attacks them where they are at their weakest"

Riki smiled behind his yellow mask "he truly does fight like a Rebel"

The Captain had fallen onto the ground for what felt like the twentieth time. He wheezed over and over, out of breath and exhausted from this fight. He was not getting any younger, but he doubted anyone in the army would not be panting by now. The Captain looked up at the Blue Spirit

He heard no panting at all from him at all

The Captain cursed under his breath. Never before had he been in such a dire situation. Nothing he did seem to work, and all his opponent had done was make him look like a fool.

But, the Captain had one final trick under his sleeve…

"I'm impressed young man" the Captain said with a slight chuckle. He moved forward, sitting on his knees and arms, his head lowered "never before have I fought a style like yours"

Zeo readied himself, loosing up his body so he would be ready to move at any second. That was another contrast to the average firebender. While most were solid as a rock, Zeo body remained loose as possible, ready to dodge and attack at any second

"But soon we will be out of this forest and into the Capital…so it's time our fun to end!" the Captain swung his head up, and Zeo was ready to dodge.

Zeo however gasped when a huge blast of fire emitted from the Captains mouth

The huge blast of fire almost engulfed the entire cart that the two stood on, temporarily becoming a huge ball of fire. Luckily for the Captain, the carts metal did not set on fire, and the fire would just leave some black marks

Same could not be said for human flesh

"Zeo!" Riki cried out for his comrade. Riki had been ready to jump forward and run to where the fighting was taking place, but Aku grabbed him by the shoulder. Riki turned, and looked his master in the face. Aku didn't look back, but was looking directly ahead at the fight. Riki was stunned to see that Aku was still smiling

The Captain closed his mouth, the air from his attack gone. It was his ultimate attack, and the one had rarely needed to use. He was one of few in the Fire Nation who had mastered the ability of breathing fire, but it was a powerful technique to have. By mixing the air in his lungs with the fire, the Captain was able to create a wider and more powerful attack, though it suffered from being shorter distanced than other attacks. However, the Blue Spirit had been close enough for it to work

When the fire stopped, the Captain expected to see a black and unrecognisable corpse

But there was nothing. No corpse, no ash. Nothing

"What?" the Captain exclaimed, shocked by what he saw. He suddenly heard a noise from behind him, and he quickly spun around towards where the noise came from

He was met with a fist to the face by the Blue Spirit

The Captain hit the ground hard, smashing his head on the metal floor, very closely to the edge of the cart. The force of the hit made his eyes dizzy, but he could see the Blue Spirit look down on him. But how? How could he have dodged such a huge attack? His fire breath had engulfed the entire cart!

But then, a thought struck him. He turned his body over, and saw a broken window amongst the side of the cart. It was hard to believe, but it seemed to be the only answer

"You…jumped over the side of the cart and went through the window…and came out from the end of the cart itself" the captain whispered, partly in pain, partly awestruck "at such close distance…it's insane what you do"

"No. If you have enough drive to do something, it can be done" Zeo spoke directly to him for the first time. The Captains suspicion was right, he was young, definitely late teens. But still, his voice was almost emotionless, no hint of emotion in his voice whatsoever

"Almost done!" Hei suddenly called out. Riki and Aku looked down, and saw he was almost through the huge hook. It had only taken him five minutes to melt such a huge chunk of metal

"Yosh! Zeo, we're going!" Aku called out to his pupil "hurry up and finish him!"

Zeo seemed to stir a little when he said 'finish him'. He knew what he meant, but the Captain was surprised to see that he seemed reluctant to do it. The Blue Spirit looked back and forth between Aku and the Captain, before he sprinted forward, leaving the Captain alone

"Zeo…" Aku mumbled. He seemed to have understood why Zeo didn't finish him, but at the same time he seemed unimpressed.

As Zeo caught up to his comrades, the Captain slowly managed to get to his feet "no…..I won't let you escape Aku!"

The Captain rushed forward, despite the obvious pains his body felt. If he returned to the capital empty handed, he and his family would be disgraced forever. It was either go with Aku or never go at all

Zeo heard the Captain charge towards them, and was ready to intercept him, but Aku stopped him by grabbing his shoulder. Aku stood forward, jumping over to the next cabin. He held his right arm behind his back, fire emitting from his hands

"Nothing personal" Aku said solemnly before firing his blast of fire forward. From his hands, a fire blast the size of a person flew out, and before the Captain could stop himself, he found himself engulfed in the fire. His burning body fell to the ground, at first he wiggled on the floor, but after a moment his body became still, the fire covering his body slowly putting itself out

And all that was left was a badly scorched corpse

"Damn…" Riki whispered in shock. Even Zeo seem phased by that sudden attack. He knew his master was powerful-in fact THE most powerful firebender in the whole nation-but to be able to engulf an entire human body with one fire blast was incredible!

"Master…we thought you couldn't firebend yet?" Zeo asked, referencing his 'stay' in the Boiling Rock

Aku grinned, pointing at his heart "a little chin isn't gonna burn out this heart! Now let's go!"

Aku jumped onto the final carriage cart, and signalled down at Hei. Hei nodded, before emitting one final bust of blue fire onto the metal hook. The metal hook melted into two, and slowly the two carriages began to separate, the ones still connected to the train speeding along to the capital. What happened to it next was not the rebels concern

The four rebels allowed the carriage to slow down, before they jumped off. They found themselves on the outskirts of the forest, which the railroad had passed through, and in front of them the huge image of the capital…and the royal palace stood before the four.

It was a close call, but the mission had been a success

"I knew I could count on you three" Aku said proudly, turning to his three students "take off your masks. You no longer need to hide your faces!"

The three promptly did so, removing the various coloured spirit masks from their faces, and from it, we finally saw what Zeo, Hei and Riki looked like

Hei had the shortest black hair of the three, with it only touching the tops of his ears. Since he was the oldest, his expression was the most mature, and had a calm but strong expression. He did not smile, and his eyes had lines beneath them that also made him look somewhat bored or tired

Riki was almost the opposite. As well as being the shortest, he was the fattest of the three, and his face was far podgier than other two. He had two long black bangs on each side of his face, and what was most noticeable was the huge grin he kept on his face, his eyes always seemingly shut as he smiled

And then there was Zeo. Truth be told, Zeo appearance had not changed much from when he was a child, merely having gotten older and more mature. He was still as pale as he was before-as were most fire nation people-and his hair was still shaggy as it had always been, with different parts of his hair sticking out.

And of course, his determined, serious, and unmoveable expression was not only still present, but stronger than ever

"Hei, your fire is as stronger than ever. One day, the power of your flame will surpass mine for sure" Aku said to Hei, patting him on the head

"Thank you, master" Hei bowed

Aku turned to Riki "Riki, you showed me once again the intelligence and imagination you possess is as strong as any fighting skills. Your brains have saved the day once again…but seriously, don't put too much into your explosions next time, please?"

"Will do master!" Riki chuckled. Aku nodded, and then turned finally to Zeo

"And Zeo…you are no longer that powerless boy I found in the ruins of Nameda. You have perfected the style of the Rebel, and you have the power to change this nation for the better"

"Thank you, master" Zeo bowed. He didn't show it, but he felt good inside, hearing that from the man who he deep down, respected more than anyone

Aku then looked straight ahead, and pointed forward "well then, it is time we returned to base!"

"Great…a five day walk back home" Riki sighed, dreading the walking "if I collapse, you're going to have to carry me Hei"

"lose some weight and I'd consider it" Hei replied bluntly, walking forward, deep into the forest

"Hey! That hurt Hei!" Riki moaned, running forward to catch up with Hei. Zeo and Aku were left alone, Zeo started to move forward, but Aku grabbed his shoulder

"Zeo…" Aku said, sighing as he looked at his student "…you did very well today. You're firebending skills have never been better…but you should've killed that man when he was down"

Zeo turned away, trying to hide his snarl. It wasn't like hadn't considered it at the time, but something inside Zeo seem to stop him from doing it. A feeling that made him sick at the thought. Zeo could say that to Aku, so he lied "the soldier seemed like a good person, he didn't deserve death"

"He's the enemy Zeo" Aku stated sternly "and if you truly wish to change this nation…then you must be willing to take the lives of those who stand in your way"

Zeo said nothing, which Aku seem to respect and said no more. With that, the two caught up to Hei and Riki, and began their walk back home

Back to the Phoenix Rebel base