Gao Li tried to stay on his feet, but he could feel his knees about give way from under him. He was exhausted, terrified and near collapse, perhaps even bleeding internally. He dimly regarded the heat he felt radiating from the roiling globe of magma, and the fact that he had never even seen lava before, only paintings in scrolls. His thoughts were soon disrupted by the sound of Jheng's deep breath. The old firebender held both hands pointed at the great orb, and with a loud, continuous exhale he moved the sphere to face Gao Li. He pulled one hand back to his waist, and with another sharp breath struck at the roiling orb's side. Gao Li jumped and dove away from Jheng, glimpsing out of the corner of his eye the older man's blast of—
Rocks?
The young councilman's eyes darted between the orb of lava suspended in front of Jheng, Jheng himself and the few shards of gleaming black stone embedded into the side of a pillar. He didn't even think to prepare another strike or tactic: he could only stand in dumb silence. Jheng moved about the orb, his hand still trained on it, and struck again. Gao Li watched as the molten stone rippled and released a few small points of lava, each cooling into the same black stone. Gao Li tried to dive yet again, but fell onto his front as one of the stones pierced his left bicep.
Waves of pain surged out from the spot, a combination of snapped sinew and searing heat. He screamed, wailed, rolled onto his back as he forgot everything around him. He grasped blindly at the obsidian shard, only to snap his hand away from the searing heat of the glass. He scrambled to the water along the edge of the ring, feeling a little of the pain subside as he dunked his arm in the cooling water, his face buffeted by the heat and audible hiss of water becoming vapor. His whole body shook as he vomited onto the edge of the ring. Wiping the bile from the edges of his mouth, Gao Li turned his head to Jheng, who seemed unaffected by the screams. His hand stayed near the orb of roiling lava.
"And that," he panted, "is why they call me the Butcher of Ba Sing Se."
Gao Li felt around the obsidian shard, testing it and wincing, his eyes still trained on Jheng.
"You like it? It's quite ingenious, really. You see, lava remains molten only in extreme heat underground. To bend it into another shape fast enough to strike someone is quite impossible." Gao Li silently noted the strain in Jheng's voice.
"But to keep it molten, and fire off a few small chunks outside the sphere of heat? That is actually possible. Difficult, perhaps, but possible." Jheng gulped, and took in another deep breath. "And luckily enough," he added, "the projectiles seem to cool into the wonderfully tough yet sharp glass stuck in your arm right now."
Gao Li looked down at his arm, questioning his own sanity as he decided to go on and fight the Butcher. He reached into the water, gritted his teeth and with one quick motion yanked out the shard of glass. He quickly pulled a length of cloth from the bottom of his pants and wrapped it around the wound, pulling the knot tight with his right arm and teeth. It staunched the flow of blood, but didn't help the throbbing pain.
"I respect your endurance, boy, but really, this is the end. You're going to lose. Yield now, or when this is over you will beg for death."
As if to emphasize his point, Jheng struck again at the orb, firing more shards at Gao Li. He didn't attempt his regular duck and roll, instead simply turning face and running across Jheng's arc of fire. The Butcher responded in kind, firing more and more shards of glass as he stepped about the sphere of magma. A few skimmed past Gao Li, leaving stinging nicks and cuts along his shoulders and back. He ran, feeling the rhythm of Jheng's strikes and steps, until finally Gao Li dropped into a sweeping kick, releasing an arc of flame aimed at Jheng's knees.
The old firebender removed both hands from the sphere and shot a blast of flame at the ground. It lifted him into an aerial flip over Gao Li's assault, but as he landed his left foot slipped and brought him down on all fours. As he heard the stone orb fall and splinter, he pressed his palms into the ground once again, inhaling and exhaling as his body quivered from exhaustion. Sweat poured down his nose and off his lips in rivulets.
The old firebender pulled the newly melted stone into another pillar before him, every muscle twitching and convulsing to maintain the constant heat. His eyes stayed locked on the wavering magma, the sound of Gao Li's footsteps forcing him to end the fight the only way he could. With the last of his energy Jheng pulled the lava into a ring around him and dropped into a sitting position. He closed the top over himself, forming a dome of obsidian and volcanic stone. He drew in the dome's heat to restore a little energy to his exhausted frame.
Gao Li paced about the dome, scanning for any crack, any weakness Jheng may have left. No air holes, no gaps, nothing. Gao Li bore a wicked smile as he began to realize that Jheng had only a few minutes of air in his little dome.
"You can't stay in there forever, Jheng. That lavabending gambit of yours sucked away the last of your energy. It's only a matter of time before your air runs out and you are forced to exit. It's over."
For a while Gao Li could only hear Jheng's meditative breathing, the rasping inhale and trembling exhale. The Butcher finally replied, "In my experience this shield is extremely durable, and even without ventilation in holds enough air to last for ten minutes. I've seen men stronger than you'll ever be succumb to shallower wounds in under that time. You'll be unconscious in five minutes, and dead in ten."
Gao Li stopped in his tracks. "You're bluffing."
"Can you really take that risk at this point?"
Gao Li weighed the potential outcomes in stark silence. He paced around the outside of Jheng's structure, eying the ridges and grooves of coarse stone and gleaming obsidian. He jabbed, prodded, struck in perceived weak-points. Gao Li had very little understanding of how much blood was left in his body, or how long they'd been fighting, or how long he could last. His left arm was nearly useless at this point, clutching to his side to avoid another surge of pain. He needed to end this now, whether Jheng was bluffing or not. There was very little time to consider his options, though there weren't many to consider in the first place.
Jheng's exhausted. This little lava-rock shield is a last resort, and the fact that he'd sacrifice the chance to fight me more one-on-one means he has nothing left. If I can break it, I can force him to yield. I could try melting through… no, that'd require too much endurance. I need something that could punch through it all at once.
Oh. Duh.
Gao Li dropped his weight in his stance, gripping the crevices of the flagstone floor with his toes. Placing his left palm over his right fist, he leaned onto the hind foot of his stance, his breath becoming long, steady streams in and out. Each inhale grew deeper; each exhale grew hotter. He reached his chi into that now-familiar pattern, stretched it into his fingertips, along the length of his arm, in that same coil.
His form took on something new, however. He stretched out his right arm, unfurling his fist into the shape of a flat spearhead. He tested the pain in his left arm before mirroring the movement, his hand an open palm facing Jheng's dome. The coil of energy stretched through both, pulsing in his limbs, every hair on end. He looked again at the dome, shifting his right hand to his waist. Every movement was methodical, precise. He ignored the pain in his arm, in his side, in every inch of his body. Chi whirled through his arms and chest, but his mind was clear. There was only him, that energy, and his target.
In and out.
He lifted his right leg into the air, pausing for only a moment on his left foot before he stomped down and struck.
It was everything Gao Li had left. The very force of the energy leaving his body left him breathless, drenched in cold sweat. He fell to a knee, heaving in enough air before he caught sight of what the spear of flame had wrought.
The impact had cracked the half-sphere, with a single hole in the middle, its edges still red-hot. Pieces began to fall through, and Gao Li was filled with a strange mixture of relief and disappointment when he realized that Jheng had survived the blast. The old man was flat on his back, having tried to throw himself away from the blast. He at last picked himself up, and brushed a few chunks of coarse igneous rock from his body. Dust had mixed with sweat, caking onto his torso.
"Alright. Fine. I'll admit it: your little fire-spear technique is quite effective. I honestly didn't think you had the energy to do any damage, and I didn't think I'd be able to block it if you fired it off." He smiled with bloodied, incomplete teeth. "Today's just full of little surprises."
Gao Li stood up at length, leaning over with his hands propped on his knees. His mind wasn't clear any more, the pain having become quite more than an illusion. But he grit his teeth and bore every ache it took just to shoot Jheng a grin.
"Okay. You disagreed with me before. But now it's over. Completely. Absolutely. Finished. You don't have any more lavabending, any more energy than I do. Now just shut up and yield the match."
Jheng couldn't respond between fits of coughing as his lungs attempted to clean themselves of ash and volcanic dust. As soon as he spit out a glob of what looked like a mixture of phlegm, bile and blood he began to stretch upward, swaying from side to side with nonchalance. He walked toward Gao Li, his eyes locked with his young opponent's until the two combatants were face to face.
"No."
Jheng threw a wild right hook, connecting square to Gao Li's jaw. The younger councilman stumbled backward, before looking up, eyes smoldering with indignant fury.
"Son of a bitch! It's Agni Kai! A fire duel!"
"Honestly? I don't care any more." Jheng stumbled over himself as he came forward with another haymaker. Gao Li successfully ducked under it, but could only shove the old man away.
"Come on, Gao Li! I'm done with the pretense. I'm done with the honor, the logic, the… the terrible soullessness of this whole affair." Jheng I just want to kill you now."
He ran forward, but Gao Li was prepared this time. He pivoted his feet and planted a firm kick directly in the old man's solar plexus, and with the well-timed hack and sputter Gao Li knew he had knocked the wind out of Jheng. The Butcher was still undaunted, coming again with a straight punch at Gao Li's nose, his hand inverted to strike with the middle two knuckles first. Gao Li ducked and blocked upward with both forearms, getting under Jheng's strike. He stepped forward and buried his fists in Jheng's rib and kidney. In hasty reflex Jheng brought his elbow down into the nape of Gao Li's neck. Both councilmen fell, Gao Li on his hands and knees, Jheng onto his back. They picked themselves up once again, every impulse in their bodies begging them to stay on the ground and die.
They assumed cannier fighting stances, circling around one another as they waited for an opening. Jheng took the moment to continue with his favorite activity.
"It's come down to this, Gao Li. Beyond all the technique, beyond the robes and grandeur and honor and farce, it comes to this. Two men, locked in combat, until one or both die. It's quite—"
Gao Li interjected with an anguished groan. "Listen, you old bastard. I'm really, really tired of you talking. So unless you have something important to say, stop talking or I'll personally beat every tooth out of your skull."
Jheng snorted and spat out another glob of vile substances. "Alright. Fine. No more monologues. But I'm still going to kill you, you stupid little runt."
He took a long step forward and threw a solid punch at Gao Li's jaw. The younger councilman blocked it outside of his stance, wove in and stuck the heel of his palm directly into the bridge of Jheng's nose. The old man caught his strike at the wrist, twisted Gao Li's arm around and pulled the young councilman into a chokehold. Gao Li clawed at the forearm pressed firmly against his trachea before grabbing a firm hold, planting his feet and pushing the crown of his head into Jheng's unsuspecting chin. The old man rolled with the strike, and as Gao Li dropped down and swung out his leg to trip him, Jheng made a minimal hop before whipping his foot at Gao Li's face.
The kick only grazed Gao Li, but it was executed with such speed that he was stunned for almost a whole second before realizing that Jheng was preparing another more solid kick. Gao Li rolled away, popping to his feet and once again meeting Jheng en garde. This time Gao Li began the exchange of blows, batting down Jheng's guard with his gimped left hand while swinging the back of his fist at the old man's temple. Jheng ducked again, firmly planting his feet before popping up and grabbing Gao Li's arms, keeping them apart and the young councilman stationary. He held Gao Li there and grinned.
"And you thought it was over."
"Shut up! Shut up, shut up shut up SHUT UP! You stupid old bastard, how can you be so cocky now?"
"Because I could be the oldest, stupidest bastard alive, but I still have one edge over you."
"Which is?"
With the sides of his fists Jheng struck the hinges of Gao Li's jaw, grabbed his shoulders and rammed a knee into Gao Li's side.
"I don't have a broken rib."
Gao Li keeled over, the pain from a potentially dislocated jaw subsumed into the wracking anguish that overtook him. Jheng laced his fingers in the young man's hair before bringing his face into another brutal knee strike. Gao Li could do nothing but fall to the ground, clutching his side as Jheng laughed.
"See? See? I used your own little trick against you! Waited until you had overestimated yourself, underestimated me, let your guard down so I could crush any pathetic resistance you could lift. And now you have no counter, no ace in the hole, you have nothing!" He threw a vicious kick into Gao Li's side. "Look at you. You writhe on the ground in agony. In defeat. You sicken me, you worm, you pathetic little cur!"
Gao Li rolled onto his back, looking through hazy vision at Jheng. He felt consciousness slowly dribble away, as he clutched to it for no good reason any more. He sputtered, spitting away some blood before continuing to watch the Butcher of Ba Sing Se rave.
"Gao Li! Councilman of Pailong! Successor to the wretched coward Rao Tsu! You both share the ultimate defeat! Death! Cowardice! Uselessness! Weakness!"
As he lay there, the tiniest spark of chi reignited in his belly, coupled with something… else. Not the warm glow of chi, not the life-spark he felt whenever he firebended, but something cold.
Jheng's laughter sounded louder than ever, filled with wild abandon and manic pleasure. He quickly turned to the guards and healers who had been waiting for a long while to pick Gao Li off the arena.
"Stop! He's not unconscious, and he hasn't yielded. Yet. Knowing him, he'll beg for mercy. Beg for forgiveness for his transgression." Jheng twitched his head to the audience. Remembering their presence and ears, he turned completely toward them and spread his arms out wide as they looked on, horrified at the blood sport being perpetrated.
"See! I heard you cheer for him then, cheer for him when you believed him a hero! But look! He's a failure, a pathetic excuse for an heir to his pathetic excuse of a father!" He closed his eyes and turned his face toward the sky, sucking in wind and giggling with insane mirth as he exhaled.
Gao Li felt distant. Detached. He could almost imagine that he was dying, but he knew it wasn't what was going to happen. He had something in him, and for no reason he could understand, he slowly lifted himself up, watching Jheng as he ranted, swore, cursed, possessed with his own hysterics. Gao Li's mind wasn't filled with hatred, or fear, or remorse, or pity for Jheng. Gao Li just stood up because his limbs forced him to.
He felt energy run through his body. The last spark. His last word. He didn't search for a reason as he felt the chi coil up in his limbs, as his bloodied feet searched for a stable hold. He didn't consider victory, or defeat, or why he was fighting, or why he was holding on. For once, his mind was absolutely still. He took one long sighing breath before he readied his strike.
In and out.
Gao Li struck his right hand forward as the pent-up energy released itself from his fingertips, but he felt no familiar heat as a clear bolt of lightning shot through Jheng's body. The Butcher of Ba Sing Se was silent as his body convulsed, fell still, and dropped to the ground dead.
The haze lifted from Gao Li's mind as he just barely recognized shrieks and cries from the audience, the weight of his limbs, the numbness in his right arm the implications of what he just did. The smell of burning flesh.
He dropped to his knees, trying to keep his whole world from swimming as he heard the clinking of armored boots, as though from far away. He could almost make out a long-haired figure rushing toward him before he felt consciousness slip away.