Chapter 12: The Noble Son

Riki snored heavily through the day, the scent of the Lyrium Rose flower that had been attached to the arrow had knocked the Rebel out in mere seconds. Every so often Riki's rhythm-like slumber would stagger with a grunt or a groan, the contents of his dream giving him discomfort and anguish.

Not so much a dream as a nightmare…a nightmare from his own past. One that he could never forget.

10 years ago…

With a swishing sound through the air, the arrow easily missed the practise target set up for the two.

"Your hands are wobbling too much Riki" Noal chuckled "wobble anymore and you're more likely to hit a bird in the tree."

"Hey, this is hard!" Riki groaned. Riki as a 7-year-old boy was starting to grow plump, and his bangs on each side starting to form. He stood next to a slightly older boy apparently called Noal, the same person we saw hunt down and tranquillise Riki 10 years from now. He looked like a miniature version of his future self, and without the facepaint. He had the same black hair in a ponytail, only shorter. Noal watched with amusement as Riki tried to hit the target with his bow and arrow for the 12th time.

"You need to keep your arms straight when aiming. If you don't have enough arm strength to keep the bow and arrow still, you'll never hit your target" Noal lectured. Frustratingly, Riki threw both the bow and arrow to the floor.

"Forget this! Why should I use such an old weapon when I can use a gun?" Riki asked "not only are faster and stronger, they take less effort to aim!"

"Guns aren't as light as you think they are, son."

Riki turned to the doorway of the huge mansion he had the pleasure of living in, placed on the top of a green valley. Riki watched his father step away from the huge door and walk casually towards the two young boys. Riki's father was a large, muscular man with a beard and bangs similar to his son. His expression was strong, noble but also warm and friendly. Riki knew him as father, his workmen referred to him as sir, but his friends simply knew him as Gota.

As he walked up to the two, his wife and mother of Riki, Kisala, followed him out. Kisala was a tall woman, with short hair that was messy like a boy. Add the fact she had a mischievous and not so delicate features, and it was clear she was quite the tomboy. Nevertheless, Riki thought she was the most beautiful woman alive.

Finally, there was the person who he loved the most, a bundle of pure innocence. Cradled in Kisalas' arms was Riki's little sister, Belle. Belle was only a month old, so she had little distinguishable features, her black hair only just growing out, but Riki could never mistake her sweet face, or how cute she looked as she yawned. Belle was someone who could warm Riki's heart just by looking at her, and he knew his mom and dad felt the same.

"Dad!" Riki said hurryingly to his dad, quickly picking up his bow and arrow again "s-sorry dad! I was just…just saying to Noal it's easier to use a gun than a bow! You'd know, right dad? You make loads of guns!"

Gota chuckled "that's true enough. A couple thousand a year, so I do believe I know a thing or two about firearms. But I know equally as much about bows."

"Yea, but bows are annoying! It's hurts to just aim! Why can't I use a gun dad?"

"Son, guns aren't toys" Gota stated. Kisala smirked and raised an eyebrow.

"Oh? And bows and arrow aren't?"

"Woman, it's harder to kill yourself with a bow and arrow."

"But it's still possible" Kisala retorted. "I really wish you didn't let him practise with one."

"Riki here's gonna inherit my business one day. Even if he doesn't join the army, he's gotta learn a thing or two about weapons" Gota insisted, patting both Riki and Noal on the heads "besides, Noal is here to look after Riki. His families always served us excellently, and Noal's a pretty damn good shot himself."

"Th-thank you sir!" Noal bowed humbly. Noal had known Gota his whole life, as his family had been Riki's family servants for generations, but he still always felt humbled by their compliments.

"Another reason you can't use guns yet son is because they're not as easy as you think to use." Gota stated, kneeling down beside his son "they're stronger, heavier, can be deafening when fired, and the force of the gun firing can cause serious damage when fired. I'll start letting you practise with guns when I think you're ready, okay son?"

"Yea dad…" Riki muttered lowering his head. He hated having to wait, but he couldn't argue with what his dad had said. Curious however, he asked "but, when will I be ready?"

"Well we'll just have to see. Before then you must understand the impact the wielder of the gun can have" Gota said "a gun is in the end like a sword. In the hands of the righteous, it's a weapon of justice, but in the hands of the evil, it's a weapon of massacre. If you want to be a honourable weapons manufacturer, you must always consider how you give your weapons too."

"Is that why you only sell to the Fire Nation army, dad?"

"Correct, son. I can sympathise with the Rebels, many people starve and suffer due to collapse of our economy, but all they do is make things worse. The bombings, the assassination…even murdering Avatar Teresa, such people would only cause more damage with more guns in their hands." Gota explained. Riki and Noal smiled and nodded, looking at Gota as if he knew everything.

This was two months before the Nameda Incident.

Groaning more and more, Riki's eyes slowly fluttered open. The light shining between the leaves made his eyes ached at first, but he quickly got used to the natural light and with a yawn, tried to stand up.

It was then he realised he was tied by the waist to a tree.

"Wha-wha-what?" Riki gasped, struggling to pull free from the ropes, but they were too tightly knotted to budge in the slightest.

"Oh no no no no! I've been captured!" Riki squealed, "Okay, calm down Riki. Think. What did Master tell you to do if you ever got caught?…Umm..err…stop, drop and roll? No that was if I was set on fire!"

"Glad to see you're up, Riki." Riki quickly looked up at the figure of Noal, the Yu Yan Archer, and old friend of Riki, though Riki himself hadn't realised just yet. Noal sat leaning on a nearby tree, having patiently waited for him to wake up.

"You! You're the one who did this!" Riki snarled "I should warn you, I'm a master of over a hundred martial art styles. I can kill you with my tongue!"

Noal chuckled "you're as hyperactive as ever Riki. You haven't changed at all. Sure brings back memories."

"Eh? Wait…do…do I know you?"

"Hmm, maybe I've changed a little over this past decade. Or maybe it's just the face paint" Noal stood up and walked up to Riki, kneeling down next to him "look closer and you should recognise me."

Riki stared intently at his face for a few seconds, before a flash of surprise and recognition hit Riki. Staring speechless, Riki managed after several seconds to whisper "No…Noal? Is that you?"

"Heh, maybe I haven't changed that much after all. It's good to finally see you again Riki. I've been looking all this time for you!" Noal stated.

"It's…it's a shock I must say! I never knew you'd joined the Yu Yan Archers!" Riki said. Though he was partly grateful he hadn't. It wouldn't have been easy knowing you were fighting your old best friend.

"Hey, you remember how much of an ace I was at the Bow" Noal sniffed proudly. But then, Riki saw his happy expression became one of discomfort "but…what's more surprising is that…you're with the Phoenix Rebels now."

Riki looked at his almost disappointed face, and turned away "it's not surprising at all. Not after what those bastards did to my family."

"Riki, what your father did was his mistake, not your own. You shouldn't let his mistake ruin your life."

"DON'T YOU DARE SAY THAT ABOUT MY DAD!" Riki suddenly screamed. Birds flew from the trees at his scream. Riki didn't care if more Yu Yan Archers-less friendly ones-came now. He would never allow such things about his dad being spoken in front of him.

"My dad…he was right to do what he did! He was atoning for what he had caused!"

It was late at night, but Riki was wide-awake. He crept silently to the door of his fathers' office, where the loud voices of his mother and father could be heard almost threw the mansion. So loud were his voices that Belle had started to cry, but neither mother nor father went to her like they always did. One of the maids tried to calm her, but Riki knew only her parents could do that. He kept close to the edge of the door, not peeping his head in to not get caught.

"This is horrible…how could they do such a thing?"

Riki stopped when he heard his mother speak, almost sobbing whilst his father stayed silent. Riki had never heard his mother sob like that before.

"I…I don't know. There were reports of Rebels being in Nameda village, but…to wipe out the entire village…n-nobody was left alive…oh god…" Gota started to sob too. Riki felt shivers go down his spine. His father always acted strong and in control, to hear his voice sound so weak and vulnerable was a shock to the boy.

"The Army are supposed to protect the people. They're supposed to be the people's army! And yet they just indiscriminately shoot down innocents…" Gota's voice trailed to a faint whisper "…shot them down…they used my guns to kill innocent people…"

"Honey, it's not your fault."

"THEY USED MY GUNS!" Riki jumped twice, first at the scream, second when he banged his fist on a table. "I'm to blame! I trusted them with my weapons, and this is what they do with them! Guns shouldn't be used on the weak!"

The silence that came after seemed to last for over a minute to Riki. He almost felt relief when the loud wailing of Belle pierced through the silence, grown stronger due to the shout of her father. Riki heard footsteps coming toward the door, and he sprinted as fast as he could so his mother wouldn't catch him as she walked out the room.

"I must do something…" Gota whispered, his head low "…I can't allow this to happen ever again…"

"Look Riki, I understand how your father felt" Noal assured Riki "the Nameda incident shocked everyone in the country. Lots of people after had doubts about the Fire Nation afterwards. I had doubts!"

"Then why are you working for them now?" Riki demanded. Noal sighed with frustration, rubbing his brow.

"Because I took a step back and thought about it logically. What happened at Nameda was horrible…but it was a mistake" Noal explained, "false information and bad communication inside the Army caused it. The number of Rebels there had been exaggerated due to incorrect information. It was an accident Riki. One the Capital has learnt from."

"You call the death of an entire village an 'accident'?" Riki snarled with disgust.

"I'm just explaining that your fathers actions-while understandable-weren't rational and good enough reason to start supplying weapons to the Rebels" Noal sighed again. Riki could see he was trying his best to act calm, but he was beginning to lose patience.

"Has that monster Aku corrupted you this much Riki? First your father, now you too."

"Come on Riki. I heard them down here!"

Riki ran as fast as his short, fat legs would let him run, following Noal back to the office of his father. It was daytime at the mansion, and over a month since the Nameda incident. Things didn't seem to change for Riki, though he would often find his father stare silently, deep in thought, still emotionally conflicted on what had happened. His mother Kisala had tried to act like everything was normal around Riki and Belle, but even at his age, Riki knew things were different.

The two young boys silently crept up to the office door, their bodies pressed against the wall whilst Noal peaked inside the door. He quickly retracted his head and turned to Riki "he's in their with your father! I've never seen that guy before!"

"Let me see" Riki whispered. He traded spots with Noal and took a peak inside the office.

And for the first time, he saw Aku. His hair was still long and messy, and the youth in his face had not left him just yet. He sat on the guests' office chair, his legs leaning on the desk whilst Gota sat on the other side of the table in his own chair.

"I was surprised they'd send you." Gota said with a small laugh. "you're a living legend, a symbol of rebellion, hope…or fear depending on who you ask."

"Trust me, often those who claim to fear are surprised by how harmless I really am" Aku yawned, waving a hand in the air "but don't cut yourself short. You sir, are the owner of the biggest Weapons manufacturer in the country. We ain't gonna send some snot nosed brat to talk to you. We're gonna send someone who knows what he's talking about!"

"…And someone who can blast his way through hundreds of soldiers if this was a trap" Gota said dryly "they say you're a one man army."

"Ah, you're a wise one sir" Aku nodded respectfully "Yes, if this was a trap, I was ordered to kill you, blow up whatever I could of your business, and get my incredibly sexy ass outta there…but, that doesn't seem necessary, now does it?"

Gota shook his head "no. I've made my decision after thinking long and hard on it. I will begin secretly supplying the Phoenix Rebels with weapons."

"Good to hear, but you can do more than that my friend. You can't slow down production of weapons for the Capital, but you can sabotage them…" Aku grinned "discreetly of course. Nothing they'll notice just by looking at it. A single faulty rifle could save us many precious men."

Gota nodded "understood. I'll star preparations right away."

"Can you believe this Riki…" Noal whispered shockingly to Riki. Riki looked towards him, and saw the paleness in his face. Riki too felt shock at what he was hearing, but a large part of him couldn't help but sympathise why his father was doing this.

"One more thing before I go Mr Gota…why?"

Gota raised an eyebrow "why what?"

"Why this sudden change of allegiance? You don't just wake up one day and think 'oh hey, I'm gonna start selling weapons to my long time enemies!'" Aku exclaimed. Gota eyes darted to the floor, his face an expression of deep pain.

"It was…the Nameda incident that opened my eyes…I won't sell weapons to an army that fires on it's own people, the one's they are sworn to protect." Gota explained slowly. Aku replied with a nod of respect

"Good answer. It's true…the Nameda incident shook the whole country. We've had a wave of new recruits ever since that massacre, and publics attitude towards us Rebels has gone up favourably" Aku stated.

"No doubt. Few good people could hold love for the capital after that" Gota shuddered "I mean…to just fire on entire village full of innocent people…and they say not a single person survived!"

Aku turned his head to Gota with a wide smile on his face.

"Well actually…one boy did survive the Nameda Incident."

"When I heard your father was going to betray his own country, I…I couldn't believe my ears." Noal stated. He placed his left hand on his heart "I had always been faithful to your family, just as my father and his father had before, but when I heard your father say that, I…I couldn't help but doubt your father and feel he'd been misled."

"Guess you weren't the only one who felt like that" Riki said bitterly "I guess someone else was listening in on their conversation…and they…and they…"

Noal closed his eyes "reported it to the Capital."

"Hurry! This way!"

Riki almost tripped several times as his father, Gota, dragged him and Noal by their arms whilst they ran down a long staircase, the room around them getting darker and darker by the moment. Riki felt his heart thump in his chest, but not from exhaustion, but from fear. He'd never been this far down the mansions huge basement; he'd never dared to go so far down. Often he and Noal would dare each other to traverse down this dark hole of a basement, but neither of them could get past the first ten steps. But yet now they were nearly at the bottom.

"Stay there for a moment!" Gota spoke quickly, leaving the two young boys cowering in total darkness when they reached the bottom. Five seconds later, and a small light illuminated much of the basement, and Riki saw before him what looked like a trap door. Gota hurryingly ran over, and with his massive arms, threw open the trap door.

"Allright, you two go down there, and keep running west. Don't stop! You'll eventually find an exit just outside the village. I'll go back and find your mother and sister, and bring down here."

"But…what about you sir?" Noal asked frighteningly.

Gota closed his eyes "I…I must face the consequences of my actions, as does any man who stays true to himself, but I won't let anyone suffer for my actions."

"Dad! W-what's going on? I heard people smashing the door down and…and someone screamed…but…" Riki tried to find the words, but they were lost to him. Looking at him sadly, Gota knelt down and held his son by the shoulders.

"Don't worry about that now. Just think about surviving, and soon you'll see your mother and Belle here too" Gota said with a smile, trying unsuccessfully to hide his uncertainty and fear. He turned to Noal "Noal, please look after my son, and be careful yourself."

"I…I will, sir" Noal nodded, his expression oddly sad.

Gota turned back to Riki "I'm going now, son" He bent down and hugged Riki tightly "I love you…my son."

"D…Dad" Riki whispered, tears streaming down his eyes.

Gota pulled away from the hug and stood back up "Now go, my son, and remember; live your life doing what you believe in, and never betray yourself. Go! Hurry!"

Riki stared helplessly at his father whilst Noal pulled him to the trap door, eventually forcing him down with him. Closing it behind them, Riki did his best to force back his tears and ran in near total darkness through a cave like pathway, the place damp and cold.

The two must've ran for nearly twenty minutes, but soon after light began to appear at the end of the tunnel, and with unrestrained relief the two found themselves just outside the village near the mansion, just as Gota had said. The two cautiously walked into the village, a busy market street that was both dirty and smelly.

"Okay, we need to look for mom and dad. They'll keep us safe" Noal said solemnly as he walked. He noticed Riki was still, and turned back "come on Riki!"

"R…right" Riki nodded meekly. He took ten steps, but stopped when he heard the voices around him from the villagers.

"Why are there hundreds of soldiers outside the mansion?"

"I hear it's because he was starting to sell weapons to the Phoenix Rebels. They've come to take over the entire factory"

"Hmph. Told ya all those nobles care about is money. Greedy bastards."

"Hey now, can't complain about him giving us weapons. Helps our cause, does it not?"

Riki did his best to ignore the voices around him, following Noal through the crowds of people.

"Good god…they've burnt the whole mansion down?"

Riki stopped abruptly. He turned to the elderly woman and a young man-probably mother and son-speaking to each other in a corner

"Yeah…I hear they pretty much proclaimed Gota guilty on the spot…and they've burnt the whole mansion down with him inside it" the son sighed " never thought they would be so cruel to one of their own."

Riki felt his hands shake.

"How horrible…" the mother whispered "but…what about his wife and two children? Miss Kisala was always so kind…and her children were so adorable."

Riki waited with pent up breath for the son to answer, but the look of sadness in his face all but said it.

"They…forced them to die with Mr Gota in the fire."

Riki sprinted back towards the mansion.

It took him only five minutes, having gotten energy even he didn't know he had. He made it to the nearest hilltop to the mansion that almost overlooked the mansion. Riki stopped and looked at the grim truth that the man spoke of. The once proud and tall mansion Riki had grown up in all his life was on fire from top to bottom, the foundation slowly decaying until it stood no longer. Stood around the burning mansion was hundreds of vigilant Fire Nation soldiers, impossible to get through or away from. Riki couldn't see his family from here, but he knew they were inside.

"FATHER!" Riki screamed, tears flowing down his eyes "MOTHER! BELLE!"

Riki was about to run towards the burning, not caring what happened to him when he got down there, but a large hand grabbed him by the scruff of his collar and held him back.

"Don't look, son" Aku said, pulling Riki towards him so he was no longer looking at the fire.

"Let me go! LET ME GO! I NEED TO SAVE THEM!" Riki screamed, splashing tears down Aku's shirt. Riki tried to free himself, but the Rebels grip was too powerful.

"There's nothing you can do now, lad. You go down there now and you'll be wasting the sacrifice your father made" Aku said sternly. Nevertheless, he looked down sadly at Riki as he sobbed.

"Damn it…damn it…" Riki cried, his wet eyes on Aku's chest "why did this have to happen…my dad…was only trying to do the right thing!"

"That's the problem with right and wrong lad. Everyone has their own interpretation on it" Aku explained "to you and your father, the Nameda incident was wrong…but to those soldiers down there, a betrayal against the Royal Family is an even greater wrong. We all live by our own personal code of rights and wrongs…and we often come into conflict with another's."

"I hate them…" Riki's sobbing voice suddenly became a growl, a voice of anger "I hate them! The Royal Family, the nobles, all of them! I wanna get rid of them, so they can o this to no one else!"

Aku stood silent for a moment, before smiling faintly "if you feel that strongly son…then you sound ideal to us. Our army is small, but like you we have all suffered from the corruption and mistakes of our supposed betters."

Aku released Riki from his grip, and turned away from him. As he walked away, Aku boomed in unshakable voice "if you truly wish to back up that proclamation, Riki, son of Gota and Kisala, then follow me, to the Phoenix Rebels, and we shall make your-no our dream a reality!"

Riki stared speechless at the man known as Aku. He slowly turned back to the mansion he had always lived, the place of comfort and happiness his whole life, and wiped away the tears from his eyes.

And then, he began to follow the Rebel.