Chapter 36:
The bison headed for the forest where they landed. Freya and Katara began to collect some sticks in order to light a fire for the five to gather around. Freya organised the fire and with a rubbing of some sticks and a flick of her finger a spark ignited and the fire began. The girl smiled to herself as she blew on it and poked and prodded until it was a decent size and began to give off some heat.
"So Chey, if you were a Fire Nation soldier, why did you help us?" Freya asked confused
"I doubt there are many out there who would do such a thing." Katara nodded
"I serve a man. More than a man really, he's a myth, but he's real, a living legend, Jeong Jeong the Deserter. He was a Fire Nation general, or wait, was he an admiral?" Chey wondered as he explained
"He was very highly ranked, we get it." Sokka replied
"Yeh! Way up there! But he couldn't take the madness any more. He's the first person ever to leave the army — and live. I'm the second, but you don't get to be a legend for that. That's okay though." Chey shrugged "Jeong Jeong's a firebending genius. Some say he's mad — but he's not! He's enlightened." Chey explained with a smile.
Aang beamed.
"You mean there's a firebending master out here who's not with the Fire Lord?" Aang got to his feet as Freya was a little surprised "We've gotta go see him! He can train me!" he believed
"We're not gonna go find some crazy firebender!" Sokka disagreed
"Not all fire benders are crazy Sokka." Freya believed. Chey got to his feet as well.
"He's not crazy! He's a genius! And he's the perfect person to train the Avatar! That's why I followed you into the festival."
"Just one problem, Aang hasn't learnt the other elements yet. Aang you can't skip over water and earth before learning Fire."
"Why not?" he asked
"Because. Aang you're an airbender, air is gentle and swift, water is fluid and graceful, rather like air but can be hardened into ice which, like rock, is strong and stern. But fire is different, it's alive and needs to be used carefully. There's a reason there's a cycle to this." Sokka got to his feet as well.
"Freya's right. Look, thanks for the help, but we're leaving for the North Pole in the morning." he decided, turning to Chey.
Aang frowned at Freya and Sokka.
"Sokka, this could be my only chance to meet a firebending master who would actually be willing to teach me."
"And if he's not willing?" Freya asked
"How can you be so against this?" Aang questioned and Freya sighed, crossing her arms. Katara got to her feet and spoke to end the squabble.
"It can't hurt just to talk to him." she thought
"That's what you said about going to the festival! Why doesn't anyone ever listen to me!?" Sokka demanded angrily.
Sokka turned to stalk off before he cried out as a spear was pointed at his face, making him jump away. Several men jumped down all around them and the five looked around surprised.
"Don't move!" one of them demanded. They all wore the same thing, hats on their heads to cover their faces, bare torsos but their shoulders are covered as they wore armour on their forearms and wrappings on their legs. The spears were pointed at each of the children and Chey.
They were prodded and poked before being forced to move through the forest and away from their camp. Appa walked along behind the group as Chey was forced in front and the others were surrounded by the warriors.
"Jeong Jeong told you not to look for Avatar!" one spoke to Chey
"Hold on, you know these guys!?" Sokka demanded
"Oh yeh! Lin Yi's an old buddy! Right Lin Yi?" Chey asked grinning as he came to a stop.
"Shut up! Keep moving." Lin Yi ordered as he pointed the spear at Chey and they continued on.
"Apparently they've got different ideas of what 'old buddy' is." Freya said, earning a chuckle from Aang. They continued on through the trees until they came to a river. There was a small hut at the bottom of a few hills along the water side.
"Go on. He sees you only." Lin Yi instructed Chey.
"Oh that's okay, we can chat later." Chey said nervously
"Is that where Jeong Jeong is? I need to talk to him right away." Aang said as he walked forwards but his path was blocked by Lin Yi's spear.
"No! You wait there." Chey was shoved forwards "Go now!"
"Don't worry! Everything'll be fine. He's a great man, great man!" Chey said as he walked towards the hut. The others were lead to another small shack where they were told to stay put and wait.
They laid down and Freya fell asleep for a bit before Aang's voice startled her awake.
"What happened? Can I see Jeong Jeong now?" Aang asked.
"He won't see you." Chey said glumly as he sat himself down against the wall of the shack. "He's very angry that I brought you here. He wants you to leave immediately." Sokka propped himself up happily
"Finally! Let's hit the road." he decided, before laying back down and stretching his hands up and his toes down to stretch his back.
"Why won't he see me?" Aang asked turned from Sokka to Chey.
"He says you're not ready. Says you haven't mastered waterbending and earthbending yet."
"Wait, how does he know that?" Aang wondered
"He saw the way you walked into camp. He can tell." Chey said admiringly.
"More like you've been back for a couple of months and he's heard the stories of you moving north. He knows you haven't mastered them yet cause there hasn't been time." Freya believed as she yawned and sat up.
"I'm going in anyway!" Aang said strongly before he got to his feet. He walked to the door before backtracking and grabbing Freya's hand. She gasped as he pulled her to her feet and out of the hut with him.
"Aang?"
"You will come with me right?" he asked.
The girl sighed and just let Aang pull her down the hills and to the lonely shack.
They stopped at the doorway and Aang took a breath before Freya followed him in. A man with white hair sat before them. He was surrounded by candles in a small circle which also sat on the tree trunk that was built into the side of the shack. Jeong Jeong had his back to them and didn't even turn as they entered.
"Get out." he ordered.
Aang went to take a step but he hesitated before walking towards the man and his candles.
"Master, I need to learn firebending."
"Only a fool seeks his own destruction." Jeong Jeong said as Aang moved to sit on the edge of the fire benders circle of candles.
"I'm the Avatar. It's my destiny to—" the man interrupted Aang as Freya moved behind the airbender.
"Destiny? What would a boy know of destiny? If a fish lives its whole life in this river, does he know the river's destiny? No! Only that it runs on and on out of his control! He may follow where it flows, but he cannot see the end. He cannot imagine the ocean." Jeong Jeong used the metaphor and Freya rose an eyebrow.
"Ookay, but it's the Avatar's duty to master all of the bending disciplines." Aang admitted
"To master the bending disciplines, you must first master discipline itself. But you have no interest in this, so I have no interest in you! Now, get out." he ordered again and Aang looked annoyed at the rejection.
Freya however frowned. Jeong Jeong had a point, just like she'd been saying. Aang had no wish to do things in the correct order and no one knew what the consequences of that would be.
But Aang was right as well. He may never get the chance to learn fire bending again. The girl balled her fists up annoyed. She had to learn, if she could, then she could teach Aang.
"Please, I have to learn. This could be my only chance." Aang admitted
"Are you deaf!" Jeong Jeong spun around in anger to face Aang and Freya, he had two scars down the right side of his face and across his eye. "How can I teach you if you refuse to listen? Before learning firebending you must learn water and earth. Water is cool and soothing, earth is steady and stable, but fire, fire is alive!" Jeong Jeong put his hand near one of the flames and it blew to the side away from his hand. "It breathes, it grows, without a bender, a rock will not throw itself! But fire will spread and destroy everything in its path if one does not have the will to control it! That is its destiny!"
"Fire is not just destruction." Freya snapped and Jeong Jeong looked up at her. "It is alive like everything else in this world because it is life."
"It does not matter." Jeong Jeong said to her "A water bender would not understand the implications of fire." Freya grit her teeth as Jeong Jeong turned back to Aang.
"You are not ready! You are too weak!" he snapped and the flame from the candles suddenly grew and burst into the air of the shack between Aang and Jeong Jeong. Freya narrowed her eyes.
"And yet you're the one loosing control." she said, Jeong Jeong seemed to look surprised for a second before his expression fell.
"I will teach you." Jeong Jeong suddenly said in defeat.
Freya rose an eyebrow surprised.
"Really? That's great!" Aang cheered, throwing his arms in the air. Jeong Jeong groaned and looked away as Aang grinned at him. "Maybe Freya can—" Freya covered the boys mouth and smiled at Jeong Jeong without saying anything.
The two left the tent and Aang looked at Freya confused.
"Why wont you let him teach you too?" he asked "You've already mastered water bending, you need to master fire too."
"Because… no one is supposed to be able to control more than one element but the avatar. If people found out I can do both… plus people aren't fond of fire benders. I'd rather not show the world that side of me."
"Why not? Katara and Sokka wont care." Aang believed
"No I don't think they would, other than the fact I never told them." Freya sighed.
"But Freya, if you don't use it then, what happened to your eyes? I thought that only happened when you fire bend?" Aang said and Freya sighed
"Well, it turns out that by suppressing my fire bending, I've caused it to build up inside me. It gave me a fever while I was on Zuko's ship and it hasn't really gone down since. I guess until I have a full on bending session they wont change." Freya shrugged
"Freya, that's not good for you, holding in your bending could…"
"Affect my health." Freya said rolling her eyes "I know. But I'm fine for the minute so don't worry."
"Why don't we have some duel matches! That way I could learn from fire bending from you as well." Aang grinned
"One, I don't know how Katara and Sokka will react, two, I'm not all that good with my fire, I don't even know what I'd teach you." she shrugged
"But you know the start point." Again smiled
"I thought it'd be better and easier if I had finished." Freya muttered.
"Don't worry, you'll be great."
"Well I'm not teaching you until you've mastered water and earth first. You need to follow the cycle for a reason." she said stubbornly.
"That's okay, we can master it together anyway! Just like we can master water bending in the northern style!"
"Oh I'm so excited!" Freya grinned as they moved back to the shack.
"So, how'd it go? Are we leaving?" Sokka asked when they walked in.
"Jeong Jeong agreed to train me!" Aang grinned "This is so great! I actually get to learn fire."
"Don't get to excited, fire's dangerous too Aang."
"But you said it wasn't destructive?" Aang reminded her
"No I said it wasn't just destruction. There's a difference." she warned.
"Well, the quicker you learn, the quicker we can leave for the North Pole." Sokka decided as he yawned and curled himself up on his mat.
Freya and Aang shared a look before smiling and shrugging.