Part – 1
Chapter – 9
"Lower!" I told.
Dev squatted lower in his stance with his arms stretched out straight and his palms were facing the terrace floor. A dimly lit bulb was on, since I don't have much to spend to fix it. But I wasn't fazed by that. This Avatar isn't perfecting his stance even after a couple weeks. Ugh, so annoying.
"I said lower, Dev!" I said, sternly.
He bent down lower but his legs began to tremble and he suddenly fell on his behind.
"I can't! It's too painful!" he groaned while his hand was supporting his back.
"Disappointing, really! I can't believe you still haven't gotten used to this." I said, folding my arms and getting up from my chair walking a few steps forward and standing in front of him as he looked up at me.
"I never did anything like this, okay? It'll take some time." He replied, while getting back up.
"Still, at this rate, you'll be stuck at the beginner's level of firebending." Said Kova, sitting upright.
"We've been at this for hours, by the way. When are we studying for our unit test?" asked Dev, still with his hand on his lower back.
"I don't think anybody has ever seen an Avatar like this! What a nerd!" said Kova, getting up and walking away. "Fine! Go study!"
Dev nodded slightly at him.
"Remember! You must be ready for next month's trip right after your 'unit' tests!" Kova warned and left downstairs from the terrace.
As soon as Kova was out of sight, Dev suddenly kneeled down in exhaustion with sweat dripping from his face as he breathed deeply. I sighed.
"Trust me, Asin. I am practicing. You saw me!" he said, breathing heavily.
"True, you did make some progress with your stance. Can't say the same about your bending." I said and started walking towards the stairs passing him.
"Seriously?" He asked in disbelief.
"Come on, already! Don't you want to study?" I said while looking behind at him then left downstairs.
"Some progress, huh…" he said, with a slight smile.
All right. I gave an understatement. He was getting better at his combat skills really quickly. But his firebending? Still weak. I don't know where he can get some motivation or a push to punch out some more of it. I thought connecting with Raava would improve his overall ability but now I see that it all depends on his thoughts, doesn't it?
So, Raava, according to what Dev explained, has regained all of her previous memories and he could access them all. That's a big deal and I guess it will be a mystery as to how it happened. Should it matter to the Spirit Council, though? It should be good news, right? But the bad news is that the Avatar is in grave danger and I don't know from whom.
"Asin?" called out Dev.
I startled a bit. I was lost in thought while training him in the Defence area.
"My bad. I'm ready. Come at me." I said, while taking a stance.
He suddenly leaped and kicked out a huge amount of fire that I dodged but he unexpectedly came close to me and his punch was inches near my face before I pushed it out of the way and punched out some fire at him! He dodged that easily and moved a step back.
"Good. Come at me again." I said, beckoning him to attack.
He punched out fire and I held out my hand and sucked it in but he suddenly punched fire again towards my face when I suddenly pushed that arm upwards and pushed him back. I then let out the fire I absorbed right at him and he shielded himself successfully.
"Do you realise how weak this shot was? This was your exact fire that I gave back." I said.
"No way!" he said, panting.
"Let me tell you a secret: I can't retain someone else's flame within me. It's not compatible with my body." I said.
"Every firebender has a specific flame?" he asked.
"It's like a fingerprint, I guess. Like an aura. We all have our own spirit, right?" I said.
He nodded.
"Anyway, the point is that your firebending sucks." I said.
"Oh, come on!" he said.
"You really need to find some motivation to at least produce a proper amount of fire because that was not even average." Said Kova, getting into my backpack.
We walked back towards the house silently as Dev felt more tired and was half asleep while walking back home. We did push it a little today but I don't care. It's still less than yesterday. We reached the house and Dev flopped down on his bed and immediately fell asleep. Kova and I covered him with a blanket after I changed and I left a bottle of water on his side table then left.
No matter how great Dev could be, he's still one person. He just has an immortal spirit within. The Avatar is the protector of all, but he himself needs protection right now. And even if Sakhi was transported to the prison successfully, I've still got a bad feeling. She, along with my uncle and a few others who had escaped, knows of his existence. These people could have spread the word. My relatives might know by now. I don't know if they'll say anything.
But Sakhi looked different in Republic City. She looked slightly frail but felt powerful. She could withstand Naomi's bending. But how? Where is her power coming from because her spirit has been given to my cousin in Delhi? I didn't see any idle spirit near her so buying from the black market is unlikely. At least, she didn't learn how to master lightening. Only I do. And the master who taught me this passed away a few months after I finished. He was supposed to help her next.
There are so many things to do now and for the first time, I feel like I don't have enough time. Someone is assisting Sakhi and she did something illegal to herself. I wish I had people to find out but I can't leave for my own safety. Plus, I have to train Dev every single day. We're safe for now…
"Hey! You…you actually called me back." I said, talking into the landline phone.
"Yes, I did. Just to tell you that your request is not possible." Naomi replied on the other line.
"It's okay…I wasn't expecting a 'Yes' anyway." I said.
"Wait. I said it's not possible to send security for your all-round protection because people from the Earth Kingdom will notice. But I can send some people for your trips outside your home state. You said you planned two, right?" she asked.
"Yes, then he'll go to you directly." I said.
"Great. So, when are you going for your first one?" she asked.
"Next Monday." I replied.
"All right. I'll call you back." She replied and cut the call.
I wonder what she'll do now. But I asked the right person. Tark is out of the question because he's a mere soldier and after what he did to Dev, we can't be friends like before. He also follows his superiors without hesitation and something is off about the Water tribe Chief in general. He avoids talking to me at any meet. Mom never told me why.
On the other hand, Hiyori is still too young. She should focus on her training first. She used to keep tabs Sakhi, though. But the Air Nation Monks limit her travel because of their rules of staying away from cities. Staying in the hills and mountains keeps the airbenders the purest and connected to the Spirit world, though their visits are rare. Anyway, these days Hiyori spends a lot of time connecting with Tark. She sure as hell likes him, which is the actual reason why I don't tell her anything.
"I want you to book tickets for three of my people. I'll send their details to you. Just book tickets of your trip together then book their tickets for a connecting flight back home from Hyderabad. They shouldn't spend an idle day there after your trip, okay?" Naomi informed.
"Sure. Can you ask them to blend in when they arrive?" I asked.
"It's okay, they're trained well." she said.
"Thank you, Naomi." I said.
"Anything for you and Dev. Have a safe trip. Hope it's worth your time. Bye!" she said.
"Bye." I replied and put the phone down.
Great. Three people are perfect. Hope they listen to me. Oh, I'll need to arrange a place to sleep for them. But I only have three rooms in my home: One guest room and two bedrooms. Maybe Dev can share his room with one bodyguard. The other two can take the guest room.
"We'll be having guests. They are security from Naomi and they will be accompanying us on our trip. We'll be safe from threats that way." I announced to Dev and Kova during dinner.
"Sure we can trust them, my lord?" Kova asked, sceptically.
"I think they're Dai Li. But don't mention it to them." I said, looking at Dev.
"I know, I got it." he said.
"Well, see you guys in the morning. Good night." I said, putting my plate in the sink then leaving upstairs.
A while later, I heard a knock on my room door. I open it to see Dev standing there giving a look around.
"What?" I asked.
"I don't trust them, Asin." he said.
"I don't trust them either but what other choice do I have? They are here to watch our backs." I said.
"Don't make me bunk with one of them, at least. I can't sleep like that." He said.
"If you have any other better place other than my room to sleep in then you're free to." I suggested.
"How about that room in the terrace?" he asked.
"No, we can't use it in front of them. It has my family's stuff." I said.
"Well-you're cutting off my options here! You and I both agree that me sleeping in the same room with any one of them in their first night here is a bad idea." He said.
Ugh, why is he right? I guess, I have no choice.
"Fine." I said.
"Fine what?" he asked.
"You can sleep in my room for one night. Okay?" I said.
"Okay." he said.
"Woah…are you…?" I asked the three men standing at my front door the next evening.
One of them was of European descent while the other two were African but with lighter shades of brown. The three of them packed lightly, each having a backpack of their own only.
"Yes, my lord. Lady Naomi sent us." Said one of them.
"Come in, come in." I said, opening the door further.
They entered and I showed them the guest room. They entered and set their bags down.
After they freshened up, we all briefly introduced ourselves to each other and sat down to talk and eat at the dinner table.
"So, the plan is to go to the-you'd better be good at keeping secrets. All of you." – I slightly eyed Dev – "We are going to the Andaman and Nicobar Islands to meet the Sun Tribe. They have the oldest firebenders. Our flight is tomorrow morning at 10:00 am so it's best if everyone goes to bed early. Any questions?" I asked.
Nobody answered.
"You can say what you want to. We don't mind." Said Kova.
"I've always longed to see it." said one of them.
"The place is so sacred. I never thought we'd get to set foot there." Said another.
"I guess, it's your lucky day. Anyway, hope we all cooperate well for these three days together. Okay?" I said.
"Yes, my lord." They replied.
After dinner, the three of them started getting ready for bed while Kova assisted them. I went to my room and pulled out another pillow and blanket when Dev came inside and closed the door.
"I can take the floor, Asin." He said.
"It's okay. The bed is big enough. We can sleep on opposite sides." I said.
"Okay, cool." He said.
"Don't make any sounds or keep going outside, okay? Kova is already asleep." I said.
"Sure." He said. "Wait, Kova doesn't know about me sleeping in here?"
"He doesn't and I plan on keeping it that way. He's a little overprotective." I said.
"Okay, I got it." he replied.
We slept on opposite ends of the bed with different blankets and pillows facing opposite ends of my room. I couldn't help but feel wide awake. One reason was that we had company over after a long time. I can't remember the last time I did before Dev. Another reason is the most obvious: I was slightly weirded out that I usually sleep alone but here I am, sharing a bed with the Avatar. Half an hour passed…I wasn't asleep yet. Come on, Asin. We have a flight to catch tomorrow.