7---

Mikado only had a few hours sleep before waking up again. Hours before dawn, he rose and readied. Leaving a note for Kareem, apologizing that he could not make it to work today, he left the house.

Quietly, in the early hours of the morning he stole by Kyoshi's dojo to leave another note for Suki. This one was barely longer than the one for Kareem.

Suki-

I humbly request your presence at the docks tonight just before dusk. We must speak. Come alone.

-You know who

He climbed the porch pillars on the small hut and, using a skylight, entered and left the missive inside of Suki's new fans. "She'll find it there, that's for sure." He exited and headed for the shoreline.

A few fisherman were up when he approached the docks. A few of them jumped when he walked past, having startled them. They watched as he went all the way to the end of the pier and stared out at the horizon.

"You think he might jump in?" one of them jokingly asked his companion.

The other glanced at the odd boy on the dock and similarly said, "Maybe if we're lucky. I think he might be trying to summon the Unagi." They both laughed at their little joke and continued to stare at Mikado.

He squatted down and made gestures at the water, and both men laughed harder. "Aye, he's a loony that one." To their surprise he jumped into the water, clothes, swords and all. They gasped and they both stood and ran to the end of the dock, fully intending to jump after, what they assumed, the drowning man.

They both let out a gasp of awe when they instead saw the young boy standing on a circular platform of rock. Mikado turned to face the two old men and against their faces of astonishment waved. "Good luck fishing!"

With that the rock he was on sped off across the water, skipping over the waves and sending splashes of mist into the air. They watched as – with the speed faster than even the great water tribe ships – he sped around the corner of the island and was lost to sight.

"I think we might be the ones who are going loony!"

Suki started the day normally, with only a slight detour on her way to the dojo. She had decided last night that it would not be the best time to go see Mikado, but this morning she felt refreshed and ready for the confrontation.

She walked into the small shop with her usual air of nonchalance; really she was very nervous inside. When she saw Kareem at the counter her spirits fell, but only slightly. Before she could ask where Mikado was, Kareem answered.

"He's not here." He smiled up at her. "He left me a note this morning saying he couldn't make it, and the fishers asked me if the young man was crazy in the head."

Suki was puzzled at this but, the old man enjoying her enquiring expression, didn't allow her to hang long.

"They say they saw him at the docks really early, and he rode a magic carpet off the island and towards the mainland." He rolled his eyes, "you know fishers though, they bend the truth a bit. But, I think they were right in saying he left the island."

Suki's eyes really fell at the news, but the geezer reassured her, "Don't worry he'll be back, just off runnin' a few errands I imagine." He grabbed her hand and squeezed it tightly for a moment then, whistling a tune, turned and walked into the back of the shop.

It was only then that Suki went up to the dojo and found her own note. A small smile slipped onto her face, "you know who eh? Alright, I'll humor him." She folded the note again and stuffed it in her glove. Reflecting for a moment on Kyoshi's words she smiled again.

Then the instructor side of her kicked in and she rounded on the girls under her care. "Alight! Grab your gear, fans, and make sure your shoes are tied! We're jogging to the top!" She pointed at the summit of the tallest mountain on Kyoshi.

The girls groaned, but did as they were told. Meanwhile, Suki stood at the door waiting for them to finish getting ready and line up. "Today ladies!" She smiled again, and led the single-file line out the door and up the road.

Mikado was having an equally troublesome day and, if one compared them side by side, the girl warriors on Kyoshi had it better.

After coming to land at port in a small town opposite the channel as Kyoshi, he paid for and ate a quick breakfast and pulled another rock out of the ground. This one wasn't as large or flat as the one he used to surf the ocean, and it had hundreds of smaller, spherical ones underneath it.

He jumped on top and waving his arms around like a windmill, a movement his master said came from water benders, the stones beneath him began rolling and he was off. He squinted at the just-now rising sun and grumbled to himself, "This is going to be a

long day."

By the time the sun had fully risen Mikado was in the town he sought. About an hour after he set out, he was slowing his rock-cart down on the outskirts of a small mining village.

He tapped an old beggar on the shoulder, "can you point me to the blacksmith's shop?" After a few coins in the man's hand and a few minutes of walking, Mikado strolled up to the blistering hot building.

He called out to the large man manning the anvil, and after a few shouted attempts, caught his attention. "Excuse me sir but am I correct in thinking you have a large quantity of charcoal here?"

The large man regarded the mysterious youth for a few moments, and sensing he might make a few coins out of this replied, "You are right, I do. Will you want to be buying some?" he asked hopefully.

"I will, about fifty pounds in fact." The boy pulled out his purse and asked, "How much will I be owing you?"

"Hmm, about six gold." He said after a few moments of arithmetic. Considering he bought that much for four, six was a reasonable price.

Mikado produced the coins and handed them to the large man. "Thank you, could you put them in a bag or box for me?" The blacksmith waved to his assistant who started shoveling the black rocks into a thick bag. "Also, can you show me where the goldsmith is in this town?"

His bag of charcoal in tow, Mikado walked into the fine jewelry shop to set up another deal.

"Thirty-five gold? Alright, I'll be back late this afternoon to pick it up. Thank you." He dropped the agreed upon amount into the man's thin fingers and strode out the door.

He walked out of town and found the tallest hill he could. Here he dumped out all the charcoal on a flat rock he had wrenched from the bones of the earth and sat down to meditate.

"I'll need to concentrate everything I've learned for this." He withdrew into the depths of his mind, recalling a time long past.

"NO!"

Mikado grimaced at the whack of the willow rod across his back; the pain would come soon after. The delayed reaction of the punishment had him always hoping that this time, it wouldn't come. But it always did.

"Ahh!" He cried and fell of his perch.

Today was a particularly grueling day, he and two other students stood atop vertical logs mired in a slushy mud. They were forced to balance on the barely wide-enough log and pass a large rock between them by tossing it to the next person in the triangle.

Mikado had just tossed the boulder to the next guy, but in the process lost his balance. As he was about to fall, both the other students and his master watching him, he used earthbending to shoot a rock out from under the log and right himself.

He lay on his back in the gooey mud, his eyes burning from both the sting on his back and the sun in his face. A shadow loomed over him, but he kept his eyes closed rather than face his teacher.

"You do not understand the exercise!" his tall heavily muscled teacher yelled at him. "The point is balance! Teamwork! Understanding more than just earthbending!"

Mikado finally felt the sting on his back subside and he rose up in the muck. "I'm sorry sir, it won't happen again." He lowered his head and resumed his precarious stand on the log.

His teacher glared at him then motioned to the boy with the rock to set it down. "Drop that boy, I'm going to tell you all a secret." Relieved the kid dropped the stone on the ground and jumped off his log to stand in front of the master, clearly ready for some great insight. "GET BACK ON YOUR LOG!"

After the boy had lowered his head in shame and balanced himself again the large man continued. "You must not come to rely solely on your earthbending. All of you are great students at that, but you still lack what is required to become the best!" He turned to face all three of them, looking each in the eyes. "Great benders do not learn from only their own element, but from all of them. This exercise here is to remonstrate that. "The mud beneath your feet, defines balance, a key factor in waterbending. You must properly use breath control and muscle control when you throw and catch the rock or you will be smashed, these are the major parts of firebending. Proper airbenders would tell you that teamwork, and thought pattern is required to harness their element; that is, if there were any of them left." He chuckled at his small joke, one the students did not get. "The point is, that you must take knowledge from all the elements! Even if it's only used to defeat someone of that element."

Still seeing the confused looks on the kids' faces he gave up. "Whatever, just toss the rock." He sighed and picked up his willow stick again.

Mikado's mind returned to the present. It had taken him many years to understand and master what his teacher had told him on that day. Now, he would have to use it in full practice.

He stood, his mind now clear of everything but the task ahead of him. He didn't even remember why he was doing it, which was just a sign of his extreme meditation methods.

"I have the rock at my feet, to guide and protect me." He squatted and planted both of his feet firmly on the hard rock, straddling the pile of charcoal.

"The Air surrounds and fills me with life." He took several deep breaths and placed his hands palm-down above the black rocks.

"Water flows through me and nourishes my body." He tensed his arms, causing the veins to pulse outward.

"The fire is within me, bringing warmth and light." He closed his eyes, focusing the fire of determination within.

"I am with Earth, I am with Air," He chanted, "I am of Water, I am of Fire." His hands clenched into a claw-like shape.

"The Elements are mine, and I am theirs." Focusing his thoughts to the coal beneath him, he slowly closed his hands.

Sweat beaded from his forehead and arms, sliding down his body. He stood, nearly motionless for hours, except for the slow, almost unnoticeable closing of his hands.

If anyone had passed by and seen him they surely would have thought him a statue, or insane; most likely the latter. Thus it was the reasoning behind him choosing such a secluded spot. If those same people had stopped to watch him without interrupting they would have seen the slow yet machine-like movement of his closing claws, and they might have taken notice of the pile of coal at his feet, shrinking ever so slightly.

Mikado's thoughts were on his work, but small parts of his mind wandered past. These inconsequential thoughts did not waver his conscious in the slight, but they occupied themselves as bored children would.

Somewhere on the inside of his mind, Mikado smiled. Since he had been trained by the legendary masters at Ba Sing Se, he was also forced to exercise his mind. All of his masters adamantly recommended his attendance at the University, and after much pressure and heated arguments, he obliged. They did pay for it, of course.

What he learned there was very dull, all of his classes boring and worth nothing more than to sleep through. History was dull, filled with times of peace, mysterious airbenders, and something about a glowing bridge between the real world and the spirit world that disappeared a hundred years ago; all crazy talk as far as Mikado was concerned.

The one class that intrigued the young man most was that of Science. Not all of it, particularly the field of Chemistry. It was here that Mikado had learned of the structure of everything on the planet. More importantly, the elements that made up the ground.

Carbon, silicon, magnesium, iron, cobalt, zinc, and nickel among many others. It was through this knowledge that Mikado had pioneered some new fields in earthbending and was granted the rank of Ground-Master. It was a title he did not really want, but it's benefits did pique his interest. Mostly it was the money that drew him, after leaving his family's farm he wasn't as well-off as he had hoped.

Carbon, a main ingredient in most items. Its purest form was that of coal and charcoal. Each had it's impurities, but it was as close as one could get it. What few people did not know, was that carbon was also the main ingredient of a much more valuable object.

Mikado's hands finally finished closing. The touch of his fingers on his thumb surprised him after the long time of a clenched claw. He opened his eyes and groaned at the pain in his hands. His legs too were burning from standing in a low crouch for so long.

He looked up at the sun and, squinting, deciphered that it was about one o'clock. "Good, I'm right on time." He seemed accepting of that he just spent five hours crouching in the hot sun, seemingly doing nothing. "Now where is that…"

He looked down at the flat rock he was standing on, and was pleased. All the charcoal was gone from the surface, with only a few remaining score marks. He bent over and looked all around the surface of the rock, but was eventually forced onto his hands an knees to find what he was looking for.

Amidst the dust and extra coal he found what he was looking for. Grabbing it in his fingers and brushing it off, he held it up to the light.

It was small, about the size of a large pea. It had a oblong shape to it, as that of an egg and, as he peered closer Mikado grinned.

"Perfect, flawless, just the right color too." He held the object between him and the sun, staring into its depths.

He held a stunning rock that glinted in the afternoon sun; a diamond.