Wandering Firebender
Fourty Seven: Peace & Balance
"...and so they gave me an eel-hound so I could make it to the northern shore faster." Elio finished recounting everything that had happened. Alger hummed and nodded, intrigued by all of the details of Elio's story.
"Goodness, Elio. You've been through a great deal. But it was very fortunate that you were incarcerated next to the former general Iroh. Had it not been for that, you likely would not have gotten free." Alger pointed out. Elio hummed in agreement and shook his head.
"Mhmm. I don't even want to think about that though. Let's just focus on the task ahead, okay?" Elio suggested.
"Fair enough. In any case, I'm happy that you made it out." Alger said, patting him on the shoulder. Elio nodded appreciatively.
"Thanks, Alger. And I'm glad you're here too helping me out. I wasn't expecting any assistance, honestly, but I'mma probably need it, all things considered." Elio expressed.
"Yes. Things are becoming far more tense now that the summer solstice is coming. More Fire Nation soldiers are making moves; it is becoming increasingly obvious that something big is coming. And according to you, that 'something' is the end of the war." Alger stated.
Reality began to set in for the both of them. For their entire lives, there was the war. For their fathers' entire lives, there was the war. This global conflict has spanned on for generations of families and now, one way or the other, it was coming to an end soon.
"I don't know what's going to happen to me if I make it to the other side of this war." Elio admitted.
"I...don't know either. But we can only hope that the world is brought to balance. When that happens, we can both figure out how to proceed." Alger said. Elio nodded thoughtfully.
"'Brought to balance'..." Elio repeated with a hum. "Alger, I-I don't know if I can ever go home again. Even if the Fire Nation loses the war, I worry that the...the damage is done – everything I did..." He shook his head. Alger put a consoling hand on Elio's shoulder.
"Just worry about the task at hand for now, Elio. We still have to make it there. Then we can figure the rest out."
"Yeah...yeah, alright." Elio nodded again, focusing his attention ahead again.
The two of them continued to travel in silence for awhile. However, what started as a comfortable silence soon became a cautious, almost tactical silence as they approached another Earth Kingdom city that had been occupied by the Fire Nation.
"Not this again..." Elio said to himself, pulling his hood over his head once again.
"Why is the Fire Nation still holding onto these towns if their intention is to attack anyway?" Alger wondered.
"They probably want to make sure everyone stays in line until then. With the uprising already starting, they can't let it get too out of hand or else the final attack won't be as effective." Elio reasoned.
"That makes logical sense, I suppose," Alger said with a nod. "If that's the case, we should seriously consider freeing this town. The less control that the Fire Nation has over the Earth Kingdom people the better." He said. However, Elio shook his head.
"No, we can't take that risk." He quickly shut the idea down. Alger lifted his head in surprise.
"What do you mean?"
"My goal is the North Pole. I can't afford to be injured or captured before I get there. I need to get there as soon as possible to give them the best fighting chance. Remember, the Earth Kingdom knows an attack is coming – the Water Tribe doesn't." Elio reminded him.
"Right," Alger sighed. "I suppose you're right...let's just press forward cautiously then." He reluctantly agreed.
So the two of them kept their heads low as they entered through the city gates. Alger's eyes were cast upwards, watching sadly as a large banner with the Fire Nation insignia on it passed over their heads. Elio kept his eyes forward and his head tilted downwards to avoid being recognized again.
They slowly made their way through a narrow street. Taller buildings on either side cast large, dark shadows on their surroundings. The roads were packed with people going in either direction with their belongings. Fire Nation soldiers were walking in a large group down the road.
"What's going on here?" Elio asked Alger quietly.
"It's hard to say, but it appears these people are being relocated." Alger observed. As they progressed forward, they were able to confirm this for themselves.
They watched as people were being forced out of their homes by Fire Nation soldiers. Women and children were sent down the road with their belongings. Non-bending men were allowed to stay with their families while all earthbenders were being handcuffed and packed into metal wagons.
One man with his hands cuffed behind his back suddenly made a move to try and get free. He used his feet to shift the earth beneath them, causing everyone but him to fall over. He lifted a sharp rock out from the ground and used it to break the chains of his cuffs.
"Stop him!" Several soldiers shouted.
Before the man could do anything else, he was hit with several fireballs by soldiers who were perched atop the surrounding buildings. Screams filled the air as the man crumbled to the ground almost immediately. Just like that, the escape attempt was foiled.
Several soldiers approached the man cautiously with their spears ready. When they saw that the man was no longer fighting back, they pulled him up to his feet and instructed him to keep walking. With several burns on his body, he slowly limped his way into one of the wagons.
Elio and Alger were horrified.
"Elio...I was right. The Fire Nation soldiers must be using this town for lodging." Alger said quietly.
Elio glanced at him before turning his eyes back to the houses that people were being forced out from. He watched older couples, women with young children, and powerless families all struggling to move down the road urgently.
It reminded Elio of his own situation back when he left; everything he could carry became his only worldly possessions. For these people, it was most likely the same way.
Finally, Elio and Alger reached the other side of the city. Fire Nation soldiers eyed them suspiciously, but since they didn't stop for anything, they didn't bother to check them. Once they had put a little distance between them and the city, Alger spoke up again.
"Elio...this isn't right. These people need help." Alger said.
"I know...but time isn't on our side here, Alger. It's best that we keep moving." Elio continued to insist, although a lot of his resolve had faded now.
"Elio...these are my people. Our mission is priority number one, yes, I agree with that. But if we don't help these people now, who's to say it won't be too late for them later?" Alger pointed out.
Elio pressed his lips together, shaking his head and staring down towards the ground. He'd already chosen to leave people in need behind when he was on his own before...and he found himself regretting it...
"...alright, fine. We'll do what we can. But if bad comes to worse, we'll have to retreat. It's all over if I get caught again." Elio stipulated. Alger put a hand on Elio's shoulder.
"I'll make sure that doesn't happen." He promised...
So Elio and Alger made the decision to split up. Alger took the eel-hound and rode off to the side, away from the roads that the Fire Nation soldiers were using. Meanwhile, Elio turned back towards the city and approached it again on foot.
Elio swallowed nervously, holding his staff in one hand and curling the fingers of his other hand around the collar of his shawl. He kept his head low enough to hide his face while peering out from underneath the end of his hood. As he entered the city again, he was quickly noticed.
"Hey! You there! Identify yourself!" A soldier called out to him. Two other soldiers came up on either side of the first as they all advanced. Elio took in a deep breath and removed his hood.
"My name is Elio of the Fire Nation. I have come here to ask once and only once that you remove all of your troops from this city. If not...you will be forced out." He warned.
"On whose authority?" One of the soldiers asked, raising an eyebrow at him.
"Mine." Elio answered, narrowing his eyes on them.
"Did we miss a memo or something...?" One of the soldiers asked the others aside. They didn't seem to be understanding that Elio was threatening them.
"Leave now. Final warning." Elio said, pointing his staff at them. This time, the soldiers understood.
"No one threatens the Fire Nation, kid."
The three soldiers all stepped forward at once, firing off a large spread of fire. Elio got into a defensive stance, but he realized that this was a warning shot. Elio spun his staff in a circle once forcefully; enough to spread the fire out further. It quickly faded out in the air.
The soldier in front growled irritably. This time he shot a fireball directly at Elio. Elio took a step to the side and, with his left hand, took control of the fireball. He moved in a circle to guide it around. He shot it back towards the soldier. It caught him off guard and struck him right in the chest, knocking him to the ground.
"Come on." Elio challenged the other two. His eyes darted side to side. Other soldiers were coming from down the road to see what was going on. He needed to keep them distracted.
The other two soldiers charged at Elio. Elio spun his staff around, deflecting the fire they threw at him. He shot fire at one to keep him back. He proceeded to jump into the air, performing a spinning fire kick that slapped the second soldier in the face.
Elio landed on his feet and spun the staff over his head, shooting more fire out. The third soldier ducked down to avoid it. He then brought the staff down quickly, cracking it against the soldier's helmet. This was enough to stun him. He laid flat on the ground.
More soldiers were coming. Elio glanced to the side quickly. There had to be almost a dozen nearing him – too many to take on at once. He needed to keep them separated until he could get away.
Elio swung his staff forcefully with one arm, sending an arcing fire blast at them. He followed up with two fire kicks then one large spread of fire out of his right hand. This was enough to catch the soldiers off guard; they weren't expecting to go up against another firebender.
Now was Elio's chance to distance himself. He braced his body as he crouched down. He then jumped into the air and shot fire out of his feet to propel his ascent. He flew up high into the air. All of the firebenders threw their heads up in awe as they watched Elio land on the roof of one of the buildings down the road.
As he came to a landing his feet slid awkwardly. He slipped down onto his side with a yelp, but laid flat on his back just in time to watch a fireball sail right over him. One of the soldiers that had been posted on the roof was nearby and coming right for him.
Elio lifted his legs up and spun around on his shoulders, shooting fire out of his feet as a protective measure. He got to one knee with his staff in both hands. The soldier, now on the same roof as him, shot out a continuous flume of fire right at him.
Elio quickly got to his feet and spun his staff around. His arms were stiff at first from nerves, but he quickly relaxed and continued to redirect this soldier's attack. Once the soldier started to tire out, Elio swiveled on one foot and shot out a fire kick, knocking the soldier onto his back.
With a majority of the soldiers unable to reach him from where he was, they had to resort to shooting fireballs at him from either the ground or the rooftops on the other side of the road. It wasn't hard for Elio to dodge most of them, but other soldiers on the same side of the road were approaching on the rooftops from both sides.
"Come on, Alger, let's go!" Elio grumbled to himself, reminding himself to continue breathing deeply as he worked his way through each maneuver.
While Elio was busy attracting the attention of the Fire Nation soldiers in the area, Alger made his way around the side of the city. He rode Sai around to one of the side walls. Of course, there were more soldiers guarding the wall, and they saw Alger approaching.
"We got something going on over here! At your posts, men!" One of the soldiers shouted to the others, alerting everyone to Alger approaching from the side.
Alger balled his fists and tightened his arms. He brought them around in a circle and extended his fingers outwards, shooting several square-shaped stones out of the ground towards the men on the wall. Several of them yelped and ducked for cover while others shot fireballs at him.
"Faster!" Alger flicked Sai's reins and urged him to speed up towards the wall. He stuck the reins in his mouth and held them with his teeth to free his arms up.
Alger brought his arms in front of him, one over the other. He split a section of the wall in front of him in half horizontally. Half of it sunk into the ground while the other half floated upwards. As Alger rode towards it, he extended his fingers towards it and split it in half again vertically.
As he rode underneath it, he spread his hands apart, sending both halves of the rock wall in opposite directions. They both flew towards the soldiers on the wall, sliding into them and pushing them away as they crashed on the ground and tumbled in circles.
Now inside the city, Alger took hold of the reins again and guided Sai to turn left. The eel-hound reacted by bringing itself into a slide. Once it was aligned with the road, Alger flicked the reins and it sped forward again.
"Out of the way! One side!" Alger shouted to the people on the road in front of them. Seeing Alger coming so hastily, they all shrieked and were quick to get out of the way.
Alger huffed urgently as he worked his way back through the city. He could see a band of Fire Nation soldiers up ahead. They were guarding the prisoners and driving everyone away, trying to keep order. Alger urged Sai to stop then jumped off of the saddle, landing on his feet and sliding sideways on the dirt.
"Halt! Stop right there!" One soldier yelled at him before immediately shooting a fireball. Alger lifted a wall from the ground with one hand. He stepped forward and threw a punch, causing the rock wall to slide and crash into the soldier.
"Remain calm! I'll get you free!" Alger shouted to the other imprisoned earthbenders.
Fire Nation soldiers started pouring in from all sides. Alger found himself surrounded by what appeared to be more than a dozen soldiers. They had weapons ready, but they hadn't gotten too close yet. Alger swallowed; he would only have a few moments.
Acting quickly, Alger started by raising his arms up in each direction, enclosing himself with the soldiers to make sure no one outside would be hurt. The soldiers around him, seeing what was going on, started shooting fire at him.
Alger stomped on the ground, creating a circle under himself. He raised his hands up, and a platform rose underneath him. As fire crashed into the pillar beneath him, Alger stomped on the ground, creating another larger circle underneath the feet of the soldiers around him.
All of them shook in surprise, feeling the sudden shift in the earth. Alger did a quick spin and moved his hands around, causing the ground below them to turn and spin around. This was enough to cause them all to stumble and fall.
Alger did a quick hop and stomped his feet down, lowering his own platform and lifting up the ground beneath the soldiers. Alger grunted as he raised his arms up, launching the soldiers up into the air. He quickly brought the floor beneath them back to the ground. He then watched as the soldiers all roughly crashed down.
Alger brushed the dirt from his arms as he made his way over to a wagon full of imprisoned earthbenders. He lifted a piece of rock from the ground and used one hand to cut it into a stake. He bent it into the lock and broke it off with a quick earthbending push.
"Thank you, sir." Some of them said as they all climbed out of the back of the prison wagon. Alger worked quickly to break the chains linking their cuffs together so their arms would be freed.
"You're welcome. Please, act quickly to save the others. I must help my friend." Alger said, hurrying back to Sai and mounting him again...
"How are they keeping up with me with all that armor on?!" Elio muttered to himself as he jumped from one rooftop to another. His chest was beginning to tighten; it was getting harder for him to breathe, which would make it harder for him to firebend.
Elio landed on one rooftop and stopped. He turned around and swung his staff as hard as he could, sending out a wild arcing shot of fire. It only hit two soldiers while just slightly slowing down the rest of them. They answered his attack with an onslaught of their own.
"Crap!" Elio exclaimed, moving towards the road. He jumped up into the air and used his firebending to boost himself upwards. As he flew through the air, he twisted his body and used his staff to deflect fireballs that were being shot at him.
However, he was caught off guard by one blast below him that he couldn't have seen. It slammed into his back and set his shawl on fire. Elio shouted out in shock, losing control of his body. He tumbled towards the ground, straining as he tried to find a way to catch himself.
"I got you!" Alger shouted, pulling Sai to a stop. He extended his fingers out and created a slanted platform for Elio to land on. As Elio's back touched the ground, he slid down the platform and onto the ground.
He was covered in dust and dirt, and the fabric of his shawl was partially burned, but other than that, he was fine.
"We'll take it from here, kid." An older man said to Elio.
Elio sat up and watched as a group of earthbenders came to their defense. They marched forward in formation and started attacking the soldiers with determination and rage. As the earthbenders took back more and more of the city, they were able to free more earthbenders that were ready to fight.
Alger walked over to Elio and offered a hand out to him. Elio reached up and took it, getting to his feet with his friend's help. Alger patted a hand on Elio's arm.
"Are you alright?" He asked. Elio nodded.
"Yeah...yeah, I'm good. Winded. Thanks for the save. That might've been it for me if you hadn't been there." Elio acknowledged appreciatively.
"I made you a promise, didn't I?" Alger said with a smile.
The conversation was cut short as suddenly the air around them became stagnant and silent. They looked around them. There were a few moments of silence...followed by a joyous uproar from the people. The Fire Nation had been successfully driven out!
"Looks like we did it after all." Elio said with a nod.
"Looks that way...thank you, Elio." Alger said thoughtfully.
"Thank you both," An earthbender approached them. "Without you, we'd be on our way to a Fire Nation prison camp right now. Please, allow us to treat you. We'll take care of your animal and give you food and shelter." He offered.
"We appreciate it greatly, but perhaps we should keep moving?" Alger guessed, looking at Elio again. However, Elio gave the opposite answer.
"We need to recuperate after this. We'll stay until tomorrow and leave first thing in the morning." Elio decided.
"Then please, allow me to find you somewhere to stay."
So the rest of the day was spent cleaning up the city and getting rid of any traces of the Fire Nation's presence. Elio and Alger were brought to an inn where they were allowed to stay for free. Gifts of clothing and food were delivered to them, and they were allowed to rest peacefully...
"Thank you for this meal," Alger said to a woman who had brought them a home-cooked meal. "We'll take it with us and have it tomorrow." He said with a smile.
"Oh you're welcome! It's the least we could do after all you've done for us...say, is it true that your friend up there is from the Fire Nation?" She asked curiously. Alger nodded slowly.
"Yes, he is. However, I assure you that without him, we wouldn't have-"
"Oh I know," The woman interrupted him. "Please, tell him too that I am very grateful. In fact, could I bring the food to him myself?" She requested.
"Uhh...I'll bring the food to him, but I'll be sure to pass your message along. Thank you, ma'am." Alger answered quickly before retreating upstairs to Elio's room. He knocked on the door before entering.
"You're becoming quite popular around here, Elio. I've had a number of people now ask if they can meet you." Alger said with a chuckle. As he entered, he found Elio sitting on the side of his bed staring down at a piece of paper.
As Alger came into the room, he quickly shoved it under his blankets out of sight.
"Uh! Sorry, what did you say?" He asked. Alger raised an eyebrow at him.
"There was another woman downstairs asking to meet you. She gives you her thanks, and wanted me to bring this to you." Alger explained simply, showing him the plate of food. Elio hummed.
"Wow. Uh, I'll put it with the other one. Maybe we can wrap these up and eat them tomorrow." Elio suggested.
"I was thinking the same thing," Alger said as he set the plate down on Elio's table. He then went and closed the bedroom door. "Do you mind if we talk briefly?" He requested.
"Yeah, sure. Sit down," Elio invited, patting a hand on the bed. "What's on your mind, Alger?" He asked as Alger took a seat next to him.
"Firstly, how are you feeling? How's your back?" He asked.
"Fine. No burns." Elio answered with a nod.
"Good."
"And you? You came through this whole thing pretty intact." Elio commented.
"Well, I've always trained for these sort of situations. And when Ba Sing Se fell, I had to do a lot of fighting – both to get out and helping different towns once I got out." Alger explained. Elio nodded.
"I see...well it came in handy today, for sure."
"As did you. Thank you again, Elio...can I ask you something?"
"Sure. Speak your mind." He answered, getting comfortable. Alger clasped his hands together, turning to face him. He rested his forearms on his knee as he spoke.
"The people of the Earth Kingdom are my people. The Fire Nation is your home, and the soldiers that we fought today are your people...I wonder, is this the reason why you hesitate to fight against them?" Alger asked. Elio tilted his head oddly.
"Are you talking about earlier today when I said we should keep moving?" He asked. Alger nodded.
"I won't be upset if your answer is yes. I would just like to know." He explained. However, Elio shook his head.
"No, it isn't that. Of course I feel a connection to my fellow firebender, but I won't hesitate to set one straight if the need arises. That's just kind of how Fire Nation culture is already. But either way, my focus is on getting to the North Pole.
"It's like I said before, time is of the essence, Alger. Your fight is here, my fight is there. I worry that if I don't get there as soon as possible, they might not have enough time to prepare. Sozin's Comet is coming in just a couple weeks." Elio pointed out.
"I'm aware, and you are right about that. I will make sure that our primary goal is getting you there still, of course. However, I was thinking too..."
"Thinking what? That we should hit more places like this?" Elio asked.
"Actually, yes. At least the ones on the way...I understand your goal, Elio, I do. But I believe there is something that you're forgetting."
"And what's that?"
"The Water Tribe aren't the only ones that need to be ready for this final altercation. You need to be ready as well. You've been in captivity for a month, haven't you? Your skills need to be at their peak." Alger reasoned. Elio thought about this for a moment.
He was definitely back in shape, but was he really at 100%...?
"I see what you mean...I'll consider it." He agreed with a nod.
"Please do. I think it would be a good thing. Anyways, that's all I wanted to say for now. I'll let you rest." Alger said. Elio nodded.
"Okay. Thanks, Alger, for looking out for me. It means a lot." Elio said, offering a fist bump. Alger chuckled a bit as he fist bumped him.
"Of course. Happy to help." He said with a smile.
"Yeah, you really came through today," Elio chuckled. "Especially with carving the Earth Kingdom symbol in the ground. That was a cool touch." He joked. Alger raised an eyebrow in confusion.
"What do you mean? I never did that."
"You weren't the one that made the Earth Kingdom symbol in the street?" Elio asked, "That's what everyone was saying earlier."
"I...perhaps I did it without realizing it?" Alger hummed to himself, thinking back to some of his attacks earlier.
"You were being accidentally patriotic?" Elio joked.
"Hahaha! I guess so!" Alger laughed. After a moment, he cleared his throat and grew serious again, "...hey, Elio?"
"Yeahhh?"
"What is it that you were hiding when I came in?" Alger asked curiously.
"Huh? Oh that! Uh...nothing major really, I was just...well, let me show you." Elio decided. He reached past Alger and slid his hand under his blankets, pulling out the sheet of paper again. He unrolled it in front of Alger to reveal a family portrait.
"Oh I see. May I?" Alger asked politely.
Elio nodded, allowing Alger to take it in his hands. Alger took it gently. Elio watched silently as his eyes scanned over it intently. It was a little bit before he said anything.
"So this is your family, hm? Father, mother, sister."
"Yeah. Yeah, that's them." Elio answered slowly.
"I wasn't aware you had a sister," Alger said with a faint chuckle. "I was an only child."
"Ah yeah, haha. Yeah...I got to see them all when I was in prison, but obviously those weren't pleasant visits. I just...I really miss them. That's the one thing about my old life that I wish I could still have...I hated seeing my family so broken up like that because of me." Elio said with a sad sigh.
"I can't even imagine. I'm sorry you had to go through that, Elio. I hope that one day you'll be able to reconcile. And if not...well, I wish you peace." Alger said before rolling up the paper again and handing it back to Elio.
"Thanks, Alger...I hope so too."
Alger nodded wordlessly. He stood up, leaning over and patting Elio meaningfully on the arm. He then made his way to the bedroom door, "Goodnight, Elio. I'll see you tomorrow morning, first thing."
"See you then. Rest easy, bud." Elio said with a wave.
Alger smiled faintly, nodding one more time before closing the door behind him. Elio looked down at his rolled-up family portrait before putting it back in his pack. He sighed to himself and rolled into bed, laying on his back and staring up at the ceiling.
"I wish you peace...wish you peace..." He quietly repeated to himself under his breath as he pulled his blankets over himself. He turned onto his side and closed his eyes, waiting in the silence to fall asleep...
