Chapter Six:

I jerked to the side and dodged a fireblast from Yao. "Good" he remarked.

A few more blasts came and and I dodged each one with Yao complimenting each time. I pulled up some water and shot it at Yao. He dodged and the shot barely missed him. "Nice shot" he said. "I think that's enough for now."

"Thanks"

We put down our equipment and sat down on some chairs.

"Hey look at this guys." I said as I showed Kaze, Tetsu, and Yao a poster. "There is group called the New Equalists. 'When you find yourself menaced by a bender.' I read 'You can't guarantee one will come to your aid. Join the New Equalists to learn to use Self Defense Equipment. We offer lessons and equipment at a sliding scale based off income.'"

"That sounds interesting." said Kaze.

"Really?" replied Yao. "We don't want another revolution."

"Non-Benders should have the right to defend themselves." said Tetsu.

Yao sneered in contempt. "Yeah but once they have the ability to fight for themselves then they go after us."

Kaze looked closely at the poster. "Maybe we can visit them." she suggested.

Yao threw up his laughed. "You really want to visit them. Are you that dumb."

"It's not dumb." I complained. "I really think we should check them out."

"Well if you want to then go ahead, I can't stop you." Yao sighed. "I'll be here practicing my techniques."

We walked over to the address on the poster. It was an unassuming storefront building. "This is it." I said.

We walked in to find a medium sized room with a padded floor and mirrors on the walls. Two men approached us. "Welcome to the New Equalists." said one of them. "I am Takumi, the head instructor, and this is my assistant Akio. "

I shook Takumi's hand. "I am Arata and this is Kaze and Tetsu. We came to check the place out."

"I don't see what benders would want here. Of course if you want to spar with my students go ahead." He handed me a thick padded vest.

I looked around the room for someone to spar with. I noticed a girl practicing Chi-Blocking on a training dummy while a younger boy watched. She was tall with light brown hair in a ponytail.

I walked slowly over to her and watched in amazement. She moved with incredible agility and grace. She threw rapid punches, each one connecting with the Chi Points represented by red dots. Her face radiated with confidence and her eyes were squinted in a determined glare.

When the girl finished I reached out my hand to her. "My name is Arata. I am a pro bender."

"Name's Sela." she replied. "This is my brother Genji." she added as she motioned to the boy."

"Hi Arata"

"So what would a pro bender be doing here?" Sela asked.

"I came to check the place out, and your instructor told me that I could spar with some of you."

"You think you can take me on?!"

I lifted my hands up to prepare to bend. "Yeah." I said.

"Think again" she replied as she threw a bola.

Before I could think the bola was wrapping itself around my arms. I pulled against the rope but they didn't budge at all. Sela jumped over to me and punched me in the gut.

There was a sudden feeling of numbness in my torso. Three more rapid punches connected and I fell to the ground feeling like a lump of wax. Even with the vest, I still felt sore. "Get up you dumb lug." Sela complained.

I tried to get up but it was no use. My hands were tied and I had no feeling in most of my body. "Ugggh" I groaned.

Sela knelt down and picked me up. She put her arm around my shoulder and carried me to some chairs.

Takumi turned towards us. "No sparing between genders." he barked.

"I can spar with who I want." Sela complained.

"Sela, it's part of the rules." Genji said.

"You need to listen to him." Akio added.

"Alright" Sela grunted.

Sela shoved me onto a chair, and walked over and unwrapped the Bola from my wrists. She sat down next to me. "So what kind of Bender are you?" she asked.

"I'm a..." I tried to say.

"...He's the Avatar." Kaze interrupted.

Sela broke into a laugh. "So the Avatar, supposed to be the best bender in world, went down that easy!" she exclaimed.

"Yes" I grumbled.

"Yeah" added Genji "It is kinda funny."

Sela turned around and glared at Genji in anger "Shut up!" she growled.

"Wait a second" I said. "You didn't know I was the Avatar?"

"Yeah" Sela replied.

"Well then you must have known Tetsu here?"

Sela starred in confusion. "Huh?"

"Because he is the only one capable of creating such a big rock to hide under for you to not know I'm the Avatar. C'mon it was on TV at the Pro-Bending tournament."

"Yeah" added Kaze "It was..."

"...Quiet!" I interrupted. "So why don't you know I'm the Avatar." I said to Sela

"I don't watch Pro-Bending matches." she replied.

"Ok, suit yourself."

I walked over to Takumi, with my senses returning. "I didn't mean to break rules, but you could have explained them to me." I said.

"I'm sorry I forgot to." he replied.

"Still, I'm still available to spar with your students."

"Oh yes, right this way."

I followed Takumi into his office and he pulled out a piece of paper. "Here is a contract." he said. "It details hours, works days, and pay. It can be negotiated with."

I held the contract up and scanned it. "I think this looks good, but I might have to adjust it around Pro-Bending matches and practice." I sad. "I also want to spar with a few more students. Are they all as good as Sela?"

"Sela is one of my best students, I just wish she was a little more respectful. I don't think most of my students will give you as much trouble as she did."