Wandering Firebender
Seventy Six: Tragedy & Heartbreak
"Where we headed, Elio?" Sri asked curiously as she followed him through the hallways of the Fire Nation palace.
"Oh, we're gonna do some training. I've heard through the grapevine that you've been working a lot with Suki and the Kyoshi Warriors." He brought up with an amused smile.
"Yeah! Oh man, it's been going so well! They're teaching me a lot."
"Good. I want you to show me." Elio said.
"Oh boy, that's a lot of pressure," Sri said with a chuckle. "Just go easy on me, I'm still learning. Oh! Ty Lee has started teaching me how to chi-block like you do!" She mentioned.
"Oh that's great. You know, she was actually the one who taught me how to do that." He informed her.
"Yeah? That makes sense, yeah. Cool!" She said with a laugh.
The two of them stepped out into the training area on the palace grounds. Elio pulled his staff out of its sleeve and set it down on the ground. Then he gestured for Sri to walk onto the middle of the floor with him. Sri took in a nervous breath, shaking her arms out.
"Relax, Sri. We're not gonna actually fight. Just something of a spar. Hand-to-hand only for now." He said to reassure her. However, Elio's comment piqued Sri's curiosity.
"For now? What do you mean for now?" She asked.
"Well, after these first few missions, I think it's pretty obvious that we really don't know what we might run into going forward. I want to start teaching you how to hold your own against benders. Chi-blocking is good, but we gotta teach you the instinct first. That make sense?" He explained his thinking.
"Yep. Might be a bit of a long shot though, but I'll do my best. Promise." Sri said with a nod and an unsure smile.
"Don't worry. You got this. Now fighting position. Show me what you got." Elio said, getting into a fighting stance.
"Oh, really? Just like that?"
"Yeah. Don't hold back. Just attack." Elio instructed. Sri let out an exhale and got into her fighting stance.
"Whatever you say, captain."
Sri brought her hands up and attacked first, throwing several punches high and low. Elio took a few steps back as he blocked them. He turned and jumped into the air, throwing a kick at Sri's head. She ducked under it and moved forward, pressing her hands into Elio's abdomen and pushing him back.
"Oop! Nice!" Elio commended her before the fight continued.
Elio advanced this time, attacking with several quick punches aimed at her head and chest. Sri reacted fast, deflecting two before moving to the side. She lifted her knee into Elio's stomach and grabbed his arm, dropping down and flipping him onto his back.
Sri twisted and got up to one knee, trying to lock Elio into an armbar. However, Elio rolled backwards and pulled Sri towards him, raising his fist as if to punch her. Sri put her feet on his shoulders and kicked him back. Elio stumbled back and got to his feet. Sri quickly did the same.
"Woo! Not bad, Sri! Your reaction time is really good!" Elio said approvingly.
"Thanks! I'm just tryna hold my...watch out!" Sri shouted, pointing behind him.
Elio started to turn around just in time to catch a fireball to the back of his left shoulder. He cried out in pain as he was knocked to the ground. Sri's eyes widened, seeing an older man in plain clothes stomping onto the training grounds.
"Elio! Time to answer for your crimes!" The man yelled, throwing another fireball at him while he was down.
"Elio!" Sri shouted, immediately moving towards him. Elio turned and brought his hand up, stopping the fireball. The wild flames shot behind him, nearly burning Sri's face. She shrieked in surprise.
"Keep your distance, Sri!" Elio shouted as he got to his feet.
"What did you have to do to become a captain? You should still be in prison, you traitor! I'll put you in the ground for what you did to my son!" The man yelled at Elio before throwing several more wild, angry fireballs at him.
Elio took in a deep breath, stopping each one with his hands. He winced painfully, feeling the burning sting in his shoulder radiating through his arm and his back. More painful still, was that he had to face this man.
"I'm sorry for what happened! Truly! If I could take it back, I would!" Elio said.
"We'll be even when you're dead!" The man spat at him, approaching him and throwing a fiery uppercut.
Elio leaned back, feeling the heat of the fire licking at his face. He moved out of the way and threw a fire kick at his side. The man caught his leg and headbutted him in the face. Elio groaned in pain as he slipped onto his back.
"Stop!" Sri yelled, coming to Elio's defense.
As the man prepared to throw a fire punch down at Elio, she stepped in and kicked his hand away. She punched him across the face with her left hand, making him stumble to the side. She threw another punch, but this time the man stopped it by grabbing onto her forearm.
Immediately, Sri felt a searing sharp pain worse than anything she's ever felt before. She screamed out several times as the man burned her arm through her sleeve. She gritted her teeth and, with her free hand, jabbed at his arm several times.
The man yelled out and stepped back, now unable to move his arm. He tried to move it with no success. He growled angrily and brought up his other hand to attack, but Elio shot a fireball out of his foot that hit the man in the face and knocked him onto his back.
Hearing the struggling and Sri's screams, several guards that were stationed nearby came running over. They immediately seized the older man, grabbing his arms and legs to keep him from firebending again. He yelled at Elio as they dragged him away.
"You deserve to die, Elio! You killed my son! I'll never see my boy again because of you!" He spat angrily before he disappeared.
Elio stood up slowly, a solemn look in his eyes as he watched the man be taken away. However, his attention was immediately torn away when he heard Sri seething in pain while clutching her arm.
"Oh god, it hurtsss." She hissed, tears welling up in her eyes. Elio put a hand on her back and right away urged her towards the palace.
"We need to get you healed up. I'll take you to the doctors a-and find Cindra." He said, leading the way inside urgently.
"Yes. Please. Hurry." She spoke in short sentences, breathing in and out rapidly through her mouth to fight her way through the pain.
"Hey, you! Call Cindra and tell her to meet us in the medical bay! She needs to get her arm treated now!" Elio called to one of the guards inside.
"Who was that guy, Elio?" Sri asked.
"H-Huh? What?"
"Who was the guy that attacked us?" She asked louder.
"Remember Cassian?" Elio asked. There was a momentary pause; Sri looked up at Elio.
"His father?" She guessed.
"Adopted. The one who raised him, yeah." He confirmed with a nod...
"How is Sri doing?" Zuko asked, standing with Elio just outside of the medical bay.
"She's okay. Cindra's in there with her now doing some healing on her. She'll have a nasty scar, but at least she still has her arm." Elio answered.
"Good. This should never have happened. I'm sorry, Elio."
"It's not your fault. I just wanna know how the hell he got in here in the middle of the day." Elio said irritably.
"I'm looking into that, believe me. My best guess right now? He's a retired commander, you know this. He probably used his pull so the guards would let him in." Zuko speculated.
"Whatever. Just find who's responsible and make sure they pay for this." Elio said bitterly.
"They will, you have my word on that. I'll let you be with her, Elio. I had a mission prepared for you, but I'll hand it off to another team." Zuko said.
"Is it important?" Elio asked.
"It's always important when I send you to handle it." Zuko answered in reply. Elio let out a sigh.
"Once Sri is healed, if she's up to it, we'll take it." He reluctantly decided.
"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Zuko asked.
"Doesn't matter. It's what we're supposed to do, right?" Elio asked rhetorically before going back into the medical bay to check on Sri's progress.
Sri was sitting up on a cot. Cindra sat by her side, enveloping Sri's arm in water and doing her best to heal the burns. Sri was doing her best to stifle back any indications that she was in pain, but he could see in her face how uncomfortable she felt.
Cindra and Sri both looked in Elio's direction as he walked in, sitting down on the cot right by Sri, "How's it looking?" He asked Cindra, glancing down at her hands that were still at work healing Sri's arm. The water she was bending cast a soft whitish glow, so he was unable to see her arm.
"It'll take time for the skin to heal fully. She'll have a rough patch right around here, where that guy grabbed her. But other than that, she's okay." Cindra explained. She pointed her finger at Sri's arm; the water stopped glowing. She traced her finger around the circular area on Sri's forearm where she'd been burned.
"it's not as bad as I thought it would be - still feels really tingly though." Sri commented, retracting her arm and looking down at it. She started to bring her other hand up to touch the scarred area, but Cindra quickly stopped her.
"Hold on. It needs to be wrapped up. Just leave it alone for now. I'll be right back." She instructed before getting up to grab what she needed. Sri sighed and looked down at her arm again. Elio twisted his body the other way to face Sri.
"Guess you were right about the whole bender thing." She said.
"I'm sorry, Sri. I didn't see him coming. I should have seen him." Elio apologized.
"It's okay, Elio. I didn't see him either. I'm just glad I still have my arm."
"Yeah, me too...I just spoke with Fire Lord Zuko. He has an assignment for us. I think I'm going to pass it along to another crew." He informed her. Sri looked up at him with furrowed eyebrows.
"Why?"
"Right now we need to focus on your recovery and getting you built back up." He explained.
"If you've got a mission, go and do it. I'll stay behind this time."
"You're not staying behind, Sri."
"But you just said-"
"You're a part of my team, Sri. We need you. So either we all go or none of us go." Elio said firmly, reaching up and putting a hand on her cheek. They locked eyes. She wanted to protest, but it didn't seem like an argument she would win. Cindra stood to the side and waited for her decision.
"Okay, fine...let Cindra get my arm wrapped up. I'll help with the navigation like usual - that's all I can off er right now. I'll hang back after we touch down. Is that good enough?" Sri asked. Elio nodded, pulling his hand away and standing up.
"Yeah. I'll talk to Zuko. We'll probably have to leave soon. Cindra, can you stay with her and help her get her things together?" Elio requested.
"Of course. I was going to anyway. What about you?" She asked him. Elio just shook his head a little.
"I gotta go figure out what just happened." He muttered as he started walking towards the door. As he was exiting the room, he reached back and noticed that one of his belongings was missing.
"Are you okay, Elio?" Cindra asked, watching him worriedly.
"I will be when I figure out where my frickin' staff went." Elio answered her shortly, stepping out and letting the door shut behind him.
"So much for my training." Sri muttered, laying back on her cot and sighing. She rested her good hand behind her head, letting Cindra wrap her forearm in bandaging.
"I thought you helped fight that maniac off." Cindra pointed out.
"Yeah, but I still let myself get vulnerable. I still needed Elio to save me," Sri argued. "I'm sick of not being able to fend for myself like you guys do." She griped.
"Come on, Sri. You know that's not a fair comparison to make." Cindra tried to calmly reason with her.
"Well it should be," Sri sighed again. "I'm just frustrated."
"I understand...hey, once your arm is feeling better, why don't we train some more with Elio and the Kyoshi Warriors together?" Cindra offered.
"...okay." Sri quietly agreed.
"We're all a team here, Sri. We do our best to help each other. We'll do our best to help you. Then this won't happen again."
"Yeah, sounds good." Sri nodded and stared up at the ceiling.
Elio, after exiting the medical bay, made his way back outside onto the training grounds. He could still see the signs of the altercation that had taken place earlier that morning: burnt grass around the floor that was now covered in blackened scorch marks.
There was his staff laying on the edge of the training floor.
Elio walked up to it and scooped it from the ground with one hand. As he made his way towards the walkway around the training floor, he passed over all of the burn marks. In his mind, he was replaying what happened; he was trying to figure out what he could have done to win the fight faster...
If only he had done this or done that, then the fight would have ended sooner and Sri wouldn't have gotten hurt.
Elio suddenly grabbed his staff with both hands and roared as he swung it against the nearest metal pole holding up the balcony above the walkway. The staff bounced off of it with an ugly clang. The impact caused both the balcony and his staff to reverberate.
As Elio pulled his staff back, he saw that there was now a slight dent in it where it had struck the pole. In fact, it was now slightly bent in that area. Elio muttered a curse under his breath and quietly walked away.
He made his way towards the inner chambers of the Fire Nation palace. There, he crossed paths with Zuko again, who was speaking to one of the men in charge of organizing the palace guards. Elio approached the pair, keeping his gaze focused squarely on Zuko.
"Captain Elio. Is everything alright?" Zuko asked.
"Yes, sir. I've spoken with Sri and she's doing well. Under your orders, I'll start preparing my ship for departure. You still have that mission for us?" Elio asked.
"Yes. Give us a minute," Zuko said to the soldier he was previously speaking with. He put a hand on Elio's arm and they took a few steps away to talk privately.
"I'm glad Sri is okay." He said first and foremost.
"Yes, sir, me too. She'll have a scar on her forearm, but all things considered, she came out pretty lucky." Elio said honestly.
"I see. I also want you to know that Commander Itawa is detained right now; he will be prosecuted for his actions." Zuko informed him.
"Good," Elio said with a nod. "He crossed a line. He should be hit with a suitable punishment." He stated. Zuko paused before speaking again.
"If you really feel you're up for this mission, I'll go ahead and give you the briefing."
"Yes...the work we're doing is too important to slow down because of one person's ignorant actions. I'm ready, sir." Elio stated, standing up straight. Zuko nodded and began:
"A squadron of insurgent Fire Nation soldiers are gathering weapons and tanks leftover from the war. We're not sure what their target is, but whatever it is, it obviously hasn't been sanctioned by me. They're hiding deep in an Earth Kingdom forest somewhere northeast of Gaoling.
"Your mission is to find them and break up their operation." Zuko summarized.
"I see...and when we find them, what if they do turn out to be rebelling?" Elio asked.
"Then round them up and bring them back as criminals. I'll amass extra soldiers for your crew so you'll be able to handle them all. I'll also be sending our friend Toph Beifong along with you just as added insurance."
"I'll need it. Have the written report taken to my quarters too, please. When do we leave?" Elio asked.
"At this point, it would be best for you to leave after sundown. That'll give you some time to make sure everything's prepared." He recommended.
"Perfect. I'll pass it along. I'll also need to leave the palace grounds briefly before we depart." Elio informed him.
"For what?" Zuko asked.
"To pay my respects." Elio answered shortly, making eye contact with Zuko. After a few moments of silence between them, Zuko nodded in understanding.
"Alright. I'll send for you to be taken there and back." Zuko decided.
"If you insist." Elio agreed with a shrug...
So, in Elio's absence, the wheels were set in motion to prepare his ship for its next flight. It wasn't long before Cindra, Sri, and Alger were informed about the time of departure. Cindra helped Sri get her stuff and then gathered her own things.
They bumped into Alger in the hallway where all of their rooms were.
"Hey. I heard about what happened," Alger said as soon as he saw Sri. He dropped his bag and walked up to her, wrapping his arms around her and hugging her. "Thank goodness you're alright."
"Thanks, Alger," Sri said appreciatively as she hugged him back. "It could have been way, way worse. I'll just have to keep my arm wrapped up the next few days." She said, letting him go and then lifting her arm up to show him the bandages.
"Is it bad?" He asked, gently bringing his hand under her arm and looking it over.
"It looks a lot better than it did a little while ago. I have the doctors and Cindra's healing to thank for that." She said, looking at Cindra appreciatively.
"You're welcome. It's one of the reasons I'm here after all." Cindra said with a little chuckle.
"Speaking of which, where is Elio? He doesn't seem to be here." Alger noticed.
"Umm," Cindra looked around. "I thought he'd be here already. You haven't seen him?"
"No. He hasn't come by either. I'll see if I can find him." Alger decided, beginning to make his way out.
"I don't know if that's a good idea, Alger. Elio seemed pretty upset last time we saw him. He probably wants to be left alone right now." Sri pointed out. Alger thought about this for a moment.
"Hmm...I'll find him. It won't be long." He said before exiting the airship. Cindra and Sri looked at each other but said nothing else about it.
Alger made his way back into the Fire Nation palace. He went straight for Elio's room first. He knocked on the door and waited for Elio to answer...but no answer came. Alger looked around, wondering where to look next. That's when Zuko came walking by.
"Fire Lord Zuko. May I speak with you?" Alger requested.
"Of course. Is it about Elio?" Zuko guessed.
"Yes. I'm looking for him."
"He's not here. He asked to leave the palace grounds. But he'll be back in time for your ship to take off." Zuko reassured him. However, this didn't put Alger's mind at ease in the slightest.
"Where has he gone?" He asked.
"I'm not sure if he would like me to say."
"Please. Tell me where I can find him." Alger insisted. Zuko sighed and nodded.
"He's gone to the Capital City Cemetery." He finally said...
It took Alger a while to find it, but he knew he was in the right place when he saw the royal chariot parked just outside the front gate of the cemetery. Alger took a moment to fix his clothes before stepping inside. He found Elio sitting on the ground in front of one of the tombstones.
"Elio." Alger called to him. Elio glanced over his shoulder and raised his hand up, gesturing for Alger to come over. He quietly approached and read over the engraved name:
Cassian Itawa
"How'd you find this place?" Elio asked, looking ahead again.
"The Fire Lord pointed me in the right direction. When I heard you had gone, I figured you needed some company." Alger said, walking up next to Elio and sitting on the ground next to him. Elio nodded quietly and clasped his hands together.
"My mind's been racing all day since what his father did. I can't get his words out of my head...he was such a great man. I had so much respect for him. Why did he do that?" Elio wondered aloud, shaking his head at the thought of it.
"Tragedy and heartbreak affects every person differently. When I lost my parents, I buried myself in books and dedicated my life to training. It got to the point where my only interactions with people outside my household were through combat.
"When you lose someone, if it doesn't break you, it feels like you spend the rest of your life trying to get stronger than you were, because you don't want it to happen again. In some strange way, it feels like if you just worked hard enough, you could almost reach out and take them back...
"Now, I don't know this man or his son, but from what I can gather, he must've been very proud of Cassian." Alger reasoned. Elio sighed and nodded his head.
"Cassian was the son he always wanted but could never have...he told me once about the day he found him. Cassian was just this ruddy little blonde kid, barely a toddler, all by himself. No one would take him in because he was a firebender.
"We still don't know who his biological parents were. But Commander Itawa and his wife took him in and raised him, instilled all our Fire Nation values in him. He was Fire Nation through and through; as far as Cassian was concerned, he owed his life to the Fire Nation because they had given him a chance to live."
"That's...actually beautiful." Alger said quietly.
"It was...until I took it all away," Elio muttered under his breath bitterly. "Look at this. He's not even actually buried here. His body rotted at the bottom of some lake next to Full Moon Bay. It's all just so...empty...all because of what I did."
"From what I understand, Cassian didn't give you much of a choice." Alger said.
"Maybe," Elio sighed, laying his head down in his hands. "But I could have tried harder. I-If I had just chi-blocked him or tried harder to reason with him; anything to save his life and everyone else's. There had to have been some other way, right?
"If he'd gotten the chance to see how things have changed, I know he would've understood what I was trying to tell him then. He'd be here now. I would've...I would've been able to finally make peace with him." Elio said, beginning to get choked up on his words.
"Do you really think you two would have been able to resolve your differences?"
"Of course we would have. He was my brother; we loved each other like family. He probably would have been a part of my crew. I would've pushed for that. Then we'd be serving together, just like he always wanted..." Elio's expression became distant after saying that, as if the realization had just hit him in that moment.
"I'm really sorry, Elio," Alger said, rubbing his back. "There's not much else I can offer you, but I'm here for you when you need it." He said.
"Thanks...I'm glad we're friends, Alger. I really appreciative what you've done for me." Elio said while staring down at the ground.
"Me too...you know, I think you would've liked Cassian."
"Perhaps I would have," Alger said, wrapping an arm around Elio's shoulders. "Before we return, you need to let out those emotions you're holding in." He recommended.
"I don't think that's a good idea right now," Elio shook his head. "I still have to make sure the ship is ready for our flight. I need to stay strong just a little longer until I handle my responsibilities. Not yet. Just a little more." Elio fought back his tears, taking in a few deep breaths.
"It'll get done. But you need to let go. It's eating you up inside; you can't let it go on any longer. Let it go. Once you've gone through these feelings, only then will you be able to start on the path of forgiving yourself." Alger insisted.
"I can't...I can't..." Elio gritted his teeth, growling painfully as tears started to fall from his eyes forcefully. Alger scooted in closer and rubbed his shoulder.
"Just give it time," Alger said quietly. "It'll come."
Finally, Elio gave way to bitter tears, crying and weeping without restraint...