He breathed out, sinking into a low stance, spreading his right arm out in front of him and letting his left arm stretch out behind him.
He breathed in, relaxing all the tension in his muscles, planting the balls of his feet firmly on the ground.
Then, he erupted.
With a roar, he sprung skyward, left foot leading into a leaping tuck as he lauched off the right foot, hands chambering together as he spun.
Flames erupted around that tucked left heel, even as he swung the leg out and around.
Wreathed in fire, that spinning axe kick struck the ground.
I I I
A magnificent man with broad shoulders and a shining dome for a head stands before the podium in a sharp black uniform.
"For too long," he began, "have we spacenoids been constrained by the common sense of the ENA."
I I I
Compared to that lanky guy with long moves, his opponent is short and thin, with a tight form.
So, when that axe kick came down, he did not evade more than the centimeters needed to avoid the blow. And, with a hand sweeping down, he pushed the flames away.
The other hand shot forward in a straight punch, bellowing flames.
The tall one ducked, going from a soaring axe-kick to a stooping long stance, even as he grabbed at that stretched-out hand and twisted into an over-the-shoulder throw.
I I I
A fist in a white glove above that raised black sleeve. "Centuries ago, the Elemental Nations unified all bending, all people, beneath a single flag. They spoke of balance, of peace for the whole world. And I say, no!"
I I I
Rather than resist the shoulder throw, the short one jumped, placing his free hand on the throwing shoulder, leaping to balance over his opponents head.
And when that tall guy looked up, he saw--
Underneath those too-long bangs of hair like seaweed, that other guy was ready to breath fire.
With a might sigh, the tall guy surrendered, simply saying, "I yield."
With a quick twist, the short guy landed, stood straight, and corrected his athletic uniform.
"You're winning more than you're losing.�" The tall guy praised.
"Only against you, Solin. If I was against Dina...." He trailed off, shaking his head.
The tall guy--Solin--chuckled. "Hey, you just said something kinda rude, you know? And anyway, Dina is the best firebender in the entire Academy. She's a so-called, once-in-a-generation genius. Even if you lose eight out of ten matches, that you're trying to compete on that level is already good enough."
The short guy shrugged, helplessly. "It's something that's necessary, that's all."
Solin chuckled. "That's your problem! No passion. Your spirit is thin, there's no fuel for your fire."
The short one flinched, slightly. "Just because I don't use as many exclamation marks when I talk doesn't mean I'm passionless."
Solin grinned. "Then, what makes the cold heart of Logus catch fire, huh?"
The short one--Logus--scowled. "Well... I want to study bending."
I I I
With a curt nod, the squad leader indicated the go signal.
Carefully, delicately, the special forces earthbender bent the air lock doors open, and the strike team slid inside.
I I I
Solin rubbed his chin. "Isn't 'studying bending' like half the Academy curriculum already?"
Logus shook his head. "Not just--not just, how to firebend. My dream is to become a scientist studying the phenomena called 'bending' as a whole."
Solin grew quiet. "The Baron wants to restore the purity of Firebending, though."
"...I know." Logus quietly said.
"Ahhh! That's too heavy!" Solin said, flipping around. "Let's go tease Dina!"
I I I
"We are not of that world, we spacenoids. The balance they speak of is the stillness of the grave. A bright future awaits us! Here in our Sides, an eternal noon illuminates our Firebending!"
I I I
"Why do you do this when the same thing always happens?" Logus said, carefully smearing burn-cream around the piece of coldpack pressed over Solin's blackeye.
"I always fight seriously." With a motion like an empress, she flipped her hair over her shoulder. "That's my motto."
"I wasn't talking to you, Dina." Logus coldly rejoined.
Solin winced.
Logus frowned. "Are you okay?"
"That's not really what made me wince," Solin responded, glancing at the girl over Logus' shoulder. "But, to answer your question, it's because, despite being such a genius, I'm always amazed that Dina never learns to cover her weak points."
Dina crossed her arms, and scowled at the sky. "What do you mean!? You didn't even score one point on me in the whole match!"
"That's not really what I was talking about..." Solin sighed. Then, he decided it would be wise to change the topic. "So, did either of you watch the speech last night?"
I I I
"The balance of elements has grown complacent! Rather than firmly standing, the elements are lazing in the mud of the ground! But, for us who have climbed out of the gravity well, their common sense is not our common sense! The elements must be separated among the sides and purified to their old strengths!"
I I I
"I had to practice." Dina replied.
"No." Logus didn't even elaborate.
This time, Solin's sigh sounded more put-upon. "This is why I have to explain everything to you."
"You're the one that wanted us to call you Mr. Exposition." Logus responded without hesitating.
"Just say whatever it is you wish to say." Dina half-way demanded.
Solin grunted, and leaned back because Logus had finished applying the burn cream.
"Baron Azo gave another bombastic speech." Solin said. "Claiming Spacenoid independence from the Elemental Nation Alliance. Said that ENA didn't have the interest of spacenoids at heart."
Logus paused, looking over his shoulder at Dina.
With a heavy sigh, Solin nodded. "Yeah... it looks like war is coming."
I I I
With an amazed stare, the team leader swore.
"This..." He turned, snarling. "This is much worse than we expected!"
But, before he could issue more orders, a shot was fired. He turned, so rather than his neck, it went into his upper arm.
"Call for backup!" He commanded. "We absolutely must destroy this facility!"
I I I
"Zike Zulon!" That white hand was a spear in the darkness.
With a wild cheer, the thousand gathered throats shouted back.
"Zike Zulon! Zike Zulon! Zike Zulon!"
I I I
Solin grunted, breaking the silence he himself had started. "Listen, it's getting late... I'll see you guys in class tomorrow, alright?"
Dina formally agreed, and Logus just nodded.
Dina delicately cleared her throat. "Logus... would you like me to accompany you home?"
Logus considered. "No."
Having said his piece, he turned and walked away.
"Inconsiderate." Dina muttered to herself.
I I I
"They're a civilian side." The XO warned.
The captain sighed. "Even if we could even consider the Zulon capital civilian, the battlefield intelligence from that factory indicates no, they are absolutely not civilian." He turned to face his executive officer. "So, once again, my orders are... attack."
I I I
Beams flared.
Smoke spiraled up along the turn of the Side.
Marked with the White Lotus insignia of the ENA, pseudoarmored frames had emerged from the vacuum of space.
Logus stared.
PsuedoArmored Frames--PAFs--the central weapon of the current technological era.
A weapon that synchronized its software with the spirit and innate bending ability of the pilot to move according to their imagination. Broadly speaking, a tank attached to the nervous system of the operator. Because they responded to how the pilot imagined them moving, naturally they had to be humanoid.
The difficulties and complexities of that shape were swept away by the pseudobending they were based on.
Logus had never seen real ones before--
A beam arced past him, and shattered the ground beside him. Instinctively, he bent the heat from about his body. All that would do was prevent him from getting cooked by the residual, but not getting cooked was important.
A great roar of air opened beside him.
Even though he was on the innermost layer of the side--
Whatever was inside the compartment below him had already been targeted. The deck below him was breached.
Logus was relentlessly sucked towards the void.
I I I
Aznali laughed, dodging the ENA beam. Her beautiful red PAF responded with unnatural speed, moving like lightning to avoid the attack and close.
Moving like lightning--for a genius firebender like the princess of the Zulon Barony Family, synchronizing with the electrical signals inside the PAF, not just pseudobending--moving at the electrical speed of thought was certainly possible.
With that laugh, she darted down and in, drawing out the heatsaber, guiding the shape of the blade with her own instinct, and slashing outward to gut the enemy PAF, boiling the pilot in an instant.
I I I
Logus breathed out. He did not try to keep the air in his lungs--that was impossible. One of the first lessons in emergency space operations. So he allowed the air to be pulled from his lungs, and tried to push himself towards the wall with the miserable flame he could produce.
But... it wasn't enough. He couldn't breathe.
Floating amongst the wreckage of this place, he was going to die. Twisted hunks of bulkhead, smashed furniture, whipping shreds of paper like show fluttering about in this vacuum, a white PAF floating like a cold corpse, and the dirt and rubble that had been sucked out along side him... spinning towards space, Logus desperately wished he could breath.
Air gathered, and he gasped.
When he lost his concentration, it grew thin, and his head began to pound.
With tears in his eyes, he desperately just... pulled all the air towards him.
He was airbending. But he was a firebender. That meant--
The air wavered. He needed to focus. Like Dina said... "set down complicated thoughts until you have won the match." He needed to live first.
So, Logus gathered the air, and pushed himself--
He couldn't get back inside.
But that white PAF--
He approached the cockpit.
He keyed the door. It opened, and he threw himself inside.
The door clicked shut--it sounded thin and unnatural through the air he was pulling around him like a cloak, but more than that, he felt the solid click of the cockpit door up through his gripping hands.
He relaxed, and went limp, drifting as air rushed into the cabin from the PAF reserves.
That air had that stale, musty smell of air that had been sealed in a can for too long. It was the sweetest air Logus had ever tasted.
A great shiver went up his body.
"I'm... the Avatar." He whispered.
It matched. The last Avatar had died not too long before he'd been born.
But... everyone had thought the Avatar would be reborn on the world, just like every Avatar had ever been. The spirit realm was very thin across Space... the Colonies were practically island worlds. It had not been thought the Avatar could transmigrate across the spatial gulfs.
An alarm claxon sounded.
Logus looked up, startled.
When he'd entered, the PAF had automatically started up. The life support system had come online with the entire suit.
Which meant, he was in a live tank on a battlefield.
So, naturally, he became an enemy target.
The warning claxon--he was targeted.
Without thinking, Logus twisted, and threw himself into the seat, desperately wrestling with the harness.
The Zulon First District Military Academy... but he'd never piloted a PAF outside the introductory exercises. His talent had been low, the synchronization between his firebending and the PAF had been too low. Perhaps because he was the Avatar--!?
No, think about winning.
Logus grabbed the hand controls, toggled the cameras--
Incoming missiles.
The boosters warmed up. Evasive maneuvers began.
The white PAF was no longer a corpse. It was reborn onto the battlefield.
He breathed in, relaxing all the tension in his muscles, planting the balls of his feet firmly on the ground.
Then, he erupted.
With a roar, he sprung skyward, left foot leading into a leaping tuck as he lauched off the right foot, hands chambering together as he spun.
Flames erupted around that tucked left heel, even as he swung the leg out and around.
Wreathed in fire, that spinning axe kick struck the ground.
I I I
A magnificent man with broad shoulders and a shining dome for a head stands before the podium in a sharp black uniform.
"For too long," he began, "have we spacenoids been constrained by the common sense of the ENA."
I I I
Compared to that lanky guy with long moves, his opponent is short and thin, with a tight form.
So, when that axe kick came down, he did not evade more than the centimeters needed to avoid the blow. And, with a hand sweeping down, he pushed the flames away.
The other hand shot forward in a straight punch, bellowing flames.
The tall one ducked, going from a soaring axe-kick to a stooping long stance, even as he grabbed at that stretched-out hand and twisted into an over-the-shoulder throw.
I I I
A fist in a white glove above that raised black sleeve. "Centuries ago, the Elemental Nations unified all bending, all people, beneath a single flag. They spoke of balance, of peace for the whole world. And I say, no!"
I I I
Rather than resist the shoulder throw, the short one jumped, placing his free hand on the throwing shoulder, leaping to balance over his opponents head.
And when that tall guy looked up, he saw--
Underneath those too-long bangs of hair like seaweed, that other guy was ready to breath fire.
With a might sigh, the tall guy surrendered, simply saying, "I yield."
With a quick twist, the short guy landed, stood straight, and corrected his athletic uniform.
"You're winning more than you're losing.�" The tall guy praised.
"Only against you, Solin. If I was against Dina...." He trailed off, shaking his head.
The tall guy--Solin--chuckled. "Hey, you just said something kinda rude, you know? And anyway, Dina is the best firebender in the entire Academy. She's a so-called, once-in-a-generation genius. Even if you lose eight out of ten matches, that you're trying to compete on that level is already good enough."
The short guy shrugged, helplessly. "It's something that's necessary, that's all."
Solin chuckled. "That's your problem! No passion. Your spirit is thin, there's no fuel for your fire."
The short one flinched, slightly. "Just because I don't use as many exclamation marks when I talk doesn't mean I'm passionless."
Solin grinned. "Then, what makes the cold heart of Logus catch fire, huh?"
The short one--Logus--scowled. "Well... I want to study bending."
I I I
With a curt nod, the squad leader indicated the go signal.
Carefully, delicately, the special forces earthbender bent the air lock doors open, and the strike team slid inside.
I I I
Solin rubbed his chin. "Isn't 'studying bending' like half the Academy curriculum already?"
Logus shook his head. "Not just--not just, how to firebend. My dream is to become a scientist studying the phenomena called 'bending' as a whole."
Solin grew quiet. "The Baron wants to restore the purity of Firebending, though."
"...I know." Logus quietly said.
"Ahhh! That's too heavy!" Solin said, flipping around. "Let's go tease Dina!"
I I I
"We are not of that world, we spacenoids. The balance they speak of is the stillness of the grave. A bright future awaits us! Here in our Sides, an eternal noon illuminates our Firebending!"
I I I
"Why do you do this when the same thing always happens?" Logus said, carefully smearing burn-cream around the piece of coldpack pressed over Solin's blackeye.
"I always fight seriously." With a motion like an empress, she flipped her hair over her shoulder. "That's my motto."
"I wasn't talking to you, Dina." Logus coldly rejoined.
Solin winced.
Logus frowned. "Are you okay?"
"That's not really what made me wince," Solin responded, glancing at the girl over Logus' shoulder. "But, to answer your question, it's because, despite being such a genius, I'm always amazed that Dina never learns to cover her weak points."
Dina crossed her arms, and scowled at the sky. "What do you mean!? You didn't even score one point on me in the whole match!"
"That's not really what I was talking about..." Solin sighed. Then, he decided it would be wise to change the topic. "So, did either of you watch the speech last night?"
I I I
"The balance of elements has grown complacent! Rather than firmly standing, the elements are lazing in the mud of the ground! But, for us who have climbed out of the gravity well, their common sense is not our common sense! The elements must be separated among the sides and purified to their old strengths!"
I I I
"I had to practice." Dina replied.
"No." Logus didn't even elaborate.
This time, Solin's sigh sounded more put-upon. "This is why I have to explain everything to you."
"You're the one that wanted us to call you Mr. Exposition." Logus responded without hesitating.
"Just say whatever it is you wish to say." Dina half-way demanded.
Solin grunted, and leaned back because Logus had finished applying the burn cream.
"Baron Azo gave another bombastic speech." Solin said. "Claiming Spacenoid independence from the Elemental Nation Alliance. Said that ENA didn't have the interest of spacenoids at heart."
Logus paused, looking over his shoulder at Dina.
With a heavy sigh, Solin nodded. "Yeah... it looks like war is coming."
I I I
With an amazed stare, the team leader swore.
"This..." He turned, snarling. "This is much worse than we expected!"
But, before he could issue more orders, a shot was fired. He turned, so rather than his neck, it went into his upper arm.
"Call for backup!" He commanded. "We absolutely must destroy this facility!"
I I I
"Zike Zulon!" That white hand was a spear in the darkness.
With a wild cheer, the thousand gathered throats shouted back.
"Zike Zulon! Zike Zulon! Zike Zulon!"
I I I
Solin grunted, breaking the silence he himself had started. "Listen, it's getting late... I'll see you guys in class tomorrow, alright?"
Dina formally agreed, and Logus just nodded.
Dina delicately cleared her throat. "Logus... would you like me to accompany you home?"
Logus considered. "No."
Having said his piece, he turned and walked away.
"Inconsiderate." Dina muttered to herself.
I I I
"They're a civilian side." The XO warned.
The captain sighed. "Even if we could even consider the Zulon capital civilian, the battlefield intelligence from that factory indicates no, they are absolutely not civilian." He turned to face his executive officer. "So, once again, my orders are... attack."
I I I
Beams flared.
Smoke spiraled up along the turn of the Side.
Marked with the White Lotus insignia of the ENA, pseudoarmored frames had emerged from the vacuum of space.
Logus stared.
PsuedoArmored Frames--PAFs--the central weapon of the current technological era.
A weapon that synchronized its software with the spirit and innate bending ability of the pilot to move according to their imagination. Broadly speaking, a tank attached to the nervous system of the operator. Because they responded to how the pilot imagined them moving, naturally they had to be humanoid.
The difficulties and complexities of that shape were swept away by the pseudobending they were based on.
Logus had never seen real ones before--
A beam arced past him, and shattered the ground beside him. Instinctively, he bent the heat from about his body. All that would do was prevent him from getting cooked by the residual, but not getting cooked was important.
A great roar of air opened beside him.
Even though he was on the innermost layer of the side--
Whatever was inside the compartment below him had already been targeted. The deck below him was breached.
Logus was relentlessly sucked towards the void.
I I I
Aznali laughed, dodging the ENA beam. Her beautiful red PAF responded with unnatural speed, moving like lightning to avoid the attack and close.
Moving like lightning--for a genius firebender like the princess of the Zulon Barony Family, synchronizing with the electrical signals inside the PAF, not just pseudobending--moving at the electrical speed of thought was certainly possible.
With that laugh, she darted down and in, drawing out the heatsaber, guiding the shape of the blade with her own instinct, and slashing outward to gut the enemy PAF, boiling the pilot in an instant.
I I I
Logus breathed out. He did not try to keep the air in his lungs--that was impossible. One of the first lessons in emergency space operations. So he allowed the air to be pulled from his lungs, and tried to push himself towards the wall with the miserable flame he could produce.
But... it wasn't enough. He couldn't breathe.
Floating amongst the wreckage of this place, he was going to die. Twisted hunks of bulkhead, smashed furniture, whipping shreds of paper like show fluttering about in this vacuum, a white PAF floating like a cold corpse, and the dirt and rubble that had been sucked out along side him... spinning towards space, Logus desperately wished he could breath.
Air gathered, and he gasped.
When he lost his concentration, it grew thin, and his head began to pound.
With tears in his eyes, he desperately just... pulled all the air towards him.
He was airbending. But he was a firebender. That meant--
The air wavered. He needed to focus. Like Dina said... "set down complicated thoughts until you have won the match." He needed to live first.
So, Logus gathered the air, and pushed himself--
He couldn't get back inside.
But that white PAF--
He approached the cockpit.
He keyed the door. It opened, and he threw himself inside.
The door clicked shut--it sounded thin and unnatural through the air he was pulling around him like a cloak, but more than that, he felt the solid click of the cockpit door up through his gripping hands.
He relaxed, and went limp, drifting as air rushed into the cabin from the PAF reserves.
That air had that stale, musty smell of air that had been sealed in a can for too long. It was the sweetest air Logus had ever tasted.
A great shiver went up his body.
"I'm... the Avatar." He whispered.
It matched. The last Avatar had died not too long before he'd been born.
But... everyone had thought the Avatar would be reborn on the world, just like every Avatar had ever been. The spirit realm was very thin across Space... the Colonies were practically island worlds. It had not been thought the Avatar could transmigrate across the spatial gulfs.
An alarm claxon sounded.
Logus looked up, startled.
When he'd entered, the PAF had automatically started up. The life support system had come online with the entire suit.
Which meant, he was in a live tank on a battlefield.
So, naturally, he became an enemy target.
The warning claxon--he was targeted.
Without thinking, Logus twisted, and threw himself into the seat, desperately wrestling with the harness.
The Zulon First District Military Academy... but he'd never piloted a PAF outside the introductory exercises. His talent had been low, the synchronization between his firebending and the PAF had been too low. Perhaps because he was the Avatar--!?
No, think about winning.
Logus grabbed the hand controls, toggled the cameras--
Incoming missiles.
The boosters warmed up. Evasive maneuvers began.
The white PAF was no longer a corpse. It was reborn onto the battlefield.
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