The World At Large (Avatar)

The waterbender's voice cut through the silence, it was getting late in the night so it was expected that someone would want to start a conversation.

"Soo, strong silent type yeah?" he asked. Li met his eyes in the mirror, seeing that he was addressing her.

"And you're the obnoxious clown," she stated flatly.

"You know, I really thought Izzy was gonna pop a blood vessel when you made your entrance. Bravo on that, whatever happens you're good in my books just for that." Was he serious? Did he really think that was her purpose for dropping in and killing those men? For show? She had to pinch her lips to keep from arguing with him, though at least she was getting some names now. So 'Izzy' must be the firebender sleeping in the back.

"Soo, quick question when was the first time you had suspicions on Chiyo being the avatar?"

"About a month I guess. It wasn't easy coming up with a way to get this information back to the White Lotus while staying close enough to keep an eye on her," her voice was kept low, she didn't want jar the silence away with any sharp noises.

"I wasn't about to leave her alone. I know she's tough and can take care of herself, that's something that is very apparent. However, no one is a perfect weapon, everyone needs help sometimes." Li let the silence fall once more, though something in her head wanted to continue the conversation, "So were you and Izzy back there on a different mission yourselves or did you actually accomplish what you meant to do?" Her tone ended up being more condescendingly surprised than she had meant it, but to be honest she was was fighting off sleep herself. There was no way that she was going to let herself fall asleep until she felt certain that they were in a place safe enough for uninterrupted six hours, at least. And by "they", she means Chi and herself; Li still wasn't full certain about the waterbender and the Izzy guy in the back. That's why her, currently, grey eyes were starring at the waterbender. It might be a little unnerving for him, but there was no chance that she was going to give these two newbies a chance to mess up or pull one over on her.

"Listen, you look tired, you should find a place to pull over to get some sleep before we crash. I'm not going to talk forever just to keep you awake, I'll tell you that right now." Though her own eyelids were heavy and it took every effort to just keep them open, she didn't even blink as she stared the waterbender down.

It came as a relief when she felt the car being pulled over to the side.

"Get some rest, if something comes up I'll wake you," Li whispered. She got out of the car and went to sit on the hood. The earth seemed darker than the sky, as if the stars were absorbing whatever light there was left. It would be useless to try and attempt to see someone coming in this dark, unless they had headlights turned on, so she just looked up at the sky. Away from the city and light pollution, there were millions of stars to see. Stars of all sizes, clustered together so closely they almost looked like trail of dust. To keep herself awake, Li began to test herself on the constellations that could be seen, not realizing that she was whispering their names out loud.

“You are terrible! You are the most terrible person I have ever met!”

“You’re excluding your brother in that statement Kathy!”

“You leave him out of this! He’s been through a lot!”

“Yeah, a lot of chicks! The man uses and abuses women, yet you continue to protect him and go after me when my eyes wander the slightest amount!”

“He’s not supposed to be my boyfriend! He’s not supposed to look after me like you’re supposed to!”

“Kathy! Don’t you dare walk away from me!” The scene on the tv showed the rather attractive twenty something woman storming to the door, only to have it blocked by a wall of earth springing up to stop her.

“Stop! Let me out! You can’t control me!” Kathy screamed as the man stomped forward, grabbing her hands and putting them above her head, holding her against the wall.

“I never did…” He whispered softly. She slowly stopped resisting, and he leaned in closer until their lips touched and they embraced.

“Barf.” A voice rang out from behind Rook’s position of laying on the couch, a bowl of pretzels laying on his chest. He looked over at Mei, who was hanging upside down and performing crunches using one of the exercise machines as a ballast.

”Uncultured brute.” Rook countered, popping a pretzel into his mouth as the scene devolved into a makeout session between the two characters. Mei stopped doing crunches for a moment, sweat dripping from her as she looked between the tv and her brother.

”How is this, in any way, culture? This is softcore porn, and you’re watching it in front of me.”

“It’s a story of love, betrayal, redemption, humor and intrigue. You would know that if you paid attention to more than just the sex.”

“Please.” Mei stated, flipping off the bar and stretching slightly. “We both know you only watch this cause you have a massive crush on Taki Moari.” The lead actress in the show.

“She is a handsome woman.” Rook admitted, popping another pretzel into his mouth. Mei rolled her eyes as she walked over to the weights set off in a corner and pulled out a couple of 30 pounders. Rook took a moment to look around their apartment, and appreciate what they had managed to achieve for themselves. Two homeless children, fighting, killing and stealing their way to the top. Their apartment was based out of the middle ring in Ba Sing Se, in a well off neighborhood and was more than either one of them could really want or ask for. Sure, they could bump themselves up to the upper ring, but who wants to deal with those snotty assholes who never worked for a thing in their lives.

Built almost like a studio apartment, the entire area was an open concept. The living room, kitchen, dining area and recreational area were all one large area and only sectioned off by items or furniture one would associate with such a room. There were two bathrooms, one for each bedroom, and ultimately that was it. Hardwood floors, a pleasant ‘rustic’ appeal and nice looking couches, chairs, appliances and decor made for something out of a sitcom. The only thing that somewhat marred this picture was the fact that an entire section of their apartment was dedicated to their weapons and items of their craft. Rack upon rack of guns, blades, explosives, poisons and anything else one’s twisted mind could come up with occupied what would otherwise be the spare space in their apartment. Despite that potential sight maring an otherwise perfect looking apartment, Rook was satisfied with his current accommodations.

With his little gazing party over, he returned to his show only to constantly hear Mei’s grunts of effort from her workout covering up the dialogue. “Do you think you could get stronger faster, so that your grunts don’t sound like an out of shape gorilla?”

“Says the man laying on a couch and eating pretzels.”

“I did my workout this morning, you know, when the sun rose.”

“Waking up early is for bitches.” Rook rolled his eyes as he attempted to tune her out. It was only a moment later that his phone, which was laying on the coffee table in front of him, started buzzing. Sitting up slowly and placing the bowl of pretzels on the table, he picked up the device and looked at it. As soon as he unlocked it, information started flooding the screen. Mei stopped her workout to look over. “Job?”

“Yeah…” Rook trailed off, reading through everything before giving a sigh and flicking the display from his phone onto the TV. Mei put away the weights and walked over, breathing slightly heavy as she calmed her heart. “Looks like an interesting one.”

“Is that…”

“Yep.” Rook responded, looking at the picture of a younger looking woman. The name ‘Chiyo Saito’ was bold beneath the image. Mei’s face looked incredulous before a sharp smile planted itself on her face. She rubbed her hands together and small flames sparked as she did so.

“Oh man, we get to capture the Avatar. This has to be a high priority gig right? Lots of moolah? Is she trained? I want to have a good fight going into this!” Rook scrolled down on the listing, with information being presented such as family, childhood, current whereabouts, etc. At the end, the job priority was listed and it caused both of them to pause for a second. “Low?!” Mei yelled at the screen as she walked up and grabbed the side. “How the fuck is capturing the fucking Avatar considered a low priority job?!”

“Don’t know.” Rook answered, reading the listing. “The Red Lotus isn’t the same as the days of old, they’ve progressed for better or worse.” Mei pouted slightly, walking over and flopping onto the couch, her feet landing in Rook’s lap. Rook continued scrolling through the information as Mei kicked her feet right up into Rook’s face.

“They shafted us, didn’t they? Is this actually a shit job? Is that actually the Avatar? This is probably just a thing where they think it’s the Avatar but aren’t sure so we’re to go check?”

“No, it looks like it’s the re- Will you stop kicking me? - It looks like the real deal. Besides the pay’s pretty good” Rook answered, shoving Mei onto the floor with a thud. “You’re nearly thirty, could you not act like a spoiled brat?”

“Not until the wrinkles start to show.” Mei stated, climbing to her feet. “So what’s the plan.”

“It seems she has family.” Rook stated, climbing to his feet as well. “And by the looks of it, we’re not the only ones who seem to be after her. Looks like the White Lotus already got their paws on her.”

“Ooooh, we get to mess with the WL again?”

“Maybe. First, we need information and that means paying a visit to her family.” Rook walked over to the wall of guns, pulling down a rifle and laying it on the table. “Go get dressed, I’ll prep our gear.”

“Got it.” Mei answered as she went to get changed into her work clothes. Rook had to get dressed as well, but it only ever took him a couple minutes as he kept his work clothes ready for a moment’s notice. Instead, he pulled a laptop from a drawer in the wall and opened it up. Immediately the screen came to life and populated with information and applications regarding the Red Lotus network.

“Alright Ms. Saito and company...what have you been up to?”

Izaya stirred from his sleep as the car slowed down and climbed onto the side of the road; Further wakening as he felt the Unagi’s tires rolling across loose earth and heard the sound of someone exiting the vehicle. Eyes opening slightly, he took a brief look around and found that he couldn’t really see a damn thing. Apparently he’d been out for a while. Hopefully Ru had managed to get them a decent distance away from Ba Sing Se before stopping, for whatever reason.

Why had they stopped, actually? What was going on? Who had gotten out? Had Ru finally passed out from fatigue? Were they setting up camp somewhere for the night? Were they under attack from weird men dressed in drag, again? Straightening himself out, Izaya gave a quick look around and accessed their situation, doing his best to answer his own questions before his mind crept further into its exhaustion-fueled paranoia.

Well, things were definitely looking different… Clearly they’d left the city pretty far behind. Not a speck of Ba Sing Se, or its lights, was to be seen in the horizon. Really, not a speck of light was to be seen anywhere, save for the stars above. Wherever they were, they were far from any form of civilization. Ru’d apparently done his job… Though, hopefully they had headed in the right direction; His partner had a habit of getting them horribly lost whenever they drove. Though, with the simple directions of “Go south”, how could he have fucked up?

Rubbing the side of his head, and eventually his eyes, Izaya tried to wake himself up and get his brain back to functioning order. As is, he barely even remembered getting into the car, or passing out in the backseat… Everything that had happened in that garage was now something like a blur to him. He seemed to vaguely remember watching some chick tossing guns into his trunk, and a weird little furry monster thing laying in the car as he’d gotten in… But he’d been too exhausted for either of those things to phase him. Now that he’d gotten a bit of sleep, maybe he’d be able to at least confirm that either of those had happened.

Peeking through his fingers, at Chiyo, Izaya was greeted with the sight of her petting the same little furry monster he’d seen in his delirious state… Though, it was not exactly a monster. It looked exactly like a badgermole -Only, not ten feet tall, as most adults were. A baby, maybe? Where the hell had she gotten a baby badgermole? How had it gotten in the car, before they had even gotten in? And if it existed, where the hell was the crazy chick with the guns?
Pulling his hands away from his eyes and looking forward, Izaya got his answer. Sitting on top of his car’s newly fixed hood was the same chick that had “helped” them with the car thieves, earlier.

“Where did you get that, and why is she here?” Izaya asked Chiyo before yawning and giving a great stretch. “Also, where are we and why did we sto- Ah?" He stopped short, as he noticed that she had her forehead pressed against the window, her mopey reflection reflected in the glass. "Hey, are you okay?"

Chiyo felt her lips form a grimacing line as Wen mentioned having suspected her of being the Avatar for a month. Stalker. That was probably around the first time Chiyo had even seen the woman, placing an order with her father for some specialized weaponry. Nothing overly illegal. Nothing too flashy comparatively. What had been the tell then? Chiyo couldn't remember having lost her cool at the time. But a month ago felt like a lifetime ago now, so it was hard to remember anything beyond her current engulfment of feelings.

Chiyo stifled the urge to guffaw at Wen's claim to wanting to help. She never asked for anyone's help. She didn't need it. And she definitely didn't want it. She wanted to go home and pretend today had never happened. Chiyo felt the car rumble to a stop as Ru apparently assented to taking a rest. Wen mentioned waking them if something happened and stepped from the car. Chiyo couldn't stop the bitter "tch" sound from escaping her as she watched the woman go.

"Sure, yeah--let's let the stalker watch over us while we sleep." Chiyo whispered spitefully, to herself. "Give her another opportunity to mess up my life." Her breath fogged the glass some more. Chiyo stroked Toph gently, the little animal asleep in her lap, twitching occasionally--sleep digging. Chiyo felt like she were thousands of years older. She was so tired that her bones felt like they hurt. But still, her mind whirled. How could she possibly sleep surrounded by one stalker and two men she had only just met? She felt the weight of her led pipe, still tucked into her pants pocket. It was reassuring. If she had to sleep, she'd keep it in her hand. She was so engrossed in thoughts of self-defense, the events of the day, and trying to decide her next move that she didn't hear Izaya shifting around as he woke.

His voice made her shoulders bunch nervously, but her body was so tired she could barely muster more than that. She didn't move from leaning her head against the window, or cease her almost absent-minded petting of Toph in her lap.

"This is Toph. He's been mine for a few years...seems he wanted to come too..." Chiyo replied, her voice sounding flat and exhausted even to her ears. "No one asked Wen to come, but no one stopped her either." Chiyo finished with a small shrug. That was the most she could really muster up when it came to explaining why Wen was there. She didn't realize Izaya had been so out of it that he hadn't registered the stalker coming along. Maybe he would ask her to leave.

"She suggested we rest...so we're stopped. I guess to make camp. As for where we are...I don't know...I've never left home before..." Chiyo croaked softly, voice seeming dry and brittle. She blinked at Izaya's reflection slowly when he asked if she were okay. How could she be okay with everything that happened today?
"I'm..." She tried to answer, tried to choke out a lie that she was "fine" but she couldn't. Many words fought for the space of "fine" including, "broken", "scared", "lonely", and "dying inside". So she let her response die out. She had no reassuring words for him for her feelings. So instead she said nothing.

In her lap, the little badgermole stirred and woke. It was night now, when they were usually most active. He would need to hunt for bugs. Her little pet's needs seemed to energize her enough for her to mobilize a little. She sat up, head feeling heavy, and cracked open the door for Toph. Toph snuffed the air with his long snout before diving out the door and into the Earth as easily as a turtleduck might dive into a pond. Chiyo watched him go, feeling very alone without him.

The night was dark here, Chiyo noticed. Vaguely, she could hear Wen talking to herself from her perch on the hood of the car. Chiyo glanced at the woman, wondering if she were talking to someone wirelessly. Maybe it only looked like Wen was having a conversation with the stars? Chiyo pulled on the hoodie her father had given her and hugged herself. It was chilly outside the walls of Ba Sing Se at night. She didn't know that until now, and it was knowledge she found herself irritated to have. She gave a small shiver, grabbed her rolled up blanket from the space between her and Izaya and cocooned herself in it before shutting the car door again. She really wanted to curl up outside--but it was a lot darker than she was used to. She would never admit aloud to being nervous of the dark though. It had never been a problem before. It had never been really dark. She missed the lights of Ba Sing Se already. Here, it felt like the inside of the city walls again--but more open. More places for unseen things to hide. Chiyo sighed heavily and leaned her head against the window again, her small frame curled up in the seat.

"Is it always this dark at night out here?" Chiyo said, her voice sounding small. She realized instantly how childish this probably sounded, and felt her cheeks flush with her shame. She cleared her throat a little, looking at Ru and Izaya. "N-Nevermind. That's a stupid question. It's just...different..." She tugged the blanket more tightly around herself, her face the only part not swaddled in the old blanket as she looked at the two men. "Better question. Are we really going to let her keep watch? It looks like she's talking to herself out there..." She shifted a little, feeling her eyes drooping heavily, dangerously. She shifted again, still fighting the urge to sleep. "Not that I could sleep anyway.." Chiyo mumbled stubbornly.

“It’s almost like we never left, huh?” Mei said as Rook pulling into the lower ring of the Ba Sing Se, witnessing the almost immediate transformation from standard community buildings to the garbage can fire pits, rampant garbage littering the streets and everyone looking at their relatively nice ride with greedy and jealous eyes.

“Save that we have suits, guns, a car, a modicum of self respect, tons of training and experience behind us, more than enough food to make sure we don’t starve, a steady income...” Rook stated, deliberately trailing off as he got to the last item in that list. Mei gave a slight snort in laugh, bringing her hand up to cover her face in a tiny amount of embarrassment. Despite her rough and tumble exterior, there were still elements of a ‘lady’ in her that couldn’t be tossed away.

“Granted, there’s all of that.” She said, tugging at the wrists of her business suit. “But honestly, I always feel a little calmer when we get to these areas of cities. Like...like coming home.”

“What a disturbing thought.” Rook said, knowing full well they had opposing views when it came to the slums of cities. “I can’t wait to finish what we need to do here and leave.”

“Have to remember your roots there Rook.”

“I remember them plenty, it’s why I want to leave.” Rook stated as he took a turn and watched as several people stopped to watch the car go by. Maybe it wasn’t such a bright idea to bring their bright silver ‘utility’ vehicle with them, but they needed to be ready for a fight at any given moment. The car itself wasn’t anything special, but it did boast a reinforced frame and bulletproof windows to protect them should the worst happen. It also carried every bit of gear Rook thought they would need on this mission in different assorted tote bags, all in all it would be quite a haul if one of these degenerates managed to snag it.

“You’ve turned into a high society snob in your spare time.” Mei said, poking fun at Rook as he gave a light sigh.

“Being a bum isn’t something to be proud of or remember fondly, there’s a reason we fought to get out of Hobo Hall.”

“Cause there was nothing left for either of us?”

“That...and because we could.” Rook said as he took another turn. “But we shouldn’t be talking about such things anyways, did you read that entire document I printed for you?” Rook looked over at pile of papers sitting in Mei’s lap as she lazily picked it up and thumbed through a few pages.

“Yeah, nothing really out of the ordinary if you take out the fact that she’s the Avatar. She’s a street rat, a nobody.”

“Is that really proper phrasing?”

“Just because you can bend multiple elements doesn’t make you a celebrity, in some circles it makes you a freak.”

“Surprising point of view coming from the bender between us.” Mei shrugged, letting the papers drop back down into her lap.

“Not really, it’s more annoying really. It feels like she was just gifted an opportunity, where as the rest of us had to work for it.”

“Life ain’t fair, we’re the literal example of it.” Mei gave a groan, letting her head hang back as she reclined the seat slightly.

“Do you have a plan? Or are we just gonna go in there and beat the shit out of her old man till he gives us what we want?” Mei asked, of which Rook only smiled. Of the two, he was very much the ‘idea guy’.

“That wouldn’t work, which if you had actually read the paper you would know that.” Mei flipped the papers up slightly as Rook made another turn with the car.

“I did, so what, he’s a accomplished metal bender, nothing we haven’t beaten before.”

“In close quarters, surrounded by a metal shop? It would be the equivalent of walking into a wolf’s den covered in steak sauce.”

“Your sexual fantasy?”

“That...doesn’t even make any sense.” Mei gave an exasperated groan.

“You know, insults, jokes, kidding, whatever! Plan or not?” Rook shook his head slightly.

“We’re White Lotus agents, we’re simply looking to reconnect with our team which was last seen in this area.” Mei looked at Rook for a second before it dawned on her and she gave a silent ‘Oooooooooh’. Rook reached into his pocket and produced two credentials, one of which he tossed to Mei. “There’s your papers, present them when we introduce ourselves. Read up on the names in there, they say who we’re looking for.” Mei flipped through the papers again, specifically looking for the names.

“Izaya Mizukami and Rukasu Ryugamine?” Mei read a bit further, her brows furrowing slightly. “What’s this about a third one?”

“The Reds couldn’t lock that one down for me. All we know is that it’s a woman and she seemed to hook up with them at their last known location. After that...it’s a crap shoot. They promised to get back to me, but considering the priority of this job…”

“It’s doubtful they’ll actually follow through.” Mei stated, placing the papers on the dashboard.
“Fair, hope it doesn’t bite us in the ass.” Mei paused for a second, looking over at Rook. “Hold on, if the Reds know all this, how come they don’t know where they went?”

“The agent who was spying on them was pulled away, although for what reason they won’t say...probably something embarrassing.” Rook said, spotting his location after he turned another corner. “When the agent got back, all the parties were gone, save for the family.”

“What a shit agent then.” Rook couldn’t help but nod. He had one job and he failed, now it was up to them to fill in the gaps. With that thought lingering, Rook pulled up in front of Scrappers, the metal S hanging above the shop as a child who had been lingering out front ran into the front door of the building. “Scout.” Mei stated, earning another nod from Rook as he turned off the car.

“Remember your role, you know what to do.” Mei gave a nod as they both exited the car. Rook closed the door, pulling on his suit slightly to smooth out the wrinkles as Mei once again pulled at the cuff links on her suit. Despite it fitting perfectly, she always complained about the stuffiness about it. Rorick tapped his underarm holsters where his .45 pistols were holstered, and a quick look at Mei showed that she had her .45 attached to her thigh. They weren’t unarmed, but as White Lotus agents, having some weapons was to be expected. Rook reached into his pocket and pulled out a small thing of mints, popping one into his mouth he offered another to Mei as she walked closer to him.

“What is this, a date?” She asked as she took one.

“Like you would even know what a date would entail.” Rook stated, earning a very venomous glare from his partner. With that small amount of banter out of the way, they walked towards the door and knocked politely. A short time later, and a mountain of a man opened the door, levelling what appeared to be a lightning cannon of some sort at Rook’s face. Mei visibly tightened at the sight, but Rook couldn’t help but stare at the weapon. A small smile planted itself on his face, as if this wasn’t a very real and potential form a death for him, ready to crush his relatively short life.

“If yer lookin fer trouble, you found it. State yer purpose or get lost.” Bunta stated, keeping the weapon pointed squarely at Rook’s head.

“Eloquent.” Rook said, looking up at the man. “Mr. Saito, correct?” Rook started, visibly hearing Mei’s muscles tighten in response to her fight or flight mechanic. “We’re members of the White Lotus. I’m Rokoro Heijiri, this is my partner Meiji Naoki.” As he stated, Rook slowly reached into his breast pocket and pulled out his credentials. They were fakes, but incredibly well done fakes. Rook doubted he had any technology or the knowledge to spot the differences. Mei did the same thing, presenting the documentation although Rook could she was extremely hesitant about it. “We’re part of a larger team, but due to an incident a city over, we were separated from them. We have reason to believe they were here recently...for reasons I’m sure you’re well aware of.”

Bunta seemed to grunt as he squinted at the documentation. Rook got the idea that he wasn’t exactly sure the man knew what he was looking at, but decided against pointing that assumption out. “So?” The man responded after looking at the papers. “They ain’t here no more.”

“That is our understanding as well.” Rook stated, putting the papers away. “However, yours is the last place we managed to confirm their whereabouts, would you happen to know where they went?”

“Nope.” He answered flatly, earning a slight pause from all parties involved before the man decided to continue. “Yer dressed awful nice for folks roun’ ‘ere...don’ yer lot have them little phones? Jus’ call em…” His eyes narrowed at the two of them, but Rook had already planned for that little question to be asked at some point. After all, they lived in the digital age, getting in touch with friends and family couldn’t be easier.

“Wish we could, but due to our little altercation that I mentioned earlier, our phones were taken and in an effort to protect the rest of the team, we were forced to have them wiped.” Bunta seemed to pause for a second before relenting slightly.

“They left ya behind then. I fixed up the car and they headed on their way. They lef’ hours ago.”
“Left the city?”

“Well they ain’t here, I tol’d yer tha’!”. Bunta scoffed slightly. “If they were here, they’d be here, like I said.” Bunta scratched his beard a little. “Smar’ o’ yer to carry tho. Those other two did’ seem to bother. Mus’ be more green than you two.” Rook held his chin for a moment. If they left the city, it made things easier but also lengthier. During this moment of thought, Bunta saw fit to continue.

“Anyway, sorry ter say so but I’ve had enough of yer lot terday. You best not hang around while it gets dark. My neighbors shoot before asking yer purpose.”

“The tip is appreciated, and thank you for your assistance Mr. Saito.” Rook answered, watching the door close and earth shape to form a lock on the entrance. Rook turned and with Mei, walked back to their vehicle.

“So they’re not in the city anymore…”

“Most likely trying to take the Avatar somewhere safe.” Rook stated, hopping back in the car. Mei popped into the passenger seat as Rook reached back and grabbed a laptop. “But knowing they left the city gives us another lead, I just have to get a hold of something.” Mei leaned back in her seat again, stifling a yawn as she did so. Rook’s computer booted up and his fingers glided across the device as he used the Red Lotus resources to gain access to the cameras that were stationed around the city gates.

It took a number of minutes as the system searched, but it never failed to impress Rook as to the level of reach that the Red Lotus had. He imagined that if they ever managed to spurn their employer, it would be very hard to disappear without outright dying. Soon, there was a slight ding, making Mei twitched as she seemed to have zoned out while looking at a couple of people who looked ready to try something. “We get a hit?” She asked, looking over and spying an image of a car with the Avatar’s face clearly visible in the window.

“It would seem so, we have a heading anyways.” Rook slid the laptop onto Mei’s legs as he fired up the car and got on his way. “See if the RL knows of any White Lotus hideouts in that general direction, they might have an idea as to what their destination is.” Rook looked over at Mei for a second, noticing that she was stifling yet another yawn. She had always been one who gave into her body’s needs more often than not. “Then take a nap, we’ll switch driving in a few hours to give us both a little sleep.”

“Fair.” She stated as her fingers lazily tapped at the keyboard. One way or another, they were on the trail now and it wouldn’t be long before they caught up with their quarry.

Ru let out a yawn, Wen was right he was tired and stopping at least for an hour would be great. Once he parked the car he pulled Momo off his head resting him in his lap. He didn't say much after they were park just watching Wen climb out and take a seat on the hood. He have fallen asleep for a bit if the others hadn't stirred. Ru listened to a particular whisper of Chiyo, smirking at it. Though he remained silent, he would have stayed that way too if Izzy hadn't started in. Once some of the questions were answered by Chiyo, Ru took this time to reply. "We stopped cause I'm getting really tired; and since I don't know of any other garages out here to fix your car I figured you'd not want it in some ditch." He said matter-of-fact. He crosses his arms a little over his chest leaning back in his seat trying his best not to disturb his lemur. "On the topic of Wen I think she's fine, she could have killed us easily many times while we were wondering the city; and thousands of times for you Chiyo if she's been keeping an eye on you that long."

He didn't often stick up for people he had no idea about, but he didn't like to hear people talk about someone when they weren't around here to defend themselves. "Doesn't really matter now, she's here and we're all on our way to the enclave. Things will get sorted out there for better or worse." His tone still serious. When Chiyo asked about letting her keep watch he shrugged his shoulders. "regardless of if we're going to let her, I was going to stay away until Izzy finished his beauty sleep.." He turned to look at his partner. "As that has happened, I'd be good with taking a nap, or switching seats all together so we can get this trip back over and done with, my ass has been asleep for the last hour.." He said with a groan.

He really hated driving long periods of time, it was boring with just Izzy, and it was maddening with sitting in one place for such a long period of time. It was maddening! He could feel Momo stirring a bit from his slumber, reaching down to pet at the bat-lemur's ears. "Or we can just chill here and try and sleep as much as possible, I really don't care either way." He took a chance to look at both of them. "I for one trust her, to a degree." He had to add in that last part, because there were still some suspicious parts about her but overall she seemed fine if a little stiff. A yawn attacked him again as he stretched his back some and leaned from side to side. "Welp, what are we doing guys? I'm getting anxious I think my body hit the point of exhaustion where I could go on for another twelve hours of nothing!"

Nodding thoughtfully at Chiyo’s explanations (useless though that gesture might be, considering that her nose seemed to be affixed to the window), Izaya took the time to watch her reactions; Trying to get an idea of what was going on in her head. Though, he found that he need not expend too much effort on it. Chiyo was doing him the courtesy of wearing her heart and thoughts prominently on her sleeve, not bothering one bit to hide a single thing from him. He’d have felt honored, if he didn’t feel so bad for her.

Izaya gave Ru a shrug when the waterbender spoke up during Chiyo’s pause; the latter having finished giving what answers she could and turning her attention to letting her pet out to do… Well, whatever badgermoles do. He was a bit thankful his partner had the sense to stop for the night when he grew exhausted, rather than drive them off the side of the road and off a cliff. However, Izaya was more than a little concerned about their proximity to Ba Sing Se. Sure, they were well out of the city now -Ru had probably driven them pretty far- but if Wen had been watching Chiyo for as long as she’d implied, there were surely other forces watching her as well. There was no doubt in his mind that their sudden departure had drawn some kind of attention. It was best they put as much distance as they could between them and the city, as soon as they could.

Still… “Camping does sound like a good idea…” Izaya mumbled to himself, glancing at Ru, then again at Chiyo. Looking them over, they were pretty clearly exhausted; And while Izaya may have gotten a bit of sleep, he wasn’t exactly one hundred percent, yet. Maybe they could take a moment to camp and get some rest, if only in the interest of not dying from exhaustion.

“That’s not a stupid question.” Izaya replied, though Chiyo had told him to ignore her question. “I asked the same thing, my first time out in a place like this. At home, I’d never seen so much darkness…” He really sympathized with her on this. Living in the capitol, on palace grounds no less, had ill prepared him for this kind of darkness -this kind of emptiness. Coming from a city like Ba Sing Se, a city that probably never slept, this place must seem like a whole different world to her.

“It’s a bit shocking, isn’t it?” He asked, though the question was mostly rhetorical. “It still makes me uncomfortable, even now.” Though, probably not for entirely the same reasons. Izaya thought to himself, while speaking to her.

“I think I’m with Turtleduck on the whole ‘Wen’ thing… I don’t trust her. We know nothing more about her than what little bits she’s told us. Until we know more, let’s just assume we can’t leave her unsupervised. Now… As for what we’re doing…” He paused a moment; To think and decide. Looking outside, then back at Ru and Chiyo again.

“Turtleduck, if I can brighten it up outside for a bit, can you earthbend up some tents or shelters for us? Three or four of them, and pretty sturdy? Maybe with narrow entrances? If you’re up to it, we can camp here and get some rest. I can take first watch, so you two can get some sleep.”

Opening the door on his side, Izaya unbuckled himself and slid halfway out the door, planting one foot firmly on the grass outside. Holding his hand outside the door, he ignited a fist-sized fireball in his hand, casting a blue across the area around him. It wasn’t much, but it was all he was really willing to risk. It should be enough for Chiyo to be able to see what she was doing, right? Though, it would probably piss Wen off. Staring at the stars, as she was, she probably wouldn’t appreciate the light marring her view.

The two men came to some sort of agreement about camping. They could stay outside if it suited them, but no way was she leaving the car into that...lightless void. Chiyo frowned at the inky blackness outside the window, fretting about what she couldn't see. She never was very good at masking overwhelming emotions, and it was pretty plain by the soft, somewhat pitying voice Izaya used to admit he too found the dark "unsettling", that her expression was readable and weak. Chiyo pulled the blanket around her more tightly, looking sulky.

Chiyo's eyes narrowed when Izaya called her turtleduck again. She'd already told him she was not his turtleduck..she could feel the heat ruse to her cheeks, but if it were due to irritation or embarrassment she couldn't say.

"That's not my name Mr. Mizukami..." she mumbled, looking still more sulky. But the man just continued on as if he hadn't heard her. As a rule, she would have prefered people she didn't know very well to call her Miss. Saito, as was proper. She might have grown up in the slums, but it didn't mean Bunta hadn't taught her any manners. (Though, he rarely used manners himself, he expected his children to use them.) Ru would be an exception, as earlier in the day he had explained he prefered his nickname to any formality. It still felt weird when she addressed the waterbender though.

She listened as the two discussed Wen's trustworthiness. Noting each opinion with a nod. She could see Ru's point, if the woman had wanted her dead, she'd certainly already be dead. Still, it's hard to trust anyone who lies to get involved with your life so quickly. She was grateful Izaya was at least taking her concern seriously.

Chiyo heard Izaya asking her to build shelters if he brightened it up. Chiyo wondered if she had enough energy to bend anything with how she felt. Though, she couldn't help but watch hungrilly as Izaya bent a fireball to life in his hand, casting away some of the shadow. The fire danced a blue light, like a spirit, as Izaya left the car. Soon...she could learn to do that...well, she would have to learn. Though, she thought warily, chasing away shadows might be a useful skill to have at least.

Chiyo frowned at Izaya, still disliking his use of turtleduck in place of her name, but at this point the need to sleep was stronger than her desire to slap him. For now. Gingerly leaving the blanket in the back seat, Chiyo slipped out of the car as well, being careful not to leave the small pool of light the fire cast. She looked to Wen as they moved away from the car,

"Miss Li, I'm going to make shelters...Mr. Mizukami offered the first watch...he's had a nap. You should sleep...Papa said a tired marksmen is a dead marksmen..." Chiyo offered gruffly before dropping into a familiar stance.

Chiyo inhaled deeply, smelling the unfamiliar earth then with a step forward she gestured upwards, like an orchestra conductor. The earth responded, pulling a rounded shelter with a small narrow hole door from the ground, like an earthen igloo. Chiyo repeated these familiar steps three more times, before coming up into a ready stance with an exhale. Then she eyed the car. If the Red Lotus or really any police came by, the "upgraded" car it would probably mean trouble for them. She gathered her blanket from the back seat and stepped away.

"Ru, Miss Li...step away from the Auto."

Chiyo waited for them to move, then once they were clear she once more dropped into her horse stance, inhaled, exhaled and like bending the garage lift at home, lowered the car into the earth. A chasm opened below, swallowing the car from immediate view..though anyone wandering around in the dark would probably fall into the hole and on top on the car. At least it was better than leaving it out in the open.

The world tipped drunkenly before her eyes for a moment and she took a knee. She really was more tired than she realized. Usually something this small wouldn't phase her. Once she regained her composure, she gave a mumbled good night, and crawled into the last shelter. A rumbling sound made it clear that she'd closed the shelter behind her. If Toph wanted her, he could still dig in to see her. Chiyo curled up in a ball inside the shelter and too exhausted to fight it any more, promptly fell asleep.

Li stopped her mumbling as soon as the others started getting out of the car, now noticing she had been talking aloud. She bit her bottom lips in silent embarrassment and watched quietly as Chiyo made little earth enclosures for them, then slid off the car per the Avatar's request. With little else said, Chiyo went into one of the little cave-like things.

Li simply blew a piece of hair from her face and walked over to the enclosures, but instead of crawling inside, she climbed on top. There was no way she was letting herself sleep when the stakes were as high as they were. Instead she sat staring at the road, her knees curled up for her chin to rest on it if needed. Only sleep turned into a weight that pressed down on her and no matter how strong she pushed back, sleep was a giant. Her eyes closed and her head fell forward. Sleep had won.

Throughout the night her head would bob back up, usually at the noise of the 'changing of the guards', then she would let her head fall back to her knees. She couldn't have said how many times they all switched watching the road, but by the time sleep's weight pulled off, Li could see the sky beginning to lighten. The sun hadn't broken the horizon quiet yet, but the ground wasn't the pitch black it had been.

There was a figure standing and keeping an eye out, it was hard to tell in this lighting, but Li guessed that it was Ru, the waterbender. Long ears perked up on the top of his head confirming who it was. She let out a quiet snort at the shadow form with long ears standing not to far from her, and slid off the rock mound that Chiyo had made.

She cleared her throat, her throat feeling dry from sleeping outside.

"We should wake the others and get heading out before the sun comes up. Early start and all that," she said, her voice slightly gruff. She cleared her throat again.

Only one "door" was closed up, so Li knocked on the rock as hard as she could to get some sort of noise through to their Avatar.

Li walked over to the hole where the car was hiding, her eyes widely open and looking across the landscape. She was thankful that nothing had happened and they were able to get a decent night's sleep. She knew in work like this that sleeping so fully was rare and it was good that Chiyo didn't have to experience that right away with everything else that was changing for her.

Turning to Ru, she asked, "Do you have any non-bending water I could have?" She could feel her throat acting like sandpaper or as if she had swallowed a bucket of sand. She never liked coming across as unprepared especially when it came to jobs, but when she was packing all she was really thinking about was to get out of the city as fast as possible. With a group of people who knew nothing about hiding in a crowd from people looking specifically for you, speed was their best option, so mistakes were to be made, though hopefully not mistakes that would leave a trail. She suddenly felt like a parent picking up after the kids destroyed the house.

The drive was long and boring, filled with nothing more than some soft jazz floating through the radio as Rook continued down the road, one hand on the wheel and another hand rubbing his eyes slightly. There was barely any traffic on the highway at this time of night, and with only the headlights to illuminate the 25 feet in front of the car, it often felt like they were simply pushing forward into the abyss. Rook looked over at Mei, who was passed out with her head pressed up against the window. They had agreed to switch out every four hours, but Rook only ever put that up as a loose rule in case he desperately needed sleep. In many ways, despite her being a year older than himself, he often felt like the ‘big brother’ in this relationship. Always looking out for her, despite her constant stream of cocky ‘I don’t need it’ comments. They had no idea how far ahead their targets were, only a loose timeline as to when they left. Considering they didn’t know speed, the Avatar could have already made it to a White Lotus sanctuary, and that wouldn’t be any fun whatsoever.

Rook was getting to the point of pulling over and having Mei drive for awhile when something caught his eye. At first he thought his eyes were playing tricks on him, that the darkness was just forming shapes, but as he got closer he saw them. He reached over quickly, swatting Mei in the stomach and hearing her snort slightly as she jolted awake. “What? What? Is it...I drive?”

“Pay attention, look over there.” Mei rubbed her eyes and managed a glimpse just as Rook drove by. If it was what he thought, he couldn’t afford to slow down lest he give them away. She managed to get a look as they blazed by at highway speed.

“What was that? Looked like mounds of dirt...also a person.”

“A person?” Rook asked, looking behind him slightly as they passed. Mei nodded, giving a yawn.

“Yeah, most likely a lookout. They weren’t really trying to hide admittedly but…” She yawned again mid sentence. “...It’s not a surprise you didn’t see them...you’ve been driving longer than our switch out time again, haven’t you?”

“...No.” Rook felt the slap hit the back of his head harder than it should have, the weariness making it seem more painful than it was.

“Assface, you’re the one who needs his wits sharp. I just go in and punch stuff, but if you’re too tired to keep your eyes open, how do you plan to fire your rifle.”

“With finesse and grace.” Rook replied, earning him another slap to the back of the head. There was a moment of silence as Rook rubbed the spot that she hit him.

“So, you think that was them?”

“Some kind of tents with a lookout? Possibly...I didn’t see the car.”

“They could have hidden it somewhere.” Rook looked over at her.

“Where? There’s not exactly a lot of places to hide a vehicle here.” Mei shrugged, stretching her arms a bit.

“What does it matter? I don’t see a reason why anyone else would be camping out next to a highway in the middle of the night. I think we should stake it out. Worst case scenario, we’re wrong and we lose a few hours.” Rook brought the car to a slow, pulling it off the highway and onto the side bar.

“A few hours...in a manhunt. Yeah, that’s totally a fine thing to lose.” Despite his complaints, Rook still pulled the car to a stop a couple miles away from the spot where they saw the camping group. If it was their target, they would be kicking themselves later if they just left them on the side of the road. With the car finally slowed to a stop, Rook turned it off and they both exited the vehicle. Rook opened the back, and pulled out his rifle before closing the door again. When he turned around, Mei ripped the rifle from his hands.

“Nuh uh, I’ll keep watch, get some sleep.” Rook looked ready to complain before giving a sigh, moving himself back into the car. Mei shook his head, muttering under her breath about the level of idiocy coming from him before dropping prone and looking through the scope. She adjusted it slightly before touching a button on the side, and instantly the world was filled with a vibrant green as the everything seemed to pop into focus. Sure enough, she was right and there was someone standing watch but they were facing away and she couldn’t confirm if he was one of their targets. Either way, until she could either confirm or deny, they were in for a long night.

---

Morning came too quickly in Rook’s opinion, but he woke up all the same to the beeping he had set on his watch. He stretched slightly, rubbing the crink out of his neck from sleeping upright and looked out the window to see Mei was still diligently looking through the scope on his rifle. She cracked her knuckles with one hand every so often, and that was a good sign. It was a habit of hers, to do that right before a fight as if it was some kind of hidden prayer. If that was the case, then her assumption had been right and these were the people they were after. Rook stepped out of the car, cracking his back as he did so with a silent sigh of relief from that little boon. He walked over to Mei, who was focused into the scope. “So?” Rook asked.

“I’ve confirmed the White Lotus members, including our unknown girl, but haven’t seen the Avatar yet.”

“You think they dumped her somewhere?”

“Don’t think so.” Mei returned with. “Four earth tents...unless they’re deliberately doing that to throw us off, it’s safe to assume she’s there.”

“We’ll wait to be certain...any idea where their car is?”

“Can’t see it from here...No idea.” Mei replied, stifling a yawn as she did so. Rook went back to the car, reaching into the glove box and pulling out a bottle of pills. He popped a couple into his hand and swallowed them. As he did so, he walked over to Mei, shaking it slightly so she heard the rattle. Without looking up, she held out her hand, and Rook popped a few of the pills into her hand which she swallowed no problem. Caffeine pills, for the mercs on the go who can’t afford to sleep whenever they feel tired. Rook walked off to the side for a moment to relieve himself as Mei continued to keep a watch on the group in question. When he finished and walked back, he could hear Mei giggling to herself. “I see her...Chiyo Saito.” Her smile widened at the prospect of a fight and Rook tapped her with his foot. She stood up, handing the rifle over to Rook as she went to do her own business. He looked through, stopping for a moment to fix his sights which Mei constantly felt a need to switch whenever she wanted to use his scopes.

Sure enough, there was the Avatar, talking with the others of the group. He continued peering through for a moment to make sure Mei was done before looking back. Mei had taken up pacing slightly as she looked towards their general direction. They were too far away to make out any details with the naked eye, but it was almost like she could see them the way her eyes darted around. “So...charge them? Hunt them down? What we doin?” Mei asked, although from experience, Rook knew that any answer that wasn’t ‘Let’s fight’ was going to have her pouting for a few hours. Rook lowered the rifle, pausing for a moment to think as he looked at all the options. Honestly, now was probably the best time to launch their first strike, there were a few things wrong with it however.

Rook would have preferred to stay here, and attempt to kill the non-mission critical targets at range, but he lacked height and they would be able to take cover almost immediately. Mixed with a Earth Bender, cover was not something they would be lacking. On top of that, Mei would need to get in close and she wouldn’t be able to get near them without them noticing her long before she could engage. That meant they would have to take the car. It was bullet proof, so there was no concern there, but there was the problem that they would have to try and coast it through and act like they were just driving by in hopes that the group didn’t get twitchy. It would also put Rook in relatively close range, and he preferred to keep his distance where possible.

He could just leave the group be, and tail them from here but that would inevitably lead them to a White Lotus stronghold which would make the mission that much harder. In other words, they had no choice but to try and end it here, but if they failed then their targets would know they were being hunted, which by the way they were wandering around the camp now meant that they didn’t necessarily know that fact. It wasn’t a prime opportunity, but it was one nonetheless. “Mask up.” Rook stated, making Mei literally squeal with excitement as she bolted for the car.

It took a few minutes for them to completely gear up, Rook covered head to toe in weapons and Mei stretching every muscle she thought she would ever use. They both had ear pieces underneath their masks as well, so they didn’t have to worry about hearing each other in the midst of combat or due to distance. “So...how we doing this?”

“We need the Avatar alive, everyone else is unnecessary, no holding back.” Rook revved up the car, hearing the powerful engine roar to life. “We’re going to coast until we get close enough...then full frontal.”

“Not like you to do the heroic charge route.”

“Lack of options makes this the best choice. We can’t risk taking the long shot and having them bug out on us, we need to tie them down.” Rook countered as he pulled a U-turn and started heading towards the group. “Focus on controlling the defenders. I’ve loaded up my rifle with tranq darts, hopefully I can get a good shot on the Avatar and incapacitate her before she becomes a problem.”

“And if not?”

“Then we break her limbs and transport her that way. They never specified that they need her in one piece, only alive.”

“Cold.”

“Practical.”

The car roared down the highway, and for all intents and purposes it was just another vehicle using the road as intended. The windshield, while not reflective was tinted, making it hard to see the passengers inside. Both Mei and Rook had their masks on, including Rook’s mirrored shades as they got within attack distance. “Mark.” Rook stated as he floored the gas, making the car give a mighty belch of power before he shifted gears, pulling the E-brake and making the tires squeal as the entire car slid sideways towards the group. When it came to a stop, Mei used it as a propellant, opening the car door right before the vehicle came to a full stop, jumping and landing in a dead sprint towards the nearest defender.

Rook slammed the car into park, popping out of the driver’s side and utilizing the vehicle as cover. Propping his rifle on the hood, he primed Chiyo in his sights and fired a tranq dart at her.

Ru had spent the better part of the night with a furry facemask thanks to Momo. Though thankfully that didn't interfere with sleeping, as when the day came he was the first one awake. He was kinda glad for that fact, he found a nice little perch not to far from camp, deciding to look around. It wasn't to early but there was still dew along the plants, which was always nice. He felt better being nearer to any source of water, the larger the better. It wasn't long before his furry friend joined him taking his normal perch of Ru's head. "Hey there fuzzball.." He said reaching up to play with one of Momo's ears. "You know, we need to work on your sleeping habits you coulda killed me last night with these things." He said playfully pulling on momo's ears earning himself some chattering. "Yeah, yeah; I know." he said with a roll of his eyes in reply. It was quiet, he wasn't utterly use to quiet seeing as everyone in the enclave was up early and training always training. He frowned slightly at the memory of having to get up before the sun was even in the sky, not the fondest of memories. Though out here in the middle of nowhere it was peaceful and calm. He could get use to being far away from people.

Though as of right now that wouldn't be the case, a familiar voice catching him mildly off guard as he turned to look at the one talking. He smiled some, "Water nonbending water..." He rubbed at his chin in mock thought, "I mean all water is bendable for me.." He said making a bad joke before pulling out a bottle of water that hadn't been open handing it off her. "There ya go," Once that was done he returned his attention to the surroundings at night it had been hard to tell, but they really couldn't have chosen a better spot. It was lovely really, they were in just the right spot for the sun not to be so blinding, but enough to catch the sights of the valley they rested in. All that was missing was some wildlife to make its way through and it'd be a fairy tale area. Though that thought made him chuckle a bit to himself. "Sleep okay? you were the last one to fall asleep I'm guessing, with you know deciding you were the best one to be on guard and all." He playfully mocked. He had a feeling that she was feeling something against them, considering they weren't trying to hide very hard.

Momo chattering a bit as the lemur looked at Wen, Ru taking a moment to peek up at his pet. "Momo says, you are a worthy rival and that you snore when you sleep.." He said that last bit making him watch her for any type of reaction, having not been able joke around much on the drive, now finding it ever so hard to resist the urge to do it now. Though he held off on that, taking time to look back towards camp. He could only hope the other two were getting up and ready to go, something did feel off; specifically cause they were so out in the open now without darkness to give them just the slightest amount of cover. It didn't seem long before the other two had stirred, doing their own thing in camp Ru smiling in Wen's direction as he went to move down from his perch. Though he stopped suddenly his attention now focused on the sound of a car roaring by. He'd have paid it no mind if it hadn't suddenly fishtailed and came to stop near them. Ru instantly went on the defensive when that car stopped, even more so when one of the car's passengers hopped out making a beeline for him and Wen. He let his eyes move back towards the car, "one more.." He said out loud hoping Wen could hear him. A flash of a scope caught by the sun was all he needed. "Rifle!" He called out in warning. He hopped down from his perch his legs spread shoulder width apart as he drew the dew from the plants and the water from within them as well, he drew enough to leave a circle of dead plants around him and Wen. A large orb of water now in his control as they were between the two masked goons and Izzy and Chiyo, that gave him ample room to work his defense. He angled his arms towards the ground the water following suit before rising them quickly to form a wall of water.

That reassuring sound of something hitting the water before harmlessly falling on the other side. That was all he needed, it was his turn now. He turned the water to solid ice, moving towards it and forcing both hands into the last bit of water before it solidified. He pulled his arms back the ice wall cracking now, his new guards of ice forming around both arms from elbow to fingertip. The one had been charging the entire time, and Ru had a lovely greeting for her. As the wall broke entirely he shattered it, reforming each piece into dagger like ice icicles. and with a forceful shove of his hands sent the shrapnel of ice wall in a cone pattern towards both of the goons. living life on the streets of republic city were almost a boon in this aspect, the more traditional defensive style that the enclave taught him wouldn't be enough here.

Chiyo's night was filled with perturbing nightmares. She was herself, but not herself. She was in an unfamiliar, but familiar place. Her dream self knew this place--but Chiyo had never been here before. She was in bed, but a large white animal with the name "Naga" began to alert her to movement beyond her window. Someone was outside. But soon Naga quieted and acted strangely, collapsing in a heap. A voice (her voice?) called out to the animal, asking in concern what was wrong. Then--as she approached the window she felt a sharp pain, like a sting of a bug, on her leg. When she looked down, a dart jutted from her flesh, and she panicked, having only enough time to bend weakly as the drug pumped through her system and the room tilted drunkenly as she collapsed to the floor. The last thing she recalled was booted feet standing in her line of sight before the world went black.

Chiyo startled awake with a gasp, nearly banging her head on the dome of her earthen shelter in her panic. She was beaded in sweat, though the shelter was pleasantly cool. Concerned for his mistress, Toph had settled on Chiyo's middle, snuffling and grumbling as badermoles did. Chiyo sighed, relieved to be awake. What was that? A kidnapping? Who was that? Me...but not me now...? Was it was true, that the Avatar was supposed to be able to commune with their past lives? Was this..one of them? She couldn't remember much about previous Avatars. She didn't really care about learning that sort of stuff while she was in school--and the curriculum only ever really brushed over that sort of thing. Bending wasn't was common as it had been back in the day. Least, that was the way Bunta explained it.

Chiyo scratched Toph's tiny ears affectionately before disentangling herself from her blanket. She wiped her brow on her sleeve, trying to give herself some Carefully, she stepped around Toph's small entrance hole by her feet, and moving the earth from the doorway she crawled out into the sunlight. She grumbled, unappreciative of the sunlight's brightness. Or mornings. Mornings are terrible. She groggily blinked until the figures of Wen and Ru came into focus. They were chatting, somewhat amiably and she saw Ru toss Wen a bottle of water. Chiyo was not at a point in her morning where talking was something she did. Instead, she gathered up the small mass of fur that was Toph, and carried him as a small child might carry a puppy over to where the other two waited. She took note as Izaya too began to stir, but again said nothing. She could feel her bedhead fluttering around her head as she moved, but made no attempt to smooth it. Who would that attempt even be for? She doubted these White Lotus people cared if she were a little messy or not. And she didn't exactly feel like looking "pretty" for anyone right now. Chiyo spacily stood around where the Auto was hidden in a hole, contemplating what that dream had meant and why it had been so intense when a car came speeding up the road. Chiyo was just starting to admire the shininess of the approaching car, when it screeched to a halt abruptly an someone came running out of it.

Chiyo jumped from the sound of the screech, suddenly much more awake. Toph growled in her grip as she tightened it a little too much in her surprise. After that it was chaos. Chiyo saw something glint on the hood of the car, heard a crackling sound like the firing of a weapon, and felt a suddenly reminiscent sensation of a bug sting--but now in her shoulder. Chiyo cried out, slapping at whatever stung her, only to find a small metal dart in her shoulder. Frightened realization dawned on her.

"Rifle!" she heard Ru call, as if delayed in his response. She turned to prepare to defend herself, only to find a wall of water suddenly before her. Lodged in it, a second dart. Was one right behind the other? She only heard one shot. Toph, freed from his mistress's grip, plunged into the earth below with a startled sound, hissing at the threats before them, digging toward the running attacker's feet to defend his mistress.

"Ru..." Chiyo murmured, somewhat amazed by the water bender's speed. The liquid water soon washed the dart harmlessly away as the water then hardened into ice, sharp as knives, plunging toward the one masked person charging toward them. The other stayed behind, their rifle glinting coldly. Chiyo could feel her body starting to react too slowly as whatever was in the dart started working into her system. She whimpered as she forced her now unruly limbs to obey her, dropping into a familiar horse stance. What could she do as her body started to ignore her? What could help? Ru was fighting. She wanted to fight!

With a loud, outraged cry she put what fading strength she had into bending the rifleman's car into a hole. It wasn't a very large hole--not compared to the one she was hiding their own vehicle in. It was only five inches deep or so--like an angry pothole. It was definitely enough to make his shot difficult and uneven. The nose of their car dove forward, putting the rear wheels into the air off the ground, and the whole Auto tilted with a metalic groan.

Chiyo felt like she was that auto now--her vision tilted drunkenly. Her feet went numb. She groaned, wanting to bend Earth up to protect the others, she wanted to badly to shield them but her arms had gone numb too. She grit her teeth, dragging numb limbs toward the fight--not wanting to succumb. Not wanting to leave the fighting to someone else. What if they took her...like in her dream? But it was no use--her legs became useless jelly within minutes and down she went with a small, defeated whimper. As she lay on the earth, she felt Toph burrow back to her side, poking his head out of the earth at her an making distressed sounds as she did not move to stroke him. She wanted to call out, to apologize for being so useless but even that felt impossible. She saw many feet in a fight, heard the shouts of a struggle, but then heard and saw nothing as she drifted into a drugged unconsciousness.

Izaya couldn’t help but smirk to himself as Chiyo warned the others to step away from the car, her intent to bend it out of sight clear. Clearly she’s still a bit annoyed by the petname. He mused to himself as he quickly exited the vehicle and retrieved one of his duffels from the Unagi’s trunk; Stepping away just in time to avoid sinking into the pit along with his car. Not a bad idea, hiding the car away while they slept. Chiyo had a good head on her shoulders… Or perhaps this had more to do with Bunta’s upgrades than their need to go undetected? Ah, well, it didn’t really matter.

Setting himself down next to what he determined to be his own earth-igloo, Izaya tossed his duffel inside the small door and rested his back against the hard stone. There he stayed, for a good portion of the night… Until Ru stirred and crawled out of his shelter. Feeling his partner more than capable of taking the watch over from there, Izaya crawled into his igloo and passed out nearly immediately, his head just barely resting on the edge of his bag.

As morning came and the sun began to make its way into the sky, Izaya stirred from his sleep. Waking slowly, he tumbled off of his duffel, smacking the back of his head on the soft dirt. There he lay for a moment, blinking himself awake as he instinctively started to pull off his clothes. After a bit of fumbling about, Izaya managed to pull on a fresh, red t-shirt and a pair of black, more everyday pants before stuffing the previous haphazardly back into his bag. Pulling on his boots, Izaya crawled out of the shelter and stood, stretching as he stared into the face of the sun.

Typically, he’d have had more of a struggle with waking up, but clearly both his luck and the world at large were more than willing to provide him with assistance, that morning. The sound of a car engine coming their way sent his entire body into a state of alarm -dropping him into a ready stance before his mind even had time to process what was going on. The southern road was mostly abandoned during this time of year… Especially with the rebellions going on just south, in the Si Wong desert. Who the hell would be out here, besides them? Well, the answer’s obvious, isn’t? His mind chided him, as it brought itself fully into awakedness.

Turning about, he caught a view of Ru and Wen -both up and ready for the day- and Chiyo walking up to join them. Nothing seemed to be too far out of the ordinary… But, such thoughts were really just subtle prayers for everything to go wrong. He wanted to lunge back into his shelter -grab his gun and maybe a few knives before things really went south-, but it turned out he didn’t really have time. Hell, he hadn’t even had time to bark out a warning before the car came shooting down towards them.

Skidding to a stop, some unknown fighter ejected themselves from the side door, leaving whoever was driving the vehicle to skid it into a ready position. Soon the whole scene was dissolving into chaos. Izaya’s body started surging with electric jitters as he started running towards the battle, taking in every detail he could before joining the fray. Ru responded admirably, but was just a microsecond too late with his defense, and Chiyo went down, but not before sinking the enemy’s vehicle ever so slightly in retaliation. With Ru’s attention drawn to the moving attacker, Izaya decided to zero in on the asshole with the rifle.

Launching himself into the air, Izaya flipped his body into a tight, aerial roll as blue flames ignited and built along his entire frame. Flipping head over heels several times in the air, he jerked his body outwards near the end of his fall, kicking a massive blast of blue flames out in the direction of the enemy’s car. Landing just in front of Chiyo’s prone form, Izaya kicked a solid wave of flame in the wake of his initial blast.

Daring to glance back, Izaya gathered as much as he could about Chiyo’s condition… At least enough to ascertain that she was, thankfully, alive. Sedated, perhaps, but alive. That more or less told him who he was dealing with… Or, at least, who had sent them. At least he didn’t have to worry about them killing her. All he had to do was keep them from taking her. Well, that, and keep the rest of them alive. He very much doubted they’d made it onto the “no-kill” list. Still, not having to protect her from direct attack was convenient. For now, he just had to protect her from getting caught in the cross-fire or from getting snatched.

“Toph, think you could get our sleepy Turtleduck somewhere safe? Like underground, maybe? Somewhere not here?” Izaya asked the baby badgermole, a grin on his face. He really expected no response from the little pet, it was just a little funny to ask.

Attention back on the battle, Izaya switched into a different posture, moving his hands about in a circular motion at either side of his body. As he did, lightning started to arc from his fingertips, building up but ready to fire at any moment. His attention was still mostly on the shooter, but he was keeping Ru and the more active enemy combatant within his peripheral.

As Li drank water Ru gave him, for the most part ignoring his comments except for a slight scowl, she heard an engine. Her muscles tensed and she looked in the direction of the sound. There was no way to say for certain whether or not this car was going to be a danger to them, but Li was almost certain it was. As the car came into view, her question about the driver's intent became clear; the car was moving too fast to be just a random driver passing by.

She dropped the water bottle and slid into the hole that Chiyo had put their car. In her peripheral vision she saw Ru bend a wall of ice between them and the attackers, though the sound of a gun and Chiyo suddenly wobbling told her he hadn't been fast enough. Chiyo hadn't dropped right away which meant she was most likely sedated and not shot by a bullet. As Li rummaged through the trunk of the car for her own guns, she heard Izzy blast fire above.

When Li looked over the edge of the hole it looked as if Ru was taking care of the one who had charged at them well enough and Izzy had been aiming at the one with the gun. However, he had paused over by Chiyo. Her hands instinctively loaded her own rifle with three bullets and she peeked above the surface of the hole. Looking through the scope at the other rifle shooter, she aimed for his hands. It would be simple to shoot and kill him, however with the other already showing that she was someone who enjoyed fighting and if she sought revenge after losing her partner, there may be no stopping her. Li steadied her own rifle and breathed to steady her hands, letting the sounds of battle mute to her. With one more breath she pulled the trigger, watching the bullet as it met its targeting, hitting the man's gun where his hand was holding. This would not only damage the gun, but also create a big enough shock to make him drop the gun. She shot two more bullets at the two tires she could see, puncturing them.

Li then threw one of her smoke bombs between the woman and man, clouding completely around them. She climbed out of the hole, noticing that Chi's badgermole was dragging her away out the of the fight, and whistled towards Ru and Izzy.

"You two get the car out, I'll hold them off," Li said, walking past Ru to the edge of the smoke cloud. Her hands gripped her rifle like a staff. As she saw one of the attackers nearing the edge of the smoke, Li quietly stepped forward, bringing the butt of her rifle up and driving it down towards where their head should be. Without hesitating and waiting to see if she made contact or not, she ducked down, spinning and knocking her leg against their ankles, breaking their stance and knocking them over.

She pulled away, further into the cloud herself; far enough away that the person she had attacked couldn't see her. She remained crouched and low to the ground, quieted her breathing and listened. There were steps behind her, at first they were fast, but slowed as they got closer. She was guessing it was the man, running into the cloud. She looked and saw a shadowed figure. It was hard to tell if the person had seen her or not, they were coming near her, but not directly at her. Staying low, she pulled away some so that her own vision of them lessened then circled around to where she knew their back was. With no indication that they knew she was there, she rushed forward, slamming the butt of her rifle between their shoulder blades. She rushed back again, once again disappearing into the shadows and quietly listening for any nearby sounds.

The Avatar had gone down, but that was the extent to how well this mission was going. Apparently the protectors of the chosen one were no slouches as they responded quickly to the threat. Rook wasn’t expecting the Avatar to be able to bend his car into a hole as fast as she did though, stepping back as the front of the vehicle was dipped into the earth and the back tires were lifted into the air. It removed any potential for a quick escape, which meant that they would have to deal with the extra security before they could progress with the job. Rook grunted slightly as he swapped out magazines for his standard 5.56, sliding the hammer back and leaning out from behind cover once more.

He was greeted with a wave of blue fire as swore to himself and threw his body back into the car, feeling the heat of the flames wash over him and threaten to sear him alive. I hope the suit doesn’t get tarnished. Rook thought to himself as another wave washed over the car. Waiting a few seconds to make sure another blast wasn’t coming, Rook leaned back around cover and took aim. He scanned the perimeter, sparing a glance at Mei and her fight and seeing that they were in full swing. Where was the enemy fire bender? Izaya Mizukami, he had to have launched that attack from a relatively close position. There he was, bending over the Avatar and a...badgermole? He was too close to the Avatar to risk firing recklessly, so Rook switched to single shot, slowing his breath as he centered the crosshairs on Izaya’s head.

A glint out of the corner of his eye forced his attention to swap as he quickly realized the barrel of a gun being pointed in his direction. “Fuck!” Rook yelled as he moved, almost too late as he felt the shock reverberate through his gun as the round ricocheted off the weapon. Rook fell to the ground, scrambling to put his back up against the vehicle as he calmed himself and looked at the weapon. The round nicked the railing, destroying the sight he had equipped for the weapon but otherwise leaving it intact. These things aren’t cheap bitch. Rook thought to himself as he tapped his ear. “Mei, I’m getting too much heat, do something about that.”

Within a few seconds, flames washed over the area directly in front of the car as Mei flipped into view, Rook popping his head up to take a glance at the situation. Mei had broken off her combat, standing in front of the car as a smoke bomb covered the area between them and the targets. “Fuckers, using smoke.” Mei stated as the snarl on her face could be easily heard through her voice.

“So, turn it to our advantage.” Rook stated, tapping to his chest. Mei looked back, her eyes lighting up as she reached for her incendiary grenades, popping the pins and throwing them into the smoke clouds. The last Rook had seen of the Avatar was of her being dragged away by the oversized rodent, so she shouldn’t be anywhere near the explosion radius. As the grenades went off, the smoke quickly turned into a fiery maelstrom as Mei charged forward, the flames rearranging themselves around her as she went in search of more prey.

Rook broke from cover, pulling the damaged sight off his weapon and relying on iron for the situation. He couldn’t quite see anyone, but Mei would deal with that soon enough as he kept up with a light jog, his weapon sweeping right and left.

---

Mei rushed through fiery smoke, her eyes darting left and right in search of one of the White Lotus assholes to fight. So far, they had yet to actually show themselves but the cloud was dissipating and there was a lot of open ground for them to deal with. “C’mon...where are you…” Mei stated, making the waves of the firestorm around her move and shake with her every action. Finally, she had made it to the other side as she saw the slightest glimpse of someone. The foggy character stood before her, and she grinned with excitement. “Challenger number 2!” She shouted, running out of the clouds to be greeted with the target Izaya charging up a lightning blast. Before she could really think, lightning was being shot at her. Her eyes went wide as she reacted out of reflex. Her fingers were stretched outward, meeting the lightning at the point of contact and instantly she could feel her entire body on fire.

It wasn’t the good kind of fire either as she let out a small yell, contorting her body to allow the lightning to arc anywhere else but herself. She let out a primal scream as she expelled the lightning in another direction. “FUCK?!” She heard Rook state as she glanced over. Rook had fallen over backwards to avoid getting blasted, the scorch marks just a few feet from him evident of the kind of damage that could have been inflicted. She only looked for a second more before her eyes turned to rage and peered at the target who dared try that trick with her. Now she was sore, pissed off and wanting nothing more than to rip the man’s arms away from his torso with her own two hands.

“You...fucking...what?” She breathed heavily as she lowered her body and charged the man, wreathing both hands in fire. He responded with a quick raise of the eyebrow, making a slight backstep and throwing his hands forward. His fire was the same color as the sky as he threw wave after wave of flame towards her. Snarling beneath her mask, she brought her own flames to bear as she shot forward with the same intensity, weaving to the side as fire sprouted beneath her feet to ironically make it seem like she was gliding on ice. She circled the man, Izaya, as they both continued to fire at each other before Mei growled once more, akin to a wild animal as opposed to a person. Once she saw an opportunity, a brief window, she shot towards the man, leaping in the air to deliver a roundhouse kick.

The attack was meant more to prod than it was to connect, gauge the man’s level but already he was showing his merit. He ducked, slicing upwards with a thin wave of fire but Mei wasn’t so easy herself. As the wave came up, she twisted her body and narrowly avoided the blow. Even as she was landing, she felt the hit before she saw it, the heat making her sweat under her mask as she bent backwards and nearly landed on her ass. More blue filled her vision from Izaya’s fist mere inches from her face, a blow that could have done some damage had it connected. Despite the situation, and her initial annoyance, she found herself smiling as a quick laugh escaped her mouth. She bent backwards even more, using her hands to prop herself up and delivered a double kick with a healthy helping of ember towards the man.

He threw himself to the side, barely getting touched by the attack as he rolled several times to gain distance. Instead of just getting up, his feet lashed out in a wild breakdance routine that sent fire blazing all around him, preventing Mei from getting close enough to do anything without getting charred herself. Instead, she decided to opt for his trick, shooting wave after wave of fire at him once he had managed to right himself.

He could only sigh in frustration. This woman (of course of another firebender) skidded to the right dodging his attack entirely. Though with how she charged forward so rapidly upon him everything behind her burning he wasn’t really sure how to feel about it.

The way this woman moved reminded him of something his partner once mentioned about the royal family's black sheeps through history. Her movements were, well they reminded him of some of the acrobats he had seen while living on the streets, graceful but with a purpose. Unfortunately the purpose was to murder him where he stood; but not everyone could be perfect right? Flames being launched in his direction were something he was accustomed too, Thankfully with him adding ice to the surrounding area he had plenty of water to work with. He rolled from the attack into a sprint, He felt inclined to finish this quick, damages already being brought about with their charge laying face down in the dirt. That meant up-close and personal, his favorite way of things using some of the shrapnel of ice he returned to water, meeting her speed with his own. before launching out a small wave between them, a good cooling off is all she needed.

He had a feeling with how she acted that, this effective steam screen wouldn’t even slow her down. From the fire benders he had met, they always seemed to be way more aggressive than they needed to be in some situations. He took this time to launch himself into the air with one of his ice gauntlets being sacrificed for water to launch himself. There she was, bursting right through: Hands filled with fire and ready to murder him with them still going full speed. This was his chance to end it quick. The same water that boosted him now solidified once again into ice forming a giant ball. With a leap of faith, he unleashed the ball of ice straight towards those hands of fire, his hand that was still encased in ice shifting into claws of sorts if his leaping attack failed, he'd need another ace. A smirk played across his lips when he heard her scream, obviously his attack had landed, and it had done something. Though the smirk died away quick. His attack only seemed to annoy her as she began to spin creating a pillar of flames.

A pillar of flames? Why was it always pillars of flames with firebenders? He mentally sighed. Though now was not the time for that, flying towards the pillar a thought occurred to him. He had watched Izzy do a specific move often, something that cleaved a path for him. This sparked in idea, the ice on his arm melted as he bent it down towards his leg. The risk was great considering a constant stream of fire gave him only seconds to get this right or he'd get scorched. He pulled his legs close to his chest rolling backwards before extending that leg and launching his counter. A surge of water to pierce the fire just enough for him to attack her with the full momentum of his jump.

He couldn’t deny the surprise he felt in the fact his attack worked, piercing the pillar and landing the attack as well, though with how she reacted to the blow, on all fours only missing the growling and howling. Though she did launch herself from that position, Ru’s jaw wanted to hit the ground. He couldn't quite understand How this woman could keep going, and so viciously. He would have been impressed if his life wasn't on the line. He figured another frontal assault but boy was he surprised when she threw up a wall of fire. His hands balled into fists and drew water from the plant life once more, another dark patch circling around him. Though the sound of crunching ice made him turn. He didn't have enough time to even think of countering the attack instead using the water he had drawn he lifted it as a shield to kill the flames but the hits still landed. He may not have been quick enough to dodge, but grabbing at her firsts when she landed the attack was a whole other topic. The momentum of the attack sent him backwards. Which was great in a sense using her own momentum and twisting his torso to the side he he let go hoping to fling her some distance away. rolling back to his feet and examining himself. "Of course, always the fucking blazer..what is it with you firebenders and burning my clothes!”

She didn’t even give him the courtesy of a “bad guy” retort. No she just did some acrobatic maneuvers before getting ready for another charge. When she charged, moving at such a blinding speed he faltered just a bit. He rolled forward to dodge whatever the heck type of attack she flung at him. Ice, water, fire obviously steam in abundance as he scrambled to get to his feet. He was both amazed and terrified at how bloodthirsty this woman was, and how easily she brushed off everything. When she readied herself he did as well. Though when he spotted her acting a tad bit strange, his guard dropped. Though only for a second as she let out a yell, and another burst of flames. He countered it with a another one of his ice gauntlets. His attack quenched the fire quickly.

He wanted to give chase, to finish their fight but that was mostly pride. No he had to focus on what was important; there were two attackers. He faced one, now she ran off. His next move had to be to confront the other. He began to make his way towards where he had last seen the car, though he didn’t get very far as a flash occurred somewhere in the cloud of smoke, followed by a familiar screech and a second flash.

That was his cue, He had only caught a glimpse of the second flash but it was enough to give him a vague idea of where things were going down. He quickly, and quietly made his way in that general direction. He was lucky to be on the blind side of the second attacker. A man this time, and a gun. Of course it had to be a gun. He was jogging towards where Ru thought camp was. (but with the fighting and the smoke it was hard to tell) His best bet would be to distract this one, while Izzy dealt with the female firebender.

Ru exhaled quietly, readying himself. He had used this on Izzy, not too long ago, but he gathered it would work a lot better in this situation. He quickly bent a whip out of water, working his way towards the gun toting man. Once he felt close enough his plan would work. “Hey!” he called out before flicking his wrist hard sending the whip to wrap around either the gun, or the man’s arm (either/or), to hopefully stop any would-be ranged attacks.

With a heavy, jerking motion, Izaya managed to hop up from his position on the ground and regain his feet… Only to be met with a barrage of flame. Whoever this woman was, she was not kidding around. Still, she was too aggressive; clearly doing what most firebenders did, and substituting rage for skill. Sure, she’d gotten a few lucky shots in, thus far… Maybe even singed his arm hair off… But that stopped now. With a downward chop of his hand, he ignited a blade of blue flames that rent her first wave asunder, clearing the way for her next.

Moving his arms in a circular, fluid motion in front of him, the leftover flames from her first wave would mix with his and begin churning together. Blue would overtake red as the flames submitted to his will and formed into a massive sphere. As her second wave broke upon it, Izaya spread his arms out to either side; Bursting the sphere of flame apart, spreading streams of flame to either side. Her flames followed his, again changing color as he took hold of them. Moving his arms around his body in a fluid manner, he slipped into a style of firebending that more closely resembled waterbending. Bending the streams of flame around him in a circle, so that he looked to be surrounded by a sea of fire. Each wave she sent at him broke upon the seathing circle, and was swept away in the current, further adding to the already impressive mass.

Izaya wasn’t overly surprised when the waves of flame stopped coming. No matter how bull-headed his opponent had to be, she had to be smart, or experienced, enough to notice that she was just feeding him more ammo to be used against her. Staring at her, through the flames, he’d like to think there was a curious expression behind that mask… A perplexed look before a mind trying to process the image before it; Fire being bent around like water, a glowing see of liquid flame whirling around her enemy. Somehow, he doubted she’d ever seen anything like it.

With the attacks no longer coming... Well, it was now or never. Izaya spun about, the current of flame changing direction to follow his motions, compressing the flames from a stream into a single wave. Coming to a stop, now facing his opponent, Izaya’s arms stopped their fluid motion and instead flung outwards, in a striking gesture more befitting a firebending style. The massive wave of blue flames his enemy had so generously contributed to shot outwards with his motion. Flames washed over the ground before him, a cresting wave of flame many sizes larger than a single firebender could generate on their own.

Not the type to expect his first plan to go particularly well, Izaya’s stance shifted again; his arms now snaking about his body as he fell into the cold calm that came all too easily to him. Lightning sparked along his body as he moved, arms jerking this way and that in serpentine fashion. His goal was to generate the largest amount of lightning that he could -a strike that would obliterate his enemy, provided she survived the tidal wave of flame from before. It was a bit risky -it would take a moment longer than was wise- but he wanted, needed, to end this quickly.