Avatar: The Last Airbender: Legend

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***

-Today will be our last battle, apprentice. The day after tomorrow you will go with Mr Tse, so our lessons will stop until better times.

Holding back tears and a sad smile, Guan Yu respectfully bowed to the two masters who had taught him a lot over the past few years. Although a few months that were more like torture would forever remain in his memory. Frowning at the memories, the young man pulled out the halberd stuck in the ground and swung it above his head, getting rid of the dust and sand.

-I'm ready.

-Then let's get started.

Master Kai only slowly bowed his head in agreement. The next second, the roar of flames that Master Gai was unleashing resounded through the arena. One of the man's hands held a weapon behind his back while his other hand poured fire all over the arena.

A shadow flew through the orange glow. A few rocks opened the way for Yui, who dashed after it. Hoping to shorten the distance and impose his terms on the two old men, the orphan nearly ran into the stone stakes that had grown in front of him. Knocking them down with sparing blows, he spun along the debris and landed on both feet to immediately go into a dumb defence.

Fireballs and stone chips flew from both sides, preventing the guy from being distracted for even a fraction of a second. Spinning clockwise and swatting away a couple of aimed shots, Yuu plunged into the ground.

Jumping out in front of where Master Cai was supposed to be standing, the young man had to urgently intercept the glaive with both hands. The chopping blow of the guan dao sent Yu back into the hole he had crawled out of. Huang Gai also threw a jet of flame to be sure.

Jumping out a couple of metres from the previous spot, the orphan had to engage in a magical duel with Kai, who was circling around the entire arena on a huge slab, pushing the ground apart like waves. He pelted the apprentice with hundreds of small pebbles, forcing him to constantly close in and focus his attention on the conqueror of the earth.

The sense of danger squealed with all its might. Falling to the ground and letting it engulf him like soft snow, Yu felt a tremendous heat behind him. The stench of burnt hair and the unpleasant feeling on his neck and arms said that he had managed to get away with little blood.

A battle cry of rage from the grey-haired bodyguard only confirmed the lad's guess. Pushing the soil with his hands, Yuu surfaced like a fish out of water. Holding his halberd perpendicular to his body, he spun round and round, increasing his speed. As he neared the ground, the young man managed to send four stones flying before he plunged back into the warm soil.

Turning and resurfacing, he threw small boulders at the teachers until Kai grew bored with the game. Loosening the soil with his hands, the man turned it into dirt, and instead of rocks, his student started sending clods of earth that didn't manage to get stronger until the end of the flight.

Deciding not to waste any more time on this venture, Yu returned to solid ground, standing in a fighting stance opposite the masters.

Huang Gai stood in front, practically exhaling flames through his nose, so excited and happy was he. At the same time, Master Cai was hiding his palms in his sleeves, not showing a single muscle of what he was doing right now. And Yui was sure that the earth conqueror was now pulling another prank.

-AAAH!

Rushing towards his disciple, Gai sliced his glaive in an arc, sending a wave of flames ahead of him. He followed it up with an open palm of his hand, twisting the shaft as he did so. Not willing to give up the fight, the young man leapt towards it. As the two halberds were about to touch, a small pebble flew from behind the bodyguard's shoulder. Accelerated to unimaginable speed, it smashed into the teenager's windswept clothes, pushing the boy's body to the side.

With a slight movement of his hand, Gai was able to deflect Guan Dao's blow with his weapon. Releasing the shaft from his hand, he ducked under the right arm of the slumping student and wrapped his arm around the limb like a snake, grabbing the young man by the throat. In one motion, the old man toppled Yu to the ground, continuing to hold his larynx. With his free hand, he broke the earth pillar growing next to the lad, something that should have thrown Guy aside.

Feeling the heat building up on his neck and his last chance destroyed by the careless sweep of his arm, Yuu raised his hands above his head.

-I surrender!

For a few seconds, all three of them remained tense, until the last remnants of the battle fumes had worn off. Letting go of the orphan's throat, the teacher helped the young man up. Grasping his forearm firmly, he lifted Yu to his feet in one motion.

-It was much better this time. You're far from perfect, but at least you won't die in the first fight.

Smiling contentedly, Yu bowed respectfully. For the past week, they had been holding battles like this frequently to accustom the teenager to fighting a group of superior opponents. The two elderly men were pleased with their success in martial arts. Proud of the work they had done, they decided to give the apprentice one last day of rest before he went to war.

The viceroy had set a clear deadline and he didn't care about excuses. Sun Ce would be travelling under Iron Fist's command to the south, to the Baru Forest, and he would not be going there alone. Having a loyal earth mage in his retinue was extremely useful, so Father Tse would not accept any explanations from the Uchetiles. If Yu didn't enter the heir's retinue as a conqueror of his element, he would go to the infantry in the south of the continent, to where Omashu's zone of influence runs. Recently, King Bumi has stepped up the onslaught, pushing the front line further away from his city. That's why the fighting there is extremely bloody. Under the command of the strongest earth mage in the world, the shrews have been furiously pushing through the Fire Nation's positions. With minimal casualties and many fortifications in place, the Omashu soldiers were extremely dangerous, especially for ordinary people.

Hearing such an ultimatum, the two masters zealously set about training the boy. The young man was already a quick learner, but lately they had been forcing into him everything that might be useful at the front.

While Gaius exchanged pleasantries with his apprentice, Master Kai stepped closer. Glinting his glasses, he produced a few chairs and a table that seated everyone present.

Further conversation took place in an awkward manner. The two elderly teachers didn't want to admit that they had become attached to their student, and it was hard for Yu to realise that he might never see these people again.

-Thank you... For everything.

Standing up from the table, the young man bowed low. Two hands clasped above his head, his long black hair covering his face. Feeling ready to cry at any second, Yu took a few deep breaths to calm his raging heart.

Hearing the old man's approving murmurs in response, the orphan smiled brightly so as not to darken the day with his sadness any further. Wishing his mentors well, he set off into the city to spend his last day of rest on the streets of Lipin.

Staggering across the dark rooftops illuminated by starlight, Yu smiled nostalgically at the night city. It had been a long time since he had been able to stroll around like this and enjoy the cityscape. Although there were no holidays now, the streets of Lipin continued to mesmerise him.

The vast expanse of water that was reflected in the light of a thousand torches flickered before his eyes. The dark waters of the Pona threatened to engulf anyone who did not show proper respect for the mighty river, and the towering defence towers of the city on the river stood silent statues in eternal defence of the borders.

Without noticing, Yu found himself on the roof of his house, or rather the house of his elder. Digging into his pockets and pulling out a large rough key, the young man easily opened the door, only to immediately start sneezing. A musty smell and tonnes of dust blew into his nose from the room, tearing outwards, driven by the river wind.

Hiding his eyes and wrapping a bandana around his mouth, the orphan went inside, wandering through the rooms of the abandoned dwelling and reminiscing.

-Wondering how Uncle is?

The whisper echoed quietly through the walls of the house. It seemed that with the last word the remnants of good and pleasant things had been taken from the house, leaving only the abandoned and forgotten.

Opening the windows wide open, Yuu leaned on the window sill and looked at the water surface with a sad gaze. Pona was especially calm today. The stroppy and proud river had subdued its wild temper, allowing the young man to enjoy his last days in Liping.

Grinning at his thoughts, the boy jumped out of the house and climbed onto the roof. Throwing off his clothes, leaving only the simple cotton trousers around his waist, he sprinted into the dark waters.

Diving merrily and enjoying the warm water, Yu jumped off his springboard for a long time, splashing water around, covering the streets and walls with droplets.

As he made another somersault, he saw a new face out of the corner of his eye. Dangling her legs off the roof, Wenling sat on the edge, watching the boy's actions intently. When the girl realised that she had finally been noticed, she got to her feet and easily crossed the distance between them.

Yu, who had not expected such a twist, stared at the noble falling into the water with his mouth hanging open. Rolling the orphan over with a wave, she laughed lightly, splashing some more into Yui's face.

Responding to the playful altercation, the orphan took an active part in this little game. After not getting out of the water for almost an hour, they were both extremely tired and cold. Blue lips and shaking hands did not change the cheerful mood of the two teenagers.

Inviting the girl inside to warm up, Yuu handed her a few of his belongings. Among them was his old green bandana, which he hadn't worn since he went to school.

In complete silence, they dried their things using Wenling magic. Sitting in the kitchen, both teens watched the flames mesmerised. It seemed like an eternity passed before the girl sitting next to her spoke.

-It's soon, isn't it?

Nodding his head, the young man put his hands out in front of him, savouring the feeling of warmth.

-And when you'll be back, do you know?

-No.

-Where are you going?

-No. -No.

-Who else is going?

-Sun Tse... -Sun Tse... I don't know any others.

-Do you know anything?

-Your brother, Iron Fist, will be our commander.

The last words caused a commotion in the kitchen. Wenling jumped up from her seat, biting her nails frantically and circling the small room.

-It's kind of unaristocratic,' Yu pointed his head at his fingers and returned to drying his clothes, 'Why are you so nervous?

As if running into a wall, the girl cringed and turned her head towards Yui. She couldn't tell that in recent months, his name had often flashed across the letters she'd sent to her only relative. Given that her brother didn't react to the abundance of male names among the lines, he must have wanted to see for himself the upstart that was hanging around his sister.

-You're right, why me?

Humbly sitting down next to Yui, the girl folded her hands in her lap and waited for her clothes to dry. She needed to text her brother right away so she wouldn't rub the guy the wrong way.

'Or else he'll do it!'