? (Waterbender)
A stranger walks the streets of Ba Sing Se.??The criminal element was ever present in the lower rings. Ready to prey on whoever was foolish enough to venture out of the safety of their homes at night. The stranger walked slowly and silently. The midnight blue robe concealing the stranger's face. Quickly, the stranger was not alone. Three men stepped out of an alleyway in the stranger's path. The stranger stopped, head down with face hidden. Only one was armed, two hammers hung at who apparently was the leader's side.
"Looks like we've got ourselves a newcomer, boys," the gruff voiced leader said. "Welcome to Ba Sing Se, it's awfully dangerous to be walking alone at night. Isn't it??boys?"
"You bet it is, alone, in this city, many don't make it out alive," one of the leader's stooges answered.
"Fortunatly,??we're in the business or protecting newcomers like you. All for the low price of 20 gold pieces. How about it stranger? Don't make the mistake of turning down our generous offer if you value your life."
The stranger said nothing. The leader got impatient. "Hey! Maybe you didn't hear me, but if you know what's good for you you'll accept our offer."
More silence from the stranger.The??leader growled and??stepped forward. "I've lost my patience, stranger." He reached for his hammers.
The stranger's head raised slightly revealing his mouth.??"Do you know??of a man named Zhang Yu?" The stranger suddenly asked.
The leader stopped. "What? Zhang Yu?"
"You do not know." The stranger spoke as if stating a known truth. "Then, I hold no reservation." The stranger turned around and began to walk away.
"What does he think he's doing?" the other stooge asked.
"You dare turn your back on me?!?" The leader said, furious, and charged hammer's drawn-
As suddenly as the attack began it ended. The stranger had turned around and stopped the leaders attack by placing his hand on the leader's chest. The leader was a still image. As if turned into a stone statue. Stopped in his tracks by the stranger's hand. The leader's eyes were wide with shocked. He couldn't move, save for twitching. The stanger was controlling him.
The leader's stooges, before cooky and sure were suddenly afraid and cowardly. They both slowly started backing away? "What in the world...what's wrong, Chief?"
The??stranger's arm??swung from the leader's chest and the??leader spun on his heal, swinging his hammer. He caught stooge #1 flush on the forehead, with a sickening crack. The man was dead before he hit the ground.
Stooge #2's instincts were on his side. He ran back down the alley he came from-
The stranger's arm swept in the direction the man ran and the leader flung his hammer at the man. It toppled end over end,??nailing stooge #2 in the back of the head. The handle hit first and sunk into the man's skull. The stooge fell forward and rolled several feet before coming to a rest.
The leader grunted again as his body straightend to stand upright, at attention. His body trembled more trying to resist the stranger who just made him kill his comrades.
"I could smell the blood on those hammers. You and your men have killed before,??but I decided to let you go.??You persisted.??But, you're heart is hard and cold.??If that is??how you choose??to live,??then I shall indeed make your heart cold. All debts repaid." The stranger walked away, raised one arm, and clenched a fist.
The leader regained control of his body, but he instantly felt something moving inside his chest. His chest was cold. And getting colder. The leader tried to scream for help but his lungs were shriveling. His body??in??immense pain and??getting cold.??
All at once he knew: his blood, it was freezing. Darkness slowly enveloped him. He fell to his knees, energy seeping away. The pain was fading. As was his heart beat. The leader, who had terroized people in Earth Kingdom villages for protection money and killed all those who refused, lay freezing from the inside out. His heart beat...thump.......thump............
The last thing the leader saw was the??fading figure of the person who killed him. The woman in the dark blue robe....
Edited on 11/25/2006 7:51pm