[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/j6V4Owu.png[/img][/center] [color=bfbfbf][sub][table= //////= POST DESIGN v1=\\\\\\][row][sub][sub][sub][sub][sub][img]https://i.imgur.com/eXWmsC5.png[/img][/sub][/sub][/sub][/sub][/sub][/row][row][cell][sup][img]https://i.imgur.com/VeALZKX.png[/img][/sup] [color=2e2c2c]_______________________________[sub]........[/sub][/color] [/cell][cell][color=white][center][sub][sub][sub][sub][sub][img]https://i.imgur.com/DHKvx27.png[/img][/sub][/sub][/sub][/sub][center][color=2e2c2c]Outside the tower[/color]Outside the tower[/center][/sub][/center][/color][quote] [color=9f9f9f][color=2e2c2c]____________________________________________________________________________.[/color] The sands that were blowing around at their top speeds felt like sandpaper along with the shards of glass stabbing into his exposed flesh – he only began to realize the pain after influencing the swirling winds of the tornado. Seconds of pain registered, his nerves felt shot, and he stopped scorching the earth with his ghostly flames. He didn’t want to look at his hand… they hurt… it felt like a heartbeat. [b]BUDUM[/b] The sound was getting louder while his eyes fell to the blood stricken parts of his body – [b]BUDUM BUDUM BUDUM![/b] – His hands looked almost similar to scrapped leather, at least in his mind, and they stung. The more he moved them, the more they ached from the glass that was placed into his muscles. Only snapping out of these thoughts while he heard something shifting near him, turning around, he noticed the tower was falling directly close to him and quickly, [i][color=9e0039]"Well…fuck me…I guess"[/color][/i] he whispered while looking at his best option. His one hand was worse off than the other, so he kept it close to his chest. It was the one that was being hit the most from how the winds turned, so he did a few quick calculations in his head. Stepping about five or six feet to the one side and standing there. He placed himself right where a window was going to fall, his reinforced armor would take the majority of the impact – if any was to be done – and he waited for that impact without hesitation. His calculations were perfect when the multi-ton tower came crashing down into the hot sands. Feeling the pressured winds, dust, and sand force its way against gravity, up, he breathed out – trying his best not to breathe in any of the hot dusk. Was his mask filtered? Did he replace the filter the last time he came back from a mission? He was going to need to change the filters. Exposing his dark eyes for a moment, he couldn’t handle the build up of dust and minimal sand particles forced their way into his mask. CLICK, chhhhh… the uncompressing sound of his helmet. Taking off the protective-gear his face was covered by a black undersuit, holding his helmet in one hand – blood crawling across the metal. Simply sliding down to where it could drip off into the world. His other hand pinched the fabric around his nose before pulling it at it. A couple dry-chesty sounds could be heard from him as dust flew off from his under mask. Blood began to soak into the darker fabric and the movements of his hands shot electricity through his body. A piece of rubble fell from the ceiling, or what was once a wall, near him. Making sure that his fabrics were not full of dust, he replaced the protective-helmet before moving around in the dark building. He was going to have to figure out how to get out of this ruined maze, so he began to look at the weakest points. There was a possibility of being able to kick a weakened wall out or find another window or doorway somewhere to the outside world.[/color][/quote] [/cell][/row][/table][/sub][/color] [color=bfbfbf][sub][table= //////= POST DESIGN v1=\\\\\\][row][sub][sub][sub][sub][sub][img]https://i.imgur.com/cLkYtGQ.png[/img][/sub][/sub][/sub][/sub][/sub][/row][row][cell][sup][img]https://i.imgur.com/KsvNwVJ.png[/img][/sup] [color=2e2c2c]_______________________________[sub]........[/sub][/color] [/cell][cell][color=white][center][sub][sub][sub][sub][sub][img]https://i.imgur.com/DHKvx27.png[/img][/sub][/sub][/sub][/sub][center][color=2e2c2c]Outside the tower · |@Mistress Dizzy][/color]Outside the tower · [@Mistress Dizzy][/center][/sub][/center][/color][quote] [color=9f9f9f][color=2e2c2c]____________________________________________________________________________.[/color] As the tower was collapsing and Jin was in freefall, she didn’t have to time to keep an eye on where Kata or the Earthbender might be. At the precise moment that the trajectory would be right, Zhen jumped up into the air with an airbending aided jump and grabbed Jin as they fell, cushioning both of their landings on the way down. As she set Jin down she saw another person falling out of the sky, having jumped from the tower. She caught this one too, bracing them on her shoulder. When the person began to thank Zhen she spun him around and [url=https://i.imgur.com/WIgjZyG.mp4]slammed[/url] him face first into the sand. Before he had time to recover she had already handcuffed him and affixed a strange collar with a blinking to his neck. [color=white]“Please remain where you are. Venturing more than five feet from your current location will cause the charge inside to activate, resulting in fatal damage to your carotid arteries, your trachea, and your brainstem. It will be removed once additional personnel arrive. Wait for them, and you’ll survive this. Or don’t. It’s your choice.”[/color] After that it was time to focus on finding the Earthbender.[/color][/quote] [/cell][/row][/table][/sub][/color] [color=bfbfbf][sub][table= //////= POST DESIGN v1=\\\\\\][row][sub][sub][sub][sub][sub][img]https://i.imgur.com/BDWoyoi.png[/img][/sub][/sub][/sub][/sub][/sub][/row][row][cell][sup][img]https://i.imgur.com/5V87bF2.png[/img][/sup] [color=2e2c2c]_______________________________[sub]........[/sub][/color] [/cell][cell][color=white][center][sub][sub][sub][sub][sub][img]https://i.imgur.com/DHKvx27.png[/img][/sub][/sub][/sub][/sub][center][color=2e2c2c]Outside the tower · |@Fiber] & |@KillamriX88] collaboration[/color]Outside the tower · [@Fiber] & [@KillamriX88] collaboration[/center][/sub][/center][/color][quote] [color=9f9f9f][color=2e2c2c]____________________________________________________________________________.[/color] [sub][sub][u][b][color=f1c231]KillamriX88   [/color][/b][/u][/sub][/sub] The sand opened up like a mouth, allowing Chae-Won to crawl her way back out of it. She’d thought about trying to tunnel away underground, but… air was still a problem. She needed it [i]now.[/i] And what if her bending finally began to weaken again while she was down there? No, for the moment, being above ground seemed like the better of her options. Two, very, very unappealing options. She had felt the crash of the tower coming down right before she surfaced, so she knew where to come up so as not to be crushed. She only had a few seconds of relative safety now. The tower’s collapse had thrown quite a bit of dust and sand into the air, but it would clear soon. She wasn’t sure what to do. There wasn’t enough time to make a run for it. If that sniper was still around, tower or not, she’d be an easy target if she just ran. Then she heard one of them calling out to her. [sub][sub][u][b][color=a4c2f4]Fiber   [/color][/b][/u][/sub][/sub] [color=white]“If you surrender now I can guarantee safe passage back to Ba Sing Se and a fair trial. The longer you resist, the greater your chances of dying here become.”[/color] Zhen walked slowly, circling, remaining light on her feet. [sub][sub][u][b][color=f1c231]KillamriX88   [/color][/b][/u][/sub][/sub] Chae-Won just sighed as the dust began to settle around her, resigning herself to the cards she’d been dealt. [color=white]“Funny. A murderer asking me to stand trial?”[/color] Chae-Won chuckled wryly. [color=white]“You know despite all the stuff I’ve done you could arrest me for, I don’t think I’ve actually killed anyone.”[/color] She held her hands up. [color=white]“But sure, come get me I guess.”[/color] That said, she didn’t move from her spot. [sub][sub][u][b][color=a4c2f4]Fiber   [/color][/b][/u][/sub][/sub] Zhen kept her distance and circled around with precise, mechanical footwork, just like the drills had taught her. She spoke. [color=white]“Killing in the service of public order isn’t murder. Before you defend your clean conscience, I have a question: Was that tower empty? I know the answer, but do you?”[/color] She sent some low kicks as she walked, never disrupting her stride, each integrating fluidly with the circular motion. The kicks carried a windblast towards Chae-won, sweeping sand off the desert floor. Earthbenders needed a connection to the ground to get power, so that was the natural point of attack for her. All of this was an exercise in watching, measuring, probing; never expending much energy. [sub][sub][u][b][color=f1c231]KillamriX88   [/color][/b][/u][/sub][/sub] Public order? They were in the desert after being chased out of their homes! Well it wasn’t like she’d expected them to suddenly have an eye opening moment. They knew exactly what they were doing. As for the tower? She didn’t have the luxury of worrying about that. She could say it was their fault for taking that luxury from her, and maybe to some extent that was true, but in the end she knew all she cared about was Weiyuan. She’d made her choice and more than likely she was about to pay for it anyway. As the kicks came, she quickly drew the sand up and over her lower legs, anchoring herself to the ground and just bracing herself. The first one or two blasts of wind mostly broke around her, but by the end she had lost her balance and stumbled back, falling to a knee. So this one was a bender too!? There was some serious hypocrisy at foot here. [color=white]“OK, and why is my existence a crime and not yours, huh!?”[/color] There was no reason to expect fairness, but this was ridiculous. [sub][sub][u][b][color=a4c2f4]Fiber   [/color][/b][/u][/sub][/sub] Underneath her mask Zhen was smiling, content that she had gotten the bender to talk. She said [color=white]“Neither of us belong in this world, not in this era. I don’t take pride in what I am, I don’t enjoy what I do, but I do what must be done.”[/color] Once Chae-Won stumbled, Zhen picked up speed and started running, tumbling, never spending too long on the ground between jumps as moved towards Chae Won, throwing out jabs and punches in the air as she went. They were a mix of high and low attacks, done at different points in her jump, and her path arced around, making them come multiple angles. [sub][sub][u][b][color=f1c231]KillamriX88   [/color][/b][/u][/sub][/sub] [color=white]“Right. Brainwashing. Got it.”[/color] Chae-Won grumbled to herself under her breath. Definitely no point in talking to her then. She Tightened up her stance, just trying to absorb the first few hits, still too off balance from the last barrage to dodge. However… as much as it kinda hurt, she realized it really wasn’t doing much damage. It was just air after all, and it would take more than that to do any lasting damage. More than that, the air bender was moving in. While Chae-Won really didn’t want to know [i]why[/i] they wanted to get closer, it did make fighting back a lot easier. Chae-Won grit her teeth and then jammed both her arms into the sand, letting the blast of air hit her. It still hurt, but she was too anchored to be moved. Then, the sand between them began to almost bubble and shift. Should her opponent step into it, they’d almost immediately sink into the soft, loosened sand. [sub][sub][u][b][color=a4c2f4]Fiber   [/color][/b][/u][/sub][/sub] The next time Zhen landed she felt her foot [url=https://i.imgur.com/G4EElFM.mp4]sink[/url] deeper than it should have. It slowed her for a moment. [sub][sub][u][b][color=f1c231]KillamriX88   [/color][/b][/u][/sub][/sub] Chae-Won… almost couldn’t believe that had worked. She quickly focused in on the sand around her target, trying to pull them down just a little deeper before compacting the sand around them. If they didn’t break out soon, then a moment later they’d see two, towering waves of sanding rising up around them to bury them completely. [sub][sub][u][b][color=a4c2f4]Fiber   [/color][/b][/u][/sub][/sub] As she felt the sand get tighter Zhen summoned an air blast from her hands and her feet to escape, first it stopped the sand from closing, then it propelled her into the air. At the height of her jump she feinted launching another blast then added a flip to make her landing unpredictable. The waves were tall, one came just shy of brushing her head during her descent, but she paid it no mind. Zhen just continued to make a waving motion with her hands, summoning a ball of air that grew, positioning it below herself as she landed. Now standing on top the ball of air, she rode the airscooter around Chae-Won, gathering speed and holding her hands to her side, gathering air for some kind of attack. [sub][sub][u][b][color=f1c231]KillamriX88   [/color][/b][/u][/sub][/sub] Chae-Won grit her teeth. Of course an airbender would be able to loosen the sand almost as easily as she could. Mind you, she’d never fought another bender before, not really. Not unless one counted Weiyuan and… he wasn’t much of a challenge for her. She was almost dumbstruck, watching them fly around her on a ball of air. However, she couldn’t waste time just watching. She set her feet beneath her as she ripped her arms from the sand, in one motion pulling up the sand with them and swinging her arms out. The sand to her left and right jumped up with the motion and then she again focused on solidifying it as much as she could, creating two, admittedly thin, walls of sand, hoping to cut off the runway of the Airbender and make them crash. [sub][sub][u][b][color=a4c2f4]Fiber   [/color][/b][/u][/sub][/sub] There was no need to adjust course when the airscooter could scale sheer walls just as easily as it could move across flat terrain. Few knew that, but Zhen loved to give her opponent little surprises. She had to admit that even she had learned something this fight, combat in sandy environments was something she had only limited experience with. Upon crossing the top of the wall Zhen intentionally overshot, gaining height, hoping to attack Chae Won from above. She thrust both of her hands forward and unleashed a crescent shaped blast of air straight at the Earthbender. [sub][sub][u][b][color=f1c231]KillamriX88   [/color][/b][/u][/sub][/sub] Chae-Won… was rather upset. They hadn’t even really had to try to deal with that one! Unfortunately, she was left too surprised to have any real answer for the counter attack. She was able to raise up some sand, but for the most part that just meant said sand was blasted right into her face as she was flattened to the ground. She coughed, spitting out a bit of sand in the process. Laying there on the ground, head spinning, she had a moment to think. This really was going poorly. Did it even matter if she won? There were still more of them. Her luck would run out if nothing else. [sub][sub][u][b][color=a4c2f4]Fiber   [/color][/b][/u][/sub][/sub] After knocking Chae Won over, Zhen landed on her feet and went towards her. She grabbed Chae-Won’s wrist tight, preparing to wrench it into position. She said [color=white]“It doesn’t matter, but the tower wasn’t empty. You’re ahead of me in terms of people killed today. If you want to count up our sins and our good deeds over our entire lifetimes, I’m afraid you would also come up short.”[/color] [sub][sub][u][b][color=f1c231]KillamriX88   [/color][/b][/u][/sub][/sub] [color=white]“Never claimed to be a good person,”[/color] Chae-Won choked out. [color=white]“But I’m not here to compare cosmic score cards.”[/color] She chuckled. [color=white]“But hey, speaking of the tower, I figure you must’ve been the one who blew the windows out earlier. Remember that?”[/color] From her position laying on the ground, it was easy to see the little pinpricks of light from the half-buried shards of glass lying in the sand. Chae-Won furrowed her brow and then, even as she lay on her back, lifted her leg up and stomped it back down. A pulse shot through the sand, and suddenly dozens upon dozens of glass shards of glass jumped into the air like scared fish, filling the air around them with the razor-sharp fragments. Before Zhen could grab her other hand, she directed all the shards inward and then clenched her fist. [color=white]“Get fucked.”[/color] [sub][sub][u][b][color=a4c2f4]Fiber   [/color][/b][/u][/sub][/sub] Zhen’s eyes went wide when she realized what Chae-Won was doing. In an instant she let go of Chae-Won’s wrist, the sent out a jet of air, more to propel herself away than to hurt Chae-Won, but it only gave her a little bit of space. Already the first of the shards had whizzed by the side of her head, and so she summoned the only defense she had left, spinning around to summon a shield of air. That gave her temporary safety, but it took energy to maintain, and she didn’t have a boundless reserve to keep it up, let alone try to get out of the maelstrom. The shards were beginning to slip through, they were tearing her cloak to shreds, scratching her visor, lodging in the lightly armored torso of her combat suit. If she had to stay at the center of this, death was certain [sub][sub][u][b][color=f1c231]KillamriX88   [/color][/b][/u][/sub][/sub] Chae-Won flipped back to her feet, propelled by a burst of sand against her back and then focused all of the glass in on the air-shield. The spinning current of air would attempt to deflect the shards, but her own bending pushed back, allowing them to slip through. The moment the resistance was gone the shards would accelerate toward the woman again. Judging by the lack of blood and screaming, she had armor under her cloak. Well, sooner or later she’d hit a soft spot…[/color][/quote] [/cell][/row][/table][/sub][/color] [color=bfbfbf][sub][table= //////= POST DESIGN v1=\\\\\\][row][sub][sub][sub][sub][sub][img]https://i.imgur.com/eXWmsC5.png[/img][/sub][/sub][/sub][/sub][/sub][/row][row][cell][sup][img]https://i.imgur.com/VeALZKX.png[/img][/sup] [color=2e2c2c]_______________________________[sub]........[/sub][/color] [/cell][cell][color=white][center][sub][sub][sub][sub][sub][img]https://i.imgur.com/DHKvx27.png[/img][/sub][/sub][/sub][/sub][center][color=2e2c2c]Exiting the collapsed tower · |@Fiber] & |@KillamriX88][/color]Exiting the collapsed tower · [@Fiber] & [@KillamriX88][/center][/sub][/center][/color][quote] [color=9f9f9f][color=2e2c2c]____________________________________________________________________________.[/color] Katakuri traveled through the broken maze, [i]sc-lurp[/i], an eerie sound to be made when you’re in a desert within a ruined tower. His feet felt something wet, he knew it was not water, and he could tell he was leaving the footprints of a forgotten soul behind him. Coming into a room, he noticed that he found himself at a dead end – a broken dead end. Knocking on the walls, he found a spot that sounded hollow compared to the rest and kicked through it easily. Once a floor, this new wall fell down without much effort and some of the old wall which was now a ceiling collapsed on him. Dust went everywhere, and he found himself with light raining from the ceiling, [color=9e0039][i]"Finally, a window."[/i][/color] he muttered to himself before boosting himself up. Quietly, he went through the window and landed on one of the sides of the cracked tower to see the outside world – it was comforting to see the outside world. Allowing his eyes to gaze, he spotted the aftermath of Zhen and this unknown earth bender. Underneath his protective gear, his eyes sharpened seeing Zhen in such a position. Focusing his sights on Chae-won, he began to move his arm up and back. Allowing his pointer finger and middle finger on each hand point together as the other fingers curled back into his wounded palms. Breathing in deeply, the pain caused his hands to become shaky – they hurt. [i][u][color=9e0039]Focus…[/color][/u][/i] [i][u][color=9e0039]Focus or you could kill Zhen…[/color][/u][/i] His eyes staying locked onto Chae-won, he needed to stop focusing on the pain or he could kill both of them with this ability. Purposefully moving each hand on the opposite side of his body, he was building up energy, and he could feel this power coursing through his veins – [i]drip… drip… drip…[/i] - The more he moved in this way caused red droplets from his hands to fall onto the concrete, metal, and whatever other material there was to build this forsaken tower. Turning his body to the side, he pointed his dominant hand towards Chae-won as his other hand pointed the other direction. A crackling roar of electricity came from his direction before heading towards the oblivious Chae-won.[/color][/quote] [/cell][/row][/table][/sub][/color] [color=bfbfbf][sub][table= //////= POST DESIGN v1=\\\\\\][row][sub][sub][sub][sub][sub][img]https://i.imgur.com/BDWoyoi.png[/img][/sub][/sub][/sub][/sub][/sub][/row][row][cell][sup][img]https://i.imgur.com/5V87bF2.png[/img][/sup] [color=2e2c2c]_______________________________[sub]........[/sub][/color] [/cell][cell][color=white][center][sub][sub][sub][sub][sub][img]https://i.imgur.com/DHKvx27.png[/img][/sub][/sub][/sub][/sub][center][color=2e2c2c]Outside the tower · |@Fiber] & |@KillamriX88] collaboration[/color]Outside the tower · [@Fiber] & [@KillamriX88] collaboration[/center][/sub][/center][/color][quote] [color=9f9f9f][color=2e2c2c]____________________________________________________________________________.[/color] [sub][sub][u][b][color=f1c231]KillamriX88   [/color][/b][/u][/sub][/sub] A few more shards slipped through, one shattering against Zhen’s mask. She couldn’t focus on just forcing a few through quickly, she needed her opponent to remain surrounded or they’d just slip away. And then Zhen might see one or two particularly worrying shards of glass starting to worm their way through the wind barrier, seeming like they just might be in line with her throat. [i]CRACK![/i] Suddenly Chae-Won’s entire world lit up. In the same moment, all the glass fell back to the earth. Chae-Won dropped like a stone, twitching and convulsing. Every nerve ending was on fire, but at the same time she was barely aware of it. When her mind finally caught back up, it was like needles were stabbing into every part of her body, overwhelming her and robbing her of her ability to move. What the hell were these people? [sub][sub][u][b][color=a4c2f4]Fiber   [/color][/b][/u][/sub][/sub] The shards stopped and Zhen lowered her shield for a moment. Nearby she could see Chae-Won writing on the ground. Someone had come through and given her the opening. She was close enough now and there was no point in hesitating. She made large, circling and pulling [url=https://i.imgur.com/Fu1d30k.mp4]motions[/url] with her hands, aiming towards Chae-Won’s head. It was working now, the subtle flows visible to one trained to see them, the current of nitrogen forcing it’s way into Chae-Won’s lungs. Once initiated all there was to do was watch Chae-Won slowly slip off into oblivion, her body going limp while Zhen stood over her, silently clapping as a way of acknowledging a grand finale. [sub][sub][u][b][color=f1c231]KillamriX88   [/color][/b][/u][/sub][/sub] Chae-Won looked up at the Airbender, seeing them do something and then immediately feeling something… off. It was hard to place it with the searing pain coursing through her, but she could also tell it was something new. It was over and she knew it. She couldn’t fight back anymore. It didn’t matter, though. The kid was safe. Even if her sad, little story was over, as long as he was safe, it was fine. As long as that light kept on shining, she could accept the coming darkness. And then it overtook her.[/color][/quote] [/cell][/row][/table][/sub][/color] [color=bfbfbf][sub][table= //////= POST DESIGN v1=\\\\\\][row][sub][sub][sub][sub][sub][img]https://i.imgur.com/eXWmsC5.png[/img][/sub][/sub][/sub][/sub][/sub][/row][row][cell][sup][img]https://i.imgur.com/VeALZKX.png[/img][/sup] [color=2e2c2c]_______________________________[sub]........[/sub][/color] [/cell][cell][color=white][center][sub][sub][sub][sub][sub][img]https://i.imgur.com/DHKvx27.png[/img][/sub][/sub][/sub][/sub][center][color=2e2c2c]Outside the tower · |@Fiber][/color]Outside the tower · [@Fiber][/center][/sub][/center][/color][quote] [color=9f9f9f][color=2e2c2c]____________________________________________________________________________.[/color] Taking a few steps closer to the edge of the building, closer to Zhen, he pressed on his intercom, in a quiet voice with a sound of shortness of breath, he asked, [color=9e0039][i]"Are you okay, Master Lun?"[/i][/color] He felt his blood pressure dropping, was it from the pain? The loss of blood? Most likely both. Kata stumbled, trying to catch himself before falling off the edge and onto the ground. He thudded hard, it sounded like something in his armor broke over the intercom. Katakuri fainted under all the stress and energy he used, and he was out cold before hitting the ground. [color=2e2c2c]_[/color][/color][/quote] [/cell][/row][/table][/sub][/color]