__________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Ziotea had to admit that Jin, the guy in the piperunner outfit, might be right about not getting too close to containers. If humans could act like that, there was no telling how the local wildlife might be affected as well. Still, she'd gotten six synergy batteries out of it, so no harm done...this time. The young earthbender wrote down his name instead of saying it. Weiyuan. Did he not speak? Ziotea didn't recall him talking last time either, just giving her a thumbs up. She passed the other two water bottles to Jin. "Here, take one and give the other to...whomever." But even as she did her attention was still on Weiyuan. "Not a big talker, are you? I'm Ziotea," she said. Then, going out on a limb, she did the name sign and fingerspelled her name. My name is Ziotea. Pretty much any child living on the street in the Lower Ring picked up some degree of street sign language. If you wanted to coordinate across distance without yelling, it was invaluable. She'd picked up enough to be fluent. She and Ryo used it a lot with each other -- the memory made her heart tighten painfully. When they didn't want to be heard, when they were somewhere quiet, when Ryo just didn't feel like talking. A sad smile crossed her face. Her hands flashed through a few more signs: Or you can call me and ended with the sign for red into the zigzagged finger of a spelled Z. |
[IC] ᵗʰᵉ Last Avatar. Page 5
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__________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Weiyuan was clearly excited to find someone that knew sign, and when he showed Ziotea the scars on his neck she understood why. Poor guy couldn't speak. But he certainly could sign -- his fingers flew through the words, almost faster than she could understand them. I learned as a child on the streets. Easier to rob the adults if you're not yelling your plans. I kept at it because of...a friend. There was a distinct pause in her words. She didn't really want to get into a discussion about Ryo just now. The wound of leaving him was still too fresh. She'd gotten past being unable to sleep for lack of his arms around her, at least. Thinking of him made her wonder...did he miss her as much as she did him? And that made her wonder just what kind of a terrible person she was for departing without a word. Ziotea shook her head to clear the dark thoughts away. She'd had no choice. She wasn't safe in Ba Sing Se anymore. At any rate, I'm fairly fluent. I know enough to get by, at least. |
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█ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ | ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________.. "How recent does this look to you, Feyi?" "It's a little hard to tell." Feyi pressed a finger against the back of the seat, smudging a mostly dried stain that was blotted across the worn fabric. The darker layer chipped away revealing a lighter red hue beneath and smeared ever so slightly as she dragged her finger across. "This blood isn't completely dry," she reported, stepping out of the doorframe and studying the red mark on her fingertip. "And the engine's stopped smoking. This couldn't have been more than a few hours or so. Maybe just before we scouted it earlier." She stopped looking at her hand and paused when Ziotea had caught up to them and began collecting the items in the back, as few as they were. It was odd, seeing a vehicle so obviously repurposed in such a way so as to maximize its cargo space, only for it to have been carrying so little. There were very few scenarios where that made sense. "Whoever was here must have already picked it clean and left before we saw anything, but then why'd leave the water behind? Feyi turned to look down the road, past the rest of the stopped vehicles and past Tenet, who was still standing sentry and keeping his eyes West. The highway continued for miles before turning North where it began circling around the outskirts of Gaoling to its far side. Feyi could see between them and there another overpass not too far up the road. She could also see breaks in the center divider, although she couldn't tell if any of them were large enough to allow their vehicles to pass through. "We're not that far from the last confirmed sightings of the kidnappers. This could be related so now might be a good time to stop and see if we can pick up any tracks. But not right here. Let's push this out of the way and then maybe get off the road as soon as we can. We'll find a spot to stop closer to the forest." Feyi was already back in the car when she'd finished the sentence, shifting the gear and setting the wheel so that when pushed, it'd settle in the open space between another disabled vehicle and the wall. There was no point in checking to see if it'd start. The smoke from earlier and the hole Jin had pointed out, not to mention the damage to the dash and parts of the interior was more than enough to tell her that they had no other option but to push. Thankfully, pushing wouldn't be a problem. One of Feyi's men had moved to the driver seat and was already inching the car forward. On her command, the two of them began pushing the car out of the way. It wouldn't take long to clear the obstruction. As the two of them got to work, Reman was busy at his post discovering for himself disturbing answers to his questions. What had initially begun as only a few silhouettes had very quickly turned to tens and then hundreds, all of them running toward something unseen. But no sooner had Reman began to ponder the nature of the mysterious object did it make itself known to him. A vehicle, not unlike the rest they'd seen combing the waste, rounded a bend and begin tearing down the street away from the group chasing it. It was heading very quickly in Reman's direction and on the very road that led straight to him and the overpass he was standing on. Judging by the speed, Reman figured it would be on him in little more than a few minutes, and although the group chasing after the vehicle was rapidly falling behind, they were not overly slow and they showed no signs of stopping. Yet this was not the most troubling thing about what he was witnessing. As the main group began flooding the road, it quickly became apparent that they were not the only ones giving chase. More flailing silhouettes began appearing from every path leading out of the city, some even from the walls of the city itself. Reman would witness bodies begin pouring out of broken windows or otherwise smashing through them in a desperate attempt to reach their prey along the shortest route possible, regardless of what hazards lay between them. Regardless of height. Any that survived the fall would simply get up and join the rest of the swarm as it headed South and in the general direction of the fleeing car. | _
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...| Reman. It's almost too close to tell for certain, but it seems like the people giving chase are mostly concentrated to this side of Gaoling. They are filtering from the closest buildings East of them (relative to the city itself). This means that they'll be behind the caravan shortly after the main body of the 'herd' reaches the overpass and will in essence collapse on the group from two sides. Everyone. Barely noticeable above the low rumbling of the Kyoshi and the ambience of wind sweeping across an empty road, is the muted sound of another engine roaring somewhere in the distance. The sound is steadily growing louder. Just below that is the sharper sound of glass breaking, also muted. |
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█ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ | ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________.. Theyra Reman for a moment stared with horror at the scene unfolding as seemingly hundreds of zombies were chasing a car but heading towards them at a quick pace right before his eyes, and once he realized the great danger he and the group was in. He acted fast and brought down his binoculars, ”We need to get out of here now!” Fear was in his voice as he started to get down from the overpass and towards the cars in a frantic pace. ”There is a horde of zombies coming our way from the city chasing a car and we need to move!” To be honest, Reman cared less about the car and more about the horde. So rather than try to follow the car and figure out where it is going. Surviving the horde is the first course of action he is focusing on. Also, he really regrets bringing Vun right now. ”Vun get back on the car now!” He yelled at his newest pet. Exit A single protruding orb of an eye drew lazy circles around itself until it finally settled on Reman. In it, there was no acknowledgement or any sign of it understanding what was being said. Just an empty distant look, almost as if it were peering through him instead of actually seeing him. Vun continued to chew on the weed he had pulled from the concrete and for the briefest of moments, it seemed the given command had fallen on deaf ‘ears’. At least it did until his eyes suddenly snapped forward in the direction of the coming horde. Although it was clearly impossible for him to see what was approaching due to his position between what was essentially two hills, Vun began to move anyways. He turned around and very lazily began shuffling back to the Kyoshi. shylarah At Reman’s shout, Ziotea broke off her conversation with Weiyuan. “We can continue this in the car -- let’s get out of here!” She dashed for the Kyoshi, piling in the back. She did not want to deal with more zombies, especially not a hoard of them. She only had so many bullets. KillamriX88 Weiyuan didn’t need to be told twice. He followed after Ziotea quickly… though he had to slow his pace a hair to not accidentally run the shorter woman down. As he climbed into the vehicle after her, he began to once again rethink his life choices. Why was he here? He felt all he was doing was weighing the Kyoshi down. What use was he aside from throwing himself into danger blindly and hoping his other half woke up fast enough? Though he supposed he at least probably weighed less than Reman’s new pet. Exit By now, the car that was blocking their path had been mostly pushed to the side, with enough force behind Feyi that she was eventually able to coast the rest of the way with it to the wall. As soon as she hit the divider, she was out and rushing back to her vehicle, which had already repositioned itself inside the now clear lane. ”Shit shit shit.” ”Zombies?!” Sumire yelled from the driver seat. ”Those things from yesterday? What did you call them, Feyi?!” ”Possessed!” Feyi yelled back. ”Possessed?! But that’s a mouthful!” ”Are you seri- We have to go! We’ve got to put space between us and that car!” Feyi pulled open the passenger door and then stood in the frame. ”Takoa!” Takoa was already halfway down the other side of the offramp. In short time, he’d cleared his side of the highway and vaulted across the divider in a single leap, diving for the door in the back that was opened for him. As Feyi climbed in and shut the door, her vehicle began pulling off. Another door in the back was opened and held ajar for Tenet who was waiting up ahead. Feyi pulled up beside him, loaded him in and peeled out. Behind her, Sumire followed in the Kyoshi after everyone who had stepped out had piled back in. Pressed for time as they were, she remained in the driver seat. The crew borrowed from the travelling merchant followed at the rear, keeping pace with the two cars ahead of it. No sooner had they left the overpass did the mysterious other vehicle arrive. It didn’t slow, and with how fast it was moving, it was difficult to tell exactly who or how many occupants there were inside, but it mattered little. As it approached the end of the overpass, it hit a hard turn, whipping itself around to face West to match the direction of the fleeing convoy and flew down the offramp in their direction. In short time, it had closed the gap between it and the three cars and was riding tandem with them, the dust from the road, biting wind and a concrete divider the only thing separating the two groups. Like every vehicle encountered in the Wilds so far, this one too was cobbled together from a collection of scavenged scrap parts and welded together onto the frame beneath, and just like every one of those vehicles, ingenuity and engineering born from life beyond the walls ensured it survived long after it should have fallen apart. The main difference was its size. It was small, clearly built for speed and whatever modification had been slapped onto its shell was there to keep little more than the dust and rain out. Through the open windows, three individuals could be seen: two in the front and one in the back. The driver kept his eyes forward while the other two peered at the central vehicle, the Kyoshi, with mild interest. | _
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| Short descriptions of the occupants: The driver has short dark hair. He’s wearing goggles and his face is half concealed beneath a red handkerchief that is wrapped around his mouth and nose and tied behind the back of his head. He is wearing a faded green puffer jacket that has a few old stains and some tears in the fabric along the arm. The passenger is not wearing any face coverings. He has shoulder length, dirty blond hair that seems greasy and matted. It tumbles about awkwardly in the wind, often slapping himself in the face though he’s ignoring this. Through squinted eyes, he seems to be attempting to peer into the Kyoshi though windows are up and it’s difficult to see through them from the outside. This man is wearing layers with the outer shell a faded gray field jacket and a black hoody beneath it with the hood spilling out the back. A hand is hanging out of the passenger side window and there is a gun in his hand. In the back, the third individual is wearing a beanie and is wrapped in what looks to be a blue nylon windbreaker and worn and faded jeans. However, he’s not sitting in his seat like the other two are. He seems to be bracing himself against the far passenger door with a leg resting across the seats and the other disappearing into the bottom of the car. A camo backpack is lying on the seat in front of him and on top of that is an odd looking object that could easily be mistaken for a rifle. Or perhaps it is a rifle. Although technically facing in the general direction of the Kyoshi, It is not being held by him as if he means to use it. The butt of the weapon is sitting on top of his shoulder while the rest of the barrel is angled down and slightly across his body, with the end of it disappearing into the bottom of the car. |
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He was more concerned on how they angered the possessed in the city. Reman knew this was not the time for talk but he wondered what they could have found to make the possessed act this way. Who are these people, he thought to himself. Exit The passenger shifted slightly and then carefully, without pointing the gun directly at the Kyoshi, swung his hand around and began pointing with the barrel across himself in the direction of the forest. ”Head to the forest!” he tried to yell through the wind. When his eyes suddenly shifted away from the Kyoshi to something beyond them, the hand with the gun swung around almost just as quickly. The barrel flashed before he’d even stopped to aim. To the right of the Kyoshi, the head of one of the dead who had caught up to them and was about to leap onto the vehicle, snapped backward violently. It immediately collapsed, rolling a few feet in the dirt before coming to a stop. Half a second later and it was over taken by another and then another and then the horde that had been trailing right behind it. One of them slammed into the back of the Kyoshi to no effect. A second did what the first could not and leapt onto the hood. It slammed a fist into the windshield but only managed to break its own fingers and smear blood across it. ”STOP! RUNNING!” Visible beyond it, more possessed were running perpendicular to the fleeing cars from other parts of the city, crossing the empty field between it and the highway ahead of the convoy to where their paths would cross. Faye’s vehicle was in trouble too as one of the possessed had gotten on top and was attempting to enter through the open hatch. A second had managed to grab onto the back and was trying to climb up as well, although its leg had missed the landing and was now being dragged across the road. Sumire’s eyes narrowed. She coaxed more power out of the engine and gained enough speed to slam the front of the Kyoshi against the back of Faye’s vehicle. The possessed clinging to it was smashed between both, and as Sumire’s eased on the pedal, it slipped out from between them and rolled under the chassis. The Kyoshi jumped slightly as it rolled over the corpse. The other one that had nearly climbed inside was handled by a sudden, muted, flash of light and a shove. It was thrown from the opening in the top and it tumbled lifelessly to the ground. Shortly after, Takani appeared from the opening with his rifle and began dumping rounds into the closest of the possessed, giving them a small pocket of space. From the rear passenger window, Tenet joined as well. ”Come on you idiots… faster or get out of my way!” Sumire yelled. It was a rare side of Sumire that few saw and usually only by those who were already eating her dust. Behind them, the guards borrowed from Tan-ming were having their own issues. The convoy was moving just fast enough to pass most of the possessed but the rear of it crossed the main body of the horde just as they reached the highway. The first few that smashed into their vehicle were knocked to the side easily enough or crushed beneath their wheels. But as they continued to collide with them, eventually they would begin spilling on top of the car instead of underneath. It was like watching a wave capsize a boat. The rear vehicle first jumped and then smashed into the center divider when it was pushed. The collision forced its rear end into the air and flipped it over, landing halfway across the divider. When it finally fell back to the ground, it was immediately over taken by all the possessed that collapsed on top of it. It disappeared beneath a pile of violent bodies. The other car turned and fled into the forest, not waiting around for the worst of the horde to reach them and do the same. ”There’s a gap up ahead!” Takaani yelled. ”I see it!” Faye yelled back. Both vehicles cut through the thinner edge of the horde, fighting them off just barely as the dead threw themselves at them. When they arrived at the only break in the divider that was wide enough, they both made a hard left and immediately made a break for the forest. Wheels sped across the last bit of concrete, flinging dust and rocks and blood into the dead as both cars jumped the road and fled into a wall of dead trees. The dead followed them in. Grey skies and bare branches became bent trees and a canopy that drowned out the light and doused everyone in a darkness that did not seem natural. Behind them, the dead were beginning to fall behind, some of them stopping on their own while a few continued to give chase, bounding over twisted branches and jagged rocks that were beginning to crowd the forest floor and slow the two cars. The ride was rough, violently so, and only continued to get worse until eventually, both Faye and Sumire were forced to slow to a crawl. There was no road here. No clear path. Just a dark forest that was growing more dense by the minute. And there was no sign of the other car either. In the dark, the only thing visible were the faded outline of trees, low hanging branches… and what looked like vines hanging from them. Behind them, the sound of the few dead continued to grow louder. Faye pulled to stop while Takani, who had retreated into the vehicle to avoid getting decapitated by a tree, popped up again, swung around with a light, and began dumping more rounds into the dead trailing them. They fell easily enough, save for one that seemed to trip and then suddenly begin to slide unnaturally along the ground into the brush as if it were pulled. ”What the fuck?” Takani kept his light up, sweeping it across where he saw it disappear, but the light struggled to penetrate the thick forest floor. He couldn’t see it or what had happened to it. ”Faye,” Tikani started nervously. ”Get us out of here.” Faye hit the gas but the car wouldn’t budge. The engine groaned against resistance it could not break and continued to do so after repeated attempts. She thumped her hand against the steering wheel in frustration. ”Faye?” ”We’re stuck!” Faye yelled out. She threw open the driver door and stepped out with a flashlight. ”No no no don’t get out of your car!” Takaani tried to warn her, but he was ignored. Feyi knelt by the car and swept her light underneath it. Tangled in the chassis, twisting its way through every available inch of space were vines. They seemed to have sprouted directly from the ground rather than having become entangled by Faye driving over them. A cursory check under the Kyoshi revealed the same. ”We’re… YOU’RE stuck!” Faye yelled at them, pointing with her light. ”By what?” Takani asked, sweeping now all around them with his light. He still wasn’t finding anything. ”Vines. A lot of it. We’re going to have to cut ourselves free. I just… I don’t… I don’t understand…” ”One thing after another...” Tenet said as he climbed out the back. "What's out there?" ”I don't know...” Takani answered. | _
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| Determined by your roll. |
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Not even the child Chosah could be found nor the women who were constantly in Sarah’s shadow, assisting her at all hours of the day in shifts. To say that the clinic had been stretched well beyond capacity was an understatement, especially when considering the size of the office. The reception area was small, divided in two by the singular desk standing off center toward the back of the room. There was enough space behind it for an old worn chair and the cabinets and shelving lining the wall. In front of the desk, if someone were to make an attempt, or if the situation called for it as it had many times in the recent days, you could force ten people to stand and wait uncomfortably. It was somewhat strange to see it as empty as it was now, with only a single occupant in one of only three chairs pushed to the side. It wasn’t so strange to see the desk unmanned. Sarah was often busy and was mostly likely within earshot somewhere in the back. Mole What Toma had understood about the world had come crashing down. However, this morning as he made his way to the clinic, he had a deep rooted hope. It was the first time he had found himself with the ability to think with a clear mind. His thoughts weren’t exactly like the morning dew on young, green leaves, but they were hardy. He could look at the sky and see the sun without a tremble tickling his wrists. Putting the pieces together was challenging. With meticulous precision, he was determined. His finger gently nudged the rim of his glasses, still intact, despite everything. He was an outcast, now. The word was an ugly one, and if he could rewrite it to something else, he would. For now, it remained soiled as an invisible but necessary badge. As he came to the entrance of the clinic, the boxes of plants stopped him. The nervous tremors he was hiding withered, as he knelt to admire the flora. “Exquisite,” he whispered to them. His finger reached out to nudge just the tip of one of them but in fear stopped short. He gave a calm smile, eyes glazing behind his glasses as he recalled the incident that led him here: He was in the middle of teaching a class on botany. In front of all the students, such young ones, too, it had happened. If there was any warning, it wouldn't have made much sense, like the blast in the sky. His hand rested at his side. This was his new reality. It was far different from his former life, and yet it was growing on him — as all things eventually do for humans. Patiently, he knew he had to endure. “Simply beautiful,” he whispered once more to the plants. He was truly mesmerized and wished to pause this moment and adore it with magnification. The subtle peace was going to be a rarity from here on out, and this simple beauty before him would very well be a sad rarity. Exit ”I’ve taken to calling them ‘Blue Sky’,” came a familiar voice. Sarah approached from the direction of the square with a box in her arms. She stopped next to Toma, casting her shadow across the rest of the planter box and allowing only the flora in question to shine in the sun’s light. Its blue stem and blue stained leaves stood vibrant against the dust and heat of the world that was its new home. There were subtle spots of purple that seemed to dance gently just below the surface. ”Someone came through a few months back and had a few. Apparently they’ve sprung up around the ruins of the Western Air Temples and are helping to keep them attached to the mountain.” She nodded toward it. ”Go ahead, you can touch it. It won’t mind.” Mole A small breath of surprise escaped Toma, but when he looked up at Sarah, his calm smile returned. “A diamond amongst the rough,” he replied. “Thank you for your encouragement, Sarah,” his eyes looked at the flower in the planter box, and carefully, with the tip of his finger, he lightly brushed one of the blue-stained leaves. The leaf, in return, wrapped gently around his finger. For a brief moment, Toma allowed the soft touch of the leaf to be caressed around his skin. It was quite a delight. With a small tug, the docile leaf let go of his finger. “Quite a compassionate and friendly fellow, isn’t he?” For another brief moment, Toma studied the flora. He memorized the shape and hues. How the blended and mildly swayed downwards. The outstanding design against the desert backdrop. Blue Sky from the Western Air Temple, he repeated in his mind. And with that, he stood up. Tall as he was, his shadow touched and lengthened Sarah’s silhouette. Exit ”The war did a lot of bad,” Sarah began, shifting the box in her arms. ”But there’s some good out there. Anyways, come on in, this shouldn’t take long.” Sarah pushed the door open to her clinic with a shoulder and stepped inside, setting it wide enough that it would hold itself open for Toma as they followed. ”Jaakuna! Wake up!” The man in the chair shifted and his head lifted off the wall lazily, his brow arching as his eyes opened and regarded the two stepping into the small room. His eyes snapped to the box in Sarah’s hands and tracked it all the way to the desk where she set it down. After some digging around, she retrieved from inside it a small orange capsule half filled with pills. ”Here,” she said, tossing the pill bottle over to him. Jaakuna snatched it out of the air and held it up in front of him curiously. ”They should help with the pain, although you might have to take a handful for them to have any affect.” ”The hell is that doc? An official dosage?” ”As official as you’re going to get with pills that long expired. Be happy that idiot out there had any.” Jaakuna frowned at Sarah and then frowned at the bottle, but whatever reservations he was feeling about it were short lived. In short time, he’d torn the lid off, poured an amount into his hand and tossed them into his mouth. ”And Toma, how have you been acclimating?” Fiber Her arms were sore. Her legs were sore. Back, head too, all of that was sore. That wasn’t a new feeling to Yukiko; her body was a testament to all of the scrapes and scraps she had been in year after year. Sometimes she got them checked out, by whatever passed for a medic in the lower ring or the prison system, more often she just pushed on through. There was a saying they had in the lower ring, older than anyone could remember “New growth cannot exist without first the destruction of the old”. It was one of the few phrases she had liked enough to think about getting a tattoo of it, but in here experience everyone who bothered to get a quote tattooed on themselves turned out to be an utter tool, and so it stayed off. At the clinic she walked in, still wearing the muddied and tattered orange jumpsuit she arrived in, and always checking her back instinctually. When she saw how empty it was, she breathed a sigh of relief, then found a spot by the wall to lean up on, even when the chairs were empty. Yukiko got an idea and poured out a drop from her canteen into her palm, then focused on it and started to do some subtle motions. It twitched, and then finally the water droplets began to flit around the palm and fingers of her hand, amusing but harmless. She tried to hide her surprise that she was actually getting this waterbending thing to work. The novelty wore off and she said to Sarah “Oi, I forget your name but I heard I had to come back here if I wanted to get some pills. I’d be happy if you could just give me them and I’ll be out of here, don’t need any more doctorin’, thank you. You can put the name ‘Yukiko’ down if you need to keep a record.” Mole Toma carefully looked at the woman. She had the kind of brute that was only found in the lower ring. Regardless, he made a polite smile and allowed her to take authority over the conversation. Obviously, she needed Sarah’s attention much more than he did; and if he was to complain, it was only about a soreness in his neck when he turned his head and a soreness in his lower back when he slept. As well, It was trivial of him to mention the occasional panic spells, which he assumed would subside as he studied and became better acquainted with his surroundings. Exit The man in the chair eyed Yukiko as she practiced with the water in her hand. Casually, he lifted his, and with a snap of his fingers, produced a flame at the end of his index. It was weak but serviceable as far as firebending went. Good for the occasional party trick or to light a cigarette. When he was sure Yukiko noticed, he threw her a wink. ”Please. No open flames in here, Jakuuna. I’ve told you before.” Sarah said, eyes snapping to the man as he begrudgingly snuffed the flame. ”And Yukiko...” Her eyes drifted to the woman next. ”Not pills. Just a check-in and maybe some manners.” Sarah mouthed Toma an apology. ”And maybe some new clothes.” Mole “Oh, it’s alright,” Toma glanced briefly again at the Waterbender and the Firebender and then gave Sarah a reassuring smile of warmth, “And really, anything that ails me can be healed easily with Time.” He closed his eyes and let out a sigh. His hand rubbed the back of his neck. Taking pills was not ideal. Now was not the time to let his guard down, and even if he was in the comfort of his home in Ba Sing Se, he would prefer pure holistic remedies. He had been to the Lower Ring enough times to see the social retardation. Exit Sarah stepped away from Toma and returned to her desk, rummaging again in her box. She eventually pulled out what looked like a faded, dark red windbreaker, the words “Gaoling” embroidered across the chest and straddling the zipper break in the center. She turned and held it up for Yukiko to take. ”Please consider putting that on at least over the jumpsuit. That thing isn’t going to last another week out here by itself and I can’t have you walking around naked in the desert. That should do until after I’ve found you some new pants.” Fiber Yukiko stopped playing with the water and held it in her palm before curling it shut, wanting to see how she could compress it and hold it in. She walked over and took the jacket with one outstretched hand and checked the fit as she put it on. She liked it better with the sleeves scrunched up a bit, she found. She was turning to walk away but stopped to say “Hmm…thank you for the clothes. What else do you need to ask about or check?” Yukiko was not one for pity or charity, but she knew the value of respect. There was a difference one learned on the lower ring, respect was always earned, never given out for free. Maybe if she stayed longer she’d get to know more about what kind of person Sarah was. Exit ”I just want to make sure there there aren't any other issues that have come up since you arrived. Sometimes things go unnoticed until after the worst of it is over.” Sarah returned to Toma. “I’m sorry. You first, Toma. Tell me how you’ve been. Any concerns come up recently? Physically?.” Before Toma could answer, Sonam suddenly appeared in the door. She was out of breath and her hair tossed as if she’d just finished a sprint. Not stopping to address her sudden appearance or anyone in the room beyond a quick glance at each of them, she moved immediately to the back room and disappeared through the door way. ”Sonam?” ”Where’s the girl? Where’s Chosah?” Sonam called from the back. ”Uh-ah I thought she was with yo-” Sonam appeared again only a half a second later stopping in the doorway. ”She’s not here?” Sarah shook her head. ”No. What’s going on? Is she alright?” ”She’s missing. All the kids are missing!” | _
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