Leaves from the vine
Falling so slow
Like fragile, tiny shells
Drifting in the foam
Little soldier boy
Come marching home
Brave soldier boy
Comes marching home...
The rustle of grass. My own breath. Sunbeams warming my skin. The chirping of birds. All this was available for focus during meditation. Meditation is a practice that, by bringing mind and body, conscious and unconscious, into harmony, helps improve physical, mental, and spiritual health. I can't say anything about the last one, but it definitely helps with the first two. Or rather, it really only works on mental health. The body is simply a very complex instrument, the functionality of which depends on many factors—including a person's mental health. There's a reason some people say that all diseases stem from nerves, isn't there?
I experienced this statement firsthand. The endless cycle had heavily worn down my spirit. At one point, I started noticing that I was losing my mind. Trying to seek treatment from specialists didn't help. Various therapies proved useless in my case. I had already expected that I would no longer be participating in the endless cycle, but rather some madman would, when I unexpectedly stumbled upon a small group of wandering monks. They helped me. Thanks to their practices, I was able to detach myself from the lives of my past incarnations, which were oppressing me at the time, and focus on the present, my main goal then: ending the cycle.
Unfortunately, I nearly went insane again when I realized I couldn't complete the task. But now, after finding a new meaning in life, my health is once again in a more or less normal state.
Standing up from the ground, I picked up my pack of belongings and continued my journey. The short break was over. A few hours of leisurely walking remained until my destination. The recruitment station awaited me.
The first thing I did, as soon as I could control the body at a somewhat normal level, was check what was available to me now. The result was pleasing, because the magical abilities from the past world remained with me. Only, without the power boost from the Heart artifact, their potency left much to be desired.
I very quickly realized that something I had never noticed before was circulating in the body. A certain mysterious energy, the name of which was Chi. When I tried to exert any influence on this energy, the result was nearly burning down my sleeping area. A jet of flame erupting from my palm caused the pillow to smoke. It was fortunate I hadn't aimed my hand at my face...
A portion of this world's population consisted of Benders. But with their own unique characteristics. They did not utilize the same magical energy that gently pulsed somewhere in my soul. Its place was taken by Chi. Bending in this world arises precisely from the ability to manipulate one's Chi. Manipulation of this life energy is an innate gift. It is believed that it cannot be learned.
Every Bender in this world, with one exception, is rigidly tied to one of the Four Elements. Why this came to be, I was unable to learn. Passing through the info-field did not provide an answer to that question. An Earthbender cannot learn to master Air, but they can delve deeper into their own element, exploring its new facets.
This time, I wasn't very lucky with my birthplace. A run-down village of ten homes located near the sea had little to offer me in terms of mastering Bending. Moreover, I was the only Firebender, as they also called Benders here, in this village and for many miles around.
Unfortunately, I haven't reached such a level of enlightenment that simply gaining access to an energy source makes me a powerful user of it. Magic and other supernatural forces remain a mystery to me for now. A very interesting mystery, which I strongly desired to solve.
At sixteen years old, all I could do was release jets of flame from my limbs and throw a fireball. It was very little. Although the old people in my village undoubtedly exaggerated the rumors about the power of Benders, I was sure they were capable of much more. Self-training in an attempt to master the local Bending simply wasn't working. Experiments only resulted in numerous burns to my skin or the mucous membranes of my respiratory tract when I tried to breathe fire. I needed a teacher.
Fortunately, I knew where to find one.
The army.
This world has been at war for almost a hundred years, so the training of soldiers, and especially Benders, has been refined and streamlined.
Normally, the Fire Nation Army did not recruit soldiers from the colonies, but there was an exception to this rule: Benders with the correct element. And I was that Bender with the correct element.
An intriguing fact was that service in the army was not mandatory. Everyone joined the Fire Nation forces only on a voluntary basis. The same situation existed with my country's opponents. Perhaps this is precisely why the war had dragged on for such a long period, becoming so sluggish?
Not far ahead, six figures in green clothing appeared, talking amongst themselves as they walked toward me. They were clearly Benders from the Earth Kingdom army. The military uniforms and the characteristic bare feet hinted at this. Barefoot, because that's how they better feel their element. They weren't even hiding, despite being in a Fire Nation colony. Did they know patrols were rare in these parts?
Predatory smiles appeared on the faces of the six men. One of them signaled, and the entire squad quickly rearranged, walking toward me in a semicircle. I confidently continued forward. Just as I was about to pass through the small gap between two Benders, I was stopped, grabbed by the shoulders from both sides. The semicircle tightened into a ring, and a nasty, snarling grin appeared on the Benders' faces.
"Hold up, kid," the probable leader of the gang spoke to me, "don't you have anything you want to give us?"
He looked pointedly at my rather thin pack.
"There's only a little clothing and stale bread in there," I showed the contents of my bag, spilling it onto the ground. "I have nothing else."
The Benders exchanged glances. It was clear they were disappointed by my lack of anything truly valuable. They probably assumed I had gold because of my good-looking clothes and sturdy boots. In my attire, I did not resemble a young man who toiled in the fields all day or went out to sea for several days just to feed himself. I looked more like the son of a well-off merchant. All that was missing was a tightly packed purse on my belt to brand me a rich brat. Incidentally, I had recently lifted the clothes off the shoulders of such a rich merchant's son.
The Bender frowned, looking at the turned-out pack lying on the ground. Then he shifted his gaze to me, and followed up by very roughly and quickly patting down my entire body.
"Tch, really nothing," the man grimaced.
"He still needs to be dealt with..." another squad member distracted him.
"Yeah, you can tell he's not one of ours," another one nodded to him. "Pale skin, brown eyes, too slender, and his hair looks off... Definitely not ours."
"Plus the aristocratic clothes," a third Earthbender continued.
"Son, the squad has chosen your fate..." The leader of the squad didn't manage to finish his sentence before he dropped to his knees, clutching his throat, trying to gasp for air convulsively.
In the next second, I ducked under the punch of another squad member and snatched a small knife from his belt. I slipped behind him, while the opponent himself joined his squad leader: he, too, fell to the ground, but instead of gasping, he was trying to stop the blood furiously gushing from a severed artery.
I dodged a rock hurled at me and launched the recently acquired knife at the thrower. Instant death from a hit to the eye. I felt a tremor beneath my feet and urgently jumped sideways. Several earth spikes pierced the mortally wounded Bender who was trying to stop the bleeding. I rolled and quickly found my footing again. I lunged, and my knee crushed the nose of the next opponent inward. Another jump to the side to avoid being crushed between two slabs of earth. A short step. My palm grasped the face of the Bender who wanted to flatten me, and I unleashed a jet of flame. Simultaneously with a brief shriek, I smelled burnt flesh. The dead body fell to the ground.
My gaze locked onto the last opponent. Fear was visible on his face. He fell on his backside and tried to crawl away from me in that position. I punched forward. A new jet of flame engulfed the enemy. He began rolling on the ground, trying to extinguish the fire, but I relentlessly kept showering him with it. Soon, his scream of pain was also cut short.
"You could have just walked away peacefully," I murmured, looking up at the midday sun.
After picking through the bodies of the Earthbenders, I unhurriedly continued my journey. My first encounter with Earthbenders... was unimpressive. I expected more from them, but they turned out to be so unprepared, like yesterday's peasants who had been taught a couple of tricks and sent to attack. And wasn't that the case?
A squad of recruits who seriously messed up and were sent into Fire Nation colony territory on a suicide mission as a lesson to others. Because sooner or later, they were bound to be noticed, and then their fate in enemy territory would certainly not be enviable... If by some miracle they managed to escape the first dragnet, they would still be caught during the organized hunt, intensely interrogated, and likely hanged.
In general, soldiers and Benders usually don't bother common people, regardless of which tribe's colors they wear. After all, tomorrow's peasant might become a subject of your state, and who needs subordinates who fiercely hate you?
Things went badly for me because I was too well-dressed for a common person. But now I have some decent food, and I saw Earthbending in action. The money I found in the Benders' clothes, unfortunately, had to be left behind. It belonged to the Earth Kingdom, and could cause me trouble during a search at the city entrance.
*********
"You want to join the army?" the Garrison Commander of the City Guard asked, looking at me from beneath his brow. Clearly an aristocrat. This was evident from the specially tied topknot of gray hair on his head. "We don't recruit from the colonies. Leave my office if you have no further questions." I silently ignited a small flame in my palm. The Guard Commander sighed wearily, pulling writing implements from a drawer. "You should have started with that. What is your name?"
"Long." The man snorted at my name. It meant Dragon. This body's mother clearly had high hopes for her child's future.
At first, she raised me with love and care, but her attitude changed drastically the first time I released tongues of flame from my palm in front of her. I didn't have to wonder for long why this happened. It was enough to learn that our village had become a Fire Nation colony a few months before I was born. My mother never spoke about my father. It was easy to put the facts together and understand her attitude toward Firebenders.
"Long, do you wish to serve under me, or somewhere else?"
"I want to be in a place where I will be taught to master fire and where I can put my skills into practice."
"Another one who wants higher wages for participating in combat operations... Why can't you young people ever stay put?" the Guard Commander muttered, making notes on the sheet of paper. "Preparation for the new batch of recruits begins in a few days. During the training, I give you a chance to change your mind... Life is worth more than the jingle of gold in your pocket, son."
"I want to serve the Fire Nation!" And also gain experience fighting other Benders, because that even sounds exciting. Fighting Benders...
"As you say, soldier, as you say..."