There was one established fact that all the people of the avatar world agreed on, as if unwilling to test and refute this misconception: metal magic was impossible in any form. Although in reality there was nothing surprising about this, earth mages, the only ones capable of subjugating this element, rarely use simple metal in their designs. Of course, some have metal armour, they understand what nails are, I personally spent more than a day learning how to work metal properly, but as for reaching the level of metallurgy of the fire people... well, yes. However, it would be a mistake to think that metal mages control metal itself — if that were the case, the Earth's people would have long since learned to lift it from the ground and use it in battle; they would have easily subjugated electricity itself, which is inextricably linked to metals, and would have become the most advanced civilisation and conquered the entire world. But it is not for nothing that its mastery requires sensory perception that tries to cling to the impurities in metal, to the earth on which our magic works.
Earth mages continue to search for earth even in metal.
There are two sides to this coin: the worse the metallurgy, unable to process impurities, the easier it will be to learn magic. But the worse the metallurgy, the less metal there is around you, and therefore the fewer students.
This was difficult to understand in theory, but easy in practice. I had a coin from the Earth Kingdom in front of me. They had three varieties, but at that moment it was silver. It had a lot of impurities, I could grab any end and control every millimetre of its surface. But around me was the cabin of an iron ship, with giant steel sheets and steam pipes running under the ceiling and along all the corridors. It would seem that iron is a very common metal, which always has a lot of impurities, but the earth content in all of this was many times less, because the metallurgy of the people of fire was disproportionate to the backward technologies of the kingdom of earth, and I couldn't even begin to try to control it all. Of course, everything depended on control - in the canon, metal mages controlled such huge, and surely very pure, structures that you inevitably come to the question in your reasoning - how many impurities must there be in metal to control it? Where is the minimum threshold? Well, that was yet to be understood.
Now, sitting in front of Suyuki, who was stunned by my antics and couldn't believe her eyes, I raised my hand and suspended a coin in it. The poor silver coin steadily tried to fall into my palm, but kept rising into the air, as if pulled up by the thread of an invisible spider. It was clear from the look on her face that even on this isolated island, people had heard that metal magic was impossible. And no wonder, since their founder, the legendary Kioshi, who was first and foremost an earth mage, had conducted extensive research on the control of foreign materials. She conducted research, but never understood that metals were also part of the earth and, as the guru Patik said, part of a single whole. Of course, he was being a little disingenuous; after all, an uneducated hundred-year-old man was unlikely to understand anything about iron, and as a typical guru, he mentioned metal just for the sake of a nice phrase, but his words now fit the situation like nothing else.
"I've already told you that disunity is just an illusion. Even metal is part of the earth, which can be controlled if you open your mind. My philosophy allows me to see the world more broadly, and unlike the works of other people who have achieved nothing, my results can be seen with your own eyes," After my words, a shiver ran through Suyuki's body, she looked closely at the coin and rubbed her eyes. To impress someone and make them believe in your idea, you had to not just talk a good game, but, as strange as it may sound, brag. So yes, what I had always done could now bear enormous fruit.
"Did your philosophical approach allow you to subjugate the metal itself?
"Exactly.
The girl blinked incredulously and focused on me with a deeply impressed look. And I wasn't lying. Metal required persistence and stubbornness, even more than stone. There were two ways to achieve its submission: like Tof, develop steadily and comprehensively, and also be an unyielding magician. Or, by opening the three chakras and hardening your heart with fire, you yourself would become a suitable user of metal — you would not forcibly change your character, but simply begin to look at the world without rose-coloured glasses, and thoughts of retreat would not even enter your head. Unless it was necessary for survival.
"I'll do anything for you," Suyuki took my hand briskly and nodded boldly. But as soon as we were in the cabin, silence fell, and the girl realised the meaning of her words and blushed sharply, as if from something sharp. But she didn't take her hand away. "I meant..."
"Thank you. It's important to me," I nodded confidently, making Suyuki float away. Well, from that moment on, double training began. It would be a big mistake to think that you can master all the tricks of the Kioshi style in just a couple of days, which is how long I managed to train, and this detail was shown very clearly in the canon. Kyoshi warriors could single-handedly destroy small squads, while Sokka, who had trained a little, may have learned a couple of useful but not particularly remarkable techniques, but he continued to rely on his tricks, boomerangs, swords, and distractions. He did not become a master, because that would have taken... well, definitely more than a month. But I really needed to incorporate metal magic into all of this. Fortunately, the two types of training could be combined.
I went out onto the deck with my fans, scattered coins around me, and began to repeat the movements I had memorised and drilled into my subconscious. Nevertheless, fate always found ways to throw a spanner in the works. Within an hour, the already strong waves, which the ship had been holding steady, began to rock our barrel, and a downpour descended from the heavens. A storm began.
"Everyone get off the deck! The strong waves could knock you into the sea," the soldier quickly ran up and warned us.Choose:
1 - Go rest (until you are knocked down by a wave, you can regain your strength with a good sleep - training will slow down, but you will adapt more easily to the new conditions)
2 - Kioshi's training ground (A rocking ship and a convenient place to train that once belonged to the fire soldiers - the best way to hone your acrobatics)
3 - Go to your cabin (Warmth and food are close at hand, and thanks to your polyphasic sleep pattern, you have learned to optimise your training time - the quality of your training will improve in the long run).
There was nothing else to do, and the waves were already washing over my heels. Still determined to train, I headed to Kioshi's private field, which had previously belonged to the soldiers of the Fire Nation. Yes, the ship had almost everything, especially popular were places with iron mannequins where you could constantly keep in shape. Kioshi practised his punches here, and I threw coins, but as Anubis said, because of the strong rocking, I had to keep my balance.
"It's difficult... but difficulty allows you to develop quickly," I grinned, and without hesitation, I gave the coins speed, and with each swing of the fan, I sent them into the metal dolls, making a steel clang... One such coin bounced off a steam pipe under the ceiling and left a hole.
"Attention, everyone is advised to leave the training area, we have ten pipes bursting with hot steam! Soon it will be impossible to train here," said another soldier, who chased everyone away from that spot.
Choose:
1 - Go rest (While you're not getting cooked by the intense heat, you can recharge with a good sleep - training will slow down, but you'll find it easier to adapt to the new conditions)
2 - Hard worker (You don't know how to compress metal without leaving any crooked marks yet, but everything takes time to learn. You will learn to compress first, and then smooth out the metal)
3 - Mermaid (You are starting to get angry because of your failure and have decided to fight back. Climb onto the deck and continue training there, despite the high probability of being washed into the sea - defeat the water with steel)
"H-h-h... - clenching my teeth and fists, I didn't immediately notice how I had crushed the coins in my hand, turning them into useless slag. But there was nowhere to go, so I approached the soldier and asked him to point out the damage. Due to pressure drops, several pipes burst at once, from which hot steam poured out horribly. Wrapping myself in crystal gloves, I somehow managed to squeeze the pipe crookedly to keep the steam out, and then began to try to smooth it out, while the mechanics looked at my repair methods with wide eyes, foam at their mouths and a prepared sheet of paper with swear words. All because the amazement at the magic wore off quickly, and the crooked seams remained, and seeing the pipe with fingerprints on it, people realised that such half-measures would not lead to anything good.
Not surprisingly, smoothing metal is much harder than just compressing it, impurities be damned! But it was good practice, which quickly became a habit for me
"Attention, the engine has failed, we will be stationary for a while. Do not touch the pipes, they are not stable.
Choose:
1 - Cool down (until you've calmed down, you can recover your strength with a good night's sleep - training will slow down, but you'll find it easier to adapt to the new conditions)
2 - Mechanic (Apparently, repairing metal structures is your destiny. Go down to the engine room and fix the breakdown. You'll get used to controlling small parts with the magic of metal)
3 - Accept your fate (You've already realised that even Anubis can't prevent unfortunate circumstances, so maybe you should just go ahead and fix things that are going to break? Leave the engine to the mechanics. You won't be able to fix anything).
"No, I will never accept my fate! - grabbing the soldier by the collar, looking him in the eyes with red eyes," - Show me where that damn engine is.
"Yes, sir.
Oh, who would have thought that a metal mage would be good at fixing engines! Damn fate surely didn't know that thanks to sensors, it was possible to scan all the internal parts without having to disassemble the engine itself. And bad luck didn't foresee that it would turn against me!
"He's angrier than usual. And he's laughing maliciously for some reason, it's scary," whispered the men standing behind me.
"Shh, he can hear everything...
"Heh-heh-heh, I beat you, you hear that? I'm better than you!" Having repaired the engine, after struggling to learn how to control the small parts from a distance, he wiped his hands of engine oil with a malicious smile.
"Attention, we have a hole in the hull...
"Fuck!
***
"Maybe taking me on board is as dangerous as sticking your mouth in a hornet's nest," I said, walking wearily down the corridor of the burning deck, scattering sand on various fires, and leaning listlessly against the door of my cabin. Training through failure is dangerous and difficult, and in a situation like this, you can't concentrate on learning anything specific, the situation is throwing you from side to side! "Okay, I'll take a break. Just tell me straight away, no one will distract me, right?
"Dagot!
"Tsk..." With a sharp grimace, I looked at Suyuki, who had run up, her eyes darting around, and she instantly shuddered at my frightening gaze. "What is it now? Have the rhino pimples returned? Did the rats steal the dynamite again and blow themselves up, causing a fire? Or did the wasps attack our ship and want to tear it apart?!"
"...I wanted to bring you something to eat because you're very tired today," Suyuki took a step back on her wobbly legs. Her lost eyes darted around the corridor in search of an exit. Putting his hand to his face, he instantly felt guilty.
"What an idiot I am. I'm sorry for that. Twenty-four hours on my feet don't do anything good for my peace of mind, especially when there's a high risk of going down at any moment. I hate ships
Approaching Suyuki and stroking her tousled hair, he gratefully accepted the dinner she had made with her own hands.
"Yeah, I didn't know travelling on modern ships was so dangerous. We should have taken a wooden one.
"I'm afraid even God wouldn't have been able to help us in that case," I said, my voice devoid of emotion. But Suyuki just giggled, stood on tiptoe and, jumping up, wiped the soot from my cheek.
"You would have saved us even if the ship had started to explode, I believe you. Go to sleep, I'll keep watch so that nothing else happens," she nodded confidently and watched closely to make sure that I really went to my cabin and didn't fall through the floor, as had already happened once. Once inside, I wolfed down all the food in an instant, then lay down on a hammock stretched between the walls of the ship. In such a violent storm, it was the only place to sleep.
"She's a good person after all.
Closing my eyes with pleasure and placing both hands under my head, I drifted off into the realm of Morpheus. Just then...
Bang
The ship rocked on the waves, and the hammock was thrown up, almost hitting me against the ceiling of my own cabin, like...
"Hop," Suyuki, who had somehow gotten inside, grabbed the rope of the hammock and calmed the swaying bed on which the man was lying in a deep sleep. "As I said, I'll make sure nothing happens.
Sitting down on her knees next to the hammock, her hands folded on her knees, the girl dressed in Kioshi's uniform completely calmed her emotions and began to guard her master. Like Dagoth's personal bodyguard.
========== 15 - Explosive Threat ==========
The refugees fleeing from the people of fire had long since paved several safe roads that could be used to reach Omasha from almost anywhere. The safest road was the one built literally from Shen Guan - the inhabitants of the greatest fortress began to improve the surrounding area, numerous outposts appeared in the neighbouring forests, and the miraculous sand castle, built on the spot from where the fire people had launched their attack, was improved and gained a port, its own personal guard, and became even stronger than when it was first erected. How did I know this? We literally approached my monument, stopping in front of the gate to take the only convenient and most direct road.
Yes, the several-day journey by ship had finally come to an end. Fully aware that if anyone spotted us on the ship of the people of fire, we would be in trouble, I decided to abandon the vessel in the nearest bay and hide it from prying eyes. The moment everyone disembarked, many civilians rushed to kiss the ground, as did the soldiers who had been sailing the seas for many years. According to them, it had been the most dangerous journey of their lives, and the few days of travel had stretched to almost a week due to unforeseen incidents, constant breakdowns and external factors. And we were sailing on the fastest frigate! Surprisingly, despite all these incidents, I slept quite well, apparently so tired that no storm or shaking could wake me up. Although it is strange that I never woke up on the floor.
In any case, after packing my things and forcibly shackling the soldiers of fire in steel handcuffs — I could have made them myself, especially after everything that had happened, but there were already shackles on the ship — we set off for the sandy fortress. The peaceful inhabitants walked ahead, and the prisoners, surrounded by Kioshi's warriors, trailed behind. The crowd was noticed even as we approached the fortress. The sight of it brought a pleasant smile to my face, even though the entire castle had been significantly altered, or rather modernised, to suit the needs of the locals. The walls had been thickened, there were more watchtowers, and the castle grounds had been expanded by about half. Apparently, they really liked this place.
However, as we got closer, we did not elicit the most positive emotions from the locals.
"Who are you?" The guards standing at the gate stared suspiciously at the crowd gathered in front of the castle. The residents looked as poor as possible and did not pose any danger, but the prisoners made everyone whisper. The guards looked so tense that they were already preparing to throw stones. Moreover, because of our numbers, a lot of soldiers had gathered at the gate." "How did you get past the traps that were on the way?"
Nevertheless, there was no incentive to communicate. Looking up, I almost instantly recognised the guard who had refused to let me into Shen Guan. Yes, the very same one who had sent me to hell! Exhaling, I spoke as relaxed and calmly as possible, with no idea what I would do if they didn't let me through again:
"Open up," but everyone around me shuddered and took a step back. Suyuki, standing to my right, smiled crookedly and rubbed her sweaty forehead. Maybe it was fatigue, or maybe it was the familiar face of the gatekeeper, but I scared everyone.
"Enemies again? Oh, it's Dagoth! At that moment, a female figure peered out from behind the walls, and the soldiers tried to stop her with their muscular arms. Nimbly dodging the guards, the lady smiled sincerely, "Open up, he's on our side. Have you heard of the sand mage?
"Lady, come back, you can't climb the walls in a situation like this, what if a stray arrow hits you?
"What arrow, you fools, he's my friend! The kindest and most honest man you could ever meet.
There was commotion on the walls, and the soldiers began discussing something with the girl who had recognised me, while Suyuki, standing nearby, tilted her head in interest:
"Is that the owner of this giant castle? You have good connections.
"How can I put it... I built the castle, but without her, nothing would have been possible.
Making Suyuki blink rapidly, the gates opened at that moment, and a brightly smiling girl came out, accompanied by several soldiers and her toad-like monitor lizard, Obzorika. From her rich attire and attitude towards Lia, it was clear that her life had definitely improved. The Architect who had helped me, who had taught me how to build strong structures, was in all his glory. She stopped a metre away and put her hands behind her back.
It was difficult to say whether they would have let me in. After all, coming alone and flaunting my status was one thing, but bringing such a crowd of soldiers to the gates without being a member of the Earth King's army was a little unsafe. They could have thought a lot of things. But this time, thanks to Leah, I really managed to get inside.
"Yo. Obzorik, say hello to your friend.
The greeting was pleasant — even though we hadn't had time to miss each other, we were happy to shake hands. Obzhorik, under threat of getting hit on the head, was forced to give up the idea of licking me, but I greeted him in a friendly manner, checking at the same time how well the old burn had healed. Nevertheless, I still had to explain who these people were and where the prisoners had come from.
"Kyoshi warriors?" Suyuki asked, blinking at Ria. "I've heard something about them, like in history class. I didn't really pay attention. Okay, come in. Maybe you're hungry? The kitchen you built is big enough for everyone. You can execute the prisoners outside the city. Honestly, I'm incredibly glad to see you. You've arrived just in time.
Once inside, the people following us opened their mouths in sincere amazement. The most they had ever seen was the maze and castle I had created, but not a lived-in fortress filled with workers, soldiers, and stables with lots of animals. The latter were along all the walls, giant monitor lizards resembling Obzorik, which had become the dominant fauna of the area. But at that moment, I noticed something strange: a couple of mages were repairing one of the inner walls, which was covered in ash; ordinary workers were dragging debris from the entrance to the castle, and a suspicious number of doctors in white uniforms were rushing into the local hospital, built in the most protected place. And if you looked closely, there were a lot of soldiers. Something strange was going on.
"Stop, we weren't going to execute them, on the contrary, they need to be taken to Omasha," he stopped Leah, who had given some kind of signal to her soldiers, and the gates slammed shut, and the prisoners were almost immediately led away.
"Hm? Dagoth, after we trained together, I gained enough skills to defend myself against any fiery attack. I was made chief architect after repelling a couple of attacks, which means I know better than anyone else how to defend the territory, and I understand perfectly well that the fewer fire fanatics there are, the safer the base will be," Lya waved her hair, looking at me with a completely uncomprehending look. As if I should have understood her perfectly.
Turning my head, I saw the fire soldiers looking around tensely, their hearts beating faster with every step they took. The people whose lives I had stubbornly protected for almost a week were looking at me for salvation...
"I won't raise my voice. Stop the soldiers," I said quietly, bowing my head and looking closely into Leah's eyes, causing a new wave of goosebumps. Somehow, my exhausted state frightened people more than an angry look and a promise to kill them. I could tell by the beating of her heart that Leah was scared, bit her lip, and shouted a new order to the guards in a slightly trembling voice. At that moment, I sensed her despair. "You used to be fine with me letting the soldiers live.
"Before... let's talk inside. The rest will be taken to eat and hidden deeper in the fortress. Who knows when the next attack will begin," Lya said suspiciously seriously, waving to the simple workers who were leading away the civilians and Kioshi's soldiers. Suyuki and I followed Lya to her office, located directly in the main tower of my castle, at the highest point, offering a breathtaking view of the entire surrounding area. Once inside, I wasn't too surprised by the changed interior. Leia had arranged everything to her liking, even changing a few corners — I remembered perfectly how this place was supposed to look, as I had memorised the tower's blueprints. It felt somehow bigger... more armoured, if you will.
While I sat down on a comfortable sofa and Suyuki stared in shock out the open window, admiring the view, Lya sat down at her desk and took on a very serious expression.
"What's going on here?" I asked bluntly, seeing her face tense up. She hadn't been like this since we were pelted with burning stones from catapults and Obzorik was injured. And her attitude towards the prisoners was now more practical, which she hadn't cared about before. "The fortress looks magnificent from the outside, but inside... It's as if everything has been blown up. I recognise this soot, like from dynamite, and the destruction is like that of an explosion.
Lia nodded slowly, with no trace of the former joy at seeing me. Instead, there was only hope for help.
"It's complicated, Dagoth... If the situation were normal, you would have been allowed into the fortress without any problems or suspicion, even with prisoners. However, the problem is now much more serious than a few ships with catapults on board. I'm afraid that the simple methods of defence we are used to will not protect us. Even you and your armour, which have managed to destroy entire platoons of enemies, are unlikely to be of any help.
"It sounds like you're being bombarded non-stop," said Suyuki, turning around and making Lia gather her hands under her chin. She twitched her leg, her heart beating faster.
"That's right. Recently, a three-eyed fire monster has been bombarding the walls of our fortress. Shen Guan has already fallen... all the residents there have moved here.
***