Fire and Wind: Origins (Patreon)

Seng kept a sharp eye on her siblings as they moved through the thick patch of forest a mile or so from their village, searching for fruit, nuts, and the like for dinner. The fourteen-year-old was used to this sort of thing, having been doing it for years, but it was only her siblings’ second or third time doing so and as such, she needed to keep careful watch on them.Luckily, it wasn't likely that any animals would be nearby considering the noise the two of them were making.“No way!” Her youngest sibling, Jin shouted at his sister in response to something she had said. The four-year-old's brown eyes were wide and his arms were moving animatedly as he argued with the other child, “A platypus-bear is way stronger than a stupid armadillo-lion!”“Nuh-uh!” Kaya shook her head, her dark brown hair flying every which way as she refuted her little brother’s claim, “That stupid bear wouldn't even be able to break through its armor! There's no way it could win!”Seng listened with half an ear as she came across a rather large patch of edible mushrooms. Her face twisted in slight exasperation as the shouted continued, grabbing a few mushrooms and stowing them in her pack with the nuts and berries she'd already collected. They still had the salted meat that her mother had bought from the caravan a few days ago but it was dwindling. Tonight's dinner would probably be mostly veggies. Likely stew.Seng should have brought her bow. Then she might have been able to catch some meat for them. Though, once again, with Jin and Kaya making all that noise, that was probably unlikely.…Actually, was the noise getting further away?Seng looked up from her pack and immediately frowned as she saw her siblings had managed to get a distance away from her in the short amount of time she had been foraging, “Don’t go too far ahead, you two!” She called out to them, standing from her crouch.Jin looked back at her, “Seng, come and look at this! There’s some big claw marks in this tree up here!” Her frown turned slightly concerned and she made her way to where her siblings were huddled around the tree Jin had pointed out. The part of the forest they were in was quite a distance from their village and as such, was completely untamed. The wilds around them were home to all sorts of creatures, many much more dangerous than the others so caution was the first priority here. Seemed she hadn’t managed to teach that to them yet.“I told you two to stay close to me.” She scolded as she reached them, “We aren’t close to the village anymore. It’s dangerous out here.”Jin looked up at her with wide brown eyes, “But sis, we were just doing the foraging thing like you told us to!” “Yeah! You were just moving too slow!” Kaya added on, sticking her tongue out at her big sister.Seng rolled her eyes as she knelt down in front of the tree, “Well if you had followed my lead, you would have seen all the lychee nuts that the two of you missed laying all over the ground. If you move too fast, you miss all sorts of things that you would see otherwise. I keep telling you two this but you refuse to listen.”Her siblings looked slightly ashamed of themselves but Seng ignored them, instead turning her attention to the claw marks that they had called her over for. They were extremely deep, cutting into the bark of the tree nearly an inch and running at least a foot across the length of the plant. She frowned, running her hand along the mark in slight worry.Markings like this had several purposes apart from simply keeping an animal’s claws maintained. They were there to mark its territory, letting any of its fellow animals know that the area they had happened upon already had an owner. Even worse, these marks were fresh, maybe a day or two old at most given how pale the bark still was. That meant the animal was still somewhere nearby.And judging by the size of the marks, it wasn’t anything that would shy away from turning Seng and her siblings into a meal.Much more wary than before, Seng rose up from her crouch, her eyes scanning the treeline around them. Jin said something, likely an apology for rushing ahead, but she didn’t pay attention to him as she observed their surroundings with a critical eye.Her head suddenly darted to the left and her eyes widened as she heard something. She grabbed Jin and Kaya, shoving them behind her as her ears caught the noise of something rushing through the brush straight towards them all, breaking through branches and bushes as it headed in their direction with single-minded focus.Jin let out a noise of pain but Seng couldn’t pay attention to that as whatever it was finally reached them, bursting through the treeline and coming to a stop less than a meter away.It was an armadillo-lion and clearly the owner of the claw marks carved into the tree just behind them. It was rather small, around three-fourths the size of a normal one of its species, but its snarling, frothing muzzle told Seng that wouldn’t matter in the slightest. It was still bigger than her.Seng pushed her siblings further back as she stared at the snarling beast with equal amounts of fear and anger. Why hadn’t she brought a weapon with her!?Kaya made a noise of fear and the armadillo-lion’s eyes locked onto the girl immediately, recognizing weakness. Drool dripped from its muzzle as it licked its chops hungrily. Seng swallowed roughly, studying the animal and recognizing the signs of malnutrition in its visible ribs and slightly shaking legs. This thing was on its last legs and that meant there was no way it was going to let a possible meal go with some simple posturing on her end.Jin whimpered into her tunic, her brother’s fear getting the better of him when faced with such a situation but Seng didn’t turn to look at him, keeping her eyes on the beast as she watched for any sign of incoming movement. Even as she stared at it though, it just stood there, eying them all hungrily. A rumbling growl came from its throat and it shifted slightly, causing her to tense. That simple movement on her end caused the animal to freeze and eye her warily, and Seng immediately realized that it thought she was a threat. That was why it hadn’t attacked them yet despite its hunger.She could use that.“Kaya… when I move, I want you to take Jin and run as fast as you can back to town, okay?” Seng spoke quietly, doing her best not to startle the animal before her, or the children behind her, “Just grab his hand and run away as fast as you possibly can. Can you do that for me?”Kaya’s voice was shaky with fear as she spoke, “B-but what about you?”“Don’t worry about me, just do what I say.” Seng said sternly, staring into the armadillo-lion’s hungry eyes as she tried to get her pounding heart under control, “When I say so, you take Jin and leave, okay?”She couldn’t see her sister but she could feel her nod, “Y-yes. I can do that.”Good. Seng took a deep breath, slowly reaching down to unhook Jin’s arms from around her waist as she did so. The boy tried to fight her, clearly too scared to think properly or understand what she had just been telling their sister to do, but she overpowered him easily, freeing herself.There was a beat of silence as she just stared at the animal across from her, psyching herself up for what she was about to do, before…“Go!” Pushing Jin away from her, Seng rushed forward, screaming at the top of her lungs in hopes that she’d either scare the armadillo-lion into fleeing or simply draw attention to herself and away from her siblings so they could escape. As she moved forward, Kaya grabbed Jin’s hand and began running away, following her commands and beating a retreat in the opposite direction as fast as her small legs could take her.As they ran, Seng rushed towards the posturing animal, yelling loudly and raising her arms, trying to make herself as big as possible. She just needed to keep its attention on her and away from her siblings. If she could do that, nothing else mattered at all.To her horror, the armadillo-lion’s eyes went right past Seng and locked onto them instead of her. Even as she ran forward, it didn’t pay any attention to her, bounding right past her and towards them instead. Seng turned to follow but moved just a bit too fast and tripped over her own feet, falling to the ground in a heap.She looked up, horror filling her heart as she saw that her little siblings had only managed to get a feet away and that the armadillo-lion was closing in fast. By chance Kaya looked behind her, and she let out a shrill scream as she was met with the sight of the beast bounding towards her. In her fear, she tripped, falling to the ground and taking Jin with her.The armadillo-lion seized the opportunity, leaping forward onto its downed prey as they screamed in terror, and Seng's entire body filled with adrenaline as she was forced to watch.“NOOOO!” Seng reached a hand out as if she would somehow be able to stop what was occurring from so far away. Her heart beat loudly in her ears as the beast’s jaws grew closer to her siblings, pounding with the force of a thousand ear drums at what she was about to witness.And then something spectacular and absolutely horrifying happened.A torrent of brutal wind emerged from the palms of Seng's hand, bursting forth with a deafening thunderclap that echoed in her ears even louder than her heartbeat. The armadillo-lion let out a pained cry as the wind slammed into her side before it was sent flying away deep into the foliage, breaking through bushes and low hanging tree branches alike as it disappeared.The forest went completely silent in the wake of the beast’s disappearance, as if the very world itself was holding its breath along with the three of them at what they had just witnessed. Seng stared after the animal with eyes wide in disbelief. Slowly, she turned her gaze to her hand, praying with all of her might that what had just happened had been a mere figment of her imagination.Unfortunately, it wasn’t to be. A simple wave of the same hand created a gust of air that was much greater than anything such a simple movement should have been able to produce, rustling the nearby leaves and branches left broken by the beast’s departure.Somehow, some way, Seng was an airbender despite over fourteen years not showing a lick of bending ability.Instead of happiness, Seng was filled with an intense horror. Her mind whirled with the realization of what just happened and what this could mean for her future.Before she could delve too deep into her thoughts, a low whimper broke Seng out of her head and she immediately remembered she wasn't alone. She looked up, quickly finding where her siblings had fallen and immediately stood and raced over to them, putting this whole thing out of her mind for now.“Are you two okay?” Seng bent down, looking over her siblings with a critical eye. Kaya nodded, not saying anything as she clutched her bruised knee, while Jin stared at her with wide eyes.“That was so cool!” He whispered, “You're a bender, sis! An airbender like grandpa!”Seng nodded, her lips formed into a tight line at her brother's enthusiasm, “Looks like it.”Unlike her brother, Kaya looked worried instead of excited or impressed, “B-but sis, if you can airbend, then doesn't that mean the Fire Nation will-”“I know.” Seng snapped slightly, her frayed nerves getting to her as she let out a response much more curt than was warranted. She immediately regretted it as Kaya let out a low whimper, flinching back slightly. She took a deep breath, bringing a hand to the back of her sister's head as she forcibly calmed herself down, “I know. Let's just… let's get home alright? We can talk about it there.”Kaya looked at her with slightly scared eyes and Seng forced a smile onto her face, holding out a hand for her little sister to take, “Come on, let’s go. Don't worry. Everything's going to be alright.”Kaya hesitated a moment, before reaching out and taking her sister's much larger hand, “Do you promise? I don't want the Fire Nation to come and take us all away.”They wouldn't come take them away. They would do much worse to them if they ever found out what Seng had just done. What she was capable of doing.“...I promise.” Seng put on a brave smile, not wanting to let her sister have any idea of the thoughts currently racing through her head. Thoughts of what this new devolvement could mean for her family and how it could endanger all of them.Or how the decision she had already resolved to make would devastate them all.“I promise you'll be okay.” ~~~ Later That Night ~~~Seng stared up at the brightly glowing moon from her place on the roof of her family’s home. Her arms curled around her knees which were tucked tightly into her chest, the tears trailing softly down her face physical manifestations of her sorrow.Her family had long since gone to bed and likely believed she had as well, but she hadn’t. Couldn’t. If she wanted to do what she knew would be for the best, she couldn’t allow herself to feel the warmth and comfort of her family for even one more night. It would completely destroy her resolve.The teen looked down at her hand and after just a moment she twirled her fingers in a quick motion, blowing softly onto the digits. A small whirlwind manifested in her palm, swirling around itself as she stared at it melancholically.Seng never thought she’d be so unlucky. Her mother was an earthbender and her father couldn’t bend at all. Given those things, it should have been completely impossible for her to be an airbender, yet here she was, bending the very air itself. And unfortunately, Seng knew why.“Since when does bending skip a generation?” She muttered numbly, watching fragments of dust and dirt gather in her self-made twister, “Grandfather…what do I do?”The night was as silent as ever, only slightly broken by the whistling of wind between her fingers. Seng's eyes drifted closed as she imagined the elderly man's voice, always a constant source of wisdom even when she was only a child, and she knew what she had to do.Seng may have been young, a measly fourteen years old, but she had seen and learned a lot in her short life. Her grandfather had taught her how to hunt and forage, to live off the land and protect her siblings should anything happen to her parents. These skills were what allowed her to support her family in times of great need and now it seemed that she would need to use them for reasons she could not have ever imagined.She knew what would happen if the Fire Nation somehow found out what she was capable of. Her entire family would be put in danger, likely the entire town as the soldiers searched for any more possible airbenders among them. It would be a horrific massacre.She also knew that it would be practically impossible to hide her abilities from them. Not only was there a Fire Nation garrison in the town itself, but bending wanted to be used. Benders often found themselves using their talents even without noticing. She had seen it in her mother when she was doing chores around the house, bending the tiles of their kitchen back in place when they came loose without even noticing it or clearing the dust from the floor just by walking in a room. Bending wanted to be used and it would even without your say so.It was why so many benders found hobbies or professions that catered to their specific talents. Her mother was a seamstress but she picked up gardening long before Seng had been born. Like all benders, she needed an outlet. And so would Seng.Even now, the chi swirled in the teen's veins, asking her to see just what she could do with the abilities that she had discovered and she couldn’t help but make her whirlwind just a bit bigger, cupping it with both hands as it grew too large for just one to contain. The whistling it created rang in her ears, and a fresh wave of tears slid down her face as her suspicions were proven correct.If she stayed here, there was no doubt in her mind that she’d be unable to keep her bending a secret. Eventually, somehow, word would get out that she was an airbender and the Fire Nation would come for her. They would come for her and get her family in the process. She had to leave if she wanted to keep them safe.Which was why she was up here in the first place, sitting on her roof with a pack full of supplies by her side as she waited for the right time to disappear.And it seemed now was that time. Her family was asleep, as was the entire town. She could leave now and nobody would know for several hours at least, at which point she'd be miles away. It was time to go.With a tumultuous sigh the teen stood up, grabbing her pack and slinging it over her shoulders, before leaning down from the roof. Her shoes hit the soft earth with a thud, the impact ringing in her knees, before she rose and began walking away from her home to the nearby treeline before she had a chance to second guess her decisions.She made it exactly fifteen feet before she was forced to stop.“You were just going to leave without even saying goodbye? I thought I raised you better than that, Seng.”Seng froze in her tracks as a soft voice came from behind her. She turned slowly and was met with her mother standing only a few feet away, a disapproving frown on her face that was made less impactful by the sad eyes that she was giving her daughter. There was a staff on her back that looked vaguely familiar to Seng, but in the darkness she couldn’t quite recognize it.Seng swallowed as she faced the woman. She had been hoping to do exactly that, not wanting to go through the pain of the argument that would inevitably spring up with her departure. She took a deep breath, trying to keep her voice strong as she spoke to the woman who had raised her, “I’m sorry. I just thought… I thought it would be easier for everyone if I left without anyone noticing.”“You know that’s not going to work with me around, sweetie.” Hana spoke softly as she walked up to her daughter. The woman’s eyes ran up and down the teenager’s body, taking in her dark attire and the full pack on her back with a sorrowful gaze, “I can sense everything in the house. There’s no chance I wouldn’t notice my oldest making her way away from the house in the dead of night no matter how light your footsteps may have become.”Seng’s face became slightly ashamed, “I know. I guess I just hoped you were asleep.”“How could I sleep after everything I heard today?” Hana asked, “You did such a wonderful job protecting your siblings today, but it’s a mother’s duty to worry.”Seng just nodded, not sure what to say. Hana stared at her for a long moment, eyes searching, before she sighed.“You don’t have to leave, you know?” Hana said softly, the tremble in her voice showing how little she believed her own words, “We can pack up and move. There’s a caravan coming through town next week and we can go with them. We can put this whole thing behind us.”“You know that won’t work.” Seng said quietly, “Sooner or later, I’ll slip up and get caught. Even if it's just to one of the neighbors, there’s no way that they’d pass up the chance to tell the garrison on the off chance there’s a reward.”Hana’s eyes turned down, any positivity filling her body disappearing completely, “...I know. I just wanted to…”“Yeah.”Silence. Grey eyes just stared into one another, both owners knowing that this was something unavoidable. Seng had made up her mind and Hana knew how headstrong her daughter was when it came to matters involving the family's safety. This was going to happen whether she tried to stop it or not.Finally, her mother broke the stare, looking away as her gaze became slightly teary.“I suppose if you’re really set on doing this then you should take this as well…” Her mother grabbed the staff off of her back, holding it out for her daughter. Seng's eyes widened as she realized that it wasn't just a random staff, but the same staff that had hung on their wall since she was a child. Her grandfather’s glider.“Dad always said that he hoped none of you inherited his gift, but that if you did, he would be more than happy to teach you how to use it.” Hana said tearfully, placing the glider in her daughter's hands, “He's not here anymore, but I think he would want you to have it.”Seng felt tears come to her eyes as she grabbed the glider, the flexible wood smooth in her grip. She slammed the butt against the ground, bright orange leather fans springing forth to catch wind that wasn't there. She looked it over. It had been well kept, not a single tear or rip in the massive wings, and Seng felt a knot form in her throat as she stared at the family heirloom.“Thank you.” Seng struggled to say as she closed the glider once more, “I…” She couldn't speak, her throat too clogged with emotions to force out the words she was trying to say.Somehow, Hana understood what she was trying to say. The woman leaned down, pressing her forehead against her daughter's own as tears slipped down both of their faces, “I know. I love you so much, Seng. And I'm so sorry this happened, but you’re being such a strong girl and I’m so, so very proud of you.”She pressed a kiss to her daughter's hairline before stepping back. Seng tried her best to stay strong, not wanting to break down right now. She slid the glider into the gap created by her pack, slotting it neatly beside her bow and keeping it firmly in place on her back.She looked back at the forest, knowing that if she wanted to be as far away as possible before sunrise, she would need to leave soon. The longer she waited, the more chance there was that someone else would see her leaving and she didn't want that.Her mother clearly knew that too, given the fresh wave of tears sliding down her face. She tried to give Seng a smile, but it was a pitiful, quivering thing, “It's okay sweetie. You can go. I'll… I'll think of an explanation for your father, brother, and sister, don't worry.”“...I love you, mom.” Seng whispered, before turning to make her way back down the path that led towards the forest, “Tell them all I love them, and I’m sorry.”“I will sweetie.” Hana’s voice was broken by soft gasps as the normally strong woman finally broke down, “Please, be safe.”Seng didn’t have the power to respond. She kept her eyes forward, focusing on the steps taking her away from all she had ever come to know. ‘I’ll come back someday.’ She promised silently as she crossed into the thicket, leaving her life and family behind, ‘One day, when the Fire Natural is gone, I'll come back and be with them again. I know I will. One day.”The tears escaping her eyes and the barely restrained sobs burning inside her throat refused to let her believe her own lie.