[Plot Topic] Finding the Warrior of Air (Earthy, Kouzai, Tsumi)

Hideyoro stood at the edge of the massive city.  Built inside the top of a capped mountain, which was then dug into and turned into the City of Owlan.  These cities set up in foreign lands were ways of Owlan keeping close relations with other nations, by keeping his diplomats close by.  It was also his way of making sure that the International Airship Services got to other nations within forcing them all to build airship hangars.  This city of Owlan was the way of keeping the Empire close with the Kingdom of the Four Winds, specifically the Northern Air Temple.

All Hideyoro had to do, according to his father, was track and find the Warrior of Air, and then lead the Order Member towards him.  This was the easiest thing Hideyoro had ever done.  He had found the Order member, parentless and living in the bell tower of the local spirit temple.  He had come here after having an ethereal run in with Spirit King Raiden who had told him to come here and wait until he was 19 to come and see him.  His birthday was tomorrow, but Raiden was dead, and yet he had been in time.  Irony.

Hideyoro had taken the liberty of gracing over the basics of the information, since Raiden had already told him part of it.  Apparently saving the boys life.  Raiden was right to do so.  Hideyoro was blind and saw only through Spirit Bending, and the Spirit of the boy was magnificnet.  It was grand, and it was large.  Powerful too.  Many souls were attached to his--those of the past Warriors no doubt.  It was a great soul that Hideyoro was drawn to like a magnet.  Hideyoro was specialized for this type of tracking--it was easy for him.

Hideyoro froze, noticing a massive spirit walking amongst the minor ones.  It was climbing up the steps leading from the Air Bison stables.  Old, feeble and slow, but grand and majestic.  It was Hiroto Goro, there was no mistaking it.  This was the man he was looking for.

Grumbling under his breath the elderly monk made his way up the long and somewhat deadly staircase. This place was new to his elderly eyes and he was not exactly fond of having this much of a foreign influence. Using a staff as a way to keep himself up he continued to march up the steps. Hiroto stopped and turned to just scan the city. It was an amazing sight, but it was nothing like his home. In his old age he has learned to love his heritage and longed to go back home. Hiroto had a dream of returning to his beloved temple and spending the rest of his day in peace and maybe even teaching. He would have to think about teaching though. Hiroto looked up to see a man looking at him or at least he appeared to be looking at him. Hiroto could see that this man could not physically see, but even Hiroto could tell this man had some special abilities.

He made his way up the stairs and stopped at the top. He was breathing heavily and leaned up against his staff to brace himself. "Hello," he said with a slight bow. Over the years he has learned to change his ways, but he still held on to some of his old ways of thinking. "How may I help you?" the elderly monk asked turning to look at the city. Hiroto could not believe he accepted to join this order. To this date Hiroto has figured this is one of his worst decisions in his entire life. He is happy to help, but there is a part of him that longs to be free. "I take it we need to find someone," Hiroto said still leaning on his staff. "Unless you already know where he is?" the elderly monk asked raising an eyebrow. Hiroto was given the task of finding a young air bender and then training him. Hiroto was shocked that he was picked to fulfill such a task because his beliefs and airbending were not seen as orthodox.

Kyofu Dorobo, age 18, sat in his belfry tower, about 2 hours before the arrival of those who were looking for him (not that he knew this, of course). He was in the middle of putting on a special set of clothes, which he used for acting in anonymity. His black open-front, hooded robe was already on, atop a noble-looking blue button-up vest, and black silk pants. Accessory-wise, he wore a clockwork mask, which he had gotten custom made, out of scavenged parts, and steel wire. The result was an intimidating mask that appeared to screw into his head (thankfully, it didn't really do that. It just fit the shape of his face.), and took the shape of an iron skull. Those that saw him didn't look a second time, for fear of seeing that face again. Though, he made it a point not to wear shoes- while he could not feel vibrations as easily as his idol, Toph Bei Fong, climbing was much easier when you had your toes to work with.

While one would think that things like climbing and swordplay would be a weakness for someone without eyesight, these were two of Kyofu's strong suits. With his eyesight gone, his ability to hear and feel had been nearly doubled. He could hear the swing of swords, and feel the footsteps of those around him. He was the perfect assassin. At least, he liked to think so.

Finally finished putting on his “Scary Clothes”, Kyofu departed, jumping off the belfry into a hay bale, bought by Kyofu, and sheltered from rain by the belfry's roof. Emerging from the hay bale, he immediately headed toward the east end of the city- the poor district. For, you see, he had become a sort of self-appointed hero in this city, by the name “Archangel”, in light of the 'saving grace' he administered upon the citizens of the city. Of course, he was only Archangel when he wore his scary outfit- perhaps it wasn't him, but the clothes? Yes, that was the only explanation. After all, how could a blind man do well in a swordfight?


However, he was the only one who could don that set of clothes- after all, the mask was fitted to his head. So, he did what anyone else would do, and became Archangel. When he did so, he felt this rush- a rush of self-confidence, and the feeling of supreme power. As Archangel, he could do anything, but without the clothes, he was just another homeless blind man. Just plain old Kyofu Dorobo.

But! His depressive monologue could wait. After all, there were lives to be saved! He hurried toward a particularly....commotion-y commotion, and found what appeared to be two distinctive sources of noise, meshing together into one particularly painful sounding noise. Kyofu used a trick he had picked up from one of the air monks, who had gone blind with old age. He drew his chi into his mouth and whistled, creating a frequency that normal ears couldn't pick up, but that he could hear just fine. Using this, he created a sonar, telling him the exact location of everything- and everyone- in front of him. His hand tattoo glowed, at the use of his bending, but, being blind, he did not notice this.

It was a gang war. Two of the more renowned of the gangs had begun duking it out, right in the middle of the street. They cared not for the lives of innocents- they just mowed through them, as if they were just hedges in the way of their prey.

Kyofu was not stupid enough to run headlong into the fight. Instead, he decided to tight tactfully. Climbing a building close to him, Kyofu let out his sonar once more. There appeared to be two distinctively large men, that were coordinating the smaller, lesser men. These men appeared to be diagnosed with a unique sickness- Alive-itis. Of course, the only cure for Alive-itis was a good sword-ing. Kyofu, being Archangel, was dutifully bound to help the sick and weak. So, Kyofu silently climbed down behind one of the leaders. He took out what appeared to be the handle of a sword, to untrained eyes. In fact, it was a unique switchblade, which stored the sword's blade inside the handle.

Kyofu pressed a button on the blade, tossing it upward. The sword sprang to life, spinning in midair, and releasing the blade, silently. Kyofu crept up behind the leader of one of the gangs, and slit his throat. Just like that. “There, that should do it. Now, make sure to get plenty of bed-rest.” Kyofu said, to himself.
The noise seemed to abruptly stop, after Kyofu's comment. Come on- it wasn't THAT bad, was it?


Kyofu had no intention of slaughtering them all, but, perhaps they would think twice before mercilessly killing each other in broad daylight. Archangel's work here was done.

He began walking through the streets, back to the temple. Perhaps he would practice with his violin, before he went back out. Or, maybe he would just take a nap. That was fine, too. Regardless, he no longer needed to be Archangel.

Now in front of the Air temple, he pulled back his hood, and stuck his thumb and forefinger into the middle of two exposed gears, causing a small mechanism to spin a few gears, loosening the plates and wires of the mask, which fell right off his face, into his open palm.

He couldn't keep a confident smirk off his face. With Archangel on his side, he could accomplish anything.

Later, he recieved a visit, from a fellow sightless man, who identified himself as Hideyoro. This man told him of his destiny, and of things to come. Funny, it appeared that Spirit King Raiden was spot-on. Hideyoro had gone ahead, while Kyofu packed his few belongings, and said his goodbyes.

Life of adventure, away!

Hideyoro still couldn't believe what he was "seeing."  The presence of this man, Hiroto Goro, was magnificent, and even though he had watched it walk towards him this whole time it was no less grand.  It, like that of the young Warrior, was a beacon in a city of regular souls.  "Forgive me," bowed Hideyoro politely and humbly, "I find myself enthralled with your presence.  You see, I am blind, I cannot see except by the means of Spirit Bending, and your spirit is quite...grand...as expected of one in your position."  Hideyoro stood up and placed his staff on his back, in a small carrying sling designed specifically for it.  "I do know where your Warrior is," replied Hideyoro to the old monk's questions, "I took the liberty of searching him out.  I did not speak in detail, I gave but a brief description.  I told him you were coming--just a small warning.  And that it was a matter of the utmost importance."

Hideyoro and Hiroto began to their walk through the streets towards the bell tower of the Spirit Temple in this city.  It wasn't far, just a block or two down the street.  The boy liked to bounce between this city and the nearby air temple in order to protect both as a vigilante, albeit a hated one.  But a kind hearted soul nonetheless.  "You will not believe what I discovered when speaking to him," said Hideyoro, still in amazement, "He was contacted by Raiden many years ago.  He was near death, and the wise Raiden saved him.  So the boy already knew we were coming.  An interesting coincidence no?"  Hideyoro still found it an amusing coincidence.  Somethings in this world were just fated, this was one of them.

Hiroto slightly bowed back to the blind man. He has heard a lot in his day and a lot said to him. Granted most that was hurled his way were insults or fists, but this blind man actually made Hiroto smile. "That's very kind of you," the elderly monk said with a slight bow of his head. That was probably one of the first and only times he has ever accepted a compliment from someone. "Very good," he said standing next to the man. Hiroto has no intention of searching throughout the entire city in search of this boy. He was glad this blind man was taking the initiative and found his location. If he wanted to really get on Hiroto good side then he should have brought the boy to him instead of causing Hiroto to move around in search for him. "Glad he knows," Hiroto said, "I am glad I don't have to explain anything to him. As long as he is willing to learn then I can do my job and be done with this."

Hiroto started to walk along side the blind man. "Very interesting," Hiroto said using his staff as a walking stick. He was putting a lot of pressure on this staff, but he knew that it would not break on him. This staff was made from the strongest wood from one of the oldest trees in all of the Air Temples. He took the liberty to make the staff himself despite all of his fellow monks refusals. The tree was about to be destroyed anyway due to some foolish man wanting to "help" the monks with renovations. Hiroto is still called unorothodox, but sometimes as he walks around in the air temples he sees how much of his culture has changed. How much they have lost over the years. In a way he was still seen as an outsider, but this time he found that he was holding on old beliefs as those around him changed. The elderly monk sighed and said, "life is very funny. You live your life resisting, and in the end grow old and watch as the world resists you. Everything is changing so fast." Hiroto and the blind man finally made it to the Air Temple. Hiroto looked up and nodded in approval at the bell tower. "It could be bigger," the elderly monk said with a shrug.

He looked up and down and noticed there was a door and an opening at the top. A neatly situated hay bale was at the bottom. "I hope he does not jump from there," the elderly monk said pointing to the opening, "that's not safe. He could break his neck." Hiroto walked up to the door and tried to open it. "Locked," he mumbled with a frown. "I take it we can't scream for him to unlock the door," the elderly monk said hitting the door with his staff. "There is another way," he said wrapping his free arm around the blind man. He was going to tell him don't be afraid, but this man was blind. It's not like he could see what was going to happen anyway. Quickly the elderly monk appeared as if he had a surge of life inside of him once more. He started to move the air around them with his staff and suddenly an air spout started to appear around them. They were quickly sent up in the air towards the opening in the bell tower. Hiroto continued to bend the air around them sending them up and closer to the open window. He held onto the blind man for fear of dropping him. Hiroto finally reached the window and the air spout slowly dissipated. Hiroto let go of the blind man and said, "there. Solved that problem. Now where is he? I don't have all day for this. I do have plans to drink some tea with an old friend."

Having said his goodbyes, Kyofu sat patiently in his bell tower, awaiting the arrival of those who had promised a life of adventure. However, his patient demeanor was wearing thin- he had said all his goodbyes, and was now in that awkward stage between saying goodbye, and it actually being goodbye. He idly twirled his sword's handle in his right hand, occasionally tossing it upward, and allowing the mechanism to unsheathe and sheathe the blade.

Soon enough, the same man that had talked to him before came back, along with someone else. Kyofu felt the aftershock of an air current, which felt like it was moving.... downward? Had the other person seriously airbent himself UP THE BELLTOWER?! Kyofu grinned, imperceptibly. “Solved that problem. Now where is he? I don't have all day for this. I do have plans to drink some tea with an old friend.” The new one said.

Kyofu stood up, brushing the dust off of him. He wore his regular clothes, though Archangel's robe and mask were neatly tucked away, in a small sack that he had packed, full of things he felt he NEEDED. Coincidentally, Archangel's robe and mask were also the ONLY things in that sack, so it wasn't exactly large. Kyofu extended a hand toward the new man, hoping to shake the man's hand. By doing this, he could easily find out more about this mystery airbender. “Hi there! I'm Kyofu Dorobo. It's a pleasure to meet you, Mister...?” Kyofu said, cutting off, to give the person in front of him an opportunity to give his name. He sincerely hoped that it WAS actually a mister- he had merely guessed on the title.

Hideyoro felt the ground disappear from beneath his feet and Hiroto's arm around his, and he saw all of the spirits of people around him get farther and father away like they were sinking. Wind whistled around him, and Hideyoro assumed that he was being lifted up with Air bending in order to reach the top of the tower. He remained calm, though he was truly exhilarated. He never allowed his blindness to take control and make him afraid, just because he was blind did not mean that he was helpless. If anything, his blindness made him impartial, and it made things a lot more fun.

Hiroto released Hideyoro and the two walked forward. Hideyoro could see the bastion of spirit energy that was Kyofu. His spirit was almost as great as Hiroto's or Owlan's, and would no doubt grow as his training went on. Hideyoro gave a small bow, "Kyofu Dorobo," he said simply, "I am Hideyoro Ezofuji-no-Tsukuyomi, it is an honour to meet you once more." Hideyoro had seen him before, briefly to give him the basic run down of what was going to happen.

But now it was Hiroto's turn to go in depth and explain everything from the beginning. It would then be Kyofu's destiny to join them. It was sad the boy had no choice, but that was life and destiny, and it was only made worse by the fact that there was no guarantee he would survive the evil he was to fight. It wasn't preventable as far as Hideyoro was told, but it was possibly to defeat...though, at what cost?

Hiroto looked the young boy up and down. He nodded slightly and remembered that he too was blind. “I am Hiroto Goro, but you will call me Monk Goro or Master Goro. None of this mister, nonsense I have not spent years in honing the art and mastery of airbending and meditation just to be called Mister Goro. If you do then I will not answer you and I can be very stubborn at times.” The elderly monk looked around the bell towed and started to nod in the process. He remained silent for a few minutes and then sat down on a nearby chair. He needed to sit after all that bending. It was a tad bit too much for him. The elderly man then closed his eyes and started to think about what to say. “How about we do this…” Hiroto said, “I want you to close your eyes and sit with me for a while. In silence, you can join too Hideyoro.”

“We can count this as your first lesson,” the old monk said going silent and keeping his eyes closed. Hiroro let his mind wonder. He thought about his meeting with his friend and how in the world was he going to train this boy. Then everything slowly seemed to drift away and Hiroto thought about nothing. Now he felt as if he was one with the spirits and one with the ordered whole. The old monk then spoke, “do you know why we are here?” he asked the airbender. “I am sure our friend here spoke with you briefly, but I am here to train you.” He kept his eyes close during his explanation. “I may be too rough and mean, and maybe even blunt. That’s who I am and why I was picked for this I may never know, but I am here for your sake. I am here for you to learn so you can face what will come in the future. You will have to join forces with others like you in order to fight evil. You will use what I teach you and of course your abilities. Do you accept this challenge?” The old monk opened his eyes and added, “it will not be a walk in a meditation garden either.”

The old monk stood up and used his staff as support. He was not entirely sure what he was getting into or what he was going to teach this boy. He figured he already knew the basics of bending and maybe was a pretty advanced bender, but there had to be something he was missing. “You will be going a place with others like you. They will be training alongside someone like me and you all have the same goal and prophecy to fulfill. You all must learn to work together and hone your abilities in order to defeat the evil that is arising in the world. I know this is a burden and you may want to decline, but you really cannot. You have been chosen for this task and you must fulfill it. If you refuse then the entire world may fade into darkness. Only you and others like you can fight for the light. Are you ready?" he asked with a slight chuckle.

“I am Hiroto Goro, but you will call me Monk Goro or Master Goro. None of this mister, nonsense I have not spent years in honing the art and mastery of airbending and meditation just to be called Mister Goro. If you do then I will not answer you and I can be very stubborn at times.”, master Goro remarked. Kyofu thought for a moment- was he joking? Was he serious? Kyofu's mind raced- he needed to make a good impression! He needed a witty remark, or some sort of lighthearted quip, that could make him seem likable. He groaned internally- why on earth had he taken off Archangel's clothes?

In the darkness that was the world, he could hear Master Goro walking to one of the chairs placed haphazardly within the bell tower. His walk was odd- he had the same pit-pat as regular feet, but at random, a third thunk would sound. Additionally, his pit-pat's weren't even- the pat's were much heavier than the pits, indicating that his weight was shifted against the third thunk, likely a wooden staff or walking stick of some kind.

Soon after the pit-pat-thunk's ceased, Master Goro spoke. “How about we do this…I want you to close your eyes and sit with me for a while. In silence, you can join too Hideyoro.”, he said. Closing his eyes wouldn't make much difference- he could see the same way, either way. But, he decided to humor the monk- after all, it's important to respect one's teacher. “We can count this as your first lesson.”

Kyofu closed his eyelids, and simply thought. Thought about things, and things about things, and...wow he was bored. His foot tapped absently, as his mind strayed to music, as it so often did. It took all the willpower he had not to begin humming. Silence was a horrid thing- devoid of movement, action, voices, people; Without his sight, his hearing was the only indication that someone was truly there with him. In silence, he was alone in a noiseless abyss, with only his thoughts to keep him sane.

Finally, Master Goro broke the awful silence. “Do you know why we are here? I am sure our friend here spoke with you briefly, but I am here to train you.” He paused. “I may be too rough and mean, and maybe even blunt. That’s who I am and why I was picked for this, I may never know, but I am here for your sake. I am here for you to learn so you can face what will come in the future. You will have to join forces with others like you in order to fight evil. You will use what I teach you and of course your abilities. Do you accept this challenge? ….It will not be a walk in a meditation garden either.”

Kyofu hesitated.

“Well, I guess I'm not too fond of evil...I'm in!, He said, growing excited.

“You will be going a place with others like you. They will be training alongside someone like me and you all have the same goal and prophecy to fulfill. You all must learn to work together and hone your abilities in order to defeat the evil that is arising in the world. I know this is a burden and you may want to decline, but you really cannot. You have been chosen for this task and you must fulfill it. If you refuse then the entire world may fade into darkness. Only you and others like you can fight for the light. Are you ready?", Master Goro said, serving only to excite Kyofu further.

“Ready as i'll ever be!”

Hiroto Goro went on about his method of teaching, about how he intended to instruct his young ward. He explained what would happen once Kyofu left his small bell tower and accepted his destiny. A bit wordy for Hideyoro's taste, but this was not his matter to be involved in. And so the blind man remained mute, "watching" the scene unfold before him as Hiroto drew to a close. Almost instantly, Kyofu responded, affirming what both men were hoping. He had agreed to join them and fight against the coming darkness.

Hideyoro nodded as the matter was concluded, and stepped forward, shouldering his staff, "Then we shall leave immediately," he stated, "There is an airship waiting at the edge of this mountain city. It shall take us to my Uncle Owlan in the Spirit World. You will meet with the Spirit King there, as well as the other Warriors and the Avatar. Shall we get--" But Hideyoro's words were cut short; this time it was too short for his liking. There was an explosion outside, some screaming from civilians and the sound of marching soldiers. Then another explosion, this one rocking the bell tower, causing silt and dust to fall from the rafters in thick clouds.

Birds flapped and fluttered above, leaving the safety of their nests for the safety of the skies, squawking and cawing and tweeting madly as they exited through the nearest window. This commotion was unnatural, and from what Hideyoro "saw" beyond the confines of the stone walls were thousands of soldiers. From what Hideyoro could tell, the ships they were flying were built like those used by the Kingdom of the Four Winds; he could tell by the position of the bridge and engine rooms, as their inhabitants gave of shining beacons of energy due to the sheer number of them...but the Kingdom lacked an army, and these men were bending different elements in the streets below. Then...

Hideyoro turned to Hiroto and Kyofu, "It appears that the city is under attack. What do you see? Tell me? We had reports that rebels were--" Hideyoro was cut again by another explosion. "--Were amassing in all nations but I never though they'd do this. They've either just come from the Northern Air Temple...or they're coming back from it. Either way we must leave immediately. I cannot see everything however. While I help you fight the soldiers on the ground as we make our way to the airship, I require the two of you to watch for arrows, bombs, and any other non-chi infused objects and protect me from them. Bending is easy to see; people as well, and all sorts of plants and animals. But I cannot see that which does not give off the essence of life."

Normally Hideyoro would not divulge the entirety of his ability to "see" as it seemed to bore most, but they needed to understand that even though he could "see" quite well, he could not see everything. "Come, we have little time to waste, it seems things are worse than we feared," stated Hideyoro as he jumped from the bell tower, using his fire bending, aiming towards the ground to ease his ascent to the ground. He stood at the bottom, waiting to combat the oncoming enemies, staff at the ready, bending prepared, as he waited for the air benders to join him. This was the first fight in a war that would determine the fate of the world, Hideyoro knew.