Bokio turned to Miquah, Yūnato and Shonto. “Miquah! Yūnato! Shonto!”

Miquah, Yūnato and Shonto turned to Bokio in surprise.

“Go back to the village and warn the guards about the situation! Flame-Lady and I will take care of this!” Bokio told them.

It took a few seconds before Miquah, Yūnato and Shonto formed determined expressions on their faces. They nodded. “Right!” they said in unison.

With that, Miquah, Yūnato and Shonto ran back to the Fire Nation Colonial Village to warn the guards. This left Bokio and Flame-Lady going against the elderly man, now known as the thief.

We don't have weapons to fight the thief, and his weapons shop is made of straw and sticks. If I use my firebending, I might burn the whole shop down, Bokio thought. I guess the only thing Flame-Lady and I have to do… He formed his fighting position. …is to fight him with bare hands.

“Careful, Hansukio,” Bokio heard Flame-Lady telling him. He turned to her. “If we use firebending and if we're not careful, we might destroy the shop," Flame-Lady continued.

Bokio nodded. “Of course. We just have to use our bare hands.”

Bokio and Flame-Lady turned to the thief as she replied, “Right.”

With that, Flame-Lady formed her fighting position. The thief did the same. After a few seconds, Bokio and Flame-Lady charged towards the thief and vice versa.

The thief sliced his way to Bokio’s and Flame-Lady’s necks. Fortunately, Bokio and Flame-Lady ducked, evading his attack. Bokio responded quickly by pushing both his feet in the air and kicked the thief's stomach. This sent the thief tumbling backwards. Soon, he landed on his butt.

Flame-Lady witnessed the whole scene. An impressed smile appeared on her face. “Wow, nice move, Hansukio.”

Flame-Lady evaded the blade from the thief’s sword that was about to cut her cheek. She then, kicked the thief’s right thigh. As she did that, Bokio replied with a friendly smile, “Thanks. Gianso taught me that move.”

With that, Bokio continued to focus on evading the thief’s blades and hitting vital points on him. Bokio succeeded in evading the blades, but he struggled to find vital points on the thief’s body due to him moving the dual swords around.

Flame-Lady experienced the same.

Soon enough, Bokio felt a painful kick at the bottom of his stomach. Bokio's hands reached the bottom of his stomach while letting out groans of pain. Then, he felt two cuts on his left back arm, then two more on his whole right arm. Then, he felt a hard kick on the stomach, causing him to fall on his knees.

Pain erupted in his body. Bokio's right hand slowly reached his left back arm while his left hand held the bottom of his stomach. Low grunts of pain escaped from his gritted teeth.

Flame-Lady took notice of this. She cried out in worry, “Hansukio!”

Flame-Lady’s worried expression turned into a determined one as her feet rushed towards the thief. Once she got there, she sent a high roundhouse kick towards the thief’s right temple. This caused the thief to shift his attention from Bokio to Flame-Lady.

Flame-Lady and the elderly man clashed against each other. Evades, slices, kicks and punches were done in the one-on-one battle. Pain erupted in both their bodies, but Flame-Lady’s was more painful than the thief’s.

Soon, both Flame-Lady and the thief were panting in exhaustion, but they refused to give up. Flame-Lady rose on her feet and continued clashing against the thief. Her kicks and punches were successfully launched against the thief’s body. She thought that he would be taken down when he stayed still.

In reality, the thief let out more breaths, so that he could be refreshed enough to get back up and fight again. He could hear Flame-Lady’s grunts of rage and saw how her body trembled while she sent him punches and kicks. His lips stretched out a smirk.

After a few minutes of breathing, the thief was calm and refreshed. Slowly, he got up on his feet and kicked Flame-Lady’s left knee.

“Agh!” Flame-Lady cried out in pain.

Flame-Lady was about to reach her hands towards her knee when suddenly, she felt her feet being stepped on. Then, her arms were punched.

After a few seconds, the elderly man grabbed his dual swords and cut Flame-Lady’s right back arm.

“Yeowch!” Flame-Lady cried out in pain. Then, she felt a kick at the bottom of her stomach, causing her to tumble backwards. Soon, she landed on her butt.

Bokio witnessed the whole scene. Tears welled up in his eyes as he desired to get up and save Flame-Lady, but he was too painful to get back on his feet. It crossed his mind to let someone else do that for him, but then, he remembered that no one else was in the battle scene except for himself, Flame-Lady and the thief.

As Bokio continued witnessing the thief, sending punches, kicks and cuts to Flame-Lady, a memory ran through his mind.

-----

Fall 89 AG
Training Area near Bokio’s House, Fire Nation Capital, Fire Nation
Bokio (5 years old)

Bokio watched as the young man with light skin, black straight hair, orange eyes and clothes in black arranged his weapons on the weapon rack that was attached to the wall in his training room. The young man was known as Bokio’s cousin.

As Bokio continued to watch his cousin, he heard words from the latter.

“Yes, helping others is great. It is also great to receive help from others, whether they're Protectors or not.” Bokio’s cousin finished arranging his weapons and turned to him with a smile. “But sometimes, when no one else is around, Protectors have to do their job by themselves.”

-----

Then, another memory ran through Bokio’s head.

-----

Spring 96 AG
Bokio’s House, Fire Nation Capital, Fire Nation
Bokio (12 years old)

Bokio and his dad conversed as they helped each other wipe the table while his mom washed the dishes. Most of the time, the topic was about being the true Protector.

As they continued to converse, Bokio's dad gave him advice. “Son, there are times when no one is able to help you when you need them.”

Bokio turned to his dad, surprised. “What do you mean by that?”

“Some Protectors end up solving things alone. And when they need help, no one is around. So sometimes, they need to learn how to solve problems alone when the situation calls for it. Bokio, if you become the Professional Protector and you end up alone, will you try to solve the problem yourself?” Bokio’s dad asked.

Bokio turned to the table and went into deep thought as he continued to wipe the table. After a few moments, he turned to his dad with determination. “Yes, dad. I'll try it.”

Bokio’s dad smiled at him.

-----

At that moment, Bokio knew what to do. Although he was still in pain, he knew he had to finish this battle alone.

And so, Bokio slowly laid his hands on the grass. He grasped onto it. Then, he slowly raised his left leg first. His left foot touched the ground after about thirty seconds. He loosened his grasp on the grass as he slowly pushed himself up with his left foot. This led his right foot to touch the ground. After that, he slowly rose to his proper standing position.

Bokio limped towards the thief. Once he got there, he delivered the kick to his right stomach. This resulted in the thief moving towards his left, but he managed to regain his balance. The thief held his left stomach where he got kicked. At that moment, he shifted his attention from Flame-Lady to Bokio.

Flame-Lady took notice of this. A worried expression appeared on her face. “Hansukio, don't! You're wounded!”

“It's fine, Flame-Lady,” Bokio said.

Flame-Lady was surprised when she heard this.

“You are hurt, too, and no one else is around except you, myself and the thief,” Bokio said as he slowly formed his fighting position. “There are times when Protectors have to solve situations alone when no one else is around.” 

Flame-Lady was even more surprised when she heard the word “alone.”

“And so…” Bokio finished forming his fighting position and readied himself to fight the thief. He glared at him. “...in order to finish this battle… I have to… fight the thief alone!”

The thief smirked evilly. And so, he charged at Bokio and vice versa.

The thief attempted to wound Bokio’s body with his swords, but he dodged his attacks. After a couple of dodges, Bokio launched a kick on the thief’s thigh. He succeeded. This caused the thief’s arms to open, revealing many openings on his torso. Bokio launched a kick on the stomach, then the punch on his left cheek. He succeeded again.

Bokio jabbed his fingers on the thief’s left back arm. Then, his hand formed a fist and quickly punched on the area he just jabbed. He did the same thing on the other side. This caused the thief’s back arms to numb, but it was not enough for him to drop the swords.

Bokio jabbed his fingers on the thief’s left back wrist. Then, he made a medium-impacted punch on the area he just jabbed. This caused the thief’s left hand to open, dropping the sword in the process. Bokio did the same thing on the other side. He succeeded, causing the thief’s other sword to drop to the ground.

Then, what Bokio did next was to lower his body a bit and sweep his legs through the thief’s feet. This caused the thief to fall on his right side of the body.

The thief tried to get up, but pain overcame him. He laid, defeated.

Bokio walked towards Flame-Lady, who had been watching the whole fight scene. He lent her a hand. “You good, Flame-Lady?” he asked in concern.

Flame-Lady nodded as she took Bokio’s hand. He pulled her back on her feet. “Yeah, I’m good. You?”

Bokio chuckled. “I’ve had it worse.”

“Gottta admit. Your actions against the thief were great,” Flame-Lady said with a confident smirk.

“Thanks. You, too,” Bokio said with a friendly smile.

Just then, Bokio and Flame-Lady heard jingling sounds. They turned to see the thief, with his wrists now in handcuffs. Beside him were two men.

The first man had tan skin, gray eyes, dark gray bushy eyebrows, and thick dark gray mustache and beard. His beard laid up until his collarbone.

The second man had light tan skin, gray eyes, light gray bushy eyebrows and thin light gray mustache and beard.

Both men wore helmets and armored outfits of red, dark red, gold and black. Those were Fire Nation guards.

Beside the first Fire Nation guard were Miquah, Yūnato and Shonto. Smiles appeared on their faces as Miquah waved at Bokio and Flame-Lady.

“We’ve arrived just in time!” Miquah said happily.

Shonto crossed his arms as he smirked. “You took down the guy real’ good, Bokio and Flame-Lady. Well done.”

Flame-Lady chuckled. “Well, we struggled to defeat the guy, but in the end—” She turned to Bokio. “—it was Bokio who took him down.”

“Flame-Lady was down and I had no idea what else to do. Then, after remembering what my cousin and my dad said about having to do the job as Protectors alone whenever the situation calls for it, I knew I had to do something to finish this fight,” Bokio explained with a friendly smile.

“And he did great!” Flame-Lady exclaimed with a confident smile as the two Fire Nation guards led the thief away from the scene.

Bokio, Flame-Lady, Miquah, Shonto and Yūnato laughed. After laughter died down, Flame-Lady was the first to speak up.

“You know, all this time, I almost forgot about how important receiving help from others is. A Protector can do things alone but sometimes, even a Protector can receive help from other people, even if they aren’t Protectors,” Flame-Lady said with a humble smile.

“And sometimes, when you end up in a situation where no one else is around except you, you have to figure things out on your own and resolve it,” Bokio said.

“That’s right,” Flame-Lady said with a confident smile. “You just gotta do things alone when the situation calls for it.”

Everyone laughed again. After laughter died down, Yūnato spoke in concern, “Bokio, Flame-Lady. You look seriously wounded. We really need to get you to the hospital.”

Flame-Lady laughed nervously. “Yup. If one is available in the village.”

“There’s a mini-hospital in the village just nearby one of the Fire Nation temples,” Miquah said. “We can take you there.”

“Alright,” Bokio said with a smile. “Let’s go!”

With that, Miquah, Yūnato and Shonto led Bokio and Flame-Lady to the hospital. There, their wounds were treated and the doctor told them to not engage in any physical activity until their wounds were healed. Bokio was saddened that he had to miss out on learning other firebending techniques, but he knew health is more important than training. Flame-Lady was also saddened. She wouldn’t be able to teach Bokio more firebending techniques. Like Bokio, she knew that health is more important than training.

———————————————————

Canyon Area, near Mining Town, Earth Kingdom
Zeno and Khelsi’s Internship Training — Day 1

Zeno rose the part of the ground in front of him to create a mountain-shaped rock with a flat surface ontop. Then, he broke the rock into pieces by punching the air in its direction. This sent the rocks flying. They landed multiple hits on the scarecrow-like training dummy with a target symbol on its chest, no head and a straw hat.

The next thing Zeno did was to step slightly forward, then towards the right. Then, he pushed his toes and the front part of his foot forward, causing spikes of rocks to appear ahead of it. The trail of spiky rocks ended when they hit another scarecrow-like training dummy. The second training dummy was knocked down

Zeno dug a decent amount of rocks from the ground and moulded them into missiles. Those missiles were the same ones Khelsi had formed.

Once the missiles were formed, Zeno made a pushing motion, causing the missiles to launch towards the third dummy.

Once the third scarecrow-like training dummy broke apart, Zeno smirked victoriously.

Claps rang in Zeno’s ears. He turned to see Big Boulder sitting with his legs crossed. He was seen, happily clapping for his trainee and friend. Standing beside him were Khelsi and Kenjaru. They watched with smiles on their faces.

“Yeah!” Big Boulder exclaimed. “Haha! That is one great Earthbending Protector-in-training here!”

“Well done, Great Helper,” Kenjaru said with a smile. “You've got great courage to become the Protector.”

Zeno let out a little laugh as he scratched the back of his head. “Thanks. I wanna support my best friend, Kugo. That's why I have to gather courage and strategy to become the Protector.”

As Zeno walked to the spot beside Kenjaru, the latter replied, “Yes, Zeno. That's very good.”

Kenjaru turned to Khelsi. “Stone-moulder, are you ready to demonstrate your earthbending techniques?”

Khelsi slightly jolted in surprise. “Oh, um…” She turned to Kenjaru and nodded. “Yes. I'm ready.”

With that, Khelsi stepped her way towards the open training area where Zeno had demonstrated his earthbending techniques. She then, squatted her legs slightly and attached her elbows to the sides of her body. Her fists were clenched. The backs of her fists were facing the ground. Her face became determined as she took a deep breath and exhaled calmly.

As the remains of Zeno's earthbending disappeared and two new scarecrow-like training dummies appeared, Khelsi heard Big Boulder cheering, “Go, Khelsi! Give ‘em all you got! Take down those villain dummies!”

Kenjaru turned to Big Boulder. “We should call her ‘Stone-moulder’ when she's here during Internships and Work-studies.”

Big Boulder lowered his head in sadness. “Sorry, Kenjaru,” he said with a slight whine.

Nervousness and fear struck through Khelsi. She knew she had to take down the dummies as soon as possible, but for some reason, she could picture them as innocent farmers. She didn't know why.

A few moments later, Khelsi let out nervous breaths and dug up the rocks from the ground surrounding her. Once she did, she attempted to make the same missiles she usually did during her combat and the entrance exam, but she ended up making crooked missiles. As a result, once she shot the rocks towards the dummies, only the shoulders were ripped apart.

Deadpan and confused expressions appeared on everyone else's faces.

Khelsi lowered her head and let out a sigh of disappointment. I can be courageous and just fight the dummies like I did in the Battle Training, but for some reason, I felt like I'm being held back, she thought.

“Hey, what's wrong?” Big Boulder asked, scratching his right temple with his right index finger. “Why aren't you taking them down?”

Khelsi breathed out a sigh before turning to Kenjaru and Big Boulder. “Sorry, guys. I hesitated.”

“But what about the Battle Training? You were brave out there,” Zeno said.

“That's because I have to act like a Protector if we want to win,” Khelsi said. “Why is it when I seem to have courage, but I always hesitate on the inside?”

Silence occurred in the air. Big Boulder, Zeno and Kenjaru were concerned about Khelsi. Big Boulder turned to Kenjaru and shrugged. Kenjaru nodded. That's when he walked towards Khelsi.

“Stone-moulder,” Kenjaru said.

Khelsi turned to Kenjaru, who just came to a stop. “Yes.”

“There are many Protectors out there who experienced being held back. Some say they were afraid. Others say they just hesitated. Still some say they have doubts. Others don't know why they were held back,” Kenjaru said. “But…”

Kenjaru walked in front of Khelsi’s body and smiled. “...if you take the first step and save the world…” His fingers laid on her chest. “...you will find yourself gaining confidence and courage.”

Khelsi was surprised as she saw Kenjaru's fingers on her chest. Her head shifted from his fingers to his face.

“I know you can do it, Stone-moulder. You just have to believe in yourself,” Kenjaru said.

A few moments later, Khelsi’s lips stretched out a gentle smile. “Thanks, Mr. Kenjaru. I'll try.”

Kenjaru chuckled. “Please.” He slipped his fingers away from Khelsi’s chest. “Just Kenjaru is okay.”

“Are you okay with it?” Khelsi asked in concern.

Kenjaru nodded. “Yes.”

Khelsi nodded as her concerned expression turned into a definite smile. “Okay, Kenjaru.”

Kenjaru continued to smile at khelsi.

———————————————————

Later on…
Mining Town, Earth Kingdom

Khelsi and Zeno had learned different earthbending techniques, and combat abilities just in case they're chi-blocked. They and Big Boulder were unfamiliar with the word “chi-block,” so Kenjaru had to explain it.

Soon enough, Khelsi and Zeno mastered some of the earthbending techniques and combat skills.

Right now, Khelsi, Zeno, Kenjaru and Big Boulder were going on patrol in Mining Town. As they walked around, Big Boulder started his conversation with the rest.

"When I learned that the 3rd Quarterly Exams were coming up, I was so happy! I wanted to watch Khelsi and Zeno pass the test in the practical exam!" he said happily. Big Boulder’s joyful face turned into a disappointed frown. "But I was rejected by Mr. Kon-Li because I always played favorites, especially in the last Quarterly Exam." He raised his right fist and punched his left chest gently. "That hurt me so much."

Big Boulder laid his right hand down. "Instead, Kenjaru was invited by Mr. Kon-Li to watch the practical exams, to recruit Earthbending Protectors-in-training for the Internships. Before Kenjaru left..." He clasped his hands together and raised his head with a pleading expression. "...I begged him to recruit Khelsi and Zeno no matter what." Then, he placed his hands down and turned straight ahead with a joyful smile. "Kenjaru accepted!" Tears of joy filled his eyes. "I was overjoyed. I thanked him."

Kenjaru sighed, remembering that memory.

Big Boulder’s continuous chattery made everyone slightly annoyed, but they never showed it. Soon enough, his chattery ended when Kenjaru told him with a smile, “Yes, that’s a great topic to talk about, Big Boulder. We can talk more about this during dinner if possible.”

Big Boulder turned to Kenjaru with a pouty look. “Aww. But I was getting to the best part.”

“Yes, but people are staring at us, so it’s best to keep it at a low profile,” Kenjaru said.

Khelsi and Zeno turned to their surroundings. They saw that people in Mining Town were indeed staring at them, Big Boulder and Kenjaru. They were especially staring at Big Boulder due to his constant chattery. Confusion, concern and curiosity appeared in the people’s eyes.

But then, Khelsi noticed one man, standing at the corner of one of the village shops.

The man had tan skin with brown eyes and black hair tied to a bun. He was also wearing a green shirt with brown vest, dark green pants and brown shoes. His eyes made contact with Khelsi’s as a smirk appeared on his face.

Noticing this, Khelsi’s eyes widened in surprise, but it quickly turned into discomfort once she felt his intimidating aura. She quickly turned away and focused on patrolling Mining Town.

Khelsi continued to hear Big Boulder talking, but she decided not to listen.

———————————————————

Later that night…

Khelsi had volunteered to buy food from the market in Mining Town for dinner. Big Boulder, Kenjaru and Zeno were concerned for her, but Khelsi assured them that she’ll be okay. She volunteered, so that she would take a break from training because of what happened while demonstrating her earthbending techniques.

Right now, Khelsi stood inside the small shop as she retrieved the bag of meat and vegetables from the elderly woman after paying for them.

“Thank you for your generosity, young lady,” the elderly woman said.

“You’re welcome, miss,” Khelsi replied with a smile. She bowed respectfully. “Keep up a good work.”

The elderly woman nodded. “Thank you again. I hope to see you soon."

With that being said, Khelsi left the small shop.

Once she closed the door behind her, Khelsi turned to her right and was about to take a step in that direction. As she did, she was met face-to-face with the same man she just saw yesterday.

Khelsi was spooked out upon seeing him. She let out a squeak. Discomfort overtook her.

“Oh, sorry, beautiful. I didn’t see you there,” the man said.

Chills were spread down Khelsi’s spine. Her skin shook in nervousness. She could feel her cheeks heat up upon hearing the word “beautiful.” “Um… uh…”

Khelsi did not know what to say. A random stranger, who was staring at her yesterday, was actually talking to her? Hesitation grew in her.

After a few moments of silence, the man smirked flirtatiously as he introduced himself while pointing at himself with his thumb, “I’m Chang. Nice meeting you here.” He then, laid his hand down. “What’s your name?”

Khelsi became silent. She was taught by her parents not to speak to strangers, but she didn’t know how to properly ignore them. Not knowing what else to do, she muttered, “Khelsi.”

“That’s a pretty name, Kelly,” Chang said. “Wanna hangout tomorrow night? We could meet at the same place.”

Khelsi was surprised. Upon hearing the name “Kelly,” she wanted to correct Chang by saying how he should say her name, but she decided against it because she didn’t want to talk to him.

Khelsi hesitated. Choosing to hangout with Chang was easier, but she could feel intimidating chills like yesterday. On the other hand, she would choose to turn Chang down because he’s a random stranger.

In the end, Khelsi mentally chose to turn Chang down. She shook her head. “No.”

“Oh, come on!” Chang said as he stepped closer to Khelsi. Then, he wrapped his arms around her from behind. “It’ll be fun! I won’t bite.”

Feeling Chang’s arms around her made Khelsi more uncomfortable. She wanted to push Chang away, but she thought it’d be rude. The only thing she could do to keep him away was to say one word.

“No,” she said weakly.

Chang’s smirk turned into a serious expression. “Fine. Then, you leave me no choice.”

With that, Khelsi felt a hit on her left stomach, causing her to feel numb. Chang’s arms were slipped away and Khelsi fell to the ground, unknowingly dropping the shopping bags. The next thing she knew, everything blacked out.

———————————————————

Meanwhile…
Kenjaru and Big Boulder’s Hut, Near Mining Town, Earth Kingdom

Zeno, Kenjaru and Big Boulder were sitting on a long rectangular box in the hut nearby Mining Town. They were waiting for Khelsi to come back from the market. Zeno’s head laid on his hands. His elbows laid on his thighs. Big Boulder’s left cheek laid on his fist and his elbow laid on his left thigh. Kenjaru, on the other hand, laid his hands on his thighs.

The house’s roof was made of gold straw and its walls were made of brown hardwood. The windows were opened. This allowed fresh air to circulate in the room.

Inside, there were four beds. Each were made of straws. White blankets and a pillow were placed on each bed. Below each bed were wooden brown bed boards. When you enter the house, you could see the same long rectangular box Zeno, Kenjaru and Big Boulder were sitting on, located in the northwest.

As Zeno, Kenjaru and Big Boulder continued to sit, boredom occurred in Zeno and Big Boulder.

Big Boulder sighed with a groan. “I’m bored.”

“Me, too. I wonder what’s taking Stone-moulder so long,” Zeno said.

“Patience, Great Helper and Big Boulder. I’m sure she’ll come back soon,” Kenjaru said.

As Zeno and Big Boulder continued to sit in silence, realization hit Zeno. He quickly rose on his feet.

“Stone-moulder’s run into trouble!” he exclaimed.

Big Boulder and Kenjaru turned to Zeno in confusion. Big Boulder scratched his right temple with his index finger.

“What? Are you serious?” Big Boulder asked.

Zeno turned to Big Boulder. “Of course, I’m serious! This is Stone-moulder we’re talking about! She’s not only my training mate, but she’s also my friend! I'm not sure why I realize this, but I have a feeling that something bad is happening to her! We have to rescue her!”

“In that case..." Kenjaru rose on his feet. Then, he turned to Big Boulder. "...we need to make sure—" He turned to Zeno. "—she’s okay."

Zeno nodded determinedly. “Right.”

As Big Boulder rose on his feet, he exclaimed, “WHOEVER GOT KHEL— I mean, STONE-MOULDER INTO TROUBLE…” He raised his fists and opened his arms as his head raised and screamed in the air. “WILL BE BROUGHT DOWN BY BIG BOULDER, KENJARU AND GREAT HELPER! RRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAWAWWWRRRRR!”

Kenjaru facepalmed while Zeno smiled nervously.

“My apologies, Zeno. He always speaks like that when he’s angry and fired up,” Kenjaru said.

Zeno’s nervous smile turned into a smirk. “Yeah. We noticed.”

With that, Zeno, Big Boulder and Kenjaru ran out of the house and searched across Mining Town for Khelsi.

———————————————————

Back with Khelsi…

Khelsi finally came to her senses. She fluttered her eyes open to wake herself up. Once she did, a brown misty vision was in her sight. This was the result of the tears she had felt in her eyes.

When her vision became clear, she found herself staring at the brown wooden door with the rusty gold doorknob on it. She was also laid on her right side of her body. Khelsi gasped in shock. She attempted to get on her feet and run for the door, but her legs were stuck together like glue. Same went with her hands. As a result, she fell back into her original position.

Khelsi looked at her surroundings. She found herself in a dusty room with gray stone walls. Ahead of her was the same door she just encountered. Surrounding her were nothing but a couple of hays on the corners of the wall. Behind her was an open window, which could fit any person’s hands, but could escape from it when he or she knew how to get through it. Wrapped around her hands and feet were ropes, tying them together.

Where am I? Khelsi thought. What was the last memory I experienced before I blacked out?

Just then, an image of how she got knocked out by Chang ran through her head. Khelsi’s eyes widened in shock. Chang. I turned down Chang’s offer to hangout and he knocked me out in return. Her eyebrows furrowed as something grew inside her. She couldn’t explain what she was feeling, but she knew that what Chang did was not right. What kind of boy is he?

Just then, Khelsi heard the door open. She turned to the door. There stood Chang, with his door open and his torch held in his right hand. A smirk appeared on his face.

“Ah, finally. You’re awake,” Chang said.

Khelsi responded with a glare on her face. Tears filled her eyes.

“Aw, don’t be so mad. We’re just getting started,” Chang said. As he said this, he took a few steps forward and closed the door behind him. Then, he stepped towards Khelsi.

Chang laid his torch on the rack beside the window and adjusted Khelsi to be in her sitting position. Once he finished, he leaned his face close to her. 

Khelsi’s cheeks reddened, but she refused to give into Chang's actions. She was still glaring at him.

“What a pretty girl. Sweet, kind and gentle,” Chang said. He then, stroke her hair gently. Khelsi’s cheeks reddened more, but she still refused to give in. “All the other girls will go screaming at boys they just saw, but you… you’re different. You’re pretty, but also quiet. I’ll go with the easiest way if you agree to date me.”

“Never,” Khelsi said. 

Chang sighed in seemingly defeat. “I knew you’d say that.” Then, his defeated expression turned into a flirtatious smirk again. His hand reached for her chin. He raised her head to make her look at him in the eye. Khelsi did, but she was still glaring at him. “Which is why I’m gonna do this the hard way.”

With that, Chang started leaning in. As he did that, Khelsi’s eyes widened.

———————————————————

Back with Zeno, Kenjaru and Big Boulder…

Zeno, Kenjaru and Big Boulder searched for Khelsi from top to bottom. They even asked people if they had seen her. Unfortunately, the only answer they received was “no.”

After a few minutes of searching, Zeno sighed in exasperation as he walked on the streets of Mining Town with the groaning and tired Big Boulder, and the patient, faithful and slightly tired Kenjaru.

“Ugh! I’m so tired and hungry!” Zeno exclaimed. “Where could Stone-moulder be?”

“Yeah, I’m getting tired of this,” Big Boulder said. “I hope Stone-moulder comes back to us.”

“Have faith, Big Boulder and Great Helper. Khelsi will come back to us soon,” Kenjaru said. “I’m sure of it.”

Just then, Big Boulder noticed something on the ground near him, Zeno and Kenjaru. He pointed at the item. “Hey. What’s that?”

Kenjaru and Zeno immediately turned to what Big Boulder was pointing at.

Right before their eyes… was Khelsi’s shopping bag. Unfortunately, they didn’t know who owned it.

In response to Big Boulder, Zeno shrugged. “It’s a shopping bag.” He approached the shopping bag and picked it up. “But who owns this?”

“Maybe it’s Stone-moulder’s?” Big Boulder asked, scratching his chin with his right index finger. “She did go to the market to buy us dinner.”

“Maybe it is,” Zeno said. Then, he turned to Kenjaru. “Kenjaru, what do you think?”

“Hmm…” Kenjaru moved his right hand on his chin as he went into deep thought. After a few seconds, he spoke, “Perhaps, anyone could own this shopping bag. It could be Khelsi or someone else. For now, let‘s keep the shopping bag while we look for Stone-moulder. After that, if she doesn't own it, we can look for someone who does.”

Zeno and Big Boulder nodded. “Right!”

With that, Zeno, Big Boulder and Kenjaru continued searching for Khelsi while keeping the shopping bag.

———————————————————

Later on, back with Khelsi…

After Chang did what he called “the hard way” to Khelsi, he walked out the door and left. This left Khelsi… sleeping alone.

A few minutes later, Khelsi finally came to her senses. Her eyes fluttered open and she looked at her surroundings. She found herself in the same room as she was a few minutes ago.

What happened? Khelsi thought.

In immediate answer, an image popped into Khelsi’s head, causing her to gasp in shock.

Chang had placed his lips on hers. She remembered herself glaring at him and trying to resist, but her body became weak and numb causing her eyes to feel droopy. As Chang kept kissing her, he pulled her body close to him while untying the ropes around her hands. He did that to allow her to kiss him back. Khelsi closed her eyes, but she didn’t kiss him back. Instead, she slept.

After the memory ran through Khelsi’s head, she covered her mouth. Thoughts ran in her head.

I want to keep resisting. I want to stand up for myself. Chang is not the right person for me. He was harassing me, just like the thugs did to my parents back in the Earth Kingdom, Khelsi thought. But… Her head lowered in guilt. …how can I stand up to Chang like Nidoria did to the thugs?

At that moment, a memory of Khelsi’s first encounter with Nidoria ran through her head.

———————————————————

[Flashback]

Fall 99 AG
Earth Kingdom Village
Khelsi (14 years old)

“I grew up in the village with my parents and my older sister, Dhalia,” Khelsi narrated. “I lived a normal and happy life. I was taught to obey my parents, be responsible with my works and respect others with kindness. As a result, I became a gentle, sweet, kind and reliable girl.

“One day, my family and I were walking on the streets of Earth Kingdom village when suddenly…”

“Give us all your money!” a tan-skinned muscular man with gray eyes, black thin beard and mustache, and clothes of green said as he grabbed the collar of Khelsi and Dhalia’s mother’s shirt and pushed her towards one of the house walls.

Khelsi’s dad tried to stand up for his wife, but stopped because the axe’s blade from another man — who had tan skin, a slim build, green eyes and black hair tied to a bun. He also wore ragged clothes of green. This consisted of his shirt, his shorts and his shoes. — slightly sank to his neck.

Khelsi turned to the whole situation. She saw that two men were trying to harass her parents by forcing them to give them money. She could only stand there, scared. She didn’t know what to do with them.

Dhalia, on the other hand, ran towards the thugs and glared at them. “Stop doing this to our parents! You’ll hurt them!”

“Y-Yeah! You’ll hurt them!” Khelsi exclaimed, trying to glare at the thugs. “If you keep hurting them, then I’ll—!”

The first thug, who had threatened Khelsi and Dhalia’s mother, turned to Khelsi. “It's none of your business, lil’ girl! Stay silent!”

This shut Khelsi’s mouth.

Just as the thug turned to Khelsi and Dhalia’s mom, a female voice was heard behind him and the second thug.

“Hey!”

Everyone — including Khelsi, Dhalia and their parents — turned to where the sound came from. When they did, they were face-to–face with a young girl with tan skin, dark brown short hair and dark brown eyes. She also wore her green shirt, brown pants and brown boots.

The girl was seen stomping towards them with anger and determination plastered on her face. She pointed at the thugs. “You leave them be…!” She came to a stop as she stood and stared deadly daggers at the thugs. “...or else!”

“Or else what?” the first thug said.

“Who do you think you are, telling us what to do?” the second thug, who had threatened Khelsi and Dhalia’s dad said.

The first thug let out a scoff as he slipped his hand away from Khelsi and Dhalia’s mother’s shirt, while the second thug pulled his axe away from him.

“This is no business for you…” the first thug spoke as his lips stretched out a smirk. “...firebender.”

Khelsi and her family backed away in fear. They compressed together and wrapped their arms around each other. They stared at the girl in fear. They had been told that firebenders were a threat to the world.

“Yes, there is. I may be a firebender, but I do nothing to pose a threat to the world. I just wanted to live a normal and peaceful life with my family. If there’s someone who’s capable of being a threat to the world, you are,” the girl said, glaring at the thugs.

This provoked the two thugs. Both glared at the girl, but the second thug stomped his way towards her.

“What did you say?!?!?!” the second thug asked.

Just as the second thug took a few steps toward the girl, the first thug swooped his arm in front of him, making him halt.

“I saw you spend some time threatening the girls’ parents to give them money. If you have no reason to do so, then I’ll say it’s not good for you,” the girl said.

This caused the thugs to feel fear inside of them, but they kept the act of being tough.

“So if I see you threaten anyone else…” the girl’s eyes glanced at Khelsi and her family. She took notice of surprised expressions on their faces, but she continued smoothly. “...especially them…” Her eyes glanced back at the thugs. “...then I have no choice but to have my dad strike his lightning to you.” Her lips stretched to a smirk. “And trust me. It’ll be deadly.”

At that moment, the thugs emotions quickly overtook them.

“S…” the second thug trailed off. He then, ran from the girl. “Sorry!!!”

Seeing how the second thug acted, the first thug closed his eyes tightly as rage rushed through his veins. He opened his eyes again and glared at the girl while pointing at her. “You’ll pay for this.”

With that, the first thug ran away from the girl.

The girl sighed in relief. Her head turned to Khelsi and her family. Concern was plastered on her face. As she approached them, Khelsi and her family shuddered in fear. They hugged each other a bit tighter, with all except Khelsi and Dhalia’s dad turning their heads away from her while closing their eyes tightly.

“Please! We mean no harm!” Khelsi and Dhalia’s dad said in fear.

“Are you okay?” the girl asked with a gentle tone.

Khelsi and her family turned to the girl in surprise. Words like “What?” and “Huh?” were heard.

She’s being… nice? Khelsi thought questionably.

A nice firebender? I’ve never seen one like that before, Khelsi and Dhalia’s dad thought.

Where did she come from? Who taught her how to be nice? Dhalia thought questionably.

I suppose she’s no threat to the world, Khelsi and Dhalia’s mom thought. Still, we have to be careful.

Khelsi and her family pulled away from the hug. Then, they turned to her with smiles on their faces.

“We’re okay, thanks to you,” Khelsi answered.

The girl pointed her fingers at herself with a friendly smile on her face. “I’m Nidoria. What are your names?”

“My name is Khelsi,” Khelsi said, introducing herself. Then, she gestured to her older sister. “This is my sister, Dhalia.” She gestured to hers and Dhalia’s parents. “And these are my parents.”

Nidoria held out her hand. “It’s nice to meet you guys.”

“It’s nice to meet you, too,” Khelsi and her family said in unison as they each shook hands with Nidoria. Khelsi and Dhalia’s dad went first, then his wife, then Dhalia, then Khelsi. Words like “Thank you,” “Thank you for saving us,” “You’re a life-saver,” “We’re very grateful” and “You’re welcome" were heard.

After Nidoria shook hands with Khelsi, she asked her, “Khelsi, do you want us to be friends?”

Khelsi gasped in surprise. She turned to Dhalia, mentally asking her for approval. Dhalia nodded. Then, she turned to her parents. They nodded as well.

Khelsi turned to Nidoria with a grateful and friendly smile. “Sure. I’d love to be friends with you.”

In return, Nidoria gave Khelsi a close-eyed smile.

“Since then, Nidoria and I have hung out as friends,” Khelsi narrated. “Nidoria even introduced me to Izugail and Liyah. At that moment, I became part of Nidoria’s best friend group. I’ve never felt so happy in my life. I love hanging out with them.

“Unfortunately, I’m non-confrontational when it comes to encountering problems, especially big ones. I was afraid to speak up and stand up for myself and others because I thought that if I did, I would bring myself and my friends in trouble.”

———————————————————

[End of Flashback]

I wonder if I can do the same as Nidoria, Khelsi thought. Then, a determined expression appeared on her face. There’s no time for thinking.

Aas she thought that, Khelsi moved her hand away from her mouth. Then, she dug up a piece of rock from the ground using her earthbending. The piece was slowly breaking off the ground.

I have to cut the ropes tied around my feet and escape through the window fast… Khelsi thought as the piece completely broke off the ground. …before Chang comes back.

With that being thought, using her earthbending, Khelsi moulded the rock into a sharp knife.

———————————————————

Later on…

Chang held a tray that was filled with a plate of bread and a cup of water as he turned the doorknob and pushed the door to Khelsi’s room open.

“Hey there, beautiful. I got some dinner for—” Chang stopped himself when he noticed that Khelsi’s body disappeared. His eyes widened a bit, but on the inside, he was surprised and extremely shocked. You could hear the tray, the cup and the plate crashing onto the floor. The bread was also dropped to the floor, but it made no sound.

As Chang continued to witness the empty room, he noticed the ropes on the floor. The ropes. They’ve been cut. But she doesn’t have a knife? Unless…

That’s when realization hit Chang, making his eyes widened more. His shocked and surprised expression turned into rage.

———————————————————

The Forest near Mining Town

Khelsi kept running and running towards Mining Town. An image of herself holding a shopping bag before she got knocked out ran through her head.

At that point, Khelsi knew she forgot about the shopping bag, but she knew that what’s more important was for herself to be safe and for Zeno, Kenjaru and Big Boulder to know she’s okay.

Right now, Khelsi was running through an environment surrounded by trees. She looked around to see if there were any signs of Mining Town. So far, no sign was found. Soon after, she came to a final decision.

I have to keep running. It’s better than to find some house and have a stranger take me in, she thought.

And that’s what Khelsi did.

As Khelsi kept running, a force pulled on the back of her shirt, causing her to yelp and fall on her butt.

Khelsi’s immediate response was to get up, but then, she heard a familiar chuckle. Footsteps approached her as she turned to her right to see Chang himself.

Khelsi was surprised at first, but a split second later, she glared at Chang. He was seen walking in front of her with a smirk on his face. As he did so, he said, “So you thought of trying to escape me, don’t you?”