Of the four bending styles, fire emerged from oneself. So, even if a firebender can spark up a flame without any overt movement, they certainly have to perform martial movements to will their chi in a certain shape and perform the concluding bending technique. Movement is the basics in every bending style.

Waterbending shouldn't be the same but there certainly exists oddity in this world. Sun's Lavabending, the Mercenary he hired from the Cult of The Dark Masters that hold the secrets of combustion bending are namely few such odd situations but Nik's and Bumi's ability to bend substantial elements, much more than flames, without any martial movement made Zhao astonished.

After all, Bumi, he could understand. The old king was hailed as a genius of his time and had invented many earthbending strategies that gave Fire Nation quite a bit of trouble but... Nik?

How long had he started his practice? How could he accomplish something so elegant that even the Mad Genius Bumi could only achieve it after losing his limbs?

The answer was something Zhao could have never expected.

It was simply a sheer surplus of chi.

Of course, Nik had trained as hard, if not harder than Katara but the greater reserve of energy helped him in more ways than one.

As Nik walked towards him, the contest of temperature over Zhao's body still continued. As the thin layer of ice would begin to melt and turn into steam, the remnant still close to Zhao's skin would cool down at an unprecedented rate once again to keep him stunned in place.

Mai was quicker than him as she passed through Zhao without batting an eyelid. Meanwhile, Nik soon towered over Zhao and didn't give the man any other second of consideration before shifting his glider with a trusty earthen staff so as to not break Aang's gift and slammed the rod on Zhao's face.

Mai may have the virtue of not going out to distinguish herself from beasts but Nik could feel the regions of his body aching. The same spots where Zhao had beaten him back at Omashu to torture Aang.

Nik did not have any humanity for Zhao.

"Stop it— ugh!" The two benders only failed to catch Mai with pillars of flames as she slipped on time and jabbed at the soldier nearest to her with her knuckles slightly pushed out.

On the other hand, Nik struck Zhao where it would hurt the most. Not the torso, no... the knee.

It was only after experiencing it himself did Nik realize that the crotch and other locations might be painful but nothing overcomes the sting of the joint itself getting battered.

It was a cold scene in the warm oasis.

Each strike from Nik's earthen staff would send ripples through the water of the oasis not because of the strength behind the strike but the accidental burst of his own chi with each strike that seemed to resonate with his rising anger. Unlike what he had expected, beating Zhao up only made him more infuriated with how he was beaten back then. The situation had reversed. Whatever Zhao wanted to achieve, whatever he thought he could have— everything slipped out of the Admiral's grasp by not being cautious enough and even a little impatient in achieving his goals. Not to mention, underestimating Nik.

*Chhk*

*Chhk*

The sound started turning grotesque and wet amidst Zhao's groan. Though wrought with pain, the admiral did not let out a single pained scream and this only drove Nik to beat the Admiral further. Just to hear him scream.

Unknowingly, as the moon hung over the oasis with its gentle glow encompassing the region, Mai stood over the bodies of the two soldiers and looked at Nik utterly beating Zhao without any hint of disgust or repulsiveness in her eyes. She merely looked thoughtful at the moment as Zhao continued to cover his head, unable to bend even once as Nik wouldn't give him respite to do so.

A sick desire birthed within him yet again.

The flames in his stomach won't die out and Nik felt as if the strange sensation of domination threatened to corrupt his mind.

It was different than when he slept with others. Wildly so.

Gasping for breath, Nik looked down at his handiwork. His gaze gained clarity from all that bloodlust he had been oozing subconsciously while his hold from the staff slipped down due to all the blood splattered on his grip.

Zhao lay on the ground weakly. His troubled breathing— gasps— were the only sound to fill the oasis at the moment as Nik couldn't help but feel weak for a second. Although not new to bloodied sights, his stomach churned within since he felt he had accidentally crossed a line of some sort. The sight of cuts spread over Zhao's body, a few broken bones within, as he sprawled on the ground while still gazing back at Nik with an entirely mocking expression had just ignited the depraved lust for blood within him as Mai's words echoed in this deadly silence.

"Difference between a human and a beast is as simple as this. You are either in control... or you aren't."

Nik looked at her, not knowing what kind of expression he had on his face but he felt calmer by seeing the utterly indifferent Mai. It was soothing to see that she wasn't treating him any different after the sudden bout of rage as power had gotten to his head for the first time... but he was now beginning to realize that it was only a matter of time before something like this happened.

With all he had accomplished... with the utter happiness he had begun to feel, he was also becoming someone different.

"Either a beast... or a man..." Nik repeated, only now tasting the drops of blood that had landed over his lips.

"Yes," Mai answered.

"Are you happy?" Nik looked at her.

"I have a few moments of happiness," Mai seemed to be more talkative at this point and questioned Nik, too, "At this moment... are you happy?"

"I thought... I would be. My body is... but I'm not," his gaze dulled for a second and he looked at Zhao, "Is that the only thing you were here for? To fish and kill the koi fishes?"

Zhao, however, sneered with his bloodied lips, "Only one battle of the war... what about the rest? You are... out of your league..."

Nik heaved a deep breath and looked at Mai only for her to see through the slightest hope in his gaze and remark, "If you desire it, accomplish it yourself."

"Right..." Nik nodded.

As if understanding where this conversation was steering, Zhao suddenly grumbled, "Wait... if you let me live... if you heal me... I have an important tale for the Avatar— Ghk!"

His eyes widened as a sharp stream of water sliced through his throat and another fountain of blood gushed out of the poor Admiral's body. The Fleet may have had a chance to win against the tribe but Zhao himself couldn't beat either Mai or Nik at this moment.

The growth of his skills didn't surprise him but what did, however, was his vision swimming for the briefest moment.

Nik came under the illusion that he viewed a strangely bright but humanoid purplish figure staring back at him. Her features were covered by the glow but Nik believed she was smiling and spoke something entirely different from Mai.

"Not a man... not a beast... you're free to be what you... will..."

Blinking in surprise, Nik found himself standing in front of Zhao's corpse again.

The blood from his body had begun to enter the Spirit Oasis but surprisingly, the blood itself began to part around the two fishes as they continued to swim and circle in the clear waters.

"You've held your part of the deal... I will help you learn about the hidden weapons at your convenience," Mai remarked as she walked past him.

"What about Tom-Tom? Aren't you afraid I might be in danger?" Nik questioned.

"Look yourself in a mirror," Mai turned to look at him with a strange but short smirk, "I'm no longer worried."

With that, she walked out of the spirit oasis while Nik sighed softly.

He didn't take out a mirror or check himself in the reflection of the pond. It's not like he was afraid but at this point, it would be worth nothing.

A man or a beast, he was free to choose.

Mai claimed to be the former and claimed to only have a few moments of happiness.

What about him?

Is there a way to be at peace and happiness in more than just a few moments?

Mokshi's words resounded within him once again and Nik looked at Zhao's corpse, no longer feeling as burdened as before, and crouched down to close his eyes.

"I hope you don't get a chance at reincarnation..." he whispered.

Clearing his throat, Nik stood back up slowly. Crouching just now had given him quite the sting on his knee so he was jolted to awaken from his rather profound emotions and devour the three corpses.

In the very next moment, he checked his status since he felt that at this moment... he was strangely complete and content as if there was something between him and Mokshi that had finally disappeared completely.

[Name: Nik Faran

Age: 20 (80)

Code: GC—EHG—98034

Authority Rank: 1 (5.96→ 5.99/100)

Paradise: Transmigration

Title: Transmigration Intern

Bloodline: Adonis' Ember (Common)

Physique: 2.3

Mental: 2.4

Energy: 29.8→ 30]

Sighing slightly, Nik bent the blood on his body and devoured it through his right hand, too.

Glancing at the two koi fishes, he frowned for a second and then walked out of the Spirit Oasis himself.

---

"What?! Ugh—"

With the battle easily drawn towards the inner region of the tribe, she quickly froze the tanks to gain a moment of respite while she looked at Mai and Nik as if they were crazy, "Zhao is dead?!"

"Yeah," Nik shrugged, stomping as a startling pillar of ice instantly launched the three tanks high in the air before he exerted himself even further and spread open his war fans, slicing at the tanks precisely.

"And... how can you do that?" Katara's eyes widened as Nik once again shrugged, "I can do a lot more."

Others were confused about what Nik had done...

But as the tank fell down, the front portion of it was torn open quite a bit, revealing the soldiers within injured from the fall.

"Attack!"

Suki shouted, equally relentless as she led a small group of warriors to flank the injured soldiers and other firebenders who were supporting from a distance.

There were too many enemies but their defensive position placed Hama's group at an advantage and Nik's sudden arrival was invigorating to others as the news of the Admiral's death may lack the details but that didn't stop it from their morales to heighten.

Of all, Mai was the most lethal as she killed without remorse. Even if she did feel guilty, she didn't let it appear in her expression.

Nik, on the other hand, wasn't heavy-handed anymore. He let himself go out of control with Zhao as there was something about a helpless enemy that tickled his fancy in the most wrong and 'Esta-like' manner but he would rather only incapacitate his opponents.

The thing, however, was as Katara and Hama noted.

Nik's bending had changed for the better.

Improved by a noticeable margin in just a few hours.

It wasn't as if he leaned some fancy moves but as if his growth came from the base of it all.

Heck, even Nik knew he had strangely improved but this opportunity would have never come to his grasp or understanding if he wasn't already so well-versed in bending of elements. It had something to do with the 'content' he felt with Mokshi, which was easy to guess, but the spiritual aspects of this world continued to largely evade his understanding.

After all, is it so easy to master a bending style?

The improvement of energy stat with this phenomenon wasn't as exaggerated as the slick control he had gotten over the elements as if he could twist them in shapes unimaginable...

It was simply too freeing!

Chuckling internally at the sheer benefits he had gotten from adventuring in his first world at this point, he waved both of his war fans and spiraled as Aang would, "Get out of the way, Suki!"

He warned loudly as Suki quickly retreated with her team for a snowy miniature hurricane to dash in the direction of the enemies, clearing the streets in the next instant.

"Advance! We still have the moon by our side. Let's throw these fools out by sunrise!"

Hama ordered loudly and emphasized her words by the act of pushing her hands and sweeping the tanks forward, thrusting the metallic beasts towards their enemies.

"Leave the heavy stuff for me. It ain't right for your back," Nik smiled and joined in, increasing the speed of their advance by several times as Hama snorted reluctantly.

"Do you need help?" Katara questioned. Although curious about what had changed, she was eager to be useful in any way possible.

"No, but if I feel tired, I will ask for your help," Nik's words served to ease her greatly and she nodded. Not wasting another second, she alongside other waterbenders targetted their opponents.

Once again, the only thing keeping their invasion prominent was their numbers. Yoki's group couldn't help but let many firebenders slip by but with the backup forces pushing hard just by the addition of Nik and Mai as they dragged bodies and destroyed tanks through the street without caring for the structure they can make it all once again, the situation had begun to reverse.

The waterbenders were not only empowered during the night, but the boost in morale as the news of Zhao's demise spread was even more beneficial than the support of the moon, making more and more firebenders retreat pitifully.

The final nail in the coffin was when Aang, Sun, and Sokka returned.

Though they were surprised by the brief explanation about Zhao's death, Nik's support in providing more and more chunks of ground only made Sun an absolute beast in the battleground while Aang weaponized the steam. Somewhere down the line, Nik had stopped waterbending and discreetly used airbending to make the opponents retreat in fear of the toxic gas than to freeze them in place for them to be dealt with later.

"Retreat!"

It wasn't known who gasped in fear for the first time... but the distinct lack of leadership couldn't be covered just with numbers as the waterbenders had everything on their side— from tactics to home ground advantage and even preferable time of the war.

Now, the firebenders regretted and were surprised why Zhao would choose such a time for invading...

Alas, they couldn't have known his objective of slaying a spirit just as Zhao wouldn't have seen his own death coming so... easily.

"Get as many of them as you can! Then we fortify the wall!" Yoki's gaze glinted. His Komodo Rhino had long passed away, crushed by a tank, however, he was ready to battle despite his injuries. Seeing the non-strategic retreat, he, of course, chose to weaken the enemy as much as he could.

The waterbenders had no remorse, at least, for those who opted to kill.

Most of them were present in the previous war, too, and knew that the soldiers of the fire nations were simply machines of destruction with appropriate leadership and plan. They followed orders to the tiniest details, and thus, were a threat far greater than any other piece of weaponry developed by the Fire Nation.

At its base, Fire Nation was driven by its human resources to win the war and not the other way around.

"Nik," Rena gasped as she slipped towards his side with a flushed expression. She was clearly amazed by the victory right in front of their sight and quickly delivered the message she was asked to, "Commander Yoki said that you should try and plunder a few ships from behind the fleet. This will open up a space for the ships in the front to retreat and they will also be pressed to fish out their drowning men and give us the time to rebuild our defenses."

Nik looked around. Not many were still in the back with him so he finally brought out Yue and Tom-Tom who were still sitting as if leaning against a tree, causing both of them to fall back on the ice with a stunned expression.

"Huh?" Yue gasped due to the sudden chill while Tom-Tom hurriedly jumped up.

"Take care of them," Nik nodded and looked at Yue.

"Where are you going?" Yue hurriedly came to be. Though shocked by the war-torn and horridly thrashed scape of the tribe, she couldn't help but ask out in worry.

"To plunder that battleship," Nik pointed at the giant battleship's body that had passed through the wall and looked around for a second. Fortunately, Mai was nearby and she soon noticed the addition of two individuals on the back, making her scowl and reluctantly retreat.

"Why did you take them out?"

"I've got no time to explain. It's Rena's fault," Nik slipped the blame on the accurate party and began to waterbend a wave that took him towards the battleship as quickly as possible.

Meanwhile, Mai glared at Rena who replied innocently, "It's Commander Yoki you're looking for. Anyway, I will take them back to safety so you can—"

"No... I will," Mai refuted the gesture and looked at Yue and Tom-Tom.

"Let's go..."

"Yes, yes..." Tom mumbled. But he was quick to move. Unknowingly, his expression had already paled. The smell of burning, sulfur, and blood made his insides churn and the sight of blood and corpses instantly flushed all his excitement about participating in a war with cold water. Unlike the boy, Yue patted his head comfortingly. Although the sight was definitely hard to digest, this, unfortunately, wasn't Yue's first time observing the destruction that came with war.

Holding herself with much more composure than her first time, she became the comfortable presence for Tom that she wished she had during her own moment of weakness back then as Mai led the two of them away as quickly as possible.

Behind them, the cheers and despairing screams of the battleship presented an odd contradiction.

At this moment, Yue felt that the Fire Nation Soldiers may be viewing them as cruel and heartless... but it was a necessary trait for the winner of the war.

***

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