Avatar: The Birth of a New World

Haru

"You would have tried to melt your shackles off by now, or something like that." Haru pointed out. "And I personally have no idea, nor would I want to know. All I need to do is deliver you."

"And you couldn't have just asked? Instead you kidnap me and hold me prisoner," Katara asked, almost incredulous at this news.

Haru

"Believe me. No one goes to Bumi willingly."

Mai

After her lock-pick broke, Mai did her best to free herself with just her two knives. After quite a bit of working, she managed to break the locks of her chains and finally freed herself. She eyed Toph and Longshot as she casually twirled her knives.

"Ok. Who's next?"

"And you're the thug who brings people to him," Katara said. "Let me go, let me fufill my role and bring balance to the world." She didn't really think the appeal would work, but it was the only thing she could do.

Haru

Haru gave a bemused chuckle. "And why should I? You're my ticket at vengence, girly. It doesn't matter to me if you're the Avatar wants. Bumi wants you, for whatever sick or perverted reason. Once I've delivered you to him, then I have my shot at vengence and regaining the honor of my parents."

"What will honor be worth in a torn world full of war and hate," Katara asked.

Longshot gestured to Toph. He didn't mind waiting himself. Toph, he knew, used to be a slave. He didn't want those memories to plague her anymore than they already did. Besides, an earthbender was more valuable than an archer.

"Longshot," Toph responded, not seeing her friend's gesture. As much as she hated it here, chained, and as much as she cared about herself, Longshot's safety came first. "Then we can get the heck out of here." She grinned at that, already imagining herself pummeling the guards. They would pay, for locking her up in here.

Mai

Mai glanced at the both of them before choosing her target. She crawled over to Toph and began to use her knives to free her from her bonds. After a good ten minutes, Mai finally managed to free Toph from her remaining ankle chain. Once that was done the young woman set to work on Longshot's bonds.

Toph rubbed her wrists and ankles, glad to finally be free of her restraints. "I thought that I told you to free Longshot first, not me." Stupid Longshot. She could handle herself. It wasn't like before. She was a prisoner, not a slave. Not that there was much difference. Frankly, the only reason she wasn't totally freaking out was because Longshot and Mai were with her.

Mai

"It doesn't really matter which of you I freed first." Mai replied as she finished up on the last of Longshot's binds. "Now, I suggest we go looking for the Water Tribe girl. Then we can get out of this Koh-forsaken place. It gives me the creeps."

((Not sure if "Koh-forsaken" means much sense, but yeah, I tried my best.))

(LOL. Perhaps Spirit-forsaken would work? Or Koh-infested?)

"I don't have my bow. You're more useful," Longshot pointed out logically to Toph before examining the bars and shaking them a little. He frowned and turned to Mai, "Do you have lockpick on you?"

"I have no earth," Toph responded as she cautiously made her way forward, stepping up next to Longshot. "It's not like I can bend metal." Now wouldn't that be sweet?

She could feel it already--the crunching sound of such a hard surface, as it bent beneath her will. She would be the greatest earthbender in the world then, and nobody would be able to enslave her ever again.

"You..." Her right hand latched onto Longshot's arm, to help keep her grounded in this nothingness, "at least have eyes that can see." Not that she liked pointing out her weaknesses, but she would defend her position. She was not a pushover--not by any means.

"Then, we are both equally as useless," Longshot pointed out, though he made no retort towards her blindness. What could he say? He knew it affected her inwardly more than she'd like to admit. He placed hand on hers. He knew that it was terrible for her to not be able to see with her earthbending. He only hoped his presence helped a little.

He looked at Mai expectantly, praying she had lockpick under her bundles.

((Koh-Infested works.))

Mai

"No. I broke my lockpick breaking my shackles." Mai replied. Her eyes widened slightly as an idea popped into her head.

"But....one of you could call for a guard, claiming sickness or something. Then we can ambush him, and free ourselves, then go look for Katara." Mai suggested.

Toph gave a nod of her head. "Sounds like fun. I'll do it. Nobody ever suspects the blind kid." She grinned at that, happy to finally be of some use. Being totally useless was not something that she enjoyed, not at all.

Mai

"Good. Get started, then. We don't have a lot of time."

Toph gave a nod of her head. She released Longshot and then motioned for the two of them to sit by the door. She then stepped back and rubbed her hands together once before dropping down onto the ground, placing both her hands and feet near each other, to give the illusion that she was still chained.

"Guard! Guard!" she cried out, her voice panicked and shaky. "Help!"

Longshot had to fight the urge to smile at Toph's acting as he too pretended to be chained. While he detested the thought of hearing Toph actually panicking and in danger, he knew that she had this under control. She was an excellent actor. He'd have to tell her that one day.

Mai, Guard

"What?! What's going on?" Mai sat still near the cell's entrance as she heard the guard's question. Within a few moments the man had rushed to the cell, unlocked the doors, and entered.

"What? What's going--!" As soon as he stepped past her, Mai sprung from her hiding spot and pounced on the guard. She held a hand over his mouth as they hit the floor. Quickly, Mai used her free hand to grab one of her two knives while the guard below her struggled to throw her off. She allowed him to lift his head slightly and, with a flash of steel, cut his throat. She continued to cover his mouth as the guard thrashed beneath her, but as his life-force pooled into the floor, his struggles started to cease until he stopped moving at all.

After checking his pulse (and finding none), Mai got off of the guard and stood up. She gazed dispassionately at his still figure and casually flicked the blood off of her knife, spattering it against the wall.

"The door's unlocked. Grab whatever weapons he had on him, and let's go." Mai said simply, seemingly unaffected by the sudden act of violence she had produced.

Toph instantly was back up onto her feet, a grin on her face. "Now we're back in business." She started forward... and proceeded to walk right into the bars of the cell. "Ow ow ow!" she hissed under her breath as she stepped back, rubbing her slightly red face.

Longshot grimaced. He hated seeing people bleed to death. It was one of the reasons why he took up archery. It was cleaner and you didn't actually see a man's face as he died. With a frown, he took his bow and quiver of arrows from the guards body, but had to smile, however, as Toph ran into the bars. Gently, he guided her through the cell door and back on solid earth.

"Better?" he asked her.

Mai

"Let's go." Mai simply said, once Longshot guided Toph out of the cells. She didn't appear to react to Toph's little mistake.

"Time to find the Avatar girl. If she is the Avatar."

((Longshot and Toph are free to ambush Haru and disable him or whatever. Just so you both know.))

(Noted)

Toph stretched her toes out, feeling the ground with them. Her body shifted slightly, her stance becoming more defensive. It was such a relief, to be able to "see" again, and she gave a quick nod at Longshot.

"Let's do this."

"We should find our host. I did not particularly like our accommodations," Longshot told his friend with a small grin as he nocked an arrow. He looked around for a moment, noting the architecture, "This looks like a typical Earth Kingdom regent's stronghold. The interrogation room should be upstairs and towards the back."