The storm before the calm (open)

[Zek]

Zek had longed to get out of the Black Forest, the charred and maimed remnant of a green and lush forest in the land of the Burning Legion. To stretch his legs and quail his need for the hunt. He learned long ago to avoid heavily populated areas unless to hunt someone in special to the Burning Legion.

Zek held his position up the mountain side above the road leading to Omashu, waiting for a small caravan that no one would be missing, after all, he was a dignified killer now, no spilling meaningless blood of dozens of people. Just a few. So he waited, thinking back to his ties to the Burning Legion and their take-over of the Fire Nation. He smiled at the thought. Turning over an entire nation was quite a feet, but Zek's reputation as Death's Arrow was one of much secrecy and blood.

The hunt. It was all that mattered to him. His vice knew no limit when it came over him. The people of the Burning Legion had become smart enough to avoid his forest back home. Thus he found himself here, in the Allied Earth States.

As a small caravan drew down the road, Zek smiled as he began to try and pick out who would be the prime hunt, one of them? or all of them? "It's been so long...So long since..." He felt his blood begin to race, his pulse pounding in his head, drowning out the sound around him as his excitement rose. Yes...May you be a worthy prey" He moved swiftly through the low brush, drawing his bow and one arrow. knotting his arrow back and slowly taking aim for the ox's knee as it came into range. Blood lust began to pump through his veins as he became over excited and over zealous. He snapped the arrow loose "Damnit!Too soon" He snorted as his arrow struck in front of its intended target. He quickly drew two more arrows and fired them off in rapid succession, one meeting its target in the ox's snout, the other loosely struck its neck. He was rusty and he knew it. He darted off with blinding speed, drawing his battered blade, worn from the battles with the Fire Nation. As he drew closer the people from the caravan had began to dismount. The earth trembled below Zek's feet as the first of them stepped off them. "Earthbenders!" The ground beneath him began to lift up, he quickly lept into the air as two slabs of stone smashed together. These people were obviously experienced and Zek may had gotten himself in over his head. As his feet made contact with the ground he pushed forward, propelling himself feet from the raging ox as one of the three men from the caravan lurched toward him, his own sword in hand. As Zek swung his sword in a vertical slice to the sky, he sliced forward with the air as an extension of his blade, the sickle of air cutting into the mans flesh as their blades met. The shock on his face as the realization of Zek's bending. "This one is mine" he thought as the mans strength buckled. If only a second, it didn't matter, that was all he needed to take this ones life. He smoothly slid around the shocked man's guard and plunged the blade deep into the base of his victims neck and drew it free, darting off up the hillside away from the remaining two, subtly hearing the gurgling of blood from the hole in the man's neck.

The hunter had now become the hunted as the other two began to pursue him, weather to kill or capture their comrades killer he did not know, nor did he care. His pulse was still racing, he needed to calm himself before he could take control of his hunt. He knew he couldn't hunt them like this, let alone come out alive against one earth bender and potentially another. "Something tells me I should have stayed in my forest" His twisted smile slowly spreading across his face.

[.:|FiresFury|:.]

Kazuma perched above a small cropping of forestry on a hilltop in the Mountain Range in the Allied Earth State. It had been quite a while since he had left the Bulwark, it pained him slightly to be away from what he knew was the last line of defense for humanity. He watched as a caravan had entered his vision and slowly made its way through the path that was carved and created out of the soil in the earth.

Chewing slowly on a twisted koi fruit he eyed the surroundings. Just then he saw a few birds all shoot out of the tree's to the right of him. Either a disturbance or just a take off for migration. Just as he thought about checking it out an arrow zipped out from the forest and stopped to a halt in the ground right in front of the creature pulling the cart. His eyes perked up with slight intrigue as two more arrows shot forth, taking the beast down.

Tossing what was left of his fruit he stood up slowly observing the movements of the caravan guard. They seemed to be much more then a simple mercenary group and soon that was proven. As they were pulling into a formation, what seemed like a blur shot forth from the tree line and slipped past some defenses. Chunks of earth were being removed from the ground as the Earth Benders had begun some sort of defense. All of which failed for one of the guards who seemed to be the greenest. His eyebrow arched as he watched the mans blade slide gently into the mans neck before withdrawing fiercely then bolting up the hillside....towards him actually. It also appeared that he was an Air Bender.....odd....they were usually such a peaceful people.

"Well....." he said to himself, "This man may be of more skill then I, but can't let someone who kills innocents get too far." he murmured drawing his sword from its sheath and sprinting down the hill at an angle to cut off the mans forward progress. As he had gotten closer to the point of contact he slowed to make his timing perfect then sprinted all out exploding through the bushes in an attempted tackle of the man, hoping that his withdrawl from the battle he was currently in had distracted him from any surprising threats from elsewhere.

It's either this will all go horribly for him, and he will die, or he will be able to fight off the obviously more experienced bender long enough for either reinforcements to arrive or for him to withdraw himself. Fingers crossed that he doesn't die.

[Zek]

He darted up the hill from his pursuers, Slowly starting to refocus himself, his desires slowly starting to ebb from his mind, his pulse still sounding in his ear, adrenaline pounding through his veins. Zek drew his bow once more and bent the air around him, leaping into the air and twisting his body around as he notched an arrow at the knee of the earth bending warrior. His aim reigned true this time, striking the earth benders knee, the warrior falling to his face as Zek landed on his feet "I have them now!" notching another arrow, he takes his aim for the other warrior. Zek reveling in the moment, his aim for the warriors neck. Though his instincts told him of a sound coming up from his side, his thirst for the hunt overwhelmed him, his face began to twist more as he waited for the perfect moment to release when he noticed something coming up to his left. As he looked over he saw a man flying through the air at him. Zek's expression turned quickly from twisted joy to mildly confusion and shock. He rocked back on his heel and pressed off, taking aim towards his new assailant, his aim shaky with the split second aim and leaping away with his bending. "Where the hell did he come from!?" He thought as he regained his footing.

[.:|FiresFury|:.]

Kazuma landed in the dirt as the man leapt away with the power of air. He tucked his shoulder and roled into the fall popping up gracefully on his feet, hand pulled across his body and fingers brushing the hilt of his blade. You should leave while you can he bellowed out menacingly. Eying his surrounding he noticed that he currently had the high ground, but being up against a Airbender, he wasn't sure how long could last.

"Backup from the Scouting Legion of the Bulwark will be arriving shortly. If you don't want a to have more trouble then you have right now, you would be smart to leave these people alone."[/color] he growled out, his words cutting through the air as if his tongue was an airbender.

Now would be the time that would decide whether or not his bluffs would play off. There was no scouting legion in this area currently, and in a direct fight, the bender opposite could more then likely win just with pure experience. He would have to do all he can to stay on his toes for this.

Fighting right now was the last thing that he even wanted to be doing. After months of battle on the Bulwark he usually left for some peace and quiet when he could. But all he managed to come across was nothing but senseless conflicts. He pondered about the man that stood, bow drawn in front of him. Perhaps he was someone in desperate need of help, mentally and physically. Maybe he was savaging cause something else took the rest of his life, whether it be the Allied Earth States or the Spirit Rift. But then there was the possibility that he was just clinically insane, hell-bent on the destruction of others.....he REALLY hoped it wasn't the latter.

[Zek]

Zeke was not one to be talked down, especially in his current state of mind, where his self-control was severely limited to begin with. In his mind, he knew that if there truly was a scouting party, he was surely faster than all of them and if he was skilled enough, everyone here would be dead before they could get here. This man before him held his self different than the earth benders. Stronger, smarter, more skilled.

The air brushed by them as Zeke's twisted smile slowly spread across his lips, as if the thought of being pressed for time to hunt and kill these two excited him. "Well then...You best hope they get here before I am done with you." A sinister laugh slowly bubbling out. "You should have left me to my prey." Zeke twisted his bow as he released his arrow, turning his aim directly off the man in front of him to shoot over his left shoulder, Zeke also darting to the left and drawing another arrow and rapidly aiming at the mans right calf. "You have interfered with my hunt, and I will make you suffer for it. For I am Death's Arrow" His tone acidic as his title spilled from his lips.

Zeke knew distance is always his friend. He also knew with this one would be a hassle if he couldn't keep a distance as he currently had upper ground and Zeke's skills with a blade had become rusty. He also knew with a few maneuvers he could easily gain the upper hand, but Zeke wanted to play with his new target a little, hopefully he wasn't underestimating him.