Post by kaitokatashi on Nov 14, 2008 13:49:20 GMT -6
((I thought it would be cool to write a profile in story form, and I was right.))
Arms snapped to his sides as Azei Xian stood in perfect attention at Major Kwan’s command, as he’d done seemingly millions of times before. He was surprised that he hadn’t gotten tired of the inane routine that dominated most of his life in the Fire Nation Military as some of his fellow soldiers did, but then again, he’d wanted to join.
“At ease,” said Kwan, and Azei obeyed.
“The General wishes to have a word with you, Lieutenant Xian. Please have a seat; he’ll be arriving shortly.” Kwan gave this order, and Azei’s hand snapped up in a perfect salute.
“Yes, sir,” he said, watching as the Major left the room. Letting out a sigh, the twenty-five year old loosened himself from his tensed position and took a seat in one of the chairs that sat on one side of the General’s desk. He’d been summoned there but didn’t know why, and now he had to deal with waiting for the General? Please. He had better things to do with his time.
He gave out a dark chuckle as countless memories of his superiors becoming angry with him for deviating ever so slightly from their rigid and apparently sacred orders came flooding back. True, he was a bit of a loose cannon, but the higher-ups should have been happy he’d even done what they’d asked.
His sarcasm vanished slightly as the thought that he could be doing something else crept into his mind. It seemed like the last seven years in the military had been more like seventy, with most of the same routine day in and day out, but then again, it didn’t seem that long ago that he was a normal Firebender living in the capital.
Sometimes he missed his old life, some aspects more than others, but he’d wanted to join the military ever since he’d seen soldiers parading through the capital for some festival. They’d seemed so awe-inspiring, so strong, so awesome, and he knew from that day that he was destined to be one of them. He recalled his excitement at enlisting, as well as the happiness of the General who had enlisted him. In the quest to bring peace to the world, he’d finally found his part and wanted to immerse himself in the immense task ahead of him.
He’d paid his dues five years after entering the army and gotten promoted to Lieutenant after he’d helped lead a successful raid on an Earth Kingdom mining village, in addition to other towns, and claimed it for the Fire Nation. He’d only been nineteen at the time, which made it seem like more of an amazing feat; in actuality, the Earthbenders hadn’t been much of a threat, despite their famed and supposedly powerful bending. He knew that it was because only a small contingent of Earthbenders had been protecting the village, but the over-inflated ego of his commanding officer on the mission made it seem like they had waged an epic battle.
Bored, he pointed one finger up and rested his elbow on his leg, the tip level with his mouth. He took a sharp breath in through his nose and expelled it out of his mouth, causing a jet of flame to shoot into the air in front of him. He smiled, remembering how that trick often amused him…and had brought him to the attention of a certain female acrobat.
Ah, Akane. He had met her after he’d watched her dance in the Capital marketplace, and it seemed like they clicked almost instantly. A few days after they’d met, he bought her a jade bracelet and their relationship was official. She’d spent a lot of time analyzing his appearance; she said she loved his honey-colored eyes, but she seemed fascinated by his raven hair. He didn’t understand why; it was too short for his liking, but the military preferred short hair on soldiers. Early on in his military career, the other soldiers often snidely commented that it looked like a blind swordsman cut his hair, as it was short, jagged and uneven. He’d had to teach a few of them a lesson and more than a few soldiers still bore scars from his wrath, but it didn’t happen anymore.
He recalled how, when they’d broken up, Akane kept remarking about how arrogant he was. This, too, didn’t make sense, as he thought he was simply confident. Well, perceptions varied and he didn’t really care to change hers. They had broken up, and that was that.
It seemed strange, though, that while he'd been in a relationship with her, he'd been having a struggle. Yes, he did love Akane, but there had been something...missing. A sexual attraction, perhaps? While he was with her, it hadn't seemed like a big deal, but ever since they had broken up, it had been bugging him. Although Akane had been beautiful, their relationship had mostly been based on their personalities meshing together so well, which might have been why they'd broken up. They had both come to terms with the fact that it wasn't working, and she seemed happier outside of a relationship, which was better for her. He wished her only the best, but it had gotten him thinking about the reasons why their relationship hadn't worked out, and it could have something to do with the lack of a more substantial attraction between them. He knew that it was more something on his end, but what that was, he couldn't tell.
Snapped out of his thoughts by the sound of the door to the office opening, he shot to his feet and stood at attention. General Chow came in, followed by a pair of foot soldiers; non-benders, from the looks of their armor.
“At ease, Lieutenant. Take a seat,” the older man said, and Azei obeyed. The general sat in the chair opposite him and eyed him critically.
“Lieutenant Xian, do you know why I’ve called you here?” Chow asked.
“No, sir,” Azei replied, shaking his head.
“Do you recall the raid you went on with Captain Kurosawa?” Azei’s eyes flooded with fear, his slightly thin features blanching. The raid in question had been one to another Earth Kingdom village, but there had been more Earthbenders than their small force had been prepared to deal with. In the battle, Azei had fired a particularly powerful blast at an Earthebnder but had ended up hitting Captain Kurosawa, fatally wounding him. Kurosawa later died from his injures. The raid had been successful, however.
“Yes, sir,” he replied, hanging his head slightly. Chow got up from his chair.
“Stand up,” he said, and Azei complied. Chow walked around the elegant desk, and Azei turned to face him. He felt a growing fear in his chest, and he was taken by surprise as the General’s hand shot out and grabbed his neck. Swiftly, he was picked up slightly and forced backward until he slammed into the wall.
“We do not train our soldiers to be careless with their fire! Not only did you almost cost the Fire Nation a valuable territorial asset, but also killed a commanding officer! I should kill you where you stand for such ineptitude!” Chow barked, each word more angry than the last. As he spoke, his fingertips grew hot, burning the skin on Azei’s neck intensely. After a few minutes of holding him pinned to the wall, Chow let go, sending Azei spilling to the floor. Breathlessly, he wrapped a hand around his neck to feel the burns; there were four on the left side and one on the right. Finally, he caught his breath and gasped for air.
“However, you’re too valuable of a soldier to kill. Luckily for you, I’m feeling merciful, Captain Xian,” the General added darkly.
“Dismissed,” Chow said as he walked out of the room, leaving Azei to process everything.
Arms snapped to his sides as Azei Xian stood in perfect attention at Major Kwan’s command, as he’d done seemingly millions of times before. He was surprised that he hadn’t gotten tired of the inane routine that dominated most of his life in the Fire Nation Military as some of his fellow soldiers did, but then again, he’d wanted to join.
“At ease,” said Kwan, and Azei obeyed.
“The General wishes to have a word with you, Lieutenant Xian. Please have a seat; he’ll be arriving shortly.” Kwan gave this order, and Azei’s hand snapped up in a perfect salute.
“Yes, sir,” he said, watching as the Major left the room. Letting out a sigh, the twenty-five year old loosened himself from his tensed position and took a seat in one of the chairs that sat on one side of the General’s desk. He’d been summoned there but didn’t know why, and now he had to deal with waiting for the General? Please. He had better things to do with his time.
He gave out a dark chuckle as countless memories of his superiors becoming angry with him for deviating ever so slightly from their rigid and apparently sacred orders came flooding back. True, he was a bit of a loose cannon, but the higher-ups should have been happy he’d even done what they’d asked.
His sarcasm vanished slightly as the thought that he could be doing something else crept into his mind. It seemed like the last seven years in the military had been more like seventy, with most of the same routine day in and day out, but then again, it didn’t seem that long ago that he was a normal Firebender living in the capital.
Sometimes he missed his old life, some aspects more than others, but he’d wanted to join the military ever since he’d seen soldiers parading through the capital for some festival. They’d seemed so awe-inspiring, so strong, so awesome, and he knew from that day that he was destined to be one of them. He recalled his excitement at enlisting, as well as the happiness of the General who had enlisted him. In the quest to bring peace to the world, he’d finally found his part and wanted to immerse himself in the immense task ahead of him.
He’d paid his dues five years after entering the army and gotten promoted to Lieutenant after he’d helped lead a successful raid on an Earth Kingdom mining village, in addition to other towns, and claimed it for the Fire Nation. He’d only been nineteen at the time, which made it seem like more of an amazing feat; in actuality, the Earthbenders hadn’t been much of a threat, despite their famed and supposedly powerful bending. He knew that it was because only a small contingent of Earthbenders had been protecting the village, but the over-inflated ego of his commanding officer on the mission made it seem like they had waged an epic battle.
Bored, he pointed one finger up and rested his elbow on his leg, the tip level with his mouth. He took a sharp breath in through his nose and expelled it out of his mouth, causing a jet of flame to shoot into the air in front of him. He smiled, remembering how that trick often amused him…and had brought him to the attention of a certain female acrobat.
Ah, Akane. He had met her after he’d watched her dance in the Capital marketplace, and it seemed like they clicked almost instantly. A few days after they’d met, he bought her a jade bracelet and their relationship was official. She’d spent a lot of time analyzing his appearance; she said she loved his honey-colored eyes, but she seemed fascinated by his raven hair. He didn’t understand why; it was too short for his liking, but the military preferred short hair on soldiers. Early on in his military career, the other soldiers often snidely commented that it looked like a blind swordsman cut his hair, as it was short, jagged and uneven. He’d had to teach a few of them a lesson and more than a few soldiers still bore scars from his wrath, but it didn’t happen anymore.
He recalled how, when they’d broken up, Akane kept remarking about how arrogant he was. This, too, didn’t make sense, as he thought he was simply confident. Well, perceptions varied and he didn’t really care to change hers. They had broken up, and that was that.
It seemed strange, though, that while he'd been in a relationship with her, he'd been having a struggle. Yes, he did love Akane, but there had been something...missing. A sexual attraction, perhaps? While he was with her, it hadn't seemed like a big deal, but ever since they had broken up, it had been bugging him. Although Akane had been beautiful, their relationship had mostly been based on their personalities meshing together so well, which might have been why they'd broken up. They had both come to terms with the fact that it wasn't working, and she seemed happier outside of a relationship, which was better for her. He wished her only the best, but it had gotten him thinking about the reasons why their relationship hadn't worked out, and it could have something to do with the lack of a more substantial attraction between them. He knew that it was more something on his end, but what that was, he couldn't tell.
Snapped out of his thoughts by the sound of the door to the office opening, he shot to his feet and stood at attention. General Chow came in, followed by a pair of foot soldiers; non-benders, from the looks of their armor.
“At ease, Lieutenant. Take a seat,” the older man said, and Azei obeyed. The general sat in the chair opposite him and eyed him critically.
“Lieutenant Xian, do you know why I’ve called you here?” Chow asked.
“No, sir,” Azei replied, shaking his head.
“Do you recall the raid you went on with Captain Kurosawa?” Azei’s eyes flooded with fear, his slightly thin features blanching. The raid in question had been one to another Earth Kingdom village, but there had been more Earthbenders than their small force had been prepared to deal with. In the battle, Azei had fired a particularly powerful blast at an Earthebnder but had ended up hitting Captain Kurosawa, fatally wounding him. Kurosawa later died from his injures. The raid had been successful, however.
“Yes, sir,” he replied, hanging his head slightly. Chow got up from his chair.
“Stand up,” he said, and Azei complied. Chow walked around the elegant desk, and Azei turned to face him. He felt a growing fear in his chest, and he was taken by surprise as the General’s hand shot out and grabbed his neck. Swiftly, he was picked up slightly and forced backward until he slammed into the wall.
“We do not train our soldiers to be careless with their fire! Not only did you almost cost the Fire Nation a valuable territorial asset, but also killed a commanding officer! I should kill you where you stand for such ineptitude!” Chow barked, each word more angry than the last. As he spoke, his fingertips grew hot, burning the skin on Azei’s neck intensely. After a few minutes of holding him pinned to the wall, Chow let go, sending Azei spilling to the floor. Breathlessly, he wrapped a hand around his neck to feel the burns; there were four on the left side and one on the right. Finally, he caught his breath and gasped for air.
“However, you’re too valuable of a soldier to kill. Luckily for you, I’m feeling merciful, Captain Xian,” the General added darkly.
“Dismissed,” Chow said as he walked out of the room, leaving Azei to process everything.