Chapter 2
The most valuable currency one in his place had wasn't money, but time. It could be exchanged for the thing he needed most. Power.
Haru woke up early, before dawn, and headed to the road out of the village, where people barely pass by.
While walking, he was moving his fingers, and a few little rocks were spinning in the air, following the movement of his fingers.
As he had been occasionally training with the little rocks, his skills had increased.
[Bending with Hands - level 3(300/400)]
[Earthbending - level 3 (100/400)]
It seems that practising active skills will increase the related passive skill.
Haru stopped his steps when he felt that no one was around.
He bent down, went to a heavy rock, heavier than the one he trained with yesterday, and started bending it, lifting it and throwing it, over and over.
He could feel its heaviness, how draining it was for his Chi, and how it consumed more. Luckily, the consumption of the Chi will get less with the level up of his skills.
Since he has no way to increase his level or acquire skill or affinity points, he thought that the best thing to do was to practise his skill.
According to his knowledge about games, he should be doing quests, hunting beasts, or fighting anything of any sort for him to gain experience and increase his level up.
It's how things work.
He should be grateful that he can increase his skills without the need for points, just with practice.
After around thirty minutes, his Chi was almost half empty, but his skill had increased, and it reached the fourth level.
[Bending with Hands level 4 (100/800)]
The experience requirement had increased by a double. It seems that practising the skill will be easy only in the beginning.
But on the good side, once it reaches a certain level, he would unlock z, the associated skill. While sitting down, he checked on his passive skill, Earth bending
[Earthbending level 3 (200/400)]
If he wasn't wrong, this passive skill is the one that allows him to feel the substance of the earth and move it with his Chi. So, increasing it should make him more powerful and more sensitive to the earth around him. Whatever that supposed to mean. He will find out what happens when it levels up.
He lied down. It was a trick he learnt yesterday. it recharges his stats faster than just sitting.
[Chi +50]
[Chi +50]
After getting full again, he stood up and decided to practise his other skill.
Compressing.
Opening his hand, he summoned the dirt from the ground. With his Hands bending increased, he could do this faster than usual, and in more quantity.
The dirt gathered in the air, and as he closed his fist, it compressed, becoming solid and hard. The more he pressed on his fist, the harder it became.
Soon, it formed a small rock.
Checking on his Chi, he blinked twice.
It took him 50 points to do this. If he recalls correctly, his father would do this with ease, and he wouldn't even look to be bothered.
But if you think about it, experienced benders, and legendary ones, have a very large Chi sea.
Iroh had said that his Chi sea was like Ocean compared to his nephew's, someone who had been practising from a very young age.
Or it could be because Haru's level is low. He continued with his training. The sun rose, the cold breeze was fading, and he was all sweaty.
Lifting both of his arms, small rocks started gathering, and they were compressing with each other, creating a football-sized rock.
Haru held it. It felt way heavier for a rock of its size.
This could be due to the increase of the level by 2. At first, he could only do dirt, and then, small rocks. After that, he could compress the large rocks by a bit.
It was a useful skill if cultivated for a high level. Imagine sending a rock that was way heavier and stronger than it looks. It will do more damage and catch the enemies off guard.
[Compressing - level 4 (200/800)]
Okay, this will be his main skill to train. And since it required him to use his hands, bending with hands had increased a little bit.
On the main part, his passive ability had increased.
[Earthbending level 4 (0/800)]
It was quite hard to practise compared to the other skills, so the level up should be rewarding.
He closed his eyes, and he could feel the substance of the Earth. His range had increased. Closing his fists, he jumped, and once he landed on the ground, a heavy rock was lifted. It felt lighter than usual. He pushed with palms, and it flew faster than he had expected.
And there was one more thing. His Chi had increased by 100 points, making him have 600.
'I love this system.' He thought, and he felt lucky that he was Mike in his previous life.
*Steps*
The ground started vibrating.
One of the reasons that he had chosen this place as his training era was because he could hear the carriages and the rides of the travellers. Moreover, no one likes to hang out here. That's what makes this place good for practising.
Haru remembered that he will meet the Avatar here, while bending, so he realised that he had been too confident in his plans. But remembering that no one caught him but the Avatar, he felt he should give himself some credit.
At any rate, it was time to call it day off and to come back later here.
Putting his hands in his pocket, he walked back to his village. A state of depression took over him, and he didn't walk immediately toward home. He went near to the shores, ignoring the citizens who were doing their jobs to pay the taxes.
He stopped at a huge ship-like prison, built on the chores. It was a huge building, made from metal. There, every earthbender, including his father, was prisoned here, barely having enough food.
Thinking about Mike's memories, he could recall a bit of the personality of the warden, and how cruel he is. He was someone who kills hope. He couldn't believe that someone whom he used to look up to was locked here.
Haru found himself clenching his fists tightly while staring at the top of this place.
'Only If I were stronger… Only If I were… I will break that place into pieces…' he swore in himself. 'Only if there were ways to level up!'
[Ding, + new quest. (y/n)]
The robotic sound seemed to be answering his prayers.
[Quest: Prison Break.
Your father and other benders are in the Offshores prison. Get in, free them, and resist the Fire Nation.
Objective: Free the prisoners.
Rewards:
+6000 EXP
+Random box
Risks: Death — lifetime prison.
Punishment in case you accept the quest and don't go after it: -500 Chi points.
Time Limit: 9 months.]
The promised experience was rewarding in that it was guaranteed that he would jump many levels in a row if he completed the quest.
But, the risks are so high too. He may die, he may fail, and he may end up in that prison as well. But Haru had been planning to go there anyway, at one time in his life to find his dad. So, accepting the quest won't change a thing.
Besides, 9 months is plenty of time. For a gamer of course.
It can serve as a motivation. Without a second thought, he chose yes. He lifted his head to the prison, some guard was making eye contact with him.
Haru scoffed, turned, and walked away. Soon, he picked up a bag and went somewhere else to fill it with small rocks.
He will make sure to get stronger by the time the nine months ended, and he will break into that prison. Did he have faith in himself? He would be lying if he said yes. But fuck it... With faith or not, he was determined to complete his quest. Walking to his home with bag-filled rocks, he entered. His mother was waiting there, on the counter, and she was glaring at him.
"Where have you been?" she asked in some stern voice.
"Just, walking around…" Haru just smiled at the old woman.
She narrowed her eyebrows and looked at the hang bag on his back.
"Were you earthbending?" She asked, her eyes narrowing.
Haru let a sigh. He always had a problem with the attitude of his mother, and how she was roughly acting when he was Earthbending. But with Mike's memories of the Last Airbender show, he could see things from a different angle. She was acting like that so the firebenders don't take him from her to that prison. She had lost his father, and in the series, she was crying when she lost him. That's why she forbid him from bending.
"I was just hanging around, trying to make friends my age."
Haru didn't have many friends in the village. He was a lone kid, whose time was disturbed between working and training.
His mother left the counter and walked to him, before staring at the bag. She sniffed, and she narrowed her eyebrows.
"What's this!" She pulled his bag, which was quite heavy. "Small rocks! Haru, are you practising, right."
Haru raised his eyebrows, staring straight into her face. It seems that Mike knows how to lie better.
"What do you mean?" He asked, innocent, not taking the obvious hint.
"What do you mean by asking what I mean?" she raised her eyebrow. "What else do you have rocks for?"
"Sculpturing…" Haru said. "I was going to use these small rocks to craft some chess pieces. I thought that some nobles would like to buy them, so I thought about crafting a bit. The tax collecting is too soon, and I thought of a way to help us."
He wasn't lying here exactly. What he didn't say is that he was going to use his compressing skill to compress the rocks into different shapes. Using this skill to craft surely will allow him to gain a lot of experience to level it up.
"Haru, be honest with me, you are not going to earthbend in secrets." She said, concerned.
Haru lied straight to her face. "You forbid me from doing that, why would I, after all of these years?"
It seems that Mike's personality was getting the best of him. In the past, Haru wouldn't lie like that. He would act worried and scared.
"Because you need to know, I will lose you the moment those guys catch you. It has been 5 years since they took your father, and I don't want to lose you." She said with a tearing cracking voice. Haru patted her arm, and he asked.
"You miss him?"
"Almost every night. You are just growing to look like him."
"I'm more handsome."
"Hahaha… sure."
She just laughed and turned. "Go to the kitchen. There is some tea and nuts. Relax a bit…"
"Thanks…"
Haru excused himself and left, taking the nuts and the tea up to his room.
He lay on his bed, and he emptied the bag next to him. Lying down, he raised his hand, and some rocks floated. Having his Earthbending levelling up made the selection easier.
With a thought in his mind, he closed his fist, the rocks were compressing. Haru, this time, was focusing on the patterns it would be taking. It was hard, to be honest, but he knew that the experience would be higher once he get into it.
[Compressing - lvl 5 (0/1600)]
He still has some Chi left. The compressing process seemed to get easier and less exhausting. Moreover, reshaping the rocks seemed to get easier.
A few small rocks floated into the air, compressed into a smaller one and bent together, taking the shape of a spear's head. Haru jabbed in the air, and it hit the roof, piercing it.
"This is a good skill…" if one thinks about it, the only way for him to succeed in his mission is to master Compress to a very high level, and then, somehow, compress some large rocks into small ones and get them with himself into the shores, before spreading on everyone.
But there is no guarantee. After all, that prison is made from metal, and there is no way for a bender to bend metal.
Hold on.
Haru sat up, eyes opened widely as some flashes appeared on his head.
Yes, earth benders can't bend metals, that's common knowledge here.
However, in the future, when the Avatar is someone who will be named Korra, there are squads and many people who mastered metal bending.
And remembering how Korra could learn it, he got the method for that type of bending.
It should be within reach.
He smiled, sat up, and smirked. If he mastered that, the prison would be his playing ground. If he taught it to his fellow villagers, then they can kick the Fire Nation out easily. Not to mention, he will level up many levels in a row.
"I need some iron." He should get some.