The large audience around the Earth Rumble Arena cheered loudly as the announcer jumped into the center right after a pair of badgermoles had cleaned up from the previous battle. He inhaled deeply and then shouted, "And now! For our next round!" He threw his arm, pointing to one side of the arena. He yelled, "Born of the Fire Nation colonies breed within the Earth Kingdom, he proudly fights in the name of both nations, Gonzo - The Sunbender!”

A brilliant red light flashed at the end of the ring. A dynamic sphere of orange flames appeared swirling on its axis. As the roaring fire circulated, the sphere began to dissipate from the bottom toward the top pole. From toe to head, the retreating flames revealed the fierce fighter within. Gonzo held his hand high as the swirling flames continued to retreat until all was sucked into his palm, displaying his reserved control over his intense fiery power. He swiped his arm down, clearing the last remnants of the smoke. He turned his head all around the audience. Raising his arm again at the crowd he boasted his assurance of victory before finally stepping toward the announcer. Walking toward the center and cracking his knuckles, his sight aimed at the other side of the arena waiting for his opponent to emerge. He wondered what his opponent could be large fearless earthbender, a fellow passionate firebender? “And in the other corner!" The announcer finally continued, "Don't let her appearance fool you!" Her? Gonzo raised a brow in thought. "Rai!"

The earth rumbled, and stands began to shake. A large badger mole sprouted its head out of the arena floor and on top, without a hint of dirt on her, stood Ria. She leapt off the massive creature, doing a few rotations in the air before landing on the ground sending a ripple through the earth. Gonzo caught off guard mostly by the sight of his opponent, lost his balance before catching himself.

“Go, brother I shall see you after the match,” she whispered to the badgermole. It nodded its understanding and left the way it came. Cheers for Rai roared across from the stands, majority of which were female.  Others in the crowd whispered amongst themselves.
“Its her.”
“The girl of beasts.”

The audience eventually settled as Gonzo stood up on his feet. The only noise in the arena came from Ria, a deep low-throated growl came from her and her elongated canines. Gonzo raised and eyebrow and scratched his head in response. "Wait, she's my opponent?" But the announcer had already jumped off the arena. He didn't know whether to take this as a joke or be annoyed. Gonzo, the Firebending Master of the Two Nations was to fight a small wild girl who plays in the mud with a badgermole, in which he could have sworn it was her pet that knocked him off his feet.

“Hey,” she called to him, catching his attention from his thoughts. He noticed her odd stance as he tried to read her. Either way he guessed she was an earthbender considering her affiliation with a badgermole. He looked her in the eye and noticed one of them wasn’t really quite right. She smirked, “Are you ready for this?”
"So I'm really supposed to fight you?" A hint of disbelief still lingered in his tone. He scanned the audience one last time. No one else seemed as disturbed as him; no one else expressed anything out of place. He eventually took his stance, but even still he hesitated from what appeared to be...guilt?

Ria hissed in annoyance.
“Do you know how much that pisses me off?!” Ria growled loudly. The crowd’s murmurs broke the silence. “Don’t you dare give me that look!” She raked her nails in the dirt and her right pupil turned into a catslit.
“Did I offend,” Gonzo furrowed his brows nonchalantly.
“That look, I don’t need your goddamn Human pity!

He could barely hear the announcer shouting “fight” when a giant boulder soared across toward him. He swept his left foot to the side with his body leaning down at the same direction, just enough to dodge the rock. But he quickly straightened his footing, pacing with sidesteps. One rock after another, Gonzo evaded. While preoccupied with dodging he called out the Ria, "You know if you keep attacking me I'm going to have to strike back. You sure you know what you’re getting yourself into." He wanted to make sure at least one last time that Gonzo wouldn't do something he'd regret...such as hurt his image as the fearless warrior, picking on little girls.

“I thought told you, I DON’T NEED A HUMAN’S PITY!” she roared, slamming her fist into the ground. Several jagged rocks flung toward him, he dodged them again only one clipping his left side. He looked up and just narrowly dodged Ria’s fist as it hurtled into the ground where he just was. “Alright,” Gonzo said swiftly, “But just don’t say I didn’t warn you.” Gonzo leaped away from Ria's immediate attack range, giving him just enough time to gain the offense. Solidifying his stance he unleashed a series of swift punches, each firing a speeding fire blast. He didn't aim them directly at her but at the ground in front of her. The explosive of each blast forced Ria to dodge in retreat, widening the distance between.

Then without warning, Gonzo sprinted toward her with fiery hands.  A small smile came upon, but not like the angry almost malicious gleam in her smile just moments before. But this one was a more content one, and just as Gonzo was about to execute his attack she vanished. He could only glance at the flash of green before narrowly dodging a strike from the claws of this earth bending wild girl. He regained his composure and his determination. Close range was where fire was most potent after all. He swung his arms and Ria sidestepped around him almost like a predator, swinging her hands where she thought she would get more damage, usually missing.

Meanwhile the crowd looked on in awe; none of them could believe that such an intense battle looked so graceful, almost as if they were dancing. Gonzo gain the upper hand in the offensive at one point but each strike lead to no progress as the quick earthbender kept the playing field even with her swift evasions and retaliations. He thought it was time to gain back a little personal space. He twisted his body then spun with his arms extended, unleashing a ring of fire around him.
Ria distanced herself with a back flip, landing all four before standing. Gonzo displayed his fighting stance with his hand ignited. He stayed put and suddenly commented, "I never thought a small girl as yourself could hold your own for so long. You're definitely one of the tougher earthbenders I've faced. It's not often I see a fellow bender manage to build their own technique."
Ria hissed. “Please, I am nothing like you and your human kind.” She swept her legs across the floor sending a barrage of boulders hurtling toward him. He dodged them with ease.
“What are you talking about?” he said, running toward her, igniting his fists. “You’re human, kid.”

It was something sudden. Ria’s eyes grew wide and she froze, she began to shake. But it was too soon for Gonzo to take note before he sent his hot fist right at her. “No,” she whispered, so softly so faintly, Gonzo wouldn’t of heard it if his ear wasn’t passing by her mouth. She fell, to the side of her the audience screamed in excitement. The material on her shoulder had been singed and she wasn’t moving.
Gonzo eyes widened, was she seriously injured? It would be completely unorthodox to ask in a middle of battle, but he was no bully. He walked over slowly raising his arm and reached out to her. He turned her over to look at her face.
“Hey, Are you ok?” he whispered. Her hand shot out and gripped his wrist tightly. His eyes met her fierce glance. His gaze drifted to the markings on her cheeks.
“Get away from me!” she spat. She accompanied by earthbending she threw him a few meters away from her, she stalked toward him face furious. “ NEVER TOUCH ME!” she screamed. “I’M NOT HUMAN! I’M NOT! I NEVER WANT TO BE LIKE THEM!”
Gonzo’s eyes widened. Ria covered her mouth, and turned away. The audience was on the edge of their seats. Gonzo, sat up and watched as a single tear fell from her eye.
“…Not them,” she whispered. “not my parents.”
Gonzo got up as thoughts spun in his head. At first he was worried he was at fault here: not only did he was he fighting a small girl but then making her cry. But watching the tear curve down her cheek and listening to her words, Gonzo was quick to correct himself. It wasn't at all the battle that got her emotional.

Whatever it was, Gonzo had to sympathize. He didn't know what her relation with her parents were, but he knew what it was like not to have them around at such a young age. Gonzo stood over her and looked down at her. He kept a stern expression and asked, "You don't think you're human? What are you fighting for? Do you think that fighting like an animal, which I'll compliment isn't a bad tactic, will help you hide the fact that you are human? I've seen how easy it is to judge oneself by the actions or beliefs of others. My own master, as wise and skillful as he is, even fell prey to that mentality." Gonzo lifted his palm in front of him and light a small kindle. "He saw all the suffering and destruction firebending has brought upon the world. It brought him guilt by just being a firebender - he thought it was a curse. I almost thought that too; I thought that maybe my home colony deserved to be attacked by the earthbenders for what my native nation has done. But then I realized that I was born from the Fire Nation and born a firebender and I had no choice of that. You can’t justify denial because of others.”
Gonzo closed his fist, extinguishing the fire.
She glanced at him with a sad smile. “Trust me, you have no idea, what my life is like.”
“Listen, I know what its like not to have parents-” He assumed she didn’t any.
“BEING AN ORPHAN IS BETTER THAN BEING ME!” she screamed, she raised her arms to sky and made several jagged rocks surround her creating a barricade of protection. Gonzo jumped back, till he was just away from the rock face. Some men in the stands were cheering because the lack of action. There was a gap between the rocks so he could see her face. Tears were streaming down her face now; she was hugging herself and tracing the stripes that surrounded her writs. “Every moment of every day my parents,” she spat the word like it was poison. “Would ignore me, say the hated me, wished they never gave birth to me, and beat me.”
Gonzo’s eyes widened as he watched her grimace. The pain flashing through her eyes
“Then one day,” she said producing the saddest smile that made Gonzo’s heart break. “They blindfolded me and threw me in the first tunnel of the cave of two lovers, taken in by a mother badger mole, I never saw them again.”
“Ever since I was born, I was treated as nothing more than an animal. That is why, I will always say I am one. Because…it’s all I’ve ever known.”

Gonzo was never thought such a situation possible, her own parents treating her that way. He kept his eyes on her though he didn't give an expression. This really wasn't the time to feel sorry for his opponent but he decided to show his some sympathy by presenting her an offer.
After a still moment of silence and the growing restlessness of the crowd, Gonzo said to her, "Ria, I'll give you the opportunity to forfeit this battle. If you wish to continue, that is fine, but be assure that you are in no condition to win this battle. His eyes peered at her waiting for her reply.

Ria, gave him a soft hearted grin, meeting his eyes. "What sort of animal would I be, if I fled without a fight?" And with that her protective boulder barrier shattered.
“An animal I’m very familiar with.” His hands ignited again and he began to pitch consecutive flames at the girl. Ria displayed her recovered agility and dodged each projectile with a side leap. Among every landing she made silent thin fissures slithered toward Gonzo. The firebender despite his keen ability to keep tuned senses on sneak earthbending attacks didn’t notice the fissures accumulating under his feet. Ria began bounding toward Gonzo at an alarming speed, dodging fiery attacks left and right.
"You know you should really pay attention to your surroundings," said Ria maneuvering her self right behind her opponent, skidding to a halt and slamming her hands toward the ground. Gonzo eyes widened as he was sucked into the earth, everything from his shoulders down buried.
Gonzo struggled to tug his shoulders one by one from under the surface but it seemed effortless. Only his head and neck was exposed. It wasn't until Ria's shadow shift over him that he looked up at her. He faked a cough. "Well...this is sort of awkward. I guess my senses weren't sharp enough to keep up with any earthbender." He then sighed deeply, "There's no question you were a formidable opponent, Ria." He breathed deeply again.

"So, you’re throwing in the towel?" Ria remarked slightly disappointed, but there was no hiding her fatigue. Gonzo just inhaled and then exhaled. Steam emerged from the cracks around the firebender's neck. He then looked straight at Ria, "Not at all. I'm about to end this battle." A short tremor and Ria back away just in time. The crowd gasped all about as it they it appeared Gonzo had exploded. A huge cloud of dust and fire rumbled out from the center of the arena but dissipated quickly among the flames.

Ria stood her ground as she saw Gonzo no longer stuck in the hole; he stood at the center with a fire spinning in a circular motion at the palm of his had. As it swirled it condensed until it took shape of a steady glowing orb. The orb, almost the size of his head, levitated over his hand.

"Ria, This is my last fair warning...take cover, NOW!" On the last spoken syllable he fired a punch forward, firing the orb straight at the girl with blurring speeds. She acted on reflex and summoned a thick wall of earth. Just as the wall rose up, Ria heard a fiery hum to her left. She turned to see the orb had traveled around the wall, and still coming at her. Again with the limited reaction time, Ria lifted up another wall to her side.

No impact, no booming sound. The Ria still heard buzzing of the orb. She immediately looked to her right to see the orb again. She sprouted another wall. One moment after another, she there were walls close-tight around her. Not wasting another second Gonzo directed the orb over the walls and then straight down from above. The stone walls exploded from inside. The broken boulders collapsed onto itself. No one would have survived such an ordeal...unless they were an earthbender of course.

"GONZO MOVES ONTO THE NEXT ROUND!" screamed the announcer, the crowd roared. Even though Gonzo was jumping for joy on the inside, he couldn't help feel some guilt. Glancing to the big pile of rubble as earthbenders and medics fled to check if she was okay. Gonzo walked away from the ecstatic commentator who was shouting about how awesome the fight had been and headed to the area.
She lay on a stretcher a few meters away. Her eyes were open but it was clear she was exhausted. There were barely any wounds on her except for a few scratches. Her long hair, which was previously in two plights was cut shorter, missing her ribbons, and was slightly singed on the ends.
The waterbending healer moved away as he approached.
"Hey," she said with a tired smile. "Congratulations on kicking my ass." She gave a painful chuckle. "You ok, Ria?" he said with a grim smile. She nodded. "Took all my strength, but I covered myself in a rock cocoon just in time. My ribs are broken," she said wincing as she laid a hand on one of them.
“I gave you a warning.” He shrugged modestly.
"I'm so tired but…I want to stay awake and talk some more."
Gonzo patted her on the head. "You should sleep, the healers look like they want to attend you any second," He stood up. "I'll be going now. Get better soon."

Her hand shot out and grabbed his. "Gonzo, wait," she whispered. He looked at her, "thank you." A small silence past over them, he knew what she was talking about. "Just get some rest," he answered, ruffling the top strands of her hair. "I'll cheer for you," she said with a big yawn, wincing slightly as she moved to get comfortable. Healers started rushing in around her. "I will always cheer for my friends." The healer stood and took the stretcher down one of the lengthy corridors.

"She will be in the medic ward recovering if you wish to speak to her youngin’," said the old water bender, as she past him to follow the rest of the healing staff. "Bloody kids, always getting their selves hurt-" He gave a soft chuckle, and watched as the earthbenders and badgermoles repaired the arena like nothing had ever happened,  as if two lives hadn't been changed in the midst of battle.