First Bounty (Part 4)

Ling was the first one to get back on her feet. She ran at the earth bender with her knives drawn and spread out besides her. A pillar shot out from the ground in front of her but she quickly side stepped it in a spinning motion and continued her charge. June noticed that Shen had also ran at their target but was approaching him using an arc-like path. She decided to use Ling as a shield and advance till the man was within her whip's range.

Shen got to him first but was rendered useless by a high wall that blocked his assault, giving the man all the time he needed to focus on June and Ling. He kicked a few rocks at Ling who dodged them easily and then sent a range of spikes in her direction. She was able to find some footing on the last spike and used it to thrust herself into the air. June saw the man smiling before stretching out a clenched fist into the air. A huge pillar broke out from underneath Ling forcing her to use her knives to diffuse most of the impact.

Shen found his way around the wall and attacked the man. He twirled his staff and struck several times at the man but couldn't get a single solid hit in.

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Feng watched the children with his comrades. This was their first time working together, and he made a mental note to train them in team work. They were so uncoordinated; working individually instead of attacking as a pack. He wanted to jump in but he knew that June and her friends needed to learn how to survive in this dangerous business. Not all of their jobs would go as planned and in most cases, the bounty hunter would have to fight against all odds, whether it would be against a big number of enemies or against dangerous animals or worse, a person that was blessed with abilities that put them on top of the pecking order.

After a few minutes he said to Taru and Zoraya, "get ready. we are going in." No one objected.

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June used her whip to set the earth bender off balance by wrapping it around one of his legs and pulling it. She found that she was unable to move his foot by even an inch. He used his hands to move the earth beneath her, causing her to fall and release her whip. The earth came up and cupped her feet and hands. She watched helplessly as Shen was knocked back sent into a make-shift pit. He was about to be buried alive when an arrow pierced the man's shoulder, causing him to stop moving the earth that was about to completely close the pit. Taru ran towards his left and as he did so, released a volley of arrows in quick succession. The earth bender put up a wall blocking his vision of Taru who was now aiming at the sky and releasing arrow after arrow.

As the arrows flew above the wall, the earth bender created a curved smaller wall to protect himself from them. Zoraya had been moving undetected around their target and only revelaed herself when she was close enough to engage in close combat. The man was clearly being overpowered by her quick and strong strikes. He couldn't hold her off with one arm. He had a wall that was protecting his back but also cutting off his retreat. He pushed Zoraya back using the earth beneath her. This gave him space and time to pull out boulders and kick the towards her. She evaded them easily but had to fall back because of the dust that was surrounding her.

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Feng ran towards the small curved wall that protected the earth bender, with chains in his hands. He could hear the sound of rocks smashing into the ground a few feet away causing the dust to rise. Zoraya and Taru had played their parts well, now it was his turn.

One shot is all I need.

He ran up the wall and at it's peak he jumped and flipped in mid air, landing on his feet and right in front of the the earth bender who dropped all the rocks he had lifted off the ground. His hand to hand combat wasn't great but it wasn't bad either.

You benders rely too much on your gift.

Every punch and kick was a chance that Feng used to wrap a few chains around his opponent's limbs and in not time at all, he had the man on the floor with his body bent and twisted in an uncomfortable position. He gave a loud whistle and Zoraya and Taru moved to check on the kids while he went to free his daughter.

"Thanks. So what happens now?" June asked when she got on her feet, while keeping her eyes fixed on the ground at her feet.

"Taru and I will take this man to the police and get our reward. Zoraya will escort all of you to the hospital. We will meet back at the lodge," he replied.

"And what happens when we get back home?"

He placed a hand on her head. "Don't worry. We are not giving up on you guys. Besides, benders are a difficult challenge."

"Did you know he was a bender?"

"No I didn't."

"But you kept saying we should be careful."

"That's because you never know what might happen. Always keep your guard up little one."

"Yes dad."