acatalepsy_logs | done with having dreams

[ if roy looks offended or insulted by the disagreement, he certainly doesn't show it. instead, roy listens attentively; perhaps selfishly, because he's never met someone (aside from berthold hawkeye) that could wield the power he does. and it's an odd kinship that he hadn't expected to find in a world like this. but as mako talks, roy sees that he has been through a lot. and he also sees that he's a kid -- granted, a very grown up kid, but a kid all the same.

people that are inherently good or inherently evil simply don't exist. everyone is a mixture of both. roy doesn't consider himself a bad person, but he has done horrific things, and he will never gain penance for those actions no matter what good he does in the world. he is a war hero to some, and a monster to others. he's not sure which is the correct version, but both are valid, and both are part of who he is.

still, he weighs out what mako says, mulling it over in his mind. figuring out how he wants to respond to it. he doesn't want to entirely refute mako's world view, but he also doesn't want to go misspoken.

eventually: ]

All men, good or evil, can be corrupted by power. Even the best among us. Even me. You can be as responsible as you like, or as good as you can be, but human nature is human nature, and humans are gravitated toward power and influence. . . with a few rare exceptions.

[ maes comes to mind, first. riza next. but roy continues. ]

Still, I'm an optimist. I believe in the power of people, and their need to do what's right. I believe the best in everyone I meet, and I'm often disappointed. I don't think I'm a horrible person. But I am human, with a terrifying amount of power, and human beings make mistakes, and act without thinking. The war taught me what I am without restraint; I know now to surround myself with people to ensure that will never happen again.

[ he inclines his head slightly, toward mako, the corner of his mouth tugging upward in a faint smile. ]

Colonel Hawkeye is my right hand for a reason.

[ she ensures he doesn't fall off of his path. ]

( roy's not telling him anything he doesn't already know. but. he's kept company with a plethora of people who have resisted power. maybe it's less about being a good person on your own and more about surrounding yourself with people like riza hawkeye, who give a shit. who can take you by the hand and lead you out of whatever darkness you mire yourself in. korra's been that person for him, but he's... done the same for her, too. they save each other.

and the truth is, mako doesn't want to imagine who he would have been without bolin. zolt was looking for a successor, and mako took to lightning too well. he'd have killed amon without thinking about it, and that at only eighteen.

only. it's funny how it seems so far away, now. he takes a breath, shakes his head. mako knows himself well enough to be aware that who he is now is an immutable thing, at least where it counts. he's made his peace with that. )

'No man is an island', right?

( he exhales. this wasn't a topic he'd really expected to fall into. it's heavy, but the only thing to be done with heavy topics is to carry them. )

I'm glad you have her, then. She seems like a remarkable woman.

[ roy answers his first question with a shrug of his shoulders, in agreement, and is about to respond verbally when mako comments on riza, and roy allows an actual smile to cross his features, ending in a faint laugh as he pushes himself up off the wall, to stand up straight. ]

An understatement, but that she is. [ warmly enough; there's no compliment available to accurately describe riza hawkeye and how great she is, so remarkable will have to do. ] She can shoot the button off your coat from a quarter-mile away, so I would stay on her good side.

[ . . . anyway. he glances around them before refocusing his attention on mako, his hands still in his pockets. expectant, curious. eyes bright with excitement. ]

So what do you want me to target?

[ enough of the depressing stories. time to partake in some good old-fashioned destruction. ]

( well, that's that. guns are a foreign concept to mako, but 'shoot' has connotations he's aware of so he'll just... make a mental note not to piss her off. )

Actually, I was curious about something. I want to know if you can use the fire I can bend.

( he holds a hand aloft. there's a small flame nestled in his palm, which he holds out towards roy. depending on how attenuated he is to the specifics, he might notice it has a different... feel, almost, than regular flames. something very like a heartbeat. )

[ . . . interesting. the creation of flame from nothing is a foreign concept to him, but as roy watches it flicker, he does notice that it's . . . different. not entirely natural, and as roy removes his right hand from his pocket, he focuses, activating the transmutation circle on the back of his gloves. it glows a faint blue and he manipulates the air around the flame, expanding oxygen and hydrogen molecules to cause the flame to grow slightly, jumping upward to levitate a few inches, as roy creates a pathway for the fire to go.

but as roy doesn't have the same connection with chi as mako, he is restricted to simply creating a pathway for it. it curls through the air in intricate circles before he closes his fist, extinguishing the oxygen, and cutting off the supply. the fire vanishes in a puff of smoke, and roy frowns at his gloves. ]

I need to see in order to do it properly, so I don't want to go too far outside my line of sight, given the illness. [ he honestly should probably not be playing with fire but when has that ever stopped him. ] But as long as I can manipulate the oxygen and hydrogen around it, I can move it. Fire is fire, regardless of the source.

( interesting. he watches the way roy moves, the motion of his hands. it's not really anything like firebending, but there's obviously a purpose behind the shift of his fingers.

at any rate, it's something worth making a note of, if they ever need to work together on a mission. )

Okay. How about that dummy over there?

( he sort of gestures with a nod of his chin. it shouldn't be so far it's out of roy's field of vision. he'll admit, he's equally as curious about his precision. firebending is innate, but what he does... it must require a massive amount of calculation. )

[ he follows mako's line of sight, and he immediately raises his right hand . . . but pauses in doing so before he glances over at the young man, arching his eyebrows slightly, his tone a little dry. ]

Do you want the dummy to still be in one piece?

[ he could blow the dummy to smithereens, or he could be intricate and calculated and burn everything but the dummy. but given mako's curiosity, roy supposes he should allow him to make the final determination on how emotionally attached he is to this nameless dummy. ]

( that's... strangely considerate. mako actually cracks a smile. )

I'm pretty sure they replicate. Go nuts, blow it up.

( firebenders (and associated other pyromaniacs) man. sometimes you just gotta. )

[ without another moment of hesitation, roy raises his right hand and snaps his fingers, creating a small spark from the cloth of his pryotext gloves. the transmutation circle immediately activates, compressing the oxygen density around the spark to create a bolt of flame, which darts forward at an impossibly high speed, snaking through the air before hitting the dummy. and, for a split second, it seems like nothing happens, before there is a sudden explosion as roy expands the oxygen and hydrogen levels around the spark to create a bomb-like condition, leaving nothing more than a ragged sorry excuse for a dummy in his wake.

after a moment or two of considering his work, roy lowers his right hand, looking somewhat annoyed with himself, his eyes narrowing slightly to squint, to really place out where the explosion properly landed. ]

Three inches off.

[ finally, with a soft huff, annoyed. ]

I'm more accurate with my left hand, but I'm sure my vision isn't helping.

[ it's three fuckin inches roy jfc ]

Wow.

( that's actually pretty impressive, and mako's a hard man to affect in that manner. firebenders by and large are more... spray and pray type combatants. very few bother with precision at that level.

to say nothing of the dummy itself and its sad, unfortunate fate. it's... not unlike combustion bending, the way the flame moves, the explosion that follows. the sound that hollows out the air in a crack. )

That's a lot more precise than most people I've ever seen.

[ roy dusts off his hands, tiny sparks falling from the contact of the gloves against one another, and he glances over at mako, amused at the surprise. it's most people's reactions, when they see him work -- and given roy almost never goes into the field unless absolutely necessary with his craft, seeing the flame alchemist work is a rare occurrence. and most people who see it usually wish they hadn't. ]

I've read a lot of books.

[ vaguely enough, but the compliment is heard, and accepted in kind. ]

I can also create flames by themselves, or create explosions. It depends on the enemy and what's most effective. Most enemies tend to run after the first attack, but some are stupid enough to stay and fight.

[ or smart enough to beat him, like gluttony. ]

( mako jogs over to examine the charring, smoking remains of the dummy, nudging at it with his foot before he crouches down. he's kind of republic city's leading authority on fire-related crimes, thanks to being its highest ranking firebender and all.

he rubs his fingers through the soot. the temperature necessary to cause it to this extent is intense, far beyond what a street-level bender could manage on their own. any fire is to be respected, but mako... is beginning to understand why roy would have the reputation he does on his world. there are thousands of firebenders of varying ability in republic city, but if there were only one and he could do something like this... yeah, that would be pretty terrifying.

he dusts his hands off against his thighs as he stands. )

I've only met one firebender that could cause explosions. As far as we know, it's the highest sub-level mastery available. ( combustionbenders are incredibly rare, probably on par with earthbenders that can manipulate lava. ) But allowing for differences in our worlds and the application of abilities, I'd still put you on par with the best masters in mine.

[ there’s a soft noise of approval, at the compliment, before roy makes his way over to the dummy, sliding his hands into his pockets as he peers down at the wreckage of where the dummy once was. It seems to be taking a moment or two to replicate itself; apparently, whatever astoria’s magic is doesn’t necessarily regenerate dummies at a very fast growth rate. ]

My master used to tell me that I was a hopeless idiot, so know the compliment is well taken.

[ in a dry tone, but roy is amused at the notion of being called a master. berthold hawkeye is rolling in his grave. ]

I’m surprised that combustion is the most excelled of arts; not hitting something is far harder than blowing it up.

( mako hmms thoughtfully as the dummy rights itself. )

Mm. Honestly, it might just be a matter of if and where it's being taught. Bending subsets are incredibly rare to begin with — maybe one in a hundred, and in most cases they still have to be taught, rather than something people can accidentally stumble on. People learning on their own without guidance... maybe one in several thousand. As far as I know, only two firebenders have mastered combustion in the last hundred years, but it may honestly just be a matter of it being a closely guarded bloodline secret.

I’ve only known one other person that can wield alchemy like I can.

[ berthold, who refused to teach him properly, and died beore he could impart his secrets, only informing him that riza held them all. roy had to teach himself most of what he knows, and has developed his own techniques through practice, through combat, and through (now) self-defense. he knows that he’s a genius beyond compare, but roy never feels the need to advertise that when people tend to assume the opposite. let them think he’s dumb; it works to his advantage more often than not.

roy shrugs his shoulders. ]

But it’s for the best, that way. It’ll die with me.

[ that was the promise he made. ]

( it'll die with me is a sentiment that hits him a little harder than it used to, now. roy's resolve is the bitter taste of iron, it's on his tongue when he swallows. he doesn't — wouldn't, even for a moment — doubt the truth of it. certain things you just take as a universal constant.

he flexes his fingers, and then as if he's decided on something he rolls his sleeves up. he doesn't need to (it's been a long time since he singed his hems) but given how much abilities are on the fritz he'd rather not risk his only good shirt. the gloves come off too, he bunches them up and tosses them aside. the breeze feels strangely on his left arm, the healing scars twinge faintly in the open air. but his bending isn't blocked any more, so it won't affect the show.

the dummy is still... smoking faintly but seems otherwise back to normal, and mako tips his head at roy. )

Give me some clearance. My control is good, but there's no saying what'll happen if my firebending cuts out in the middle of it.

( and once roy's backed off to the point that mako's satisfied about his safety — )

Firebending is about power. It's the only purely offensive style on my world, all the others have elements of defense to them. Traditional firebending is pretty much always attacking or using fire to your advantage to set up for the next attack.

( he cycles through the steps of mid-level form, arcing kicks and punches that resonate from the meat of the shoulder. fire curls into being and rather than waste energy creating it anew each time it just flows between one move and the next, being reshaped by the chi of his current focused blow. it's not exactly traditional per se, but it also isn't obvious he's largely self-taught.

once he feels he's done an adequate demonstration he'll lapse into a neutral stance and draw a breath. most benders require a moment's clarity and focus for lightning, but he's never needed that. he just calls it, and it comes. a sharp crack of blue streaks from his outstretched fingertips and hits the dummy. it splits like a tree with the sudden heat, but rather than explode like roy's had, it just sits slumps, burning from the inside. the entrance burn is just a small, precise spot between the dummy's 'eyes'.

he dusts his hands off. and... flattens his hair down, since it always likes to go a bit awry with the energy build-up, sticking in a colorful variety of directions. )

Anyway. That's lightning.

done with having dreams

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