After squatting in the Jade Tea for a week, Ty Lin is getting a little anxious, and just as she was about to get up and leave, adjacent to her is a Pai Sho table being occupied by two nice-looking old men. One of them started to speak which caught her ear...
"Did you hear old friend? There seems to be a new competition going on underground near the mounta....*inmpf* "
Just as the old man was about to finish his sentence, his surprisingly quick friend clamped his mouth shut and whispered just loudly enough for me to hear, "shut up yah old b@$t@rd, don't yah know it's illegal to support such happenins? If the guards find out yah be taken in for questionin..."
My senses were tingling and I decided to grasp this last straw while I had the opportunity. I didn't want to hurt the elderly and I definitely don't want to torture anyone for the answers but I can sniff around in the area the old guy said and find some clues.....
Hopping from rooftop to rooftop, I slowly made my way toward the area mentioned by the old man. From my advantage point, I saw quite a few people making their way discreetly in the same direction...
......
' It's been quite a while since the Earth Rumble Tournament started its weekly events and I have been earning WAY more than I expected '... Xin Fu was sitting in his office adjacent to the Earth rumble arena just before one of his 'fighters' knocked on the door.
"Come in..." I responded to the knocking and quickly pulled myself out of my thoughts. 'I can think of what to do with this money after tonight's event...'
"Hey, Boss wanted to let you know that preparations for tonight's tournament are finished and the stands are full of people. We also have an additional fighter this week; a little girl that goes by the name "The Blind Bandit"...."
..........(One Week Time Skip)........
'I've been searching all week for an earthbender powerful enough and with morals loose enough to participate and win this week's tournament'... I have been rigging each tournament since all of the fighters are under my payroll but last week, that little brat swept the floor with my men and lost me a ton of money.
Xin Fu sat quietly in his seat trying to find out a way to have the little b1tcH taken down tonight but nothing brilliant came to his mind. Finally, he settled on offering a huge sum of money, during the event, to anyone who can take her down hoping that she won't show up for next week's tournament. "Tch, if only I could participate without losing integrity in front of the gamblers, there's not a chance I could lose to that blind kid like my worthless men"...
........
That night, as the stands above the arena began to fill, a group of young people was walking with the crowd heading towards the Earth Rumble Arena. One of the members of this group is a tall boomerang carrying guy wearing an out-of-place-looking blue outfit sporting a ponytail.
He was flailing about with large excited movements while speaking "Aang my dear friend, within those walls, we will find you the best earth bending master! Only by seeing a bending battle up close and analyzing with a keen eye can one deduce the skills needed for instruction" he ended his speech and when everyone turned to look at him bewildered, they saw him scratching his chin sagely with a monical on his right eye and smoking a "dragon-carved" pipe (both pulled from somewhere out of the blue).
The browned-skinned beauty who is giving him an annoyed look with a twitching brow stomped her foot saying "Sokka, don't be an idiot, what we are going to watch is a disgrace to bending and also ILL-E-GAL, so we shouldn't be here"...
A peaceful and timid-looking kid wearing a green conical earth kingdom hat stepped between them and acted as the placater, swiftly ushering them inside intent on his goal of finding an earthbending teacher.
All of this fell into the eyes of a nearby Ty Lin who found the "funny guy" Sokka to be very cute and since she is already here to complete her mission of contacting Xin Fu, the apparent boss of this underground tournament, she might as well enjoy the event...