The earthbenders heard Sora’s words and rushed into action, rising up against the Fire Nation soldiers.
Old Tyro was the first to charge.
Striking his right foot hard against the ground, he thrust his fist upward.
A mass of black coal tore free from the earth.
Tyro punched forward, launching the dark stones at a blistering speed.
The impact left the Fire Nation soldiers screaming in agony, the heavy coal bruising and battering their armor.
Tyro kept bending without pause, clearing a direct path toward the prison’s main gate for Sora.
Watching him fight, the other prisoners shook off their hesitation and joined the fray, quickly bending the surrounding coal to push back the guards.
Sora watched them charge into the battle.
His plan had worked perfectly; provoking them first and then providing an opening had given them the drive they needed to fight for their freedom.
Turning his eyes ahead, he saw the guards pooling around the exit, weapons drawn, bracing themselves to block any escape.
The soldiers moved in formation, some thrusting fire-infused fists forward, others kicking high into the air to unleash roaring streams of flame.
A massive wall of fire rushed toward Sora.
He leaped and wove through the incoming blazes, then raised his left leg high and whipped it down at a sharp angle.
A compressed blade of air sliced through the courtyard.
While a few soldiers managed to dive out of the way, others were caught completely off guard.
The wind blade tore through them with brutal precision, severing limbs and leaving several bodies heavily mutilated on the ground.
Sora didn’t slow down.
Using airbending to boost his speed, his hands became a blur of motion.
He spun his arms in sharp, circular arcs, unleashing a relentless barrage of compressed air glides.
The unseen blades rained down on the soldiers, tearing through armor and flesh alike, scattering severed fingers and ears across the stone floor.
Shifting his strategy, Sora flicked his fingers in tight, rapid circles, launching smaller, hyper-condensed air bursts.
Each hand unleashed five distinct strikes at once, multiplying the lethal projectles.
Ten sharp air currents zipped erratically through the air, striking the frontline guards in a chaotic, blinding frenzy.
The remaining Fire Nation soldiers tried to fire back, but the sharp winds tore right through their flames, severing their fingers before they could even unleash their fire.
The guards tried to scatter to escape the deadly zone, but the wind tracked them too fast, cutting many down where they stood.
Nearly twenty soldiers lay dead near the exit gate.
Blood pooled across the floor, carrying severed pieces of flesh along the stone.
Sora didn’t waste time looking at the carnage.
Drawing a massive breath, he spun his hands in wide, curved arcs, condensing a massive amount of air into a single point before unleashing it at the heavy exit gate.
A colossal, crescent-shaped air blade tore through the air.
In less than a second, it struck the gate, slicing clean through the thick metal and leaving a massive breach.
The blade didn’t stop there; it maintained its momentum and flew straight outside.
A squad of Fire Nation soldiers stood just outside the threshold, stationed to catch any escapees.
They had no time to react as the vertical blade caught them dead center, splitting them cleanly down the middle.
They died instantly, without ever knowing what had happened inside the rig.
Tyro and the earthbenders stared at the shattered gate and the gruesome scene, completely paralyzed by the sheer brutality of the devastation.
But no one was more horrified than Katara, Aang, and Sokka.
Watching someone they considered an ally butcher the enemy with such cold efficiency was something they never could have prepared for.
They had heard Sora say he would walk a path of blood, but they never imagined it would look like this.
Tyro, Haru’s father, was the first to snap out of the shock.
Shaking off the horror, he called out to the remaining prisoners, “The gate is open!
Everyone, get to the ships immediately!
We’re leaving this place!” He bolted toward the exit, with Haru running right at his heels.
The rest of the earthbenders followed in a mad dash, scrambling onto the ships and preparing to set sail.
Aang, Katara, and Sokka remained frozen for a moment, staring at Sora with a mixture of confusion, fear, and profound sadness as he stood amidst the ruins.
“Go with them on the ships and head to the Northern Water Tribe,” Sora said, his voice flat.
“I still have business to take care of here.” He turned and began walking toward the deeper sectors of the rig.
He knew that while the prisoners were free, the factory itself was still fully functional.
His original goal had always been to permanently take the facility off the line.
“Wait, Sora!” Aang yelled from behind.
Sora stopped and glanced back over his shoulder.
“What is it?” Aang stared at him, his lips trembling, unable to find the words.
He convinced himself that Sora’s rage and brutality stemmed from seeing the ruined Southern Air Temple, the bones of the monks, and the genocide of the airbenders.
Aang believed Sora was simply consumed by a deep, blinding hatred for the Fire Nation, and he had no idea how to comfort him or ease that pain.
Sora looked at the three of them and realized how young they truly were.
They hadn’t seen the true face of this war yet, nor did they understand what a century of relentless conflict meant.
A hundred years in a meat grinder was infinitely worse than anything he had just done.
He decided it was best to separate from them for a while.
Staying too close would only make them rely on him too much, preventing them from learning how to face the harsh realities of the world on their own.
“Go with the earthbenders and don’t wait for me,” Sora said, turning back toward the dark corridors of the factory.
“I’ll find you along the way.
I know exactly where you’re heading.” He walked away without looking back.
For now, Aang and the siblings needed to navigate the world and grow on their own.