Inside the drill, Tai Lung sat with his eyes closed, lost in meditation, ignoring the chaos and machinery rumbling around him. The silence he kept within himself lasted until the entire drill shook violently. His eyes snapped open, and slowly, he rose to his feet.
"It seems the drill penetrated the city wall," he muttered.
He began moving, his steps calm and steady toward the control room. Halfway there, he stopped abruptly. His senses sharpened, his chest rising as he felt it, an overwhelming storm of chi raging outside the drill. His eyes narrowed. He remembered that chi; it was the same one the Avatar had released right before merging with the Ocean Spirit.
Though it was stronger now, it still paled compared to the might of the Ocean spirit. Without wasting another breath, Tai Lung's pace shifted from stillness to a blur. He dashed forward with full speed, determined to see for himself what was happening outside. To save time, he let fire gather in his palms and unleashed bursts of flame against the drill's metal walls. Molten holes spread in his wake, letting him pass through barriers with ease.
From start to finish, less than a minute passed before he emerged on the surface. The sight that greeted him was unexpected, the Avatar floated in the air, eyes and tattoos glowing, it had a sinister look to it. Behind him, the city of Ba Sing Se loomed. The entire section of the wall where the drill had been digging was obliterated, reduced to massive stone fragments now circling the Avatar like obedient titans.
Ahead, enormous boulders lay atop the drill's shattered front, crushing it completely. From its front, mud poured out in thick streams, proof of the damage wrought by those massive rocks. Fire Nation soldiers scattered like ants, fleeing in terror. Tai Lung's eyes swept the chaos, and at the left side of the drill, he caught sight of the water tribe being carried away using earth bending by a short individual dressed in green toward the nearby building.
The Avatar's gaze shifted then, his glowing eyes fixed on the right side of the drill, down on the ground. Tai Lung followed his line of focus and saw Ty Lee and the others running frantically, their forms splattered with mud as they struggled to escape.
The Avatar raised his arms and then waved them forward. A dozen enormous rocks shot toward Ty Lee and the others like missiles of death. Without hesitation, Tai Lung's chi surged, lightning crackling around his body. He stabbed his fingers forward, unleashing a storm of lightning bolts that streaked across the air, colliding with the flying rocks and shattering them to dust before they could hit their target.
Every eye turned toward him. The Avatar's glowing gaze locked on him. The citizens of the city, the Earth Kingdom soldiers, and even the Fire Nation troops halted to watch. All of them bore witness as Tai Lung stood firm.
Tai Lung's eyes remained on Ty Lee and her group. His voice cut across the battlefield, loud and commanding.
"Retreat now."
The words snapped them into motion. Ty Lee and the others ran as fast as their legs could carry them, though Ty Lee herself risked a final glance at him. She saw him standing tall, lightning still dancing across his arms as he faced the enraged Avatar.
Mai's voice came quietly at her side. "He will be fine. He's defeated the Avatar before."
Ty Lee's lips pressed together, and she gave a small nod, saying nothing more as they disappeared into the city.
——————
When Tai Lung tagged along, he didn't expect to meet the Avatar here. In truth, the thought of the boy hadn't even crossed his mind. Yet here he was, standing before the master of the four elements. But regardless of the circumstances, Tai Lung was never one to hesitate when faced with a challenger.
He lowered into a stance, a smile curving across his lips as his eyes locked on the glowing figure. The Avatar responded with a sudden flurry of movements, arms sweeping and circling wildly. At first, Tai Lung felt nothing. Then the air shifted. Powerful winds surged, sweeping across the battlefield until it seemed a tornado had sprung to life all around them.
Tai Lung moved without pause. Lightning crackled across his body before bursting forth in a bolt aimed directly at the Avatar. But a massive boulder intercepted the strike, splitting the light with a deafening crack. At the same time, the ground beneath the boy's feet trembled and split. Chunks of rock rose into the air, circling the Avatar until they formed a spinning barricade of earth, a storm of destruction spiraling around him.
Narrowing his eyes, Tai Lung studied the Avatar's movements, the rhythm of the floating rocks. The longer he watched, the clearer the pattern became. The moment recognition struck, he acted. From his fist, he unleashed a surging wave of blue flames spilling outward like a raging sea, crashing toward the Avatar.
The Avatar halted the spin of several boulders and slammed them together into a shield. The fire roared against the stone, the flame wave scattering across the storm. But Tai Lung didn't wait for the flames to fade. He ignited bursts from his feet and hands, launching himself through the air, his body arcing toward the nearest floating rock.
He landed then leapt again, using short, explosive jets of fire to cover the distance. One rock to the next, climbing higher and faster, he kept his approach hidden behind the whirlwind of stone. By the time he reached the Avatar's side, the boy had shifted the rocks, searching for any sign of him.
When the Avatar realized Tai Lung was nowhere to be seen, his glowing eyes darted left, then right. But it was already too late. Tai Lung lunged from behind, springing off a massive rock with perfect timing.
The Avatar turned at the last instant, sensing the movement, but he was too slow. Tai Lung was already upon him, fists flashing in a relentless barrage. Each strike found its target accurately, hammering into pressure points and chi paths. The Avatar gasped, his power collapsing inward as the flow of energy was cut. His body stiffened, paralyzed.
In an instant, the light faded from his eyes and tattoos. The Avatar State vanished, and he began to plummet helplessly toward the ground.
Tai Lung hovered above only for a moment, then descended after him. He caught the boy by the neck before he could hit the earth. Tai Lung landed heavily, his boots slamming into the dirt with a thud, before tossing the Avatar aside like discarded weight.
The boy scrambled weakly to look up at him, fear etched across his features. From beginning to end, the battle had lasted mere seconds, and yet the Avatar, in his most powerful state, had been crushed.
Tai Lung's gaze bore down on him. His voice was calm, almost curious. "Did you master water and earth?"
Aang said nothing, only staring, wide-eyed and shaking. Tai Lung's expression hardened, his tone lowering. "I don't like to repeat myself."
Aang swallowed hard, his throat dry. "I mastered water… and I am learning earth bending now."
"Not bad, that's faster than I expected" Tai Lung nodded with slight approval before his eyes narrowing dangerously "Ty Lee, the girl with scarred face, is my fiancee, and Mai, the gloomy girl with hidden weapons, is my friend. If I see or hear you are trying to hurt them again, I will rip your limbs, roast them, and then feed them to you"
Aang paled with terror. Tai Lung, satisfied by the reaction he got, said nothing further. He simply turned, his steps slow and deliberate, and began walking away from the shattered wall of Ba Sing Se, after making a few meters distance with the Avatar, Tai Lung took flight heading back toward his people in the distance.
Despite his lone and unhurried figure, no one moved to stop him. None dared. They had just witnessed the Avatar unleash his fury, nearly tearing the battlefield apart… only for one man to appear and defeat him with ease, in seconds.
Not long after his retreat, Toph rushed toward Aang and spoke urgently. "Twinkle Toes! Are you okay?"
Aang replied weakly, "Tai Lung did something to me… I can't move my body at all."
"That's the same thing the strange girl did to Katara and Sokka," Toph said.
Remembering his friends, Aang asked, "How are they? Are they okay?"
"They're fine. But just like you, they can't move," Toph answered. She tried to sound like her usual self, but deep down, she was scared. She might not have been able to see what had happened, but she had felt the earth shaking, massive chunks of wall and ground breaking apart, flying into the air without returning. The scale of earthbending was beyond anything she had ever imagined, and she knew only Aang in the Avatar State could achieve something like that. Yet Aang had been defeated in seconds by a single person. From what she sensed, the enemy had been completely at ease at the end, his heartbeat and breathing were completely normal.
Tai Lung was indeed a monster just like the others' story made him to be.