Overconfident Fire Nation soldier

The overconfident Fire Nation soldier was a firebending member of a Fire Army artillery unit that ambushed Team Avatar in spring 100 AG. A fierce loyalist of the Fire Lords as well as a fanatical believer in Fire Nation propaganda, he regarded the Hundred Year War as just crusade for progress and the Fire Nation's enemies, most importantly the Avatar, as malevolent threats he was destined to stop.
== History ==
=== Early life and meeting Team Avatar ===
In his youth, the soldier absorbed and absolutely believed all propaganda spread by the Fire Nation government to justify its global war of conquest. His faith in his nation was so strong that he even regarded mere hearsay and fanciful claims about the Air Nomads as true: For example, he accepted claims about airbending being horrible "demon powers" and the Air Nomads having an "army of winged people" to conquer the world, allegedly forcing the Fire Nation stop them. He eventually enlisted in the army, thinking that military service would not just help his country, but ultimately bring order and progress to the entire world.
By spring 100 AG, the soldier had been moved into a recently-occupied area in the southern Earth Kingdom. The artillery unit that this soldier belonged to used their catapults to launch a surprise attack on Team Avatar as it was flying on Appa over a forest and a river next to their position. Soon after the attack, the soldier separated from his comrades to eat his lunch in private. Sitting on a rock at a cliff, he was consuming the rice of his lunch box, when Avatar Aang, Sokka, and Toph Beifong suddenly emerged from the nearby woods. Both sides were surprised and shocked to see each other, but the soldier quickly rallied and jumped up, recognizing the Avatar due to his Air Nomad tattoos. Despite Aang's weak attempt at convincing the trooper that the markings were just a "weird birthmark", he confidently declared that the Avatar was now under arrest.
His aggressive and proud posture was easily shattered, as Toph casually used her earthbending to knock him sideways, causing him to fall flat on his face. As Team Avatar moved to return to the woods, seeing the soldier as no serious threat, he used his firebending to set the trees alight. Having regained his composure, the trooper loudly announced that he would not allow the Avatar escape and would follow him to "the ends of the Earth". When his three opponents voiced their concern that the wildfire and his shouting would draw other Fire Army troops to their position, the soldier just pointed to himself and voiced his belief that he would not need any help from others to capture them - he would arrest the Avatar alone and get all the glory. To his surprise, he was then easily encased in rocks that were bent upward by an annoyed Toph.
=== Discussions with the enemy ===
After putting out the fire, Team Avatar turned to leave, causing the soldier to cry that the Fire Nation would eventually find the Avatar to save the world from his "malice". Startled, Aang inquired what he had ever done to warrant this hatred, prompting the soldier to tell him about the propaganda which claimed that the Air Nomads supported by the Avatar had plotted to take over the world. As he affirmed his absolute faith in these claims, Aang was so unsettled that he began to discuss the matter with his friends. In the meantime, the soldier was deeply annoyed as a leaf landed on his face without him being able to remove it.
When the Avatar adressed him again in hopes of convincing him that the Air Nomads were peaceful and innocent, he blew away the leaf. The soldier reacted horrified and said that he had been told that the airbenders would use their powers to suffocate others and had created a winged army. Aang angrily questioned these beliefs, telling him that the Air Nomads had no wings and used gliders. The soldier responded by pointing out that he had no glider at the moment, and when Aang informed him that it was left at his flying bison, the firebender regarded this as sign that the claims about a flying army were true. He then informed the Avatar that he had gotten all this information from a source he regarded as absolutely reliable: His cousin who had been told by her sister that her roommate had read it on a poster. When Aang reacted dumbfounded, the soldier argued that posters were expensive to print, making it unlikely that they told lies.
At this point, Aang admitted defeat. Sokka consequently tried to discuss the war with the soldier, noting that the Fire Nation's war could not be an effort to help others, as said others resisted the Fire Nation military. In addition, the Water Tribe boy pointed out that the Fire Lord's forces were generally the attackers, whereby the the other nations seemed to desire peace. Although the soldier admitted that all this was true, he denied the logical conclusion that the Fire Nation waged an aggressive, expansionist war after shortly thinking about it. Afterward, he began to loudly sing the Fire Nation's hymn, causing Team Avatar to regard any further talking pointless.
=== Further defeats ===
When they turned away, the soldier broke free from his earthen confinement. He confidently declared that the Avatar would now have to face him, only for Appa to fly in and catch him in his mouth before spitting him into the woods. Hanging in a tree, the soldier was then forced to witness Team Avatar effortlessly escape.
After getting down, he ran to the next Fire Nation-occupied town, emerging from the woods just after a small naval battle on the nearby river. Quickly assessing the situation, he recognized that a Fire Nation vessel had been captured by opposing forces, ran toward the ship and screaming that he would not let the "collaborators of the Avatar" escape. He jumped from the stone wall which enclosed much of the town's harbor, trying to get on the vessel. In mid-jump, however, one of those on the ship, Katara, used her waterbending to freeze him in a tower of ice. Annoyed, the soldier noted to himself that waterbenders were "another enemy of the Fire Lord". After the fleeing ship destroyed a pursuing Fire Nation ship with a catapult, the soldier screamed that he would eventually take revenge for this defeat, before the ice tower broke and he fell into the water.
== Abilities ==
The soldier was a decent firebender, although he constantly overestimated his power. In addition, he was physically strong and a good athlete, able to break a stone encasement with his body, run significant distances without breaking a sweat, and jump high as well as wide.
== Appearances ==
=== Graphic novels ===
== References ==
Category:A to Z
Category:Characters
Category:Fire Nation characters
Category:Soldiers
Category:Firebenders
Category:Katara and the Pirate's Silver characters
Category:Major graphic novel characters