I HAVENT EVEN TOUCHED THE STATES OF MATTER YET
Okay, so there are 4 “main” states of matter; solid, liquid, gas, and plasma. In chemistry, there’s a 5th one, too: aqueous (we’ll get into that in a second)
Fire is considered plasma currently in the science world. Which makes sense, right? If lightning is the “most pure form” of firebending, it would make sense that fire is plasma, too.
Firebenders aren’t firebenders, they’re plasmabenders. Which opens up a WHOLE new world of possibilities, friends
So many things are plasmas. Lightning and fire are only the most well-known ones; aurorae, the light inside of neon signs, solar winds and polar winds, the ionosphere of Earth, and arguably the most applicable to the conversation; stars, including the sun, and the tail end of a comet.
This would explain and add depth to so much of the concept of firebending - Like on a general level, yeah, firebending is unique to the bending styles because it relies entirely on your inner chakra and how it interacts with the chi of the universe. It takes the metaphysical energy of the user and translates it into physical energy - heat and light.
But adding the entire new level of the existence of plasma and how it manifests?? Their literal patron god is a giant ball of plasma. The way that lightning is created by a bender; taking balanced energy with no specific charge, pulling that energy apart, and letting it crash back together.
When things are unbalanced, they want to balance - that goes for ionic particles, as well as cationic/anionic particles. When you pull them apart (which it takes great force to do so, if it’s stable; further evidence on why lightningbending is so difficult in practice), they’re gonna try and get back together. The act of snapping in and out of place is what causes that little burst of energy. Take that teeny tiny explosion, jack it up a couple billions, and boom (literally).
FURTHERMORE the possibilities are genuinely endless. Aurorae are plasma; Oxford Languages defines the term as “a natural electrical phenomenon characterized by the appearance of streamers of reddish or greenish light in the sky, especially near the northern or southern magnetic pole. The effect is caused by the interaction of charged particles from the sun with atoms in the upper atmosphere. In northern and southern regions it is respectively called aurora borealis or Northern Lights and aurora australis or Southern Lights.”
I’ve read so many fics about Zuko ending up at the South Pole to be raised by a loving family, and all of them have incorporated the concept of the polar night - the time of the year where, the further you get towards the northern/southern magnetic poles, the longer/shorter the days are, depending on the time of year. There are parts of the year where the sun doesn’t rise for over 30 days in some parts of the world, and vice versa.
The concept of the polar night is such an integral part of the incorporation of placing a firebender at one of the poles long-term, but when you take into account the fact that the Aurora Australis is a giant colorful banner of plasma across the Antarctic sky???
That’s not even mentioning the midnight sun!! The time of year where the sun doesn’t set for over 30 days; I haven’t seen any fic talk about the concept of Zuko being unable to sleep for an extended period of time, and the effects of sleep-deprivation on the his lil brain.
I want to see an in-depth fic exploring Zuko navigating life in Antarctica, facing problems like the polar night, which are improved and survivable by the occasional Aurora, the midnight sun, and the constant bitter cold. Is that too much to ask??????
This is getting really long so I’ll cut it off here, but Next installment will feature Bloodbending: Fire Edition and the molecular breakdown of aqueous solutions and how Toph could bend literally every element if she wanted to. Also maybe some bits about airbending on a molecular level bc air is such a broad term what part of the air is he bending???
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