Disclaimer: I do not own any Avatar or Korra characters created by Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, and owned by Nickelodeon. All OCs, however, are all mine.

Prologue

Earth… Fire… Air… Water… These are the four elements of the Avatar cycle, and the names of the Four Nations of the planet Rhanjastah, a magnificent world filled with many wonders; the most wondrous is the people. From each nation, there are those able to manipulate the four elements of nature through martial arts. But only one can command all four elements… the Avatar. In a constant cycle of reincarnation, the Avatar is reborn into the next nation in the cycle upon their death, from the Earth Kingdom, to the Fire Nation, the Air Nomads, and the Water Tribes.

Seventy-four years ago, Avatar Yangchen of the Western Air Temple, the sole survivor of the genocide committed by the Fire Nation, heroically ended a century-long conflict, along with her friends: Katar and his sister Sika from the Southern Water Tribe, their friend Sud Beifong from the Earth Kingdom, and Prince Zuko of the Fire Nation. Once the war was ended, Avatar Yangchen and Zuko, who became Firelord, transformed the Fire nation colonies in the Earth Kingdom into a new nation; the United Republic. They named the capital of this great land Republic City. Now that is their story, but let me tell you OUR story, and how we got them mixed up in this huge mess of ours.

Five years ago, an event called the Blackout occurred on the planet Terra that resulted in the revelation that almost half of its populace was of extraterrestrial descent, an ancient race of draconian humanoids called Soradonians. Disorder and chaos ensued, and from the ashes of the chaos, five nations arose from the Soradonians: Longguo in Asia, the Draconche Confederacy of the American continents, the Harukhani in the Middle East, Drekiland in Northern Europe, and Dagonze in Southern Europe. After the many battles we fought together to restore balance as best we could, we finally departed for our restored home, Soradon, only to be followed by the ones who started this whole mess in the first place, the Tyravians. Chasing our fleet from system to system, the Tyravians have caught up with us at last. Above the atmosphere of the planet Rhanjastah, we engage in battle, for our survival and to reach our home world. What could possibly happen that could cause our path to cross with the people down there as we prepare for battle up here?

As we fight above, below on the surface, airbender Aang Tiankong of the new Air Nation travels along the Southwestern coast of the Earth Kingdom, investigating reports of pirates attacking commercial trading ports, with two members of the Order of the White Lotus, siblings Katara and Sokka of the Southern Water Tribe, and blind metalbender Toph of the Beifong family. What they find will change their world... forever.

Chapter I

They sat there… in silence… deadly silence. Everyone was so still in their cockpits, they could here their own heartbeats. They all checked every valve, every gauge, and every instrument on their display screens and dashboards. They made sure their thrusters were working and their radar was adjusted properly. Most of them never would've imaged doing something like this… ever, piloting fighters in space. Several had done it in video games, but doing it in real life was something that no one thought would ever happen… or be possible. And now that it was real… well, it was real.

The red light on the ceiling was the only source of light beyond their cockpits, and it was dim, but enough for everyone to see what was around them; their comrades in their own fighters and the doors in front of them, separating them from space and their enemy, about to open at any minute.

And they weren't facing just anyone beyond those doors. These were the Tyravians they were about to face, the Tyrants. Anything the Soradonians could dish out and take, so could the Tyravians. It might've be five nations against one empire, but it was a huge empire, with tough soldiers. Then again, the Soradonians had held their own against the Tyrants time and time again. But that didn't stop them from feeling fear for what was in store for them.

Leo nervously drummed his clawed fingers against his sword. His wife, Camille sat in the fighter to his right, her cousin, Dax, in the one on his left, and Dax's girlfriend, Victoria, next to him. The rest among them were many other members of the crew waiting for the doors to open and end the suspense. Leo drummed and drummed until he heard his wife on the radio tell him, "Doing that isn't gonna make it better, honey. For yourself or anyone else here."

"Sorry about that, babe," Leo apologized, pushing the button to talk to her. He felt her eyes on him. He couldn't see it due to his blindness, but he could feel it, sense it.

Thanks to his acute hearing and enhanced spatial awareness, he could 'see' far more than others. He liked to think it was some kind of 'radar' sense, and that it came with his dragon-half. Most people thought he was crazy when he said he wanted to pilot a shuttle fighter blind. Once they made a few adjustments in the cockpit, he could fly and fight like reading a book written in braille. And he seemed to be able to read his opponents, like he knew what they were gonna do next.

As they waited for the doors to open, he remembered the first time they met the Tyravians.

In Camille's cockpit, she appeared to be calm and collected. But on the inside, her heart was racing a thousand miles per hour. She and Leo were both captured, and given a taste of Tyravian hospitality. They cut off both of Camille's hands and blinded Leo. They were rescued before anything else could be done to them. She took a deep breath to help calm herself on the inside.

Leo noticed and opened a private channel for just the two of them, "Hey," he said to her, "It's okay. You know we've beaten them before, right?"

"I know, sweetie. I know. But it's not the Tyrants I'm worried about, it's…" Camille answered but couldn't continued, taking the pocket watch that he'd given her around her neck and opening it. Inside was a picture of their son, Kaitong, their daughter, Winona, and their adopted daughter, Cassie, "We're practically raising our children on the frontlines. That's no way to live."

"I know, Camille. I worry about them all the time. They're our children and I love them, but right now we have to focus on what is out there. The kids are in our suite, and Amirah's taking good care of them. And also, we're in this together, as a family. As Jiating. Oorah!" Leo assured her, switching to a public channel and getting louder at the last part, inviting all to join in.

" JIATING! OORAH!" everyone shouted together. Camille smiled as he gave a small chuckle.

Leo continued, "Besides, look on the bright side…"

Camille smirked as she raised an eyebrow at his words, "And what's that, getting to kick some Tyrant ass?"

"Exactly!" Leo exclaimed enthusiastically at her spot-on answer, making Camille laugh out loud.

"And we get to do it together," Leo continued. Camille closed the watch around her neck and got her head in the game.

Leo and Camille were always there for one another. Whenever one wavered, the other was there to pick them up and help guide them back to the proper course. This was why they were so good together, not just as parents or husband and wife, but as a warrior couple. They were held as one of the prime examples of what it meant to be a warrior family.

As everyone was busy getting their head in the game, Dax gave a big whoop before he added, "Alright, let's show these assholes the insides of their brains."

There was an uproar of whooping and hollering from all the others in the hanger.

"Let's fuck these bitches. I've been dyin' for action," Victoria joined in.

"You mean besides the action in the bedroom?" Dax playfully muttered to her, but everyone heard him despite his efforts, several muttering 'ulgh' here and there, grimacing at Dax's weird and gross humor.

"Okay, okay. That's enough. As I said, let's get focused," Leo told everyone.

"And Dax, you ever forget to open a private channel, I swear to almighty God, I'll fuckin' castrate you, ya arsehole," Victoria threatened her boyfriend, embarrassed by his thoughtlessness and anger in her voice.

"Alright, Tori. I'm sorry. Dammit, can everybody get off my ass, now?" Dax exclaimed in frustration at everyone around him, "What the fuck is taking that Irish prick so long on the Bridge?"

Right after the very moment Dax said that, the red light turned yellow.

"Relax, Dax. Arthur knows what he's doin'," Leo assured him. There was a unanimous sigh on the radio channel that the wait was going to be over in just a few seconds. Leo grasped the hilt of his sword, leaning it against his right leg at his side. Most people thought that him carrying his sword in the cockpit was too much like a Kamikaze fighter-pilot. But Camille knew he was nothing like that. He intended to make it out of this fight alive, for her sake and their children's sakes. He kept his sword close for courage, to remind him of his strict moral code of civility. Eventually, Camille started carrying her sword with her in the cockpit. Then several others followed his example. Her sword was a Chinese dao saber, while his was a tiger forge Han dynasty jian.

From the Bridge, Lieutenant Arthur Gallagher began the countdown to launch, "Ten… nine… eight… seven… six… five… four… three… two… one… LAUNCH!"

Leo's felt his fighter zoom out of the hanger, the force of gravity pushing him back further into his seat. The other fighters followed suit.

"Wow" Camille uttered as she got a gaze at the planet down below, "It's incredible. I wonder what's going on down there?"

"Probably too busy wipin' their asses and pickin' their noses to notice anything going on up here," Dax joked, followed by much laughter over the radio.

"You're a sick bastard," Victoria replied to her boyfriend's gross sense of humor.

"Hey, I know I can be an asshole, Tori. But I ain't no bastard," Dax retorted.

"Alright, that's enough. Both of you. Now everyone, keep your eyes peeled. Don't want to be caught off guard and have the Tyrants get the jump on-,"Leo didn't get a chance to finish. He felt his fighter struck as he was shaken around like a lizard in a glass jar. The warning signals and buzzers went off as his fighter went spinning out of control.

"Leo? LEO?!" Camille yelled in terror on the radio as she saw her husband's fighter spin out of control.

"Leo! Damn Tyrants had some shooters waitin' for us just outside the doors!" Dax cursed as he saw what happened.

"I got 'em. Using gentle fire on 'em so as not to breech the hull," Victoria reported as she sprayed the troops that had laid a trap for them. Several others joined in before they saw multiple enemy fighters approaching. Leo felt his fighter stop spinning and become stable again.

"We have a visual on the Tyrants, comin' in hot. You okay, Leo?" Camille asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he answered, then switched his radio frequency to the Bridge, "Sam, what's the status on my dragoon?"

"Weapons are damaged, maneuverability is lost, life-support system is stable. Just sit tight, Captain," Sam reported from the Bridge aboard their ship.

"Thanks, Sam," Leo replied.

"Sergeant Butler, round up a team and retrieve the captain. He's a sitting duck out there!" Gallagher ordered from the Bridge.

"Oi, Sir. On it," Butler quickly answered. Then out of nowhere, Leo was shaken around again as his fighter was hit again, this time much harder. The alarms went off again, now even louder. Leo's fighter was spinning again, but this time it was also falling.

"LEOOOO!" Camille screamed.

"NO, NO, NOOO! CAP!" Dax shouted.

"CAPTAIN!" Arthur called.

"Captain, you're falling through the planet's atmosphere!" Sam alerted. Leo heard them all, but his comms were getting weaker by the second, their voices replaced by static. Then silence. He then heard what sounded like a storm outside his cockpit gradually getting stronger, worse. He knew what was happening. He tightened his seatbelt and held on for dear life, and prayed he'd make it out of this alive. No matter what, he wasn't ready to die… not yet. He had a family to get back to. Leo felt like he was sitting on a washing machine with a wild bull inside. Suddenly, the hatch opened. Leo held his breath as all the air was sucked out. He positioned his feet so as to not be sucked out himself as he undid his straps and stood up to grab the hatch and close it. Leo lost his grasp on his sword. Letting go of the hatch with one hand, he used it to make sure it didn't fly out the window. He managed to grab it by the scabbard, but the sword itself flew out and into the atmosphere.

"NOOOO!" Leo yelled as it fell farther and farther away. Losing the breath he had been holding, he shut the hatch. He plopped back in his seat and took a breath of air to relax himself as the cockpit filled back up with oxygen. He gripped the scabbard as he sat there in disbelief that he'd lost his sword. In anger, he smashed the instrument panel and cursed to the top of his lungs, "DAMMIT!"

Another explosion rocked the ship. Leo then inquired to his fighter's computer, "Dragoon-1, what was that?"

"The ship has blown in half. The stern has fallen off," the computer answered flatly.

"You seem pretty calm given our circumstances," Leo mocked.

"I simply do not have any other response. After all, I do not possess emotions."

"But it seems your sarcasm is in tact."

"I do not know if that was a compliment or an insult."

"SHUT UP!" Leo roared, then calmed down after of moment and asked, "Do you think surviving the crash is possible?"

"Depends on where we crash," the computer answered, "And it seems we are in luck. We are inbound for a body of water. Our point of impact with be less than half a mile from the coast."

"That's not so bad. How much time until impact?" Leo asked.

"A little more than a minute."