AN: A new chapter. This one is a dead role play that I was part of on RPN in 2016 that sadly died and got permission from the creator to turn into a story. This is set several years before Avatar Aang, long before Avatar Korra.

Prologue

"Hrnngh?!"

Muscles tensed as the figure leaped off into the air, ducking behind a giant oak tree. Her movements were so quick that no one could have caught a proper glimpse of her, knowing only her gender when the mysterious stranger spoke to the group that had suddenly materialized behind her. "You…" the voice was heavily laden with suspicion. "Sometimes, I forget humans exist." The stranger paused, allowing the rustling of the leaves to fill the silence. The group was on what appeared to be an island floating among the clouds. The island itself was void of any remarkable characteristic, save for the unnaturally large oak tree in the center of the island. Lush green grass covered the surface around the tree, but there were no other signs of life. No flowers, no animals; only the clouds on which the island floated, and the setting sun which cast a deep shade of orange across the sky.

"You may stay if you like. Do not bother me." When the voice finally spoke once more behind the tree, it was with a sense of finality. Emerging from the tree, the figure sprinted towards the edge of the island and leaped off, diving into the clouds below. Almost immediately, a powerful shock wave resonated from where the figure had dived into. The island shook violently for a brief moment before it came back to its peaceful stillness. The cloud covered the area that the figure had jumped into, and now it was just the group on the island by themselves-left to their own devices.

Dorjee looked around, confused, the last thing he remembered was that he was meditating. He probably fell asleep, and this was a very weird dream. While looking around he noticed the other people, not knowing them, not knowing where they could come from. His gaze followed the stranger as she ran around the Island and finally dove off the island. Dorjee noticed he hadn't got his glider, otherwise he would follow the girl. But, there was something else, his body felt different, he tried to create a ball of air, but he failed. Didn't he have his air bending skills anymore? Luckily it was a dream, and when he woke up, he would be able to air bend again.

The tree stood tall on the island, the green grass around it made the picture more beautiful, there was only one thing missing, animals. Normally in a place like this there would be a lot of animals around, they loved places like this. Dorjee moved to the oak and looked to some things to help him climb in it. Since his childhood he loved climbing in trees, especially the bigger ones like this. The oak was beautiful and easy to climb, if he had his abilities to air bend and shoot himself into the air. Finally finding some places to place his feet and hands on he started to slowly climb into the oak. Reaching a place where the branches would be to weak to hold him, he stopped climbing and looking around, seeing only the clouds and the island, which was not really big.

He was still confused why he couldn't airbend and who the other people were, he decided to not make contact with them, before they turned angry. Looking around the Island, he decided to follow the girl. Climbing down, he simply dived off the island, at the place where the girl did it also. Knowing it was dream, he couldn't die.

The trip down into the sea of clouds was harsh. Crashing into the clouds was like smashing through a thin wall of mud; the initial impact was hard, but it quickly broke apart, opening up to reveal the island he was just on. The group were still there as he fell out of the sky above them. Here, the grass that covered the island proved its purpose, cushioning the impact from Dorjee's rough landing. The sounds of creaking followed as the island tipped a little before righting itself. A gentle breeze began to sweep across the island and the tree came into a complete stop.

Ryuu looked around in confusion, he wasn't in the clearing in the forest he remembered he was camping in. He didn't feel like himself or at least like he wasn't all there was only part of him was here, he couldn't explain it any other way. Was it a dream? Had he somehow got into the spirit world? Doubtful it was the later, he never was one for the spiritual side of things so doubted he could get into the spirit realm.

However, his thought was interrupted when he saw something move in the nearby try and spoke in a female voice. He didn't turn in time to see what it was and instinctively moved his hand to where he kept his naginata. "Human? he repeated under his breath in slight surprise unsure of what to make of it and tried to find if he could spot the thing the spoke. He spotted other people about looking as confused as he was, only one he recognized. "Hey, Nanzing! You seeing all this too?!" he called, going over to him. He was closer to the tree now, it was ancient and dead like no other tree he had seen before with a crevice seemingly carved into it.

"Well, that was pretty awesome," Dorjee mumbled as he climbed into the tree again. Balancing on one of the branches, he dived off them into the clouds again. It felt like flying, something he really liked to do. Someone else recognized a friend, Dorjee looked at them shortly before disappearing in the clouds. After a few seconds, he saw the Island again. Now he tried to land more softly, something easier said than done. However, he managed to make some kind of somersault and landed on his feet but fell directly on his back. He smiled, he wasn't really hurt. The Island started to shake again when landed.

He inspected the group again, from all different nations, even some pirates. He jogged to the tree again and dived of the island again. Landing on his feet, he sat down in a meditation position in front of the tree. The island didn't shake that heavy anymore. He closed his eyes and started to meditate, breathing slowly and clearing his mind.

This couldn't be the spirit world, there were no signs of them, it had to be a dream. Being to curious, he rose on his feet again and walked around the island, there was not much to see. He sat down again, and continued meditating. Maybe he could get some hints why he was here, or why he lost his ability to bend.

He realized, that if he jumped off the island and appeared again on the island and made it shake, the creature needed to be here. He continued mediating however, the monks would be proud of him. But curiosity was not really helping. He opened his eyes to look at the oak, trying to find some kind of entrance, hiding place or something what was just weird.

With the oak tree being the most prominent feature of the island, the closer scrutiny it was attracting from the newcomers was only natural. The oak tree was just that - an oak tree. There appeared to be nothing else of note about the tree. Its bark was like any other - rough and somewhat flaky. The "crevice" observed was merely a coincidence, formed as the tree grew under its unique circumstances. However, whether the tree was living, or dead was anyone's guess. Perfectly still in the breeze, it remained the stoic existence on the island, unwavering in the face of the wind or even the antics of a certain individual repeatedly climbing it and jumping off the island. The island creaked each time as it righted itself after Dorjee's jumps and landings but always reverted back to its original state without fail.

Dreams. It was the suddenness of it all which always intrigued Chaman and now made him smile. One never remembers how they got to where they are in the dream They simply were. One moment you were in your bed. The next you were on a floating island in the sky, standing next to a group of strangers, looking at a tree. It was simply the incomprehensible nature of dreams. None of this surprised H Chaman an. Until the female voice behind the tree spoke up. Then, as quickly as she appeared, she left. '"Sometimes, I forget humans exist," she said, thought Chaman rubbing his chin speculatively. If she's not a human, she must be... a spirit? He would've spoke to the other people on the island. But if this was a dream, was there any need for words? They weren't real.

Then a realization dawned on the Earthbender. From the moment he entered the dream he had been all too conscious. "Perhaps this is what they call lucid dreaming?" He said aloud to no one in particular. Uncle Haru, in all his airbender wisdom, once suggested that dreams might have an inner meaning to them. But if that were true, what was this meaning of this? His thoughts were once again disrupted by the airbender who continuously jumped off of the island, only to land back on it. Of course, being a dream, the laws of the real world didn't apply here. Giving up the endless questions to which there were no answers, Chaman put his hands in his pockets and began to idly stroll along the rim of the island, idly looking at the clouds for no reason in particular.

Another realization. The feeling of something missing. Something important... Between the soft grass and Earth between his boots and the other members on the island, he should have been able to have the vague sense of movement. Seismic sense, an ability Chaman had little knowledge and ability in. But despite his lack of skill with it, he was always aware it was there. Except now there was nothing, no sensing at all. Wide-eyed he attempted to bend a small amount of Earth on the sky-island and then he realized I have no bending?! He looked bewildered, to him bending was as natural as walking or talking, without it he felt unprotected, handicapped.

"Hey! Can anyone else bend here?" He said, looking back to the group of strangers.

Dorjee gave up, there wasn't anything to be found. He walked back to sit in front of the tree. Dorjee closed his eyes, took a deep breath and relaxed. He nearly reached the state where his sense was shut when he heard someone speaking. Without looking towards the voice, he replied, "No one can bend here, and this is not the spirit world, you can bend in the spirit world" His voice was somewhat teacher like and sounded wise, maybe a little bit too wise for his age.

Turning back to meditation, Dorjee relaxed, this was going to be a relaxing sleep, when he wakes up, he would be fit again.

Both hands tucked in his sleeves as he stood up right, the seventeen-year-old boy looked right ahead at the sky. He had just gotten here and rather than explore what he could, really there wasn't much to explore, he stood there. A smile crept on his face as the soft winds brushed against his body making his robe flow in the wind a bit, his hair gently touching the side of his face. A sigh, one of content left the young man. As he looked at the horizon his eyes to anyone else seemed closed. Yes, he could see everything around him through the small cracks that his eyelids allowed, but to anyone else his eyes seemed shut tight. "Beautiful isn't it. Ah, I do love having Lucid dreams." His voice was soft but not a whisper. Taking in a deep breath he moved his arms apart and did a great stretch of relief before he bent backwards a bit. "It's one of the few times I can get that feeling out of my back." Chuckling to himself he hit his back a few times before he turned on his heel and started to walk along the edge of the island.

As he walked he looked around and half paying attention to where he was going and half thinking about this dream. Having been aware of his surroundings when he first arrived here, he had caught a glimpse of the girl. And he heard her word...sort of. He didn't hear them clearly a shame to say as his mind was on something else at the time. Namely wolf bats. Why? Funny story really…okay no not really. He was simply thinking about moments before he passed out, he could have sworn he saw wolf bats following him... Or that was a screeching dodo, or a vulture griffon? Spirits he hoped it wasn't that last one, if anything it was likely just his imagination. But still rather worrisome isn't it? Falling asleep just when you think a rather hungry wolf bat is there to eat your defenseless sleeping body. "Ah... I truly hope I wake with all my limbs intact and my throat as well~" He hummed to himself, his right hand moving up and fiddling with the necklace of thick beads around his neck.

Maybe it wasn't a wolfbat... Was there any howling around me before I slept? I can't remember, I know there were twigs breaking, but I assumed that was because of me. I really should have listened to the tour guide before wandering off. But the man was so...so dull. From his tone to his clothes, nothing about him made me want to stay with the tour.' Scratching his nose and now completing the first lap around the island he continued to walk suppressing a chuckle as a man fell out of the sky and crashed into the ground. Despite this action, the white-haired male walked on, this is a dream, so seeing falling men... Well it wasn't the weirdest thing he had seen. Letting a chuckle leave him as he shook his head he went back to his thoughts. 'Not only was the man dull... but very odd, even odder than the man that is currently jumping off the island again despite what happened the first time around. Howling like that. To demonstrate the howls of the beast that might kill me in my sleep he says. They sound the same to each one of them. Was he being serious? Maybe he was just pulling my leg? Or...Or he simply did it because... It was fun?

This thought was stuck in his mind as he stopped walking half way through circling the island again. He rolled his head forward a bit before looking up. I never tried doing it...so it could be fun couldn't it? Maybe, maybe not... Now I'm curious. Would it be fun to howl for no reason? Or would it be stupid? I'm in a dream, a lucid on at that. Though it's odd there are others here...hm... hmmmm...hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm... Now placing his right hand on his chin as he scrunched up his face a bit, obviously in very deep thought. A minute passed, and he came to the conclusion. Meh... Why not? Put his hands in his huge sleeves again he stayed quiet. After a bit of reconsideration...he ignored the part of him saying no, he really shouldn't do it and welp... He took a deep breath and with that rather suddenly let out a loud howl that could be heard throughout the small island. It was a rather long one at that as he found himself actually getting into it.

Soon however he stopped and once he did he let out another content sigh and smiled. "That... That was oddly satisfying." He said now brushing a bit of hair out of his eyes. "Got that out of me... And I must say I got a very impressive howl, if I do say so myself." Chuckling to himself he moved away from the edge and toward the tree that stood tall in the middle of the island. Such a beauty, if I could find a tree like this in my travels to protect me from the sun in the middle of the day. Welp I might not have passed out from the heat that day... Does beg the question if I was so hot why didn't I remove some of these robes? That is a good question, I need to ask myself that the next time I'm in a situation like that. As it would have been best if I removed my clothing in that intense heat, wouldn't it have been?

Before he could continue his thoughts however he looked over to a man, with air bending tattoos and smiled at him. When he heard the words that left the older man. "I fear you are mistaken, in the spirit world. One cannot bend, at least that is what I have read...and heard. But never experienced, only one being is known to really know that answer." Smiling he walked over to the tree and gently placed a hand on it. "Such a beautiful sight aren't you. Lone tree on this island, I do wonder who planted your seed here? Why did they? Aren't you lonely here, with no other vegetation but the grass to greet you?" Yes...yes Nanuq was talking to a tree.

Clouds and silence were the first things the teenager noticed as he found himself on his back, lush grass beneath him as he blinked his eyes at the sky above him. What silence there was was soon broken by the sound of voices, the tipping of the earth beneath him which made him sit up and look around warily. Where exactly was he? The last thing he remembered was he had entered his room at his uncle's home after school and deciding to take a nap before doing his homework. A voice calling to him, one that despite the passage of years, he recognized. Ryuu, his former childhood friend. As far as the teen knew, he was the only one to know of his friend's past.

"Ryuu? What are you doing here? Where are we?" he asked as he got up to better look around him, his eyes taking immediate notice of the large oak tree that appeared to be drawing him towards it. He hadn't seen his former friend in years, not since that event and Ryuu had disappeared. Grass and an oak tree...other people...glancing up he looked up and saw clouds drifting above him. So, he was outdoors somehow? Looking back to the people, he saw they were from different nations, some even the malicious and brutal air nomad pirates. No faces he recognized except the face of his friend who Nanzing embraced warmly. "Haven't seen you in years Ryuu," Nanzing said. He was stating the obvious but aside from the mysterious oak tree that stood within the center of...wherever they were...was most concerned with his former friend being here in...whatever this was. A dream of some sort? But if it were a dream why were there other nations here? He didn't see any spirits nor any animals. Only the clouds...the grass...the silence.

Dorjee smiled as he heard another voice speaking. This voice sounded if it had more wisdom, Dorjee didn't look up and kept his eyes shut. "Depends on how you enter the spirit world. During a solstice I was able to shortly visit the spirit world. I didn't feel my body because I was not physically there. Because I was there, but not physical I couldn't bend. But, if you enter the spirit world physically, trough the portals, you can however. I feel my body and am nearly sure this is not the spirit world" he ended, waiting for the other one to react, or go on meditating if he didn't.

"You know as much as i do, Nan. Good to see you," Ryuu said with concern overwriting the joy of seeing his friend again so didn't return the hug just looked at the other about. A seemingly assorted mix of each of the nation's citizens, so far only the air nomad, earth bender and a water bender spoke to each other, the air bender seemed to have an idea of what is going on. "No one seemed to know what is going on, though I wouldn't put any one past bring us here," he whispered aside to Nanzing. He looked at the airbender. "Assume none of us were here originally, what can transport us to this place if not spirit magic."

Nanzing let go of his friend, grinning despite his wariness about being in a strange place, especially with the airbender here. Another shiver passed down the teenager's spine as he remembered the attack that had taken his mother and stepfather's lives...hard to believe the man who he'd thought of as his father most of his life wasn't. "My guess is the air nomad," Nanzing said quietly so only Ryuu could hear. "Uncle Tohen and mother both said that despite their piracy, they're the most spiritual of the nations." The latter statement might not have been addressed to the confused fourteen-year-old but Nanzing attempted to think on it anyway but shook his head after a few minutes of thought, unable to find an answer.

Ekta's eyes opened slowly as a voice sounded around her. She had been standing, her feet bare as they had been in the real world. She takes a deep breath, feeling the texture of the air as it filtered through her body. The figure she could now see was sprinting to the edge, leaping off into the clouds below. It's her first thought, following the girl off the edge, but instead she just runs to it, staring down just in time to see another figure leap off the edge. The man was gone from her sight almost instantly, falling into plumes of clouds and then disappearing forever. She gasped, looking down as the cloud formed together again as if nothing had happened. She shook her head, sitting back up to look around her. As she did this the man from before fell from above, landing softly on the grass. It confused her and made her want to jump off to, but something else caught her eye. The huge tree in front of her, reaching out into the sky above. It doesn't move despite the obvious breeze that ruffles her loose top. She stood and moved towards the tree, ignoring the people as they spoke freely. There was a reason they were all here together, but her investigations were about the tree for now.

The first thing she tried was bending, but of course that didn't work so she just shrugged, watching as the man that fell from the sky came to sit in front of the tree, speaking that bending doesn't happen in the spirit world. She nodded her head, crossing her arms as she looked up at the almost impossibly tall tree, Ekta took a moment to walk around it, hand lightly touching the tree as she moved. The thick roots dig into the ground awkwardly, making her step on them when one came into her path. The tree wasn't natural, but of course considering the unnaturalness of everything else around her. She looks up into the twisting branches once again, lamenting her height as the lowest was way out of her reach. She doesn't climb the tree just yet, instead turning to the people that have already made connections. Two sitting under the tree now and two talking to one another. They didn't look like air benders, in face not many of these people did. She could count three including herself. She clears her throat and looks around her, suddenly very aware of the fact that she has no weapons on her at all.

"Okay, so you don't very much look like air-benders. Where are you from?" She first spoke to the two boys, one rather nervous looking while the other seemed fine. They already seemed to know one another so maybe they would be kind to her. Ekta walks around the two boys, inspecting what they were wearing very closely. Her eyes sparkle as she realizes that they must be from one of the Fire Nations. "Oh cool! I've never seen a live fire nation person before!" She clapped her hands together and watched the boys with wide eyes before glancing over to the man under the tree and the two simply standing, there's more people, but none had caught her attention quite like the two fire benders had. "I guess it's out of the question to ask you to make fire." She gives a pitiful sigh before looking around her. Her urge for adventure was now spiraling out of control. "You know what I'll be right back this should only take a second." She held up one hand then cleared her throat before sprinting to the edge and leaping off. She'd free fallen before, but never without her glider. This was a whole new experience that she was having, her loose clothes flapping erratically around her as she pushed through fluffy mud-like clouds. There's nothing but white in her vision until the island came into view again. As she lands just as softly as the man had, she wonders what is under the floating island. Before that though she lets out a loud holler, jumping in the air and clapping her hands. She was absolutely giddy from the rush of adrenaline.

Maybe she wouldn't be right back because her curiosity got the better of her and she was running to the edge again, this time carefully leaning over to see if there was anything under the small island. How was it floating? Did roots hang out under the packed earth? Was there anything under it at all? Did the detail of her dream expand as far as these obscure places she wanted to go? Another moment passes, and she wonders if she can dig in the earth below her. She pulls at the edges, hoping the dirt would crumble in her hands. Her attention span was rather bad considering she instantly wanted to know if she could also pull the grass up and if she could find anything in the hole that the tree had. What if there was something in the tree?

Digging into the ground below was like digging in the real world. It was dirty and tiring work. Yet there appeared to be nothing of note beneath the surface no matter how deep she dug; nor did the grass unveil anything when they were pulled out; nor was there anything in the tree. Everything was, for all intents and purposes, 'normal' though anyone with the common sense would find the whole situation strange to begin with.

Nanzing was hanging out with and by Ryuu, partly due to Ryuu was the only one he knew here and partly because everything about this place was confusing to the fourteen-year-old. It was a refreshing change to see Ryuu again after all these years for he had wondered what had become of his former childhood friend. His gaze was passing over the varied nations before them, it seemed that only he and Ryuu were fire nation citizens. Turning his hand over, he tried to summon a fireball, but nothing happened. So, what did he know so far about this place?

Ryuu was here first off. That was unusual in and of itself for obvious reasons to the old friends. There was no way that Ryuu should be here. Second was the fact that there were no spirits or animals anywhere in his immediate vicinity. Just the rustling grass, the thick white clouds, the wind that blew past the group. He was unable to bend his natural element which brought up the possibility of being within the spirit world, though Nanzing didn't know a whole lot about the spirit world, only that from the legends he had read, it was accessible by the spirits and the Avatar. But there was no Avatar now...not to Nanzing's knowledge at least. Was it possible the Avatar was in hiding or hadn't been found yet? Was that why there was a war between the two fire kingdoms and the various earth kingdoms? But if the Avatar was hiding then why? He had read in a scroll that the Avatar was supposed to represent balance and harmony but all that was around Nanzing was war, blood, death, destitution.

The fourth thing was this mysterious twisted oak tree that sat in the center of the island, an island that tipped when people jumped from the tree into the abyss that was blocked by the swirling thick clouds around the island. Surely this meant they were in the spirit world then? Where else would an island tip as you jumped to your death below, only to magically appear back on the ground? Perhaps the most strangest thing about this dream...or was it a nightmare...was the fact that there seemed to be people of all the four elements here on the island. Fire, Air, Water, Earth. Four nations that rarely interacted with each other, at least to Nanzing's limited knowledge of the world. Oh, he had heard of the earth kingdom attacks on each other and the fire kingdoms. The two fire kingdoms were at war with each other. The barbarian air nomads behaved lawlessly but then his uncle had said the air nation was never ruled by one person and really four separate nations of their own element.

As the tree seemed to be the most important thing about this dream in addition to the different benders in said dream, Nanzing figured his best bet was to try investigating the tree. Perhaps there was some type of energy within the tree but why would it pull these people from different areas of the world...different elements...to this one place. Where were they and why was this dream important? What meaning did this place...these people...have? Did it affect anything in the real world with them being here? Before Nanzing could move closer to the tree though, a girl came towards them and Nanzing couldn't help shrinking partly behind Ryuu, the memories of his mother's and stepfather's murder at the hands of an airbender raid still haunting the firebender's mind even though it had been three years since he had lost his mother. But Ryuu had been gone by that time and didn't know anything about the man he thought as his father being his stepfather in reality...of his real father being unknown to him...of the attack that destroyed what life he had had and moving in with Uncle on a permanent basis.

The airbender came towards the pair of firebenders, behaving rather childishly and staring at them like they were animals, something that Nanzing took offense towards. She then answered her own question and Nanzing gave Ryuu an incredulous look, asking without words if this airbender was all there. Before he could answer, though Nanzing wasn't sure what he would say, the girl had run off towards the tree, past it to look over the edge and then began digging into the earth. When she moved away from them, Nanzing relaxed and cautiously stepped out from behind Ryuu before walking over to the tree to inspect it, making sure to keep the air nomads away from himself by using the tall tree as a pathetic shield, placing a hand upon the rough bark of the trunk. Why did you call us here? Why do you stand as a sentinel alone?

The tree was silent, as it always had been. It remained perfectly still in the gentle breeze. Its leaves never moved, not even in the slightest despite the wind. Like a picture drawn, the tree remained the picturesque feature of the floating island.

Avani sat up. She was sitting on soft grass. There was a lady in front of her and a whole group of other people all around her. What was going on here? The little girl pulled herself to her feet. Something was wrong… she couldn't feel anything with her feet. She couldn't hear any vibrations. While the weird lady was speaking she tried her best to bend the earth around her, but she couldn't do anything.

"Well this dream sucks already" She muttered to herself, focusing on what was around her now that she knew she couldn't move the earth. The lady was saying something about not to bother her and then she jumped of the edge of…

Wait.

Avani rushed over to the edge looking down "This whole place is floating! GAH!" She leapt back from the edge. Oh, how she hated heights. She felt like she might be sick. Especially after seeing someone else in this dream follow the lady over the edge. "Wha-?" She gasped, and then she gasped again even louder when the man fell back onto the island near her, safe and sound. The man must be an airbender. Avani had heard they were crazy and fearless in the sky! And besides, there were tattoos on his head. She'd read about them in the library. She looked around at all the other faces. There were a couple earth benders she knew of as well. She remembered seeing one of them fight in Ba Sing Se: The Sandy-Hurricane-Chaman, they called him.

Avani also noticed two fire benders, an air pirate...

"I'm surrounded by enemies?" She blinked and got a little nervous "What is this supposed to mean?" Dreams, she didn't get a lot of, and when she did they were NEVER this lucid. It had to mean… something?

Who should she talk to?

Maybe the wise Air nomad guy could shed some light on the situation they were in… but then again, the random suicide attempts hadn't made him look overly… smart. Maybe she should stick with her kind for now. "Chaman…?" She called out, waving to the teenager before walking over to him "Hey!" She said smiling brightly "So this is really weird right? Why are we dreaming of the same thing? Why do I know I'm dreaming? How come there are firebenders and air benders here? Should we be worried we can't bend here?" She fired off question after question, more thinking aloud than asking the young man really. She looked around sheepishly "I think this means something. I think we should talk to them, "she whispered this part.

Ryuu looked at in bemused confusion at the airbending girl that approached them. "Never thought there was such an excitable creature in the world," he finally said aside to Nanzing, shaking his head before chuckling. "At least we know it is not her involved." He then looked around again. "Is there something that we are meant to do, someone meant to jump out and reveal why we are here?" He asked moving close to the tree and examined it, placing his hand on it unsure if he wanted something to happen or not.

If the tree were able to speak, it would scream in exasperation at the many people disturbing its otherwise peaceful existence. As Ryuu placed his hand on the bark, nothing happened; nothing stirred and the tree did not even budge in the slightest. Strong and sturdy as the tree was known to be, it kept its name even in this instance.

Nanuq looked at the older man and smiled at him. "Ah I learn something new every day. This easily can still be the spirit world. Unless you are a figment of my imagination as well as the others. I think being in the spirit world would make far more sense than all of us having the same exact dream. I've never met anyone that is here so far, so for me to simply dream you up, each with their own personality. Well to me at the very least, if that is believable then it simply doesn't sound too farfetched for this to be another world entirely." After saying this he moved his hand off the trunk of the tree and placed both his arms in his sleeves. His gaze moved to the others there, from his small observation they seemed to know each other, at least a little bit. He debated about talking to them, but meh, if they wanted to have a casual conversation with the closed eye water bender some would have come to him already. Perhaps I'm not interesting looking enough, just like the that tour guide, do I look dull? Is there something in my hair? You would think people would see a little interest in me. Are they used to seeing people with white hair? Last I heard that's not the most common thing. Maybe I need to brush it, I must look too unsightly to approach.

Shrugging to himself he stayed in his spot and went into think mode, now actually attempting to focus on the situation in hand. 'This island has no foundation, it shakes with ease from a person landing on it. It shook viciously when that other...girl? I think it was a girl, didn't get a good look. Anyway, she made it shake like an earthquake had hit, and she didn't return. The man who said this wasn't the spirit world did return. But the island didn't shake as much, barely flinched.

"Did the girl, woman? Other creature, leave because she had power in this realm? Did she leave because in this dream none of us wanted her here? Despite the fact it seems we don't care who is here and who isn't. How did she jump, but not return? The island didn't seem too happy about her leaving, from how much it was shaking... Did she force her way out? I wonder how she looked like, maybe she was from the last group of people here and summoned us here to use as her escape? No...well maybe, never really know who's doing what now in these days, Nanuq stated simply saying everything that first came to mind. "Did it break because she was in the right spot? Was it how much she weighed? If we all jumped could we leave? Or would we just come back here in a pile?" Taking a moment to get his breath he smiled and stood there. 'Though this area is rather nice I don't see much reason to leave just yet. Maybe we were brought here for a reason, maybe not. Such a lovely place isn't it? Though if we were brought here for a reason, it certainly would be nice for someone, something or anything really to inform us why we are here."

Dorjee placed his hands on his knees, while still meditating. It relaxed him, cleared his mind and after meditating he could think more clearly. Some things happened around him, there was another girl, who was clearly not a nomad, so a pirate. The two people from the Fire Nation were talking to each other.

Dorjee was still meditating, as Nanuq spoke "Personally, I don't think she left the island. When I jumped off, the island shook also when I landed again, like it did when she jumped off. However, we can't see her."

He was convinced the girl must be somewhere, "I'm still not sure what this world it, personally I think a very special dream or something, but I am sadly not wise enough to know it."

Ekta was a little sad that she couldn't see anything when she dipped her head over the edge. The dirt was weird like she though it would be, then again, she was discovering so many new things since she left her crew behind. Tattered villages scatter the land below where she had roamed, but barely ever did she see another person so close to the mountains and so very rarely did she go anywhere but the mountains. Her mother had been a monk at the western temple and ran away with a pirate at a young age, so she had visited temples and she knew of monk ways, it was just weird knowing that people knew very well that they had the power to do so much but governed themselves with such strict rules. She sat crouched with her fingers in the dirt for only a moment more before she turns her attention to the tree, ever silent in the wind though her own clothes flapped as they usually did. It drew her attention almost as much as what may be under the island. So, she stood, it seemed like the fire nation boys were otherwise busy, so she decided to move up to the tree as many others had. Then something dawned on her, the silence was nearly unbearable until they interacted with something like the woman had with the leaves of the tree. How curious.

Either way the hole at the base of the tree drew her attention more than anything else. While it could just be natural, it could also hide something within. Maybe not an animal as she was sure someone would have heard by now considering the awkward silence. As she moves to the tree she realizes that she can hear other's conversations. She hears a boy with a tight gaze and a calm atmosphere speaking to an older man that seemed to be an Air Nomad as well, she wondered where they were both from, in fact she wondered that about all the people here. Some had moved while others remained still, frozen in the final position she assumed they had taken before falling asleep, others walked along the grass and inspected the area and spoke. She wonders why she's here as the boy near her had just a moment ago. "Well, I'm inspecting things to figure that out, but I don't spend a lot of time on the ground, so, I don't really know." It's hard to see from so high up so she knows nothing of this earthy terrain, it's strange on her bare feet as it's something nearly completely foreign to her and even if it's a dream she can feel her heart hammering in her chest with a strange kind of fear. Ekta brought her hand to her chest and clutches, pulling her loose shirt tight in her fist. She cleared her throat and goes back to her objective, crouching down and looking into the darkness of the strange hole. Her brows furrow as she reaches in as far as she can.

"You...Sometimes I forget humans exist."

This voice caused him to stir. His eyes blinked rapidly and in a whirlwind of sensations and emotions he took in his surroundings. Grass tickled his ears and clouds swirled overhead, illuminated with the golden orange light from a hidden setting sun. Those same clouds cast their glow over the landscape which appeared to be an island with one lone tree in the center and entirely covered by grass. Ilesh sat up, rolled onto his knees, and slowly pushed up from the ground. Motion presented to him first and foremost and he just barely caught the last glimpse of a female figure leaping from the island into the swirling orange clouds. Shortly after she did so the island shook almost violently but seemed to cause no harm to the earth or himself. As the breeze gently rustled his tunic so too were the clouds and grass yet it was only the oak tree that seemed entirely untouched by the breeze. Other figures were milling about, he noticed they were all from different nations. This was an exciting prospect as he couldn't say he's ever traveled outside of the Earth Kingdoms but he knew he should also be feeling some apprehension. He saw a few of them trying to bend their elements and he recognized faces of confusion and mild frustration when nothing appeared to happen. Ilesh couldn't resist trying himself, he planted his foot in the ground and thrusted a fist up to chest height attempting to part the sod from the earth with a wave. As expected, nothing happened, much to his disappointment anyway. He looked at his hands and wondered what exactly was going on. Where was he? Was this a dream? If this was a dream-and especially one as lucid as this-why couldn't he earthbend? He was very aware this wasn't consciousness, this certainly wasn't his 'normal' whatever that may be.

He wasn't sure if he recognized any of the figures. Ilesh watched as a few of them ventured to the edge and leapt off as if after the strange female. They disappeared but unlike the strange female they returned by plummeting from the sky and landing in the grass. He began walking to the nearest edge he could find. Ilesh peered over into the abyss and saw nothing worthwhile, there was nothing there, he could not gauge their height if they were floating, it was mere nothingness. He looked over his shoulder as he heard a cry and another person leapt off the edge. He turned back to his own ledge to stare at the clouds, there had to be something. He dug his fingers into the soil and threw the chunk of earth other the side. At this time the ground shook again as the person reentered the island and landed, Ilesh wobbled and unintentionally toppled over edge.

The clouds were so dense it was like falling through mud. He let out a yell. Wind smacked his face, he broke through the clouds, and before he knew what was happening he could see the grassy island rushing towards him. He landed ungracefully in the surprisingly cushioning grass. Satish was breathing heavily. He should have known better about the mini-quakes, after seeing the person jump off the ledge he should have known what was to happen next, but also that he would be fine as he had seen the other figures do. However, earth benders were not made to leave the ground. Flying through the air like that was...unsettling-dream or no dream. From his spot he started catching snippets of conversation about the Spirit World, lucid dreaming, the strange woman, friends uniting with each other, and other miscellaneous speculation.

"I don't think she left the island. When I jumped off, the island shook also when I landed again, like it did when she jumped off. However, we can't see her...I'm still not sure what this world it, personally I think a very special dream or something, but I am sadly not wise enough to know it"

Ilesh righted himself and got to his feet again, his heart still beating fast from his fall moments ago. The voice came from a man with a shaved head and a beard. From his choice of dress and, from what Satish assumed, was meditation he was an airbender of the non-pirate variety. It was simple enough to figure out that he was talking about the strange female. Ilesh hesitantly began to approach them. "I'm struggling all the same, friend. I can't seem to decide whether this is a dream and you, as well as everyone else, is conjured by my imagination or otherwise. The idea that we are all in fact sharing the same dream is perplexing and is difficult for me to put my faith behind. It also seems pretty unbelievable that my imagination could conjure individuals like yourself. We can't seem to leave this place either. If this were lucid dreaming, I'd be able to wake up, right?"

Nanzing frowned in disappointment as the tree remained strong and silent before trying to mentally thank the tree and removing his hand from the rough bark. If digging and trying to kill yourself by leaping into nothingness did nothing to reveal such secrets as to why there people of all four elements in this dream...the tree revealed no secrets...then where were they and how could they figure out what to do while here. Nanzing had been relatively confused when he had first awoken and had thus missed the conversation between the strange spirit girl that he had heard others speak of while investigating the tree. Ryuu's words about the childish airbender caused the teen to chuckle and he nodded in agreement with Ryuu's deduction, happy that it was like they had never been separated. Yet when he did wake up, it would likely go back to being the same as it was when he had went down for his nap. Ryuu wouldn't be there and he probably wouldn't remember his dream for he didn't really remember anything but the attack and the conversation with Tohen concerning the truth of his stepfather.

Ryuu came over as well towards the tree and placed his hand upon the bark but it seemed to reveal nothing to Ryuu either, so far as Nanzing could tell. There was movement and he glanced up to the tree's tall limbs as the leaves rustled, something moving among them. Looking around, he saw someone else was awake...the airbender who had approached the former friends was gone though there was a pile of dirt where she had been digging. Nanzing wasn't about to go approaching the edge of the island they were on, this was a guess on his part given that he had never been outside of Lord Osha's kingdom before, for he wasn't as suicidal as it seemed the lawless airbenders and pirates were. Digging produced no results and likewise with the tree and jumping off into nothingness. What was there to do now? How long would this dream last? The airbenders would probably remember such a dream, just another guess on a pile of guesses...or perhaps it would just be the air nomad who seemed older than the others, the one he had seen with the tattoo on his head that Nanzing was using the tree to shield himself against. No weapons...no bending...didn't mean the airbender couldn't find another way to hurt or kill him. Was it possible to die or be injured in a dream? If so, then would you die in real life and what would be made of one's death if they died from an injury in the real world?

The tree was still the picture of perfect stillness, even as Ekta scaled it. It's branches and leaves did not move even in the slightest even with the air-bender on it. Consequently, it produced not even the slightest sound, save for Ekta's own. Truly it was like a picture, a still image captured for the posterity of time - like the rest of the floating island.

Nanzing looked back up at the tree and into its limbs that stretched above him. What wind there was in this place seemed naught to rustle the leaves. What he had thought was the wind rustling the leaves was apparently just the airbender climbing and moving among the limbs. The girl eventually came back down, to investigate something else at the base of the tree. Nanzing didn't want to go near the other airbenders on the opposite side of the tree but this side that he was facing appeared to harbor nothing of importance. Curling his hand into a fist he placed an ear to the wood as he rapped on it, trying to see if it was hollow, though the tree didn't look like it was. He was also curious to see whether his hand would pass through the tree. Had they passed through the tree to come here? But if they had then why did he not feel it or was it only felt by the airbenders? Nanzing was too scared of them to ask such a question.

It was not hollow, and it was certainly not incorporeal. Its physical existence asserted itself in its response to Nanzing's actions. Knocking on the tree produced a clear and distinct sound that one would ordinarily expect. Its leaves shook a little, gently swaying in the breeze that had yet to cease.

Chaman looked at the girl and watched her work a brow raised on his head as he listened to her. "Ah you don't spend much time on the ground, do you? I think I have a right to assume you are either an angel or an airbender. Maybe one in the same." He said with a light smile as he stretched a bit. "Such a lovely, still place. I feel I can do anything I wish, other than bend that is and have no consequence. The grass looks amazing, I haven't walked on grass in a while, not bare foot that is. Maybe I should, I don't see anything wrong with it for now. And it looks so soft and inviting, there don't seem to be any creatures for me to worry about hurting..." And with that Nanuq's shoes were off. Placing them neatly on the ground so he could find them later he smiled as he let his feet touch the grass. "Ah... So much better then walking barefoot on a rocky road. Far far less painful."

With this he let out a hum as he let his hands fall to his side and he started to walk, once again around the island but this time counter clockwise. Why? No reason, but he just had a feeling something of this sight wouldn't' be visible to him once he left... At least not for a time, so he needed to take in the sights now or never. "One day, I would likely want a home in a place like this. The beauty of the gentle breeze pushing the shutters so they creak a bit. The beautiful bright green grass showing how well the harvest is doing this time of year. The sky looking so full and gorgeous, ah if only dreams could be a reality. Life would be too easy to bother with." A light chuckle left him and again he went around the island going a tad faster. 'When was the last time I ran... And the kind of running you do for fun? Not the kind you do to escape a rapid wolf bat, because I did that a few days ago. Vicious creatures. I think I want to run a bit maybe lay down, can I nap in a dream? Would I go in another dream? Or will I wake instantly?" At this thought he shrugged and very suddenly he took off running. For no apparent reason other than self-amusement.

Smiling to himself as his clothes billowed in from the breeze and his movements he was still in thought but the actions he was doing made it look like his only thought was how to get wilder. Which wasn't really what he was thinking... Though the idea of doing a cartwheel crossed his mind, one he didn't follow through after all he wasn't wearing the proper clothes for that... Well he was but he would have to remove the top layer of his clothing. But he didn't feel like doing that for now, so he simply ran around enjoying his time. After several moments however he noticed a group that seemed to be very invested in the tree that stood alone. I haven't talked to anyone maybe I should, as much fun as it is to run around this place. Maybe a conversation with one of these people could be a nice thing to do as well. After all the first two people didn't raise any red flags... Coming to a halt he took a few breaths to calm his heart rate and do another amazing stretch. I have been getting the best stretches since I got here, spirits that feels great, he thought with a smile before he walked over casually to the group at the tree.

Stopping by someone he assumed to be a firebender he looked at him. "Anyone knocking back?" He asked casually and in a nonchalant tone as he kept a kind smile on his face.

There was no hollow sound and his hand did not pass through the tree so that ruled out the fact that the four different elements had passed through the tree to this place. Nanzing wished he had a piece of paper with him to write these things down, if only to keep things ordered in hopes of figuring things out. Would climbing the tree high enough reveal any sense of direction or give an idea where they were? A town...a village...a city...some type of settlement with people? Even a river might be helpful. He looked once more up at the tree and then around him, walking away to look around. Grass...tree...clouds...tree...people of differing elements...tree...sky that was blocked by thick swirling clouds...tree...a ceaseless wind...tree. Why did he feel like the tree was the big mystery behind why this group of strangers were here? No matter what he had looked at, his mind and eyes kept going back towards the tree...as if it were pulling or calling him somehow. Maybe he had hit his head somehow when he had gone to sleep.

He walked back to the tree. If he wanted to investigate it further, he might have to walk around it but that meant going near the air nomads. Something he was reluctant to do yet it seemed that digging in the earth exposed nothing. This was plant life...that he knew so there had to be water right? Was there water in the spirit world? But hadn't he just come to the conclusion that this wasn't the spirit world as he saw no spirits? Were they invisible? A voice next to him, caused the firebender to jump, and he looked to see someone was standing beside him. How long had this person been standing here while Nanzing had been lost in his own thoughts, trying to see what there was to see without going near the edge of the island to peer into the abysmal depths of nothingness below...an abyss that one could not see for the thick clouds concealing the island from possible view by others. Nanzing shook his head to clear it of nagging and confusing thoughts, the words that this stranger spoke to him taking a few moments to break through his befuddled mind. "The tree isn't hollow or incorporeal...so we didn't pass through it to get here," Nanzing said slowly, unsure how this stranger would take the advice of a mere teen.

The large oak tree at the center of the island seemed to be a primary subject of investigation by the interesting gathering of figures. Understandably of course as it was the only feature of this strange place. There was a girl climbing among the branches now, her clothes indicative of the Air Nation yet differing entirely from the older man's, she must be from a pirate clan. There was much talk of the pirates and the menace they inflicted on their own nation as well as others. But she was just a girl, just barely a teenager, he had a hard time imagining her participating in a village raid. He had a sour opinion of them indeed. It never really occurred to him how Air pirates might raise their young with such violence a mere normality of life. If his speculations were true and she was a pirate, did she or other children like her know any better? She probably wasn't even real, if all these figures were just figments of his sleeping mind, did it really matter?

Chaman approached the tree and stared up the trunk through its unmoving canopy of leaves. Seriously, what was he doing here? What was it doing here if it served a purpose at all? He reached out a hand and laid it against the bark, it stood unyielding to his touch. Its texture felt real enough. It was the tree's stillness that disconcerted him. It was like it wasn't even here, just like a projection appearing here while it existed somewhere entirely else. Chaman's eyes roamed the tree, up the trunk and along the branches. On a whim he reached up, stretching out his six-foot-two person and grasped the lowest branch. The toe of his boot dug into a nook and he pulled himself up enough to pinch one of the leaves between his fingers, attempting to pluck it from its branch.

It was as if a floodgate had opened. The breeze stopped; the leaf was removed as intended, but in the same instant, each and every one of the leaves fell out from their branches. As the rain of leaves began, the sun set entirely. In the darkness without the moon in sight, nothing could be seen for a brief moment until the sun re-emerged from the other end, moving across the sky above them. All of these were happening so quickly it would be hard to keep track of the multitude of changes that was happening; gradually, the leaves. of which the tree seemed to have a never-ending supply, began to glow, engulfing the island in light so bright it blinded everyone on the island.