This fanfic has been long overdue. I've been waiting to do this forever, but I never found the time. Hopefully, you enjoy this fanfic (although there are probably many better ones out there). I hope I can update often. BTW, this takes place after Korra, so you have to watch all the seasons before you read this. This is after Korra dies and the new Avatar is reincarnated. Also, Katara, Zuko, and Toph are still alive.
Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar.
Fire *foooom fooom*
Air *whooooosh*
Water *shhhhshhh*
Earth *kpew kpew*
Long ago, my father used to tell me stories of how the Avatar kept balance between the nations. Avatar Korra and Earth Kingdom uniter Kuvira transformed the United Republic of the Nations' capital, Republic City, into a spirit portal, the bridge between the two worlds. Avatar Korra accomplished many remarkable things in her life, but suddenly, her time in this world came to an end, only one year after Kuvira. It has been ten years now and the Avatar has not arisen, leaving Republic City and the rest of the world in chaos. Right after the death of Korra, a powerful force called the Fire Rebels threatened to overthrow the Fire Nation. Only the Avatar could stop this force. Only she could stop the rebels. One year ago, my father left to aid the Republic with the rising Fire Rebel problems. He never came back since, leaving me and my sister to look after our family. Many people in my village had given up hope that the Avatar will ever come back. But I believe that somehow, the Avatar will rise again.
Book 1: Fire Nation
Chapter 1: Into the Spirit Wilds
Tashi Song leaned back in the saddle covering Kuna, a leopard-sea lion. Her twin brother, Tao Song, looked side to side for some meat to eat like a hungry animal, spear clutched in his hand. They were traveling through the Spirit Wilds in the center of their village; Gaoling Village. It was next to the Desert and the ocean (somewhat across from Kyoshi Island) and near the Swamp. Tashi sighed, looking at the lime green vines that hung above her head, before looking back her notebook and jotting down some notes for a big book report due soon.
"Hey, Tashi!" Tao called to his sister, spotting a rabbit. "This is how you catch a rabbit. Maybe you can learn something from me. Tashi?" Tashi completely ignored him and kept on writing. "TASHI HELLO!" Nothing. After two more times of calling her name, he earthbended a pebble and threw it at his sister's head.
"Ow!" Tashi rubbed her head, (finally) looking up from her notebook. "Seriously. What was that for?"
"I called your name (literally) five times!" Tao answered. Tashi sighed. She often did this. If she needed to do work well with constant distractions (aka Tao), she needed to ignore everything (especially Tao) to get her work done.
"What are you even writing about anyway?" Tao groaned.
"For the millionth time, Tao, I'm writing my book report about the how dangerous it is to have the Avatar disappear for so long," Tashi explained, annoyed.
"Yeah, so?"
"The next Avatar didn't appear for ten years!" Tashi replied exasperatedly. "Don't you think that's important? It's only a matter of time before the world falls out of balance again."
"Whatever," Tao rolled his eyes. "Just watch me catch this rabbit." The rabbit appeared a few feet away, nibbling on a leaf. Tao started to drool. "I could almost smell it cooking..." Now it was Tashi rolling her eyes, but she put down her notebook anyway. Tao waited for the right moment and rushed toward the unexpecting creature. The rabbit bounded into the wilds and Tao gave chase.
"Tao!" Tashi called. She jumped into the front, urging Kuna forward. "Come back!" Tao, Tashi, and Kuna bounded over roots and ducked under vines. Tashi heard Kuna's panting as they ran further. She felt the spiritual energy getting stronger as they continued deeper into the wilds. Spirits were everywhere now, floating above them and crawling below them. Finally, Tao stopped.
"Aww..." Tao groaned. "I didn't catch it."
Tashi's eyes were blazing with anger now, "Why did you even run off like that! If it wasn't for Kuna and me, then you would've been lost by now!"
"Well, if you were paying attention, then it wouldn't have run off," Tao countered. "Why do little sisters always mess things up?" He instantly regretted saying that.
"WE'RE EXACTLY THE SAME AGE!" Tashi exploded with rage, triggered. "AND I WAS FINISHING MY BOOK REPORT FOR CLASS TOMORROW! I WANTED TO STAY AT HOME, BUT MOM WOULDN'T LET YOU GO ALONE BECAUSE YOU'RE TO IRRESPONSIBLE!" Tao's eyes widened as the spirits reacted to Tashi's anger. They narrowed their eyes with suspicion at each other.
"Uh, Tashi..." Tao stuttered. Most spirits fled, sensing the change in atmosphere. But one, particularly big one, stayed.
"SO SORRY IF I GET AN A+ AND YOU DON'T BECAUSE YOU RAN OFF TO PLAY HUNTER! EVER SINCE DAD LEFT, I WAS STUCK WITH YOU! INSTEAD OF YOU AND DAD DOING NONSENSE TOGETHER I HAD TO GO WITH YOU EVERY SINGLE TIME!" Tao motioned to look behind her, but she completely ignored him.
"I think you should just take a deep breath..." Tao suggested as the spirit started to turn into a dark, angry spirit. It started growling and approaching them slowly.
"NO, I WILL NOT TAKE A DEEP BREATH! I COULD'VE BEEN DOING SO MANY OTHER THINGS BUT NO! YOU ARE TOO IMMATURE TO GO ALONE!" Tashi breathed heavily, finally noticed the fearful look on Tao's face.
"Bear feet..." Tao managed to say.
"I'm wearing shoes, Tao. I'm not bare feet," Tashi said. "I think you need glasses..."
"No," Tao argued. "BEAR FEET!"
"What is it?" Tashi asked. "Seriously, you're staring at me like there's an angry platypus-bear spirit behind me." She turned around, and sure enough, there was an angry platypus-bear spirit standing right behind her. Tashi gulped. "Did I just do that?"
"Congratulations!" Tao cheered. "You turned your very first spirit evil!"
"Thanks, Tao," Tashi replied sarcastically. "I needed that."
"Anytime," Tao responded, darting out of the way when the spirit slashed an oversized claw at them.
Tashi and Tao ran in opposite directions, and the spirit gave chase. Tao earthbended a rock and threw it at the spirit. It bounced off the spirit and only made it angrier. Tao panicked and ran behind a vine. The spirit uprooted the vine and swung it at Tao. He ducked and ran across the clearing to where his sister stood. He gasped for breath as the spirit towered above them and took a swipe. Sweat formed on his head as he made an earth shield (that easily got obliterated). He was just learning earthbending at ten and the only moves he learned so far was: throw a boulder, stop a boulder, and make an earth shield. His puny earthbending skills were no match for an angry platypus-bear spirit monster.
"Hey, platypus-bear! Bet you can't catch me!" Tashi called, waving her hands around like a crazy lunatic. "That would be so emBEARassing for you." Tao facepalmed. Tashi weaved in and out of the vines. "Wow. Is that all you can do? I know my speed is unBEARable but you're BEARly even fast!" Soon she came where the vines were the thickest and bounded over and under them. The spirit easily got tangled up in it and roared angrily. She ran to Tao, out of breath.
"Nice moves," Tao gasped, giving her a thumbs-up.
"We'll need more than just that," Tashi said, pointing to a nearby tree that the spirit just teleported to.
"I forgot they could do that," Tao realized, running in any direction possible except where the spirit was. He tried using earthbending to stop it, but the platypus-bear just teleported out of the way. The spirit swiped at his legs, tripping him and making him land on his back. He earthbended a shield, saving him from the blow. Then he darted out of the way, climbing a nearby vine.
Tao swung from vine to vine like a monkey, racing away from an angry predator. "Why are you so angry?" he called, in attempts to calm it.
The spirit spoke in a deep, almost-impossible-to-understand voice, "You always drag me along on trips! I hate going with you! You're so annoying and distracting!"
Suddenly, everything clicked. Tao realized, "Tashi! Stop being angry now!"
"I'm not angry at you anymore!" she shouted back. "Just really scared for our very existence!" The angry spirit stopped. Slowly rotating around toward Tashi. She gulped. Those seconds between them were antagonizing; Tashi staring into those red, angry eyes and those red, angry eyes staring into hers. Her heart pumped faster because of fear (and running around). Suddenly, the spirit charged at her.
"The spirit's attracted to strong emotion!" Tao realized, jumping down from a vine. "Stop feeling fear!"
"WHAT?" Tashi cried, and the spirit roared louder. "HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO DO THAT?"
"Tashi," Tao called. "It's either calm down, run away, or die."
"VERY HELPFUL TAO!" Tashi exclaimed sarcastically. She swung on a vine, arching her body in a huge arc and landing on a high vine. The spirit could teleport across, but not up. Its claws raked the bottom on the vine.
"Now calm down," Tao offered, racking his brain for solutions. "Um... count to 10. Think about calm things. Er... breathe?"
Tashi sighed, "If I stop breathing, I'll die." She rolled her eyes. The spirit started calming down. The angry glint in its eyes had gone down to a more frustrated look. Think of the most relaxing, happy thing, Tashi told herself. Staying home, no annoying Tao, no distracting Tao, no Tao in general... Tashi took a deep breath, calming herself. The spirit eyes went to a contented look and its dark form started changing into its light form.
Tao looked to his side and found Kuna tangled up in vines. She whimpered mournfully as the vines slapped her. She was being pulled into the depths of the Spirit Wilds. Tao had been so focused saving himself, he forgot about Kuna. "KUNA!" he yelled, panicking. This spirit turned dark again and charged at Kuna. Tao jumped in front of her and earthbended an earth shield. The spirit clawed the shield once, twice, three times. Tao groaned from the strain as he took blow after blow. It was obliterated after the fifth blow as the spirit roared angrily above him. Tao braced himself for the final blow. The claws came down, but something stopped it.
"STOP!" Tashi called, landing in between them. An air forcefield sprung between them from her outstretched hand. Tao gasped at what he saw. Tashi's eyes started glowing as she bent the water from a nearby stream. The water surrounded the spirit and turned golden. The spirit evaporated into golden dust as it was guided back to the spirit world.
Sakura sailed on her water tribe sailboat with her crew. She stared into the distance, water surround her in every direction. Water. The element of healing and life. Then how come the element had hurt her so much?
The atmosphere suddenly changed. It became energized with the sudden sense of power. Some spiritual energy was coming from an incredibly powerful source. She was a very trained warrior, and one of the rare few who could enter the spirit world without a portal. She could sense spiritual energy from spirits, but this was way different. Most spirit's energy feels like a soft feather. A dark spirit's energy feels like needles. Humans feel like a rock or stone. But this was nothing... or, everything? It was hard to tell.
"Do you feel that?" Sakura asked her crew.
"Uhhh... no..." the captain answered honestly.
"It's... it's the Avatar," Sakura stated.
"Are you sure?" the captain said.
"It must be," Sakura replied. "I... I never felt anything else like it before. It has to be the Avatar. I know it."
"Set sail to Gaoling Village," she ordered her crew. "Finally my relentless journey will be over."
Mako walked to the White Lotus hut in Republic City. He had no idea where all the other ones are, so he had to go to this one. His brother, Bolin, was helping rebuild Republic City after Kuvira's spirit-vine-laser destroyed over half the city. After the city had been rebuilt, he was offered a job as an engineer and he invented the cell phone (aka the flip phone). Asami and Varrick are now working together, now that Asami learned how to forgive. Mako had been working at the police department again, but his nerves got to him. The crime rate in Republic City had gone up tremendously. It was only a matter of time before someone like Amon would rise again. The city needed its Avatar.
That is why he was standing in front of an organization he didn't care about when he was in Pro-Bending. If anyone could find the Avatar, it's the people who found Korra, Aang, and Roku. And he was going to help them.
Mako took a deep breath and knocked on the door. "Who knocks at the garden gate?" someone asked from inside.
"Uh... Mako? If this is a code then I have no idea what it is," Mako answered.
"Go away."
"Wait! But I was Avatar's friend in her past life! I was part of Team Avatar!" Mako persisted. "And I want to help you find the new Avatar!"
There was some murmuring from inside. "Fine then," they decided. "Come in."
The door swung open to five White Lotus members. They were sitting around a small round table in the middle of the room and on that table, there was a map of the world. Mako was aware that everyone was staring at him now, so he quickly took a seat.
"So," Mako cleared his throat. "Where did you look?"
"Well..." a member said awkwardly. "We looked in Republic City, Omashu, Ba Sing Se..." The list went on and on, pointing at Xs on the map. Mako nodded, searching for a non-Xed city.
"What about Gaoling Village?" Mako suggested, looking at the only non-Xed city he could find.
"Gaoling Village?" a member scoffed. "They HATE the Avatars. If they found out they had an Avatar in their village, they would send them off to someplace else. Actually, they hate benders in general. When an earthbender turns 11, they would make them work in the mines or fight in the army."
"But it's the only place where you didn't look!" Mako argued. "That's probably the only place where the Avatar is!" The White Lotus members looked at each other uncertainly. "Do you have any better ideas?"
"Ok then," they decided. "We will set sail to Gaoling Village at once."
Tashi groaned. Her head was pounding with a terrible headache. She opened her eyes and was met with a piercing light. Her eyes adjusted and found herself laying on the grass. She turned her head and saw lime green vines overlapping each other, blue sky peeking out from behind them. Someone was calling her name. She turned her head more and found a ten-year-old boy with black hair and bright green eyes staring back at her. His face was slightly freckled. As her eyes adjusted more, she realized it was Tao. What am I doing here? she asked herself and suddenly, the events from earlier that day came flooding back to her.
"Tashi!" Tao called.
Tashi stood up, moaning, "What happened?"
"The platypus-bear spirit was going to attack Kuna and me, but then you came in the middle and-" Tao started. He sucked in a breath.
"Then what?"
"Your eyes started glowing and you started to waterbend."
Tashi gasped. No, it can't be, she thought. I can't be the one. Her heartbeat accelerated and her breathing quickened. Her hands started getting clammy and her lips stuck together. "H-how?" she managed to say. Tao shook his head.
She stumbled a little and leaned on a vine. She put her hand on her head to help process this information. "Me?" she finally said. "The Avatar? But-but that can't be." She slid down the vine. "Tao, I think we need to take you to an eye doctor."
"No," Tao answered. "I'm sure of it. I know what I saw."
"Are you sure you weren't hallucinating on cactus juice again?" That first time when Tao, Tashi, and their father journeyed into the Desert was terrifying. They originally went there to see the sandbenders so Tao could learn from them. The sandbenders weren't there, so they journeyed farther. Apparently, the sandbenders were on the other side of the Desert. Then Tao, Tashi, and their father ran out of water, so Tao decided to drink cactus juice. Things just went downhill from there. So long story short, they almost died in the Desert and Tao never learned sandbending. Tashi shuddered.
"There are no cactuses in the Spirit Wilds," Tao sighed exasperatedly.
"You never know..." Tashi responded spookily doing weird hand movements. Tao facepalmed.
"Let's just go home," Tao suggested, jumping on Kuna. Tashi jumped on also and they rode off home.
"Haha!" Tao laughed, playing hide-and-go-seek. "You're counting now, Dad!"
"I guess I am," his dad chuckled and started counting to 30. "1, 2, 3, 4, 5..."
Tao ran off into the distance, running as fast as his 7-year-old legs can go. Soon he tripped, finally slowing down.
When he looked up, he saw a terrible sight. Earthbenders from his village were forced to work in mines. Their clothes were covered in filth as they bent rocks, tired but persistent. But of course, 7-year-old Tao didn't understand.
"What are you guys doing down there?" Tao shouted, attracting the attention of everyone. Most just turned back to their work, muttering. But one decided to answer his question.
"We're earthbenders," one earthbender answered. "We are forced to work here."
"But I'm an earthbender!" Tao countered. "And I'm not working there!"
The earthbender chuckled to himself, "If you're lucky, when you're 11, you might be able to join the police force. But most of us just work here."
"So when I'm 11 I can work in the mines or at the police?"
"Yeah, sort of. Hopefully, you get to work with the police force. Although that is pretty awful too, I've heard. When earthbenders from mines run away, it's the police that has to catch them. Earthbenders fighting earthbenders. Terrible sight, actually."
He smiled weakly. "Why don't you get back to your family? They're probably all worried by now."
"Ok!" Tao agreed cheerfully, announcing to his family that he won the hide-and-go-seek game.
Why? Tao thought in his dream, Why do I have to work there? I want to learn sandbending! And metalbending! And mudbending and lavabending! I don't want to work in the mines! I don't want to work in the police! I want to learn!
But there's nothing that I could do about it. It is the way this village works.
An airbender hovered above Korra, smiling evilly. He took the air out of her lungs, suffocating her. She fell for several hundred feet before falling to her knees before a dark kite spirit. It took all the energy out of her, making her feel powerless. She closed her eyes as the world swayed back and forth. Suddenly, she was lifted into the air unwillingly. She opened her eyes and found a guy with a creepy looking mask bloodbending her. He let go, planting his thumb on her forehead, blocking her flow of energy forever. She gasped, looking down for a fleeting second. But when she looked up, she found an evil looking metalbender pointing a pink laser at her. She screamed as her vision was clouded with pink energy, waking her from her nightmare.
Tashi awoke, breathing heavily as if the dark kite spirit did take all her energy. The crescent moon was directly above her now. Avatar Korra did all those amazing things, just to save the world. She was willing to give up her life and even Raava's life, to protect the world. What if I'm not ready to save the world? Tashi thought. What if I fail? What if I'm not powerful enough?
"No," Tashi whispered. "I-I can't. I CAN'T!" She ran out the door of her house, her bare feet stepping on gravel and sand. She ran into the Spirit Wilds, not even caring where she went. She ran farther and farther until her legs gave out. She collapsed on the grassy ground, dizzy from the lack of water. She struggled to stay awake, but her consciousness wavered. The world spun around her, and then went black.
"Dad?" 9-year-old Tao asked. "Why can't I learn lavabending? I really want to!" After his dad shook his head, Tao pleaded, "Or at least let me master earthbending! All I know are a couple moves..."
"I guess it's time you hear the story of the village of Gaoling," his dad sighed.
"Long ago, even before I was born, Gaoling was once a place where earthbenders and nonbenders could live together in harmony. They would depend on each other and befriend each other. But that all changed after Avatar Aang and his team took Toph Beifong away. The Beifongs and the rest of the village began to hate the Avatar and all of his doings. Once Kuvira took over their village, the nonbenders began to blame the earthbenders for not defending them. The earthbenders grew offended by this, and the gap between the citizens increased over time, becoming hateful and independent. Soon, sometime after the death of Korra, the earthbenders and nonbenders went to a civil war. The nonbenders eventually won, proving to the rest of their village that their technology was no match for earthbending."
The older Tao watching the scene sighed and continued the story, "The nonbenders then forced the earthbenders into mines when they were 11, but if they were powerful enough, they could join the police force and learn metalbending. Earthbenders and nonbenders alike believe that when they are 11, their destiny was plowed out in front of them by people they did not know. That is how it has been for years. And no one is powerful enough to change this. We believed that it is how things worked.
"I wish I could change this. I wish I could become what I want.
"But, I guess, they will always stay wishes..."
Tashi found herself surrounded by giant lily pad-like plants. Spirits were all over the place, even more than the Spirit Wilds. It was bright like it was daytime. Tashi gasped. It was nothing she ever saw before.
"Yes," someone said from behind a giant lily pad. "The Spirit World is nothing like your world. It is truly a magnificent place."
Tashi squinted and gasped at what she saw. Coming out from the shadows was, "IROH!" she gasped. "What are you doing here?"
Iroh laughed, "Where else is there to go for me? I live here!" Tashi couldn't help but smile.
"So why are you here?" Iroh asked.
Tashi's smile fell. A deep emotion filled her heart. She didn't know what it was, but it was strong.
"So you know that you are the next Avatar," Iroh answered for her. "Something like this rarely happens. Actually, I don't even know if it ever happened before. This kind of thing only happens when the Avatar is truly in danger or something that is close to the Avatar is in danger. Usually, your powers are not revealed until you know that you have them. Someone would tell you. Your powers are rarely revealed this young."
"It's just," Tashi started, looking down, "it's just that I don't know if I'm ready to take on this responsibility of guarding the world! I mean, to cover all those square miles, it's almost impossible. What if I can't solve a problem because it's too big? What if there are multiple problems happening at once? I mean, the probability of that is about 28.3503851-"
"Avatar Tashi," Iroh interrupted. "Who told you that you needed to be ready? And who told you needed to do it alone? All the Avatars I met and learned about never did anything alone. They had their Team Avatar to help them. You have Tao and Kuna to help you on your journey. Your duty right now is to master all four elements and help bring balance to the world."
"But the introduction to Legend of Korra," Tashi replied. "'Only the Avatar can master all four elements and bring balance to the world.'"
"But that's not your introduction."
Tashi thought about it. "True, true. But Korra broke the connection to all the past Avatars. It's gone. What if I need their knowledge?"
"You know, nothing is ever gone," Iroh said, smiling. "They are simply just lost, trying to find a way back to you." Tashi fell silent.
"So, are you ready to go back to the material world? Everyone is waiting for you." Tashi nodded. She closed her eyes, letting herself drift back to the material world. She gasped, finding herself in the same place where she found out she was the Avatar. She stood up and realized she was lost.
All the Avatars I met and learned about never did anything alone... Iroh's words echoed in her head. I'm never alone... Tashi closed her eyes and when she opened them, she found the spirit that she calmed right in front of her.
"Hi fella," she smiled. "May I have a ride?" The nice platypus-bear motioned for her to get on. She hoisted herself up, riding like she was on Kuna. They traveled fast through the Spirit Wilds to the edge of her village. She got off, thanking the spirit. It smiled in return, fading into the Wilds.
Tashi ran back to her house to find Kuna, Tao, and her mom waiting for her.
"Where were you?" her mom asked. "You worried me so much. Why did you run off like that?" Kuna jumped on her, licking her face, covering it with slobber.
"Oh," Tashi answered. "I figured it all out now. It won't be a problem anymore."
"Promise you will never do that again?"
"Promise."
But that was one promise she could never keep.
Mom," Tashi Song said the next day. "I-I need to tell you something." Her brother, Tao Song, glanced at her, surprise. Tashi nodded to him.
"What is it?" her mom asked.
Tashi took a deep breath, "I'm the Avatar."
Her mom squinted and rubbed her ears, "Say what?"
"I'm the Avatar."
Her mom looked confused, "I think I have a hearing problem. I thought you just said that you were the Avatar-"
"I am."
Her mom looked even more confused, "You are the Avatar?"
"Yes."
Her mom looked like she was about to say something, then stopped. A couple seconds later, she opened her mouth again, but put her finger to her lips. Finally, she took it all in, "How long have you been keeping this from me?"
"I learned about it just yesterday."
Her mother paused, "I have to tell the mayor and the White Lotus about-"
"NO!" Tashi and Tao yelled at the same time.
"Why not?"
"Didn't you hear what happened to Avatar Korra?" Tashi explained. "She was locked up for almost all her life in the South Pole! I don't want to be separated from you guys!"
"I have to, sweetie," her mom replied. "It's the law." Tashi gave one pleading look before her mom turned away to head to the mayor's house.
Tashi's mom, Mary, started walking to the mayor's house at the center of the village. She stood outside the door, about to knock, but something stopped her. The Avatar. Guardian of the World. But most importantly, her daughter.
Would she really just throw her daughter away because it was the law? Would she really tear her family apart because of what someone else thought? She turned back, walking toward the shore where her home lay. No, she thought. I won't be like my husband who left to Republic City because of a dilemma. Our family can't afford another tragedy.
But you have to, another side of her argued. Think of the good of the world. If you don't turn her in, then she will never master all four elements and do her job. I have to tell the mayor.
But just when she was about to turn back to the mayor's house, a ship crashed into the shore.
Sakura stared through her telescope to the Gaoling Village. There, her dream, her purpose, her destiny, lay. Just one mile of water separated them, they finally she would be accepted back to the organization that once abandoned her one year ago. The boat crashed into the sandy beach, scattering citizens away. She would finally have what she wanted.
Bolin sat in the VIP section of the Pro-Bending match (because he was a former Pro-Bender). The green team consisted of an earthbender, a firebender, and an airbender. The orange team consisted of a waterbender, an earthbender, and a firebender. Bolin sighed as he watched the orange earthbender dodge attacks, throwing earth tiles at the opponent. The firebender blasted the earthbender as he was pushed back to zone 2. The airbender blew a gust of wind at the waterbender who failed to dodge, pushing her out and over the edge. The orange firebender blasted the green earthbender who dodged. The green earthbender threw earth tiles at the other earthbender, throwing him into the water below.
Now it was the orange firebender against everyone else. He dodged the air gusts, earth tiles, and fire blasts, staying low to the ground. He struck out quick, throwing the earthbender over the edge. The firebender got surprised and distracted, giving the orange firebender the perfect opportunity to push him back to the last zone. The airbender threw gusts at the firebender, who dodged expertly. The green firebender blasted the orange firebender, missing him by a millimeter. This gave the airbender the perfect opportunity to push him back to the last zone.
The orange firebender continued dodging, tiring the other benders out, giving him the chance to throw the green firebender over the edge. Now it was airbender vs firebender. Green vs orange. The firebender took a different approach now, throwing out a flurry of attacks. The airbender was surprised with this change and was thrown over the edge.
"And the winners are," the announcer announced, "the Flamio Hotmans! Sorry Cabbage Men, but you just got roasted. What do you have to say about that?"
"NO!" the brown earthbender cried. "MY CABBAGE MEN!"
The crowd cheered (including Bolin). Suddenly, Bolin realized that that was exactly what happened in his match when he was in Pro-Bending. Mako won the match for their team, the Fire Ferrets, advancing them to the championships. Bolin's flip-phone suddenly vibrated in his pocket.
"Mako!" Bolin greeted over the phone. "How's the search for Korra, er, the new Avatar going, bro?"
"Pretty well," Mako answered. "We're going to Gaoling Village. How's it like in the City?"
"I'm watching a Pro-Bending match," Bolin replied. "The Flamio Hotmans totally roasted the Cabbage Men. Remember when we were Pro-Bending too?"
Mako sighed, "Good old times..."
"Well, the next match is about to start. Now it's Mushy Mushrooms vs Cactus Juice. Good luck, Mako!"
"Bye!" Mako hung up. Bolin sighed. Where are you Korra? he thought, his eyes becoming distant. This is when the world needs you most.
Tashi Song looked down at her hands. Why did she make the mistake of telling her mom? Now she'll be sent to a place where she could never visit her family again.
"It's okay, Tashi," Tao comforted, sitting down next to her. "I won't let the White Lotus take you away. Otherwise, they have to take me too!" Tashi smiled and shook her head.
"Thank you, Tao," Tashi replied, "but-" A large boom cut her off.
"What was that?" Tao asked as he rushed to the window. A large ship crashed only feet away from their house. A 15-year-oldish girl jumped down from the ship. She had a water tribe getup, similar to Katara's, but simpler. She didn't have hair-loopies but instead, long straight hair. Her eyes were bright blue and her ship bore the Water Tribe symbol.
Citizens scattered, trying to get as far away from the danger as possible. Their mom was running back toward the house, diving through the half-open door and locking it.
"Who are you?" the mayor called to the Water Tribe girl. "And what do you want?"
"I am Sakura of the Northern Water Tribe," the girl answered. "And I am here because you have the Avatar." Tashi stifled a gasp.
"The Avatar is not in my village," the mayor answered. "Now get out of here before I call the police."
Sakura narrowed her eyes. If she was going to get through to this guy, she needed the truth. She uncorked the water canteen by her hip. She bent the water, spiraling it around the mayor. She focused on the truth and when she opened her eyes, the water was now glowing bright green.
"Wh-what are you doing to me?" the mayor asked, frightened.
"Sh," Sakura shushed. "Only I ask the questions. Where is the Avatar?"
The mayor struggled to say words. Tashi gasped. The green glowing water was making the mayor tell the truth.
"I-I have no idea," the mayor gasped honestly. Sakura clutched her hands angrily, dropping the suspended water. The mayor gasped and fell to the floor. He dialed the police's number quickly. Mom didn't tell the mayor yet! Tashi realized.
Twelve police came, surrounding Sakura. Sakura's eyes darted around, her lips pursed as she got into a fighting stance. Three police struck out, metalbending metal cables from their uniform. Sakura jumped out of the way as three of the police's cables got tangled, binding them together. She landed on the sand, four feet away from the water. She bent the water, blasting three more police out of the way. Now six police were advancing slowly toward her.
One police shot a cable at her, which she dodged, bending the water and encasing the entire police's body in ice on the side of the building. Another police saw this opportunity and sandbended Sakura's foot, binding it to the ground. Sakura growled angrily, wrapping water around his leg and flinging him into the Spirit Wilds. The sand around Sakura's leg fell uselessly beside her. Four police were left.
One police shot a cable, another a gust of sand, the other a slab of rock, and the last a shard of metal from his armor. Sakura bent the water from the ocean around her creating a water shield. She grunted as she overpowered the four earthbenders, throwing them deep into the mainland. The mayor's eyes grew wide as she defeated the whole police force in less than 30 seconds. Sakura exhaled, barely breaking a sweat. The Avatar needed to be here.
"We need to get you out of here," Mary whispered to Tashi. "Go to the hidden channel behind our house. Hurry!"
"She's not going without me," Tao argued bravely.
"Okay, then," Mary agreed. "Take Tao and Kuna with you." She smiled at Tao, "Take care of her for me."
"On it," Tao answered, smiling back. Mary packed up food supply, water, and a map. Tashi ran to her desk and stuck a pencil in her ponytail (like usual). Then Tao, Kuna, and Tashi headed behind the house to a channel hidden behind the brush. They brushed away the brush and climbed on Kuna (she's part sea lion).
"Go to Republic City, Air Temple Island," their mom instructed. "There you will find Master Tenzin. He'll tell you what to do next."
"You'll be okay?" Tashi asked.
"I'll be fine," Mary smiled. I hope, she thought as she hugged them. "I'll always love you. Now go! You have no time to lose!" She pushed Kuna, letting the current guide her. She waved to them for about 3.584759 seconds before ducking into their house.
"I can't believe it," Tashi muttered.
"Which part?" Tao asked.
"In just two days, my life just totally changed," Tashi answered. "First I figure out I'm the Avatar, then a crazy water tribe person starts chasing me, and then I leave home forever."
"I just hope Mom'll be okay," Tao sighed. Tashi nodded in agreement.
"Search all the houses!" Sakura ordered her crew. "Check in every corner if you need to! We need to find the Avatar!" Her crew nodded and started searching. While they were searching, Sakura went to the ocean to fill up her canteen. But when she got there, she saw a young girl and a young boy on a leopard-sea lion swimming away from shore. She narrowed her eyes. Something was different about them. She closed her eyes and reached out with her chi to feel their chi. They were both very powerful benders. Earthbenders. More than that. They both had powerful spirits. But one of them was...
"THE AVATAR!" Sakura cried, eyes opening instantly after this realization.
Her crew poked their heads out of the houses in curiosity. Sakura created an ice surfboard and waterbended herself toward them. The Avatar realized they were being chased and urged the animal faster. The earthbender earthbended earth from a nearby cliff and hurled rocks at her. She dodged the first two expertly and sliced open the third. She created a huge wave and hurtled it toward them. The leopard-sea lion dove underwater, dodging the attack that was made over the water.
Tao and Tashi surfaced, coughing and sputtering. "The map!" Tashi exclaimed, looking at the soggy mess. "It's ruined!"
"That's the last thing I'm gonna be thinking about," Tao shouted. Sakura jumped up from her ice surfboard (that instantly melted) and landed on the surface of the water. Tashi gasped. She was running on water! Sakura launched ginormous ice shards at them. Tao earthbended a rock from the cliff to block them. The rock soon exploded into a muddy mess as Sakura launched a water blast at it. Tashi groaned as she looked at the soggy muddy map again.
"Make Kuna go faster!" Tao said.
"Go, Kuna, GO!" Tashi shouted. Kuna panted, swimming at top speed. Sakura created a water funnel, rising 30 feet above the surface. She bent the water around the Avatar and her team, trapping them in an ice.
"KUNA!" Tashi cried as the ice reached her paws. They weren't going to make it! Tashi had to do something... Suddenly, her eyes glowing. She melted the ice back into water and looked at Sakura. Tashi froze Sakura's water funnel, trapping her on the top. Sakura struggled to melt it again, but the Avatar was just too powerful. Tashi quickly melted it, sending Sakura crashing into the sea.
"Go, Kuna!" Tao yelled, urging her forward. Tashi collapsed on Kuna, and this time, not becoming unconscious. It just took a moment to catch her breath before sitting back down again.
30 minutes later...
"Where are we going?" Tao asked Tashi, Kuna just cruising along in no particular direction whatsoever.
"I don't know," Tashi answered. "You're the one who didn't care about getting the map soggy AND muddy."
"You're the one with Avatar powers," Tao argued. "Maybe you should've just waterbended the water off."
"You're the earthbender," Tashi countered. "Maybe you should've mudbended the mud off!"
"I'm more worried about the food," Tao complained. "What are we gonna eat? Fish? I would rather eat Mom's failed roasted duck!"
Tashi rolled her eyes, "It's not THAT bad..."
"Did you try the roasted duck they make in the Fire Nation?" Tao inquired. "It's like the BEST EVER! It was personally made by Iroh himself. Also, the tea in Ba Sing Se is TEA-riffic-" Tao nudged her, not wanting to waste time for a TEA-riffic and punny pun.
"I never tried it," Tashi pointed out, rolling her eyes at the terrible pun. "'Cause I never been there. I was always stuck at home while you and Dad did those things..."
"I thought you called them pointless and useless."
Tashi ignored this, "The only family trip we had with the three of us was to the Desert to make you learn sandbending. And we all know how that turned out."
"That's because whenever YOU come, you always ruin it."
"It's your fault for choosing a bad vacation spot."
"I was TRYING to learn sandbending. Not go on a vacation. The only reason YOU came along was that you wanted to meet a sandbender in person."
Tashi gasped, staring at something in the distance. Tao turned his head and found a bunch of mist.
"What is it?" Tao asked.
"I think you need glasses, Tao. It's the Swamp. See all the vines?"
"I can certainly see all that fog," Tao muttered under his breath.
Tashi stared at it. It tempted her to change direction. She just stared, mesmerized.
"Tashi, if the Swamp is that way, that means Republic City is also that way. Why are you going south?" Tao asked.
"I-" Tashi realized, breaking from the trance. "Sorry. Go, Kuna, go!" But just when those words left her lips, a hurricane started hurtling at them. Directly from the Swamp.
"Avatar State, YIP YIP!" Tao cried, trying to make Tashi go in the Avatar state. But instead, he just earned a glare from Tashi.
The hurricane whirled closer to them, churning the waters below. Kuna tried to outrun (or outswim in this case) the storm, but it seemed like it was going directly toward them. They were never going to make it. Waves toppled over them, one after the other. Soon they reached the strongest part where winds blew the rain the hardest and waves made them the wettest. Kuna, Tao, and Tashi felt them being thrown around in circles and circles, faster and faster, until they started to lose consciousness.
"Just hold on to Kuna and take a deep breath!" Tashi called before they were dragged under by the storm...
OMG! That chapter took forever to write! Ugh, well, I hope you enjoyed reading that chapter. I tried to make it as long as a normal Avatar chapter would be, but I never knew it would take THIS long. Oh well, I'm too lazy to delete it. Please type in the comments if you like this story or not. I'm always open to suggestions!
Also, about the updating schedule, I don't have one yet. I just posted the first chapter to get it going. But I promise by Chapter 2 I'll tell you about the updating!