Fire. Air. Water. Earth.
Avatar Korra's time in the world has ended. Republic City and all surrounding nations mourned the loss of the great bending master. They eagerly awaited the arrival of the next Avatar, set to be born somewhere in the Earth Kingdom. No one expected a scrawny farm kid from a nameless village. But Ravi will have to face bigger problems than the prejudice of his home town. He will face a threat no one could have foretold.
Sun crept into Ravi's small bedroom. His eyes opened, then squinted at the sudden light. He swung himself off his old, raggedy mattress, peeling off his sweaty work clothes from the night before. Ravi had gone to bed so late, that he didn't even bother to change. He grabbed a fresh pair of clothes out of his dresser drawer, then headed outside to the bath house to freshen up before breakfast.
Now clad in brown overalls, dark brown work boots, and a gray t-shirt, he went back inside the humble farm house to grab a bite to eat. His mother stood by the antique stove, heating up a kettle of water. "Good morning, my son," she said, warmly.
Ravi kissed her left cheek. "Good morning to you, mama."
"Seems we have a very special day today, don't we?"
The young boy looked clueless for a moment, then scratched his head. "Oh," Ravi mumbled. "It's my birthday. I forgot."
His mother clasped her hands together, then opened a rusted metal door from under a cabinet. "Here, Ravi. Here's some silver pieces.. Go to the market, get some milk, and a little something special for you. Hurry along, before your Jook gets cold." She brushed him out of the kitchen via the back door, and he went around to the barn to get his Ostrich-Horse, Jung.
"Hey, pal. We're going to the market. Saddle up." The Ostrich-Horse bent down, and Ravi attached a brown leather saddle to his back. He fastened the reigns, then climbed onto the animal. "Ya." The ostrich-horse took off out of the barn, and followed the only road leading to the market from his house. Once they reached the market, he tied the ostrich-horse to a pole.
"Ravi, happy birthday!" shouted Lee, a family-friend. The teenager approached the man with a warm smile.
"Thank you, very much," Ravi pulled out a silver-piece. "One jar of milk, please. Our hippo-cow is sick, still."
"What a shame," the man said. "Alright, here you go." Ravi also picked out a bar of chocolate for his family to share. He and his pet left to go home after a goodbye to the man.
Upon returning home, something seemed off. His father would be working by now outside in the garden, but he wasn't. He put his horse up and fed the animals like normal, and headed inside. "Mama, Papa, I'm back with the milk- Mama!?" His mother was unconscious and tied up by the stove. The kettle was overflowing with hot water. He quickly turned off the flames. "Mama!" Ravi went to untie his mother, but he heard a crash from inside his parents' bedroom. He went to go investigate the scene but someone grabbed him by the arm. "Let me go! Let me go!"
"Long live the Dark Avatar," the woman hissed. He was dragged out of the house and tied up by strings of metal onto an electric pole about a hundred feet from the house. The lady pulled down her hood, not facing Ravi, and combusted the home. Ravi cried out for his parents, but it was too late; the little farm house went up into flames, pieces of wood flying every which way. He screamed out in agony.
"Mother! Father!" Tears poured down his face and onto the ground by his work boots. "Mother! No!"
The lady, now masked, turned to face Ravi. "Why don't you just take a nap for a while?" She bended lightning onto the pole, and shocked the boy enough to make him pass out.
He woke up, still chained to the pole. "M-mother… Father.." His knees were weak; if he had not been held up, Ravi'd be on the ground. He could hear police sirens down the road, and he tried to move his head. But he couldn't. Out of the corner of his eye he saw police get out of the car, and one raced over to him. Ravi struggled against the bonds, but it was no use. He cried, helplessly and the man metal bended him out of the restraints. The boy fell to the ground, clutching his knees, sobbing. The police man knelt down, and placed a hand on his back.
"Ravi," the man spoke softly. "It's me, your uncle. I'm here. It's going to be okay. I.. Heard the call down in the next town over and… I knew it was your farm.. I had to come.. see it for myself… but I- I… I didn't think.. It was really your mother. I'm so sorry." Ravi hugged his uncle tightly, while other policemen and women investigate the scene. "We've got to get this boy out of here. His parents probably didn't make it out of the explosion alive.."
The words melded together as Ravi's mind swam. Suddenly, his eyes began to flash white. Air swarmed around him as he propelled upwards. Ravi screamed out a blood-curdling scream, and fire spurted out of his mouth like a torch. His uncle and the other police backed up, and one called in for backup on the radio-watch. Chunks of earth joined in the circle, as well as a stream of water from a bucket.
"Ravi! Please, listen to me! You have to stand down! I know you're hurting! But it's going to be okay! You will be okay!"
"Officer Hiro, you don't know what you're doing-"
Hiro cut her off. "He's my nephew. I know exactly what I'm doing."
The elements all began to dissipate, and Ravi lowered to the ground gradually, where he fell to his knees. The light faded from his eyes, and tears began to fall again. Officer Hiro approached the boy carefully. He wrapped him in his arms and held on tightly.
Ravi sat on his new bed in his uncle's house. The room was larger than his old one, but it wasn't by a lot. A firm mattress sat in the corner by a window, and the walls were an emerald green. The floor was a complementary deep oak, which Ravi appreciated nicely. It reminded him of his father's brooding eyes. A soft knock came from the door on the other side of the room. "Come in," he mustered.
"Hello, Ravi." An old woman with wrinkles for days and graying hair entered the room. She wore white robes with a blue trim. Her skin was dark, while her eyes were bright and blue. "My name is Kia. I am part of the order of the white lotus. It is my pleasure to meet you, Avatar."
"Avatar?"
"That's right. You're young, only fourteen, but the evidence is there. The police cameras were rolling when you went into the avatar state for the, I assume, first time."
Ravi's eyebrows furrowed. "I don't understand."
"Did your uncle not tell you?"
"No…"
"Well, then. Looks like we have work to do." The lady smiled kindly in a way that reminded him of his mother. He offered a small smile in return. "I suppose he didn't know what to say. But he has agreed to let you be relocated to Republic City, for formal training and education."
Ravi looked puzzled. "I have to leave?"
"Yes, you do. Tonight. We have an airplane ride all set. We need to get you out of here before those bandits come back."
Ravi gathered his things in a small satchel, and hugged his uncle goodbye. "Do me a favor, Ravi," Hiro said. "Say hello to my son, Tinley, if you see him. I miss him terribly."
The Avatar nodded. "Of course, Uncle Hiro. Goodbye." He was loaded into a small car, and taken to the Ba Sing Se National Airport, where he would be shipped off to Republic City. Ravi glanced out the window of the plane, having never seen anything like what's out there. "I'll live for you, mama and papa. I promise with all my heart."
And the legend continues…