DISCLAIMER: Legend of Korra belongs to Dicke… uh, i mean Nickelodeon.
SPOILER ALERT: This fic takes place after Beyond the Spirit Wilds and will contain spoilers.
A/N: The following fic is an excuse to explore Korra's relationship with Raava and figure out what Zaheer might've been hinting at when he says, "You think your power has limits. I say it's limitless."
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Korra slumped against one of the island's many sandalwood trees and stared eastward to Republic City. Her eyes scanned the glowing outline of skyscrapers that gave of so much light the night sky was invisible to the pedestrians and motorists below. There was another kind of glow she could see now - a brighter one that covered the city and spilled out into the neighboring countryside. She chewed her bottom lip and studied the dirt at her feet.She hadn't told anyone yet, but Zaheer was right. Republic City was bursting at the seams with spiritual energy and the constant thrum of it was nearly overwhelming.
A breeze raced along the bay's surface and up into her face. Korra ignored the biting cold and instead stared at one of the exposed tree roots next to her thigh. She reached out to run a calloused finger along one of them and froze. If Zaheer was right about the spiritual energy in Republic City, was he right about her, too?
"You think your power has limits. I say it's limitless."
Korra shuddered. Her conversation with Zaheer hadn't gone exactly the way she'd expected it to. Then again, Korra wasn't sure what she expected in the first place. His sincere offer to help her had taken her by surprise. That much she could admit. She remained wary of him, but she could at least trust that his desire to end Kuvira's dictatorship outweighed whatever perverse pleasure he would've gotten out of leading her into a trap. Yet it wasn't his willingness to help her that left her with a lingering sense of discomfort.
"You have all the power in the world and the freedom to use it, but you choose to hold yourself down. You think your power has limits. I say it's limitless."
If Korra didn't know any better, she'd say he sounded… No. She shook her head. There's no way that lunatic would think of her as anything other than an obstacle to be removed. And still…
"That poison should have killed you, but you were able to fight it off."
The scene played out again in her mind. She remembered the way he made her flinch and knew he did it just to prove a point. He didn't ask for forgiveness or seek redemption, but he also didn't seem to find joy in knowing she couldn't enter the spirit world or that he was the face that haunted her. Rather, he was swift to point out how misguided she'd been in her attempts to get over the experience. More importantly, he spoke to her with respect. He saw something within her that deserved some strange, solemn reverence in spite of their differences.
"You think your power has limits. I say it's limitless."
Korra swallowed hard. There was a part of her that hoped Zaheer was wrong, because the alternative was too terrifying.
"But you've already seen that it's true," said a familiar voice.
The smooth, unearthly sound startled Korra. "Raava? What are you talking about?" she asked.
"You already know. You just don't want to admit it."
Korra shook her head. "How can I admit something I don't even understand?"
"It wasn't the Avatar spirit that helped you defeat Vaatu," said Raava. "You did that without me. You are far stronger than you know."
"But how can that be true? It took me years just to finally airbend and learn how to meditate into the spirit world. Then, I lost my connection to my past lives. And right after that, I wound up in a wheel chair and wasn't able to go into the Avatar State for three years." She clenched her fists. "And even when I could go into the Avatar State, I lost to Kuvira," she whispered.
The brief silence that followed seemed to stretch on for hours. Just when Korra was about to give up and go back inside, Raava spoke again. "I only enable you to bend the four elements."
Korra smirked. "What do you mean 'only'? That's what makes the Avatar so powerful."
"You're wrong. There's a difference between having an ability and actually having the power to use it. I'm not the source of your power, Korra. I never have been. Not now and not in any other incarnation."
The air around her suddenly felt thin and Korra ran a shaky hand through her hair. She sucked in a deep breath and tilted her head back to look up through the bare tree branches. Countless stars twinkled against the backdrop of the clear night sky like distant cosmic beings waving hello. Something stirred inside Korra and she slammed her eyes shut. "That doesn't make sense, Raava. The Avatar is nothing without the Avatar spirit."
"The Avatar might not be the Avatar without me, but you're not just the Avatar," said Raava. "You are… something different."
"So what you're trying to tell me is I have something the other Avatars didn't?"
"In a way, yes. Can't you feel it?"
Korra frowned. "Not really. And… yes?" As she focused on the constant throb of spiritual energy emanating from the city, she grew more aware of the presence of spiritual energy all around her. It was in everything: the air filling her lungs, the tree against her back, and even the stars above.
"You are stronger than ever before, Korra. Of all your incarnations, this one is the most powerful."
"I've wondered about that," Korra confessed. "I was taught that the Avatar State was so strong because it channeled the power of all the previous Avatars through the current Avatar. But after I lost my connection with my previous lives and fused with you, I felt… lighter, not weaker." A comforting warmth spread throughout her body and she had the vague suspicion that Raava was more than a little pleased.
"Your previous incarnations relied too much on your past lives. Each time, you were under the misguided belief that they made you stronger when all they did was stand between you and me," explained Raava. "They eventually forgot about me."
"So by losing my connection to my previous lives, our connection is actually stronger?"
"Yes. Our connection is purer than ever before. But it's not just that. You have an inner strength that is even more profound and powerful than anything I can give you."
"My inner spirit," Korra said with a growing sense of understanding.
"You have a strength of spirit and will that is limitless, Korra. Each successive incarnation has led you to this point. You've had thousands of lifetimes to cultivate this strength, and now you're finally ready to realize your true destiny."
Tension eased from Korra's shoulders and she suddenly felt free of the confines of her own body. "When I interact with spiritual energy and when I bend energy… that has nothing to do with you. You can facilitate my interactions with the spirits, but connecting to the cosmic energy is all me," she thought aloud. "But at the same time… we are one. The Avatar Spirit and my inner spirit - we're not just fused together. We are one."
The revelation was entirely unexpected and immediate, but not forceful. She'd had a hint of it before, but hadn't been able to fully comprehend its meaning until that moment. A sensation coursed through her - something she hadn't felt so strongly since meditating in the Tree of Time during Harmonic Convergence. But this time, she didn't need the Tree of Time or the enrichment of Harmonic Convergence to magnify and focus her connection to the cosmic energy. She finally understood.
Korra opened her eyes, her gaze sweeping the horizon with a newfound clarity. She rose to her feet and felt the pulse of the world as surely as if it were her own. She was powerful, yet humbled. She was connected. She was… limitless.