Koa was born in the Southern Water Tribe and moved to Ba Sing Se when he was 23. He had a son named Maka and a wife named Kurra. Kurra died by a mysterious ailment when Maka was only 3. Maka was 4 when he and his father left to Ba Sing Se. There, he met another woman named Ming, who he would go on to marry and have another child named Tilo. Koa opened up a mask shop named "Koa's Masks" and has a very successful business. He now has enough money to buy a very large home. Koa is now 31, Maka is 16, Ming is 30, and Tilo is 8. This is the story of how the "Blue Spirit" began.
"Maka! Maka!" Koa shouted from the back room.
"Yeah, dad?" Maka answered, walking into the back.
"First of all, it's your turn to start working on masks. Second of all, how long will it be until that spirit mask is ready for painting?" Koa asked, standing up and washing his hands from the yellow paint he was using.
"Should be done soon, dad. Just need to carve out the eye-holes," Maka shrugged.
Koa walked back into the main room. He rubbed his eyes and sat down behind the desk. He heard the ringing of the bells he tied to the door. A costumer! he thought, jumping up.
"Welcome to Koa's Masks! How may I help you?" Koa greeted.
The man who came in was out of breath. He held scroll in his hand. He gasped for air and gave the scroll to Koa. He walked out the door and nearly collapsed. Koa opened the scroll.
"Maka! Come here! According to this letter, they know who the next Avatar is!" Koa exclaimed.
Maka came in a hurry.
"Well, don't keep it a secret! Who is it?" Maka asked.
Koa opened the scroll.
"After extensive investigations, yadda yadda yadda, the Water Sages have announced on the eighth day of the summer that the next Avatar is…" Koa read.
"Who? Who is it?" Maka asked nervously.
"Avatar Kuruk of the Southern Water Tribe," Koa smiled as he finished reading.
"Kuruk? My best friend, Kuruk?" Maka asked in disbelief.
"Yeah! That's amazing!" Koa laughed as he set the scroll on the table.
"Wait till mom hears about this!" Maka smiled.
"Alright, you got the news, now a successful business doesn't run itself. Go out to the store and buy some red paint. We're completely out," Koa ordered.
"Yes, sir!" Maka smiled, saluting.
He started for the door.
"Oh! And just so you know, my spirit mask is finished. You'd be surprised how fast you can carve out eye-holes," Maka smiled.
"Alright, I'll start painting it when I have the chance," Koa called after him.
After Maka left, Koa did his usual, look-around of the masks. They all seemed fine. He made sure each and every one were in peak condition. The Fair was coming, and he had bought a place in the main square for "Koa's Masks" booth! He always did this, even though the main square spaces were very expensive, he usually covered the price and more with his profits from the Fair. The bell rung again. He looked over to see four men about 16-20 years old. He quickly walked behind the desk and greeted them.
"Is there a particular mask you're looking for?" Koa asked.
"We ain't here for masks," the one who seemed to be the leader smiled, pulling out dual blades.
His three friends also pulled out dual blades. Koa backed up.
"Now, now, you don't have to do this. Just turn around and walk out that door," Koa spoke.
At this point, I should explain Koa was a pacifist and only used violence if someone were trying to kill him at that very moment. He was also proficient with dual blades and was a master of Kung-Fu. He learned Kung-Fu from his father when he was 10. By age 14, he had completely mastered it. Then, when he came to Ba Sing Se, he took up Dual Blading, just in case he had to fight a bender. He noted that the one on the leader's left was an Earth-Bender.
"Just hand over all the money you got in the store, and we won't hurt you," the leader grinned at him.
Koa reached under his desk and pulled up a bag of silver and copper pieces. It was about as big as a volleyball. He set it on the counter. The door behind them opened and Maka walked in with a bucket of red paint. He dropped the bucket and got into his Water-Bending pose. The one that could Earth-Bend just stomped his foot and a large rock came from the floor, launching Maka upwards. Maka's head hit the roof. He fell to the ground, not moving.
"Dang it!" the leader snarled, snatching up the bag and running out the door.
The other three ran after him.
"Maka!" Koa shouted, kneeling down to his son's body.
He felt tears well up in his eyes. He felt his heartbeat, nothing. He stood up and looked down at his son's dead body. That's when he changed. He wasn't a pacifist anymore. He had seen many crimes go on, and he helped to resolve them, usually without violence. But then, a man's mask shop is robbed and no one raised a hand to help them? He looked down at the red paint Maka brought in. He picked up Maka's body and set him on the bed in the back. Ming would be here soon. She would see him and make sure he got a proper burial. Koa wrote a note. He wrote it fast. He was leaving. Leaving Ba Sing Se to better the world. He grabbed the red paint Maka had brought in. He picked up Maka's spirit mask. He started painting. A white hear, a red there. Soon, the mask was finished. At night, he snuck into "Tang's Silk-Wear" and stole a black cloak with a hood. He fit the cloak on with a matching black pair of gloves and boots. He picked up the Dual-Sword underneath his desk, and put it on. He fir the mask on and threw the hood on over it. He was now, the Red Spirit. He jumped from rooftop to rooftop with amazing acrobatics. He had been learning how to jump far since he was a child. He jumped and looked at the late-night walkers. He saw him. The one who had killed Maka. He jumped so that he was on the rooftop next to him. The man walked into an alleyway. The Red Spirit dropped down and swiftly kicked the man back. The Red Spirit drew his Dual-Blades.
"Who are you?" the man shouted at him.
The Red Spirit just tripped him, knocked his Dual-Swords away, and put his Dual-Blades at the man's neck.
"Don't try any of the Earth-Bending or these blades are going straight into your neck," the Spirit threatened.
"I'll give you all the money I have, just don-"
"I don't want your money. I want to know where my money is. The money you stole from me."
"I dunno, I swear!"
The Spirit's blades inched closer to his neck.
"Okay! It's in the warehouse, the one next to the fountain square," the man whined.
"Alright, but if you're lying, I'll kill your family," the Spirit threatened again.
"No! If I'm lying just kill me instead!" the man begged, "Leave my family out of this!"
"I don't want to kill you twice though."
"W-what do you mean?"
"I don't think you get the big picture, do you?"
"What?"
"You're already going to die. Whether or not your family lives depends on if you're lying."
"Why? Why are you going to kill me?"
"For Maka."
The Red Spirit uncrossed his blades through his neck. He jumped atop the house next to him and he looked for the fountain square. He saw it. He jumped over and looked around. He saw the warehouse. He jumped over to it and crawled in the top floor window. He heard voices from downstairs. He put his ear to the floor. They were here. All three of them. He walked down the stairs silently. The three of them had three big bags of money in them. One had gold in it. Another had copper. The last one had silver and copper. These guys had been stealing from people for a while. He drew his Dual-Blades. One of them spotted him.
"Hey! Who're you?" that one shouted.
The others turned around.
"Li-To, you know this guy?" the other one asked.
"No, Kogu, I don't," the leader answered.
Kogu and the other one approached the spirit, swords drawn. Kogu swiped first. The spirit ducked as Kogu's blades swung over his head and into Li-To's other man. The spirit drove both swords into them, killing them. He threw them to the floor and he stood up.
"You're pretty good," Li-to remarked, drawing his Dual-Blades.
"Thank you. I've been practicing for scum like you," the spirit replied.
"So what are you, a vigilante?" Li-To smiled, as he and the spirit started to circle each other.
"No, I'm a criminal, just like you, and I want those big bags of money on the table over there," the spirit explained.
"So, what can I call ya?" Li-To asked.
"The Red Spirit," the spirit claimed, throwing a double slice at Li-To.
Li-To blocked the attack and threw one blade under and the other over. The spirit blocked both and threw a lunge at him. Li-To took a step back and swung with all his might into the blades, making them fly from the Spirit's hands. Li-To threw a fury of swipes at the Spirit. He just dodged them all and kicked at Li-To's side. Li-To grunted and dropped one of his blades. The spirit moved in dodging Li-To's first swipe and hitting him in the stomach with a few quick jabs. He jumped back, but not fast enough. Li-To got his arm, making blood drip from it. The spirit grabbed his arm.
"Now, what are ya gonna do?" Li-To laughed.
The spirit shook his head.
"This," the spirit said, suddenly pulling out a bucket of red paint and throwing its contents onto Li-To.
"Gaah! My eyes!" Li-To screamed.
The spirit picked up Li-To's dropped sword and stabbed him straight through the stomach. Li-To dropped dead. The spirit grabbed the bags of money and returned them to their rightful owners. Each one with a note that said, "From the Red Spirit". The next day, the street was absolutely buzzing about the Red Spirit. Everyone had heard the story of how the money was stolen from three businesses, and the next day, they were returned. A lot of people were actually celebrating. And by that, I mean everyone who wasn't a criminal. Everyone except a mother and her child, who were grieving the death of a family member, and the mysterious disappearance, of their father and husband.