A Broken World

A mushroom shaped cloud came into existence just over the horizon. Where ever it was, it wasn't marked on any map, we could only guess it was a part of the unknown. Most people ignored it, deeming it unnecessary for human development, but as I saw the cloud of smoke and debris fill the air, I was drawn to it. Sokka would later deem it one of my 'weird Avatar things' that made unconsciously change our course to head towards the section of the world that was ignored by almost every person on the planet.

A town of some sort came into view as we flew, but the building were unlike anything we were used to. Nearly everything was decimated, and what wasn't was filled with only the dead and those breathing their last breaths. What ever had happened here, it had been detrimental, there was no fixing this.

As we approached what seemed like the epicenter of this disaster, I saw a green dome surrounding something. Seconds later, it fell and revealed four people who were miraculously still alive, dressed in quite an odd sense, but alive nonetheless. Two of them, father and daughter by the looks of it, had fallen to the ground in there tears of sorrow. A third was looking to the sky almost praying for this to all be some horrid dream while the final person's hands were slowly falling from a defensive state as he too broke down in tears.

I landed Appa just a little ways off, far enough not to startle these strange people, but close enough to make a run for it if this was some sort of sick trap. As I approached, they were all still trapped to the memories of the town and people they'd lost.

"Are you okay?" The boy who had held his hand up as though defending the others took only a minute before settling into a strength that had not been there before. His shoulder squared and he looked ready to fight, even if he'd been crying only moments before. He was used to fighting and being the strong one when no one else was there to take up the slack.

"What do you think?" His response was cold, like he was trying to use it to hide the sorrow in his eyes.

The girl in all black recovered next, but try as she might to hide her emotions, they were still as clear as day to anyone looking on. "Danny, calm down. They didn't do anything." Danny? What an odd name. She placed a hand on his shoulder, as if she knew nothing good would come of him losing control. Perhaps he was a powerful bender with little control once emotion took over.

"Really? Well something caused that damned explosion! Isn't it such a coincidence that they showed up so soon after?" I could see it in his eyes that he knew this wasn't true, he just needed something to blame this on.

"It's not their fault, little brother. It's no one's fault." The red headed girl had come out of her own little world now. I found this odd, the younger ones were coming back to their senses before the adult when it really ought to be the other way around. Had these three teenagers already been through things the adult had yet to even imagine?

The boy, Danny, turned to face the two young girls behind him. "I know, Jazz. I just can't believe this happened, all these people, all the people that I've spent the past year protecting, are dead." Another odd name, it was clear that these people had been separated from the rest of the world for quite some time now. "I could have saved them, Jazz! I could have saved them, damn it! If I had just thought of them before my own survival, I could have saved them!" He was shaking, though whether from anger, sorrow, or a combination of the two, I will never know.

"Danny, we both know that even you couldn't have contained that blast." The girl in black was speaking again. "You did what you could, we're still alive because of you." She was fighting to calm him down while keeping herself level headed.

I felt the vibrations in the earth as my three companions started to move forward. "Don't." I said quietly, I knew what these people needed right now. "Let them acknowledge us first. They need some time to think right now." I saw the nod of Katara as she was now next to me and could only assume I'd gotten the same response from the other two as they didn't make a move to advance any farther.

The older man, who I assumed was the father of Danny and Jazz had finally stopped shedding his tears of sorrow and just stared blankly at the world around him before entrapping both of his kids and the black clad girl in a hug that probably took the wind out of all of them. I saw more tears run down his face as he closed his eyes and held on to the youths for dear life.

He released them and Jazz turned to us. "Who are you?" Her eyes were still red and puffy, but there was no fault to be found in that, I was still shocked that they had been able to recover so quickly even if it looked as though the slightest thing could send them back over the edge.

I answered as simply as I could. "I'm Aang." I pointed to each of my companions as I introduced them as well. "That's Katara, Sokka, and Toph." I didn't bother to hide our real names, my gut was telling me that these were good people, that I could trust them.

Sokka moved forward just a little. "We're Team Avatar." I could tell he was trying to lighten the mood in his own way.

Jazz nodded, and for half a second, I saw half a smile cross her features. "I guess you could say we're Team Phantom, then."

Danny spoke up from behind her, slowly creeping forward. "Why you insist on giving us a team name, I will never know Jazz." He was teasing her, desperately hanging on to what little happiness Sokka and Jazz had managed to conjure up.

"At least she's not calling us the 'Ghost Getters' anymore." The girl I had yet to identify remarked.

Danny let a half smile cross his features for a second before it left and he introduced himself more formally, then moved to the others in his group. "I'm Danny. That's the know-it-all sister, Jazz, Sam and my dad, Jack." Jack had finally composed himself enough to join the group.

"Why are you Team Phantom? You're not working with that no good spook, are you?" Danny visibly cringed at that, though his father didn't seem to notice.

"He's not evil, dad. And it's nothing to concerns you." I couldn't tell if it was guilt or fear the crossed his features and flashed in his eyes as he said that. Whatever the reasoning, Jack wasn't supposed to know about it.

"Danny, he's going to find out soon enough. That stunt you pulled isn't exactly easy to ignore." Jazz was giving her brother an odd look, it seemed to me that Jack was the only one out of the loop with whatever these three kids were doing.

"I know Jazz. I'll tell him later, just not now. Not after everything that's happened." Jack just stood in the background, listening and deciding to let his son keep whatever secret he had for the time being.

Toph appeared beside me. "Something's off with that Danny kid. I can feel his vibrations, but their muted, he's not normal." She was speaking so quietly, only I should have hear it, but I saw Danny look towards us, a slightly worried look on his face.

I looked to Danny, about to question him for our own safety when blue mist escaped his mouth. A blue, floating, figure appeared not to long after. Danny's face became very quickly annoyed.

"Beware! For I am the Box Ghost!" Something danced around Danny's hands, was that some sort of green fire? Was he a fire-bender?

His voice was deathly cold as he spoke. "You have either two options, Box Ghost. Either you can leave me the hell alone, or I can beat the absolute shit out of you."

"Foolish child! The Box Ghost does not surrender!" I had only been around this...thing for about two minutes, and I could tell he nothing more than an annoying idiot.

"Beat the shit out of you it is then." I swear his eyes flashed green before a shocked look crossed his face as a blue light encompassed the Box Ghost. Sam was holding something, I couldn't tell what it was though. "Am I not allowed a little misplaced aggression now?" Danny was peeved, but I could tell he was struggling to really stay mad at the girl.

"No, because we both know you would have beaten him out of existence all together with the state you're in right now." She smirked. It was almost as though this was something they were used to, something they could hang on to even though nothing they knew was still intact.

"Would have done both worlds a lot of good too!" He shot back.

"We both know you'd miss having him as an easy fight." Sam was just as good at this banter as Danny was, maybe even better.

At this point, Sokka could not contain himself any longer. "What the hell was that?!"

So...I really should have been working on an expository essay...then this chapter jumped into my head and refused to leave...that and it was much more entertaining...

Comments and feedback are welcome as always! :D

Invisible One