Viola! Here it is, the fourth installment of Life of Kai? What will happen to the young Kai? Where exactly is Kai? Is she in the Spirit World or just a memory? Keep reading to find out.

"It is done." Namo said, breathing a sigh of relief. "The Fire Lord will never find out about this," he said, more to himself than his wife. He took several deep breaths and placed a hand over his heart. Ming said nothing.

Kai couldn't stifle the hideous snarl that ripped its way out of her throat. Terrified that the couple might have heard her, she clamped her hand over her mouth and ducked behind a nearby cluster of rocks.

"They cannot hear or see you," said an elderly male voice to her left. Caught completely off guard, Kai let out her loudest girl scream and rocketed about twenty feet into the air. Literally. The elderly male was waiting patiently with a serene smile on his face when Kai floated gently to the ground.

"Oh my goodness!" she yelled. "Do not ever do anything like that to me ever again! By the way, who are you?" Suspicion was written all over her face. Strange elderly men suddenly appearing in the middle of her memories didn't exactly warrant immediate trust in her book. And yet, she couldn't shake the feeling that she knew him from somewhere.

"My name is Roku," the elderly man said with a slight inclination of his head that could have been a bow. The instant she heard his name, she remembered where she knew him from. He was indeed old, but the power his body held was obvious from the way he carried himself. He wore traditional Fire Nation robes along with the crown prince's headpiece. Now that was interesting. His pure white hair was cut in the traditional way for Fire Nation noblemen. His eyes were the traditional Fire Nation gold. On the outside he appeared to be the average Fire Nation man of importance, but Kai could see deeper to the sparkle in his eyes that betrayed his wisdom and knowledge of the world.

"Avatar Roku," she said reverently. She had heard so much about the Avatar that had come before her nearly one hundred years ago. He was supposed to have been one of the wisest men who had ever lived. It was truly an honor to meet him. But wait, hadn't he died a long time ago? "With all due respect, aren't you supposed to be…you know…" Kai found that she couldn't bring herself to say the word.

"Dead?" Roku finished for her. "Yes, my mortal form expired nearly one hundred years ago, but the spirits of all the past Avatars live on here in the Spirit World."

It took a moment for that statement to sink in. "Wait," Kai said, now utterly bemused. "The Spirit World? Here?" Her voice rose in pitch steadily as she tried to wrap her brain around what the former Avatar was saying. "I-we're in the Spirit World?" Kai's brow was wrinkled in confusion and her eyes were closed as if she was searching for the answers behind her eyelids.

Roku's smile was kind and understanding when he replied, "Yes young airbender. You are in the Spirit World. As the Avatar, you are the bridge between this realm and the realm of the physical. You will journey here many times throughout the course of your life for various reasons. And I will always be here to help guide you along your way."

A musical trumpeting sound suddenly erupted into the night, and Kai had to cover her ears, not because it was a horrible noise but because it was just so loud! The roar battered Kai's eardrums with the force of an earthbender pounding her ears with stones. Through eyes squinted at the roaring sound, Kai could just make out the shape that was hurtling toward them. The creature stopped roaring and Kai managed to laugh and shout excitedly, "A dragon! Oh he's magnificent! He looks so much like Koru!"

"This is Fang." Roku said when the big red dragon landed curled in a circle around him. "Did you say you have a dragon as well?" He scratched Fang's head lovingly as he spoke. The dragon's eyes closed in pleasure.

"Yeah, I have a green dragon. Her name is Koru." Fang looked at her with an expression that almost seemed to ask, 'please?' Kai laughed and began scratching his head along with Roku. Fang's tongue lolled out and he panted when the pleasure doubled. Kai felt better than she had in a while. Playing with Fang almost made her forget why she was in the Spirit World in the first place. Almost.

"Kahn is your animal spirit guide. A companion in the physical world to help you on your journeys." Kai's throat constricted painfully when thoughts of the young girl alone in the ocean, betrayed by her parents, rushed back into her mind. All she could do was nod.

Roku's understanding, sympathetic smile transformed him into an old friend. "The girl will be just fine. Watch." For the second time that night, the universe swirled and melted together and made Kai really want to hurl, but just before she exploded, everything settled back down again.

Kai panicked immediately. They had reappeared under the ocean. Kai's worst fear was surrounding her, engulfing her, suffocating her, drowning her! She thrashed and kicked and screamed for several minutes before she realized that she could still breathe and hear her own screams loud and clear. Still slightly terrified, she clung to Roku's arm like a lifeline. Her breath came in sharp pants and her heart still raced.

"Look, young Avatar." Roku gently directed Kai's eyes to the scene before them.

It was without a doubt, the strangest thing Kai had ever seen.