Chap. 11

Back in the USA

"Your world?" everyone cried out in shock.

"Yes. This is the dimension that we originally came from." Oscuridad said calmly. "And frankly, this is a good thing. We could've ended up in some strange place with no idea of how to survive. But instead, we're in a place that we know like the back of our hands."

"Especially me." Tierra said with a bit of pride. "I actually lived here for a few years, when the Architects split us up to learn about the ways of man."

"He did quite well too." Aire added. "After all, this was probably the only city on earth with enough weirdness in it to make him seem normal."

Tierra growled at that, but before it could go any further, Iroh said, "If that's the case, then you should tell us anything that we need to know, so that we can blend in here."

Tierra nodded, and began to explain. "Well first off, this city is made up of five different boroughs, Queens, Manhattan, Brooklyn, Staten Island, and the Bronx. We'll find out which on we're in later. The city itself is located in New York State, which is a region of the country known as the United States of America. It's basically fifty different territories that function together as one coherent country."

"So who rules over this country? Maybe their king can help us." Jin suggested.

"Don't bet on it. This country doesn't have a king. They have a government that allows the people to elect a leader, or 'president.'"

"What?! You mean there's no royalty? But how can a ruler be selected this way?" Zuko asked in disbelief, having grown up in a monarchy. The others were fairly surprised as well, since they had similiar ruling classes in their own cultures.

"That's how the government works, Zuko. 'By the people, for the people.' The leaders campaign for their positions and the people elect by majority. It's too big to explain now. But trust me, the president couldn't help us. One, he lives about four states down in a big guarded house. Second, he'd think we were crazy, since we're talking about something we have no way to prove without a lot of difficult explanations that would probably land us in a lab somewhere. Third, we'd have to explain the Avatar, bending and dimensional physics, and politicians aren't usually the most intelligent lot..."

"Um, Tierra I think you just killed democracy for everybody." Fuego said, as the groups' faces took on identical looks of amazement towards a ruler who could disbelieve something that was so commonplace to them (well, except the dimensions part).

"Look guys, all that stuff isn't really going to affect you right now." Oscuirdad said. "But here are the things that will. First, we're going to have to get you some different clothes, because right now you stick out like sore thumbs."

"How? Our money can't be good here." Katara said.

"True, but we can take care of that. Still, it's a bad idea to separate right now, so you'll all be coming with us. Thankfully this city is weird enough so that you shouldn't be noticed too much. But if anyone asks, you are a troupe of Chinese acrobats, and we are your American valets. You are learning English and therefore don't understand everything that is said to you. That way, if someone talks to you, you won't sound like compete idiots."

"Oh good, another circus story. That should be easy for you." Jin said to Zuko, rather coldly. Zuko grimaced and said, "Jin, I'm sorry. I didn't want to lie to you, but I didn't have a choice."

"Right. Because the fact I trusted you meant nothing at all." Jin replied.

"A-hem!" the bat coughed loudly. "I know you two have a lot to discuss, but can you have your little spat later? There's one more thing I have to tell you, and it is extremely important."

"Sorry." Zuko and Jin both said, as they turned their attention back to the bat. Clearing his throat, Oscuirdad continued.

"Now, there is one crucial difference between this world and yours that you all have to understand. Your world is a world of magic, which is how bending is possible. This world is a world of science. People put their faith in what they build with their own two hands, not in what they can feel with the elements. Because of that, people here do not bend. But more importantly, because they put so much faith and belief into what they can make themselves, they fear what they don't understand. So listen very closely to this: under no circumstances do any of you bend while you are here."

"Sounds fine to me." Sokka said.

"Oh yeah, big sacrifice for you. Come on, these people can't be that paranoid." Toph argued. "How am I supposed to get around with out bending?"

"Toph, I didn't mean for you to shut it off completely. No one can notice it when you 'see', so you don't have to worry about that. What I want is for you guys not to cause an earthquake, or a hurricane, or a tidal wave, or shoot fire out of your hands. If you do, these people are likely to panic, call an organization called the FBI, who will take you to a place called Area 51, where they will experiment on you to figure out how you bend and how they can duplicate the effect in others. Is everybody clear on that?"

Everyone nodded very hard, as Oscuridad had put just the right amount of emphasis in his voice. "Good." The bat replied. "Now then, we need to find a place where we can get money, and then somewhere to buy clothes. After that, we can try to figure out our next move. Let's go."

The bat turned and started to walk out the alley, only to hear Aang say, "You're breaking your own rule, you know."

"Huh?" Oscuridad asked, as he turned around. Smiling, the Avatar pointed to his clothes, then pointed to Oscuridad. The bat looked down at his ragged clothes, cape, gauntlets, and boots, and smiled himself. "Guess I got carried away, didn't I?" he said.

"Don't worry, I'm sure we can think up a good back story for you." Sokka said. "Maybe you're part of the circus too. The animal freakshow."

"Don't bet on it." The bat answered. Suddenly, the shadowfire whirled over Oscuridad, covering his entire body. Underneath it, his clothes began to change, to alter and grow. Finally, the shadowfire vanished, revealing that bat dressed in strange blues pants, red-and-white shoes, a white shirt, and a long black trenchcoat. His sword was still sheathed to his back though; the strap ran over the coat and under his arm.

"Nice, isn't it?" Oscuridad said, as he held out his arms to allow everyone a better view.

"Um, how did you do that?" Sokka asked.

"Like this." Agua said, as water began to surround him and alter his clothes. One by one, the other Knights repeated the process with their own elements, until all of them stood in altered clothes, thought their weapons remained intact. Most were similar to Oscuridad, with identical pants and shoes, minus the trench coat. But a few of them wore long shirts with many different colors. Fuego had kept his hat, which was now smaller and dead black along with a brown leather jacket. Luz was the most different; she wore a sleeveless, low-cut black shirt with large white letters written over it, and a ragged black skirt with black boots.

"That's acceptable here?" Iroh said in surprise as he pointed at Luz.

"It's a style called punk. Believe me, this isn't that bad." The fox replied. "Don't worry, you won't have to dress this way if you don't want to. There are plenty of styles of clothing stores to choose from."

"Wait, you mean we're still getting clothes from stores?" Sokka asked. "Why don't you just change our clothes like you did yours?"

"Unfortunately, if I tried that on you, all you'd get would be third-degree burns." Fuego replied. "Our clothes are enhanced with Elemental magic, and they change when we need them to. Hell, we're enhanced that way too."

"Before we started out, Rastla, the Shadow Architect, blessed us with a small amount of shadow." Hierro explained. "It allows to surround ourselves with illusion and change how people perceive us. It's the only reason we've been able to blend in with humans for so long."

"So that's why Fuego looked like a Royal Guard when we first met." Zuko said.

"Exactly. But since that can't work with you, I think we'd better hide anything that makes you stick out too much. Staffs and broadswords please."

Nodding, Aang and Zuko relinquished their weapons to the spider, who in turn passed them to Oscuridad. Holding them in his hands, the bat willed the shadows to wrap themselves over the weapons. After a moment, he dissipated the shadow, revealing nothing in his hands. "Don't worry guys, I just sent them into the shadows; I can call them back later." The bat said, noticing the shocked looks on his friends' faces.

"Now then, who wants to see New York?" Tierra asked, as he gestured out to the city.


The group walked out of the alleyway slowly, nervous about the sights that lay before them. The only ones that moved normally were the Knights, for whom none of this was new and Toph, who didn't see anything new or old. But for those who could, it was a sight that they would take to their graves. Huge, gleaming buildings that stretched to the heavens. Metal vehicles that moved through the streets of their own power. And people, Lord almighty, people! The crowds around them were vast, and of the most varied kind they had ever seen.

"Hey look at that guy!" Aang said, instantly pointing to a man in a suit walking down the sidewalk. As he passed them, he said aloud, seemingly to no one, "Uh-huh. Yeah. No, don't sell to him! Dammit Mary, how many times do I have to bail you out?" He continued this rant as he walked past them. Aang quickly moved his finger back down and looked away, trying to be as inconspicuous as possible. But the man took no notice and continued to walk.

"Are there invisible people in this world?" Sokka asked once the man was out of range.

"No, he was talking to a real person." Agua answered.

"What, real in his mind?" Sokka asked.

"No, just a person that isn't here. He was talking on what's called a 'hands-free phone.' It's a small device that fits in your ear, and lets you talk to people over great distance."

"You know, I may be somewhat inexperienced concerning personal appearance." Toph said. "But that guy even sounded like he was crazy! Would it make more sense to make something like that more obvious?"

"They used to be." Tierra said. "But people said they were too bulky, and things just kept changing until, well, this."

"So people walking around looking like they're out of their minds?" Katara asked in astonishment. "Well, this world's definitely amazing so far."

"I think it's about to get more amazing." Iroh said, pointing to something to the side. Katara quickly looked over and gasped in astonishment, the others quickly echoing her look. A block away was the most dazzling plethora of images any of them had ever seen. Lights danced all around, signs towered over them, and in some cases, the signs and lights were combined, into blazing, moving spectacles that were stunning to the eye.

"What…. Is this place?" Jin asked in wonder, as she stared at all the sights before them. Considering her amazement, the response she received was rather muted.

"Oh good, Times Square. That means we're in Manhattan." Oscuridad said. "It ought to be easy to figure out where to now."

"Tier, you're the expert. Where should we go?" Fuego asked. The dog looked around a moment, trying to remember the way to what they needed. Finally, he said, "There's a pawn shop a few blocks from here, on West 45th. And there's a GAP across the street from it. The usual craziness of city building placement."

"Sounds good to me." Oscuridad said. "Lead the way." Tierra nodded, and began walking in the direction of the street, the others in tow. As they walked along the sidewalk, Tierra began to talk about Times Square, sounding very much like a tour guide.

"Times Square is one of the most famous landmarks in the city." The dog said as they walked. "It stretches for five blocks, and is home to some of the most amazing stores and billboards in the world."

"Billboards?" Sokka asked.

"Those signs you saw when we came in." Tierra replied, as they came to the end of the block. Stopping at the end, the dog held out his right arm to catch Toph before she walked ahead into the street, as the others stopped of their own accord. "Wait for the light." He chided, as he pointed to the car-filled intersection in front of them. He then pointed to a small metal box on an opposing pole that depicted a red hand. After a few moments, the hand changed to a green person walking, the cars stopped, and the crowds began to move across the streets.

"The billboards are basically giant announcements of intent." Tierra explained, returning to his lecture without missing a beat. "Different companies put them up in an attempt to get people to buy the things they sell."

"Like a crier at a market." Jin said.

"Exactly. And the bigger and more memorable the sign, the more chance people will buy the product." Tierra said. But before he could continue, Zuko suddenly stopped, eyes wide, and asked, "So what is that guy advertising?"

Following the former prince's gaze, Tierra looked, gasped, and said, "Oh Jesus, he's still here?"

"Who is?" Katara asked, as she started to look over. But before she could look, Agua clapped his hands over her eyes. "Believe me Katara, you don't need to see this." He said, as Trueno covered Jin's.

"But it sounds like somebody singing." Katara argued.

"Yes, but he isn't wearing any pants…. Or anything else." The cat said.

"This would be the legend known as the Naked Cowboy." Tierra said, grimacing as everyone else averted his or her gaze. "He showed up a few years ago, and sings and plays guitar in his underwear almost every day, for reasons known only to him. Now, let's all keep averting our gaze and walking away until the nakedness is just a very disturbing memory."