Part 3 - Chaos

Claire stepped out of a brilliant display of light from atop a portal, finding herself in a dark, dreary atmosphere. Dead plant life and trees scattered amongst the landscape whilst Spirit birds cawed in the distance. And on the horizon stood a tall and robust stone temple.

"That must be the Tomb Avatar Kaishi mentioned..."

She hesitantly chuckled to herself, trying to distract from the pit growing in her stomach as she slowly approached the entrance guarded by a heavenly statue.

"He never found any traps... but that was who knows how long ago... I best be on guard."

She peered at the statue, poking, prodding and knocking against it, but she received no reaction, making her nonchalantly shrug and set foot across the archway, but as she did, the statue erupted into life, its ethereal white gauntlet grasping her collar and hurling her away from the tomb.

Claire kicked herself back up and stood before the Heavenly Spirit. Black markings coursed over it, and a winged crown decorated its head.

It summoned a cosmic claymore, jamming it in the ground and standing fast before her, "Who dares set foot in the tomb of Avatar Kaishi!?"

"Avatar Claire!"

The spirit's eyes quizzically flared, "And what doth bring thee here, Avatar?"

She scanned his form and whimsically ahhed at him, "Vaatu... Does the name 'Raava' ring any bells to you?"

"You know that name... and in this time... then it is as I feared."

Vaatu's weapon faded from his hand, "Doth thou know who released my wretched sister?"

"An old and foolish friend of mine..."

He shook his head and sighed, "Then come with me into the hallowed halls of Avatar Kaishi."

She nodded and marched up to him as they entered the tomb.

Within Republic City, Zu, Li, and his alter egos did what they could to reform the Governors' corpses into whatever respectable manner possible, stitching them up and even using metal to hold them together.

Kane, Li's tailoring Fire-bender alter ego, grimaced and shivered, "Yeesh... never in my life did I imagine I'd be using my sewing skills for this."

Zu heavily sighed, "This'll hopefully be the only time we need to do this."

While The Two Boys did what they could, everyone else stood in silence as The Heart of Chaos loomed over them with its intimidating aura.

Khana stared up at it as sweat crept over her, "How long did they even last in there?"

"Give or take a few minutes..." Ghazi replied, his nerves tingling.

She turned to him as her body quaked and a lump built in her throat, "Then what chance do we have?"

Everyone turned their gaze to Ghazi whilst Zu, and Kane remained focused.

"With an attitude like that, we will stand no chance. But unfortunately, we're all there is to stand up to this False Avatar!"

Despite his words, they all turned their gaze to the ground, a silence lingering as Zu tapped his giant foot and turned to him.

"Facing an Avatar... it's not something done easily; perhaps we should acknowledge our dread and survive while we still can."

Ghazi scoffed, "Being afraid will not keep us alive with what we are in the middle of, Giant!"

"Didn't you say 'a warrior must know when to flee'?"

He grumbled and grimaced, "I know what I said, Kadan, but this is not something we can simply flee from!"

She sighed and rolled her neck, "either way... I think Zu is right. We should just wait for Claire to return."

Ghazi turned to face her, his adamant gaze peering into her eyes, "And what if The Avatar does not come back? What then?"

Her eyes flared as she marched over and tightly grasped his leather binds, "Don't you dare say that!"

Despite her upfront protestations, he stood his ground, "We need to prepare for the worst, Kadan! If The Avatar does not come back-"

She released her grip and fiercely struck his face, "SHUT UP!"

Ghazi slightly stumbled back, grunting and placing a finger to his lips, finding blood trickling from his nose.

"You alright, Ghazi!?" Zu shouted as he and Ty Lee trotted over.

Khana went back in on him, but Zu blocked her with his enormous hand.

"Khana, Calm down!" Ty Lee protested.

Zu pushed her away from Ghazi whilst Ty Lee held onto her; her breath ragged as she gazed at her bleeding friend.

"Look, Khana. I know you don't want to hear it. But should the Avatar not return, we're the only ones who can stand against this guy."

"Weren't you the one who said we shouldn't fight!?"

The Giant knelt before her, "I know what I said. That's why I'm staying out of this fight. I may be a Patriarch, but I'm also reaching my dotage here. But you, on the other hand, you've got the soul of a warrior, Khana," he pointed to her heart, "You have the choice to either wait for the Avatar or to stand and fight in her name, to be her will and avenge her."

Khana's eyes slowly slanted as she slumped down onto the ground with Ty Lee supporting her.

"And as for your outburst, well... we should focus on fighting the enemy, not ourselves."

She sighed and slowly raised her head, "I'm... sorry, Ghazi."

But he simply shrugged with an uncaring glare, "Think nothing of it. I have suffered far worse than a bleeding nose, Kadan."

Khana softly chuckled as her head hung low, "Is it fine if I just... go for a walk?"

Everyone peered around to one another before turning back to her, "Don't be too long, or we'll have to go searching for you," Lin said.

She nodded and departed. And as she left, Zu leant over to Ty Lee, "Hey, keep an eye on her."

She affirmatively nodded, waiting for Khana to get a far enough distance away to trail her.

Claire and Vaatu entered the tomb, striding through the dark old stone corridors illuminated by the spirit's form, all the while she remained ready for anything.

He turned his quizzical gaze to the Avatar, "Would you settle down? Thou art acting like a beast will chop your head from thine shoulders."

"Sorry just... being precautious. New place and all."

"Is it really new if you are Kaishi's reincarnation?"

"By give or take a dozen millennia..."

But Vaatu let out a loud short laugh, "You think the Avatar Cycle is that young?"

Claire curiously slanted her eyes at him as they marched on, keeping her guard up until they found a wide-open room with a sleek Dao sword jammed into a stone in front of two sarcophagi.

"There it is! Balance's Edge!"

An uncontrollable grin overcame Claire as she rushed over to it and studied the pristine silvery blade, blood-red velvety handle and glimmering golden guard.

"Huh... sword in the stone, pretty sure my Dad used to tell me bedtime stories about these."

"Riveting stuff, young Avatar, but unlike those fairy tales- this is the real deal!"

Claire scoffed before turning her gaze to the coffins and raising an eyebrow to them, "I thought you said this was Avatar Kaishi's tomb..."

"Correct, young Avatar."

"So... why are there two coffins?"

"Why, one for Kaishi and one for Pang, of course."

Claire softly smiled, "I thought he didn't know what happened to her..."

"He doesn't, nor do I, at least not completely... after Pang, Tarrik and myself laid him to rest here with his Blade, we scattered to the four winds."

Vaatu strode around Balance's Edge and placed his hands on the two coffins, "I heard from one of the Southern Air Temple elders that she had died in her sleep while resting against a hand-carved statue of Kaishi."

He gently smiled, "They say she worked on it every day of her life, getting it as perfect as possible, all for him..."

Claire unconsciously rolled her hands in her palms, "Do you... need a moment?"

He took a loud, deep breath and turned to her, "Nay, time has claimed them both, and although you stand before me as Kaishi's reincarnation, there is nothing I can do to truly bring them back."

She nodded and finally approached the Dao Sword. Claire clasped the handle, taking a deep breath and pulling on the sword with all her strength, but despite her efforts, the blade wouldn't budge in the slightest.

She stumbled away and let out a strained gasp, "Am I... missing something? Avatar State, maybe?"

Vaatu inspected the sword, "I'm unsure, I do not think Pang or Tarrik mentioned a special way to remove the sword, and I certainly don't recall working any spirit magic on it... Perhaps it's been in there so long it's, uh... stuck."

Claire groaned and glared at the sword, the dismal reality making her hunch over, "So this was a waste of time?"

But before Vaatu could reply, a beam of energy shot up from the Sarcophagi, smacking against the tomb's ceiling and spreading out amongst the chamber, surprising the two as they shielded their eyes. As the raging spiritual particles silenced, a spirit with his back facing them stood atop the Sarcophagi. A man draped in a dark red partially shredded trench coat with gold lines streaming down the arm. His hair styled into a topknot and sideburns draping down the side of his face. He slowly turned to them, his Amber eyes peering into them as he revealed the dark brown knee-high boots and black baggy pants adorning his lower body and the black vest which covered his chest underneath his coat.

"... Kaishi!"

The Spirit of Avatar Kaishi faced the human and spirit, "Vaatu..."

A silence loomed in the air while the old friends stared at one another, smirks and chuckles breaking out from the pair.

"Trust you to make a grand entrance!"

"I haven't had a visitor for So long; I couldn't resist the urge!"

Claire's eyes bewilderingly darted between them, "Hold on a moment, I thought I could only contact my past lives through meditation or body possession, or whatever. How are you here!?"

"Where did you think all your past lives resided? It's not like we're all inside your head."

"I thought the Avatar cycle was your spirit being carried on throughout the ages and now onto me?" She asked, still not wrapping her head around the situation.

"Tis not my spirit. We are all the Planet's Spirit given form, but we create our own unique souls. And when we die, the cycle continues, and we retire to the Spirit World."

She placed a hand to her chin and hummed, "Same Spirit... Different Soul... Now I get it."

"Ah, my words didn't fall upon Deaf ears after all."

Claire grumbled and turned her attention to the sword, "So... this sword... you said we needed it to... defeat Raava, right?"

Kaishi silently observed her, "Tell me, young Avatar. Why should I bestow upon you, Balance's Edge?"

Claire lightly gawked, "Is that a trick question? I need this to defeat Raava, don't I!? Or were you just blowing hot air?"

His eyebrows mockingly flared, "Do you really need to defeat her? You could always get Vaatu to seal her away again."

Her fist clenched, "What kind of backwards logic is that!? Vaatu said that she would inevitably rise again if she were sealed away! And that's happened by my own friend's hand! I will not seal her away again! Whatever the price is, I'll pay it in full!"

Her defiant words echoed throughout the tomb as Kaishi's eyes slanted, "Even if that price is your friend's life?"

She sharply gasped as her fists softened, "No Avatar ever has an easy choice... so if that's the price... then so be it."

He smiled and applauded her, "You passed my little test... and so, I shall grant you Balance's Edge."

Claire solemnly nodded and marched up to it, wrapping her hand around the velvet handle.

He raised his finger to her, "But there are three rules you must follow."

She gazed up at him with determination flaring in her eyes, "... Go on."

"Rule one: You will only use this sword in the name of restoring the Balance of the Mortal and Spirit Worlds."

She nodded.

"Rule two: You will return Balance's Edge to its rightful resting place once it fulfils its duty."

She nodded again.

"Rule three:..." Kaishi smirked, "Don't break it."

She smiled and nodded.

Kaishi gestured to The Sword, making a dim light radiated around it as Claire took a deep breath and pulled on the sword, the scraping of the blade reverberating around the room as sparks flew out of the stone, and with a mighty cry, she released the blade from its stone prison.

She tightly gripped its handle and turned her gaze to her reflection in the shiny silvery sword as her heart raced. But the sword slowly turned into spiritual energy and flowed into her right arm.

She jumped back, flailing her arm and gawking at it, "What just happened!?"

"It's become a temporary part of you, for convenience."

Claire hesitantly smirked and humbly bowed to him, "Thank you, Avatar Kaishi! I won't let you down!"

A smile broke over Kaishi's face, "Oh, and don't forget this!"

He summoned a scabbard from the dancing spiritual energy around him and tossed it to her as it too faded into her right arm. She flexed her fingers and rolled her wrist in her hand with a wry smirk.

"Best of luck, Young Avatar."

He turned his back, beginning to dissipate back into Spiritual energy as Vaatu watched him fade away, letting out a melancholy sigh.

Hou sat alone on an earthy bench outside the Heart of Chaos, his distance gaze affixed on the cobblestone ground. Ghazi marched over and sat beside him, the tips of his fingers pressed together as he rested his arms on his knees.

"Governor?"

Hou turned to him and heavily sighed, "Yes?"

"Are you holding up sufficiently?"

He shook his head and averted his gaze, "I've just seen my friends get murdered and now... they're getting stitched back together not five meters from me, so..."

"Dealing with the death of a comrade is never easy. But the best thing you can do for them now is to live and keep moving forward."

He jerked up, "Keep moving forward!? For all, I know they're glaring down at me, wondering why I failed them!"

"Perhaps. But if they were your friends, surely they do not solely blame you for their deaths."

"I should've protected them! I should've... I should've stopped them from dying! But I couldn't... and instead of dying with them, I ran away like a coward!"

"There is no shame in preserving one's own life."

"Certainly feels shameful..."

A brief silence loomed over them as he turned his gaze up to Ghazi, "So, do you still plan on fighting this bastard?"

"Yes."

"Why? It's a hopeless battle, Ghazi!"

"With an attitude like that, it will be. But we have no guarantee that the Avatar or Inventor will return, or whether either of them are strong enough to defeat The False Avatar."

"I think Kang would be strong enough, heh, I would know."

"Even compared to 'this bastard'?"

Hou slumped and clasped the bridge of his nose.

"We must remain vigilant against this False Avatar, for all we know... we are this World's last and only hope."

The two exited the temple with Vaatu leading the way, but he stopped and pirouetted around to Claire, making her stop in her tracks.

"...you alright?"

"Draw thy blade."

Her eyebrow sceptically flared, "Wouldn't that break rule one?"

"I believe Avatar Kaishi will make an exception for training purposes. Now..." he summoned his cosmic claymore and raised it to her, "Draw thy blade..."

She hesitantly nodded and summoned Balance's Edge to her hand, holding it in the scabbard as she faced The Spirit of Order.

"Thou even wields it like Kaishi."

The two engaged, their blade slashing and clashing against each other until they locked against one another, "Channel your bending through the blade, Young Avatar!"

"...how?"

"Balance's Edge is more than just a sword. Tis a focus! Use it as an extension of thine own bending!"

Vaatu pushed her away as she stumbled back. She caught her breath and focused on the blade as the sensation of her chi flowing coursed along her body and the blade. With a swift slash she unleashed a crescent of flame at Vaatu as he rose a white barrier before him.

"Excellent work! But you've still got more to learn!"

The two recommenced their fight, elements flying and blades cleaving as the two grunted and roared until they locked blades again.

"Hey... mind if I ask you a few questions while we spar?"

"Not at all. Ask away, Young Avatar!"

The two pushed each other back and clashed once more, "about Raava... why didn't Pang, Tarrik or you try to kill her?"

"No regular human can harm us; we were born of the Primordial Lion Turtles Energy, a power drawn from the planet itself," Vaatu smashed the claymore into her blade and sent her flying, "and because of that, only Kaishi and by extension, you, can kill us."

Claire thudded onto the ground and slowly rose back up as she groaned, "that still doesn't explain why you didn't do it."

"Unfortunately, our creators made it so that we cannot kill each other, should we have ever got ourselves into a life or death battle."

"Lovely..." she kicked herself back up and dashed in, "anyway. How come Kaishi never seemed to be a 'Bridge Between Worlds'?"

"We had more important things to do, Young Avatar; tending to the petty needs of humans and spirits weren't high on our list of priorities!"

He slammed his claymore down on her, forcing her to her knees as their blades pushed against each other, "besides, defeating Raava was a benefit for both worlds, so in a way, he was fulfilling his duty as a bridge."

Claire shoved him away and flipped herself back as she sheathed Balance's Edge before swiftly withdrawing it and letting loose bolts of crimson flame.

But Vaatu swatted them away, "now you're getting the hang of it."

She smirked and dismissed Balance's Edge as a thought weighed on her mind, "Hey, Vaatu..."

"Yes?"

"If the Avatars are all in the Spirit World... does that mean I can contact all my past lives while I'm here?"

"Weren't you listening? Everyone is here; of course, you can meet them!"

The thought bloomed in her mind as the two departed from the tomb, setting out into the Spirit World to find her past lives.