The door opened with a soft creak. Two hooded figures entered the door, their features hidden by their masks. Light from the corridor wrapped around them, pouring into the room. Inside the room, a small mound laid on the bed, covered by a blanket. One of the figures stepped forward, nodding at the other, who returned with a confirmatory nod. The figure reached at his hip, unsheathing a sword. Hovering for a moment, he soon swiftly brought the sword down into the figure on the bed.
Swish. The sword slid cleanly through, too cleanly in fact. There were no blood, no resistance from the flesh, bones and organs, and not even a scream or a muffled groan. Instead, it sounded like the sword just went through a couple of pillows. Pulling back the blanket, the figure indeed had found that what his sword went through was just a decoy.
"It's a tra-" before the figure could finish speaking, his accomplice fell down to the ground, groaning and convulsing. On his back were two metal probes, connected to wires to a device. A device that Jay held in his hands. Before he could even reach for his sword that was still stuck in the bed, Jay had already gotten his own sword and rammed it into the assassin's torso. This time, it had the resistance of flesh and bone. And the muffled scream.
Jay pulled the sword from the now lifeless body, wrinkling his nose in disgust. He had just turned to the accomplice, when suddenly, he felt his entire body stiffened. His joints ached and he lost grip of the sword, which fell to the ground with a clatter. He felt his body being controlled, as if it were a puppet, despite him using every last ounce of his willpower to fight it. Soon enough, he was turned around and brought to his knees, and in front of him, hand still stretched out, was none other than Amon.
"The revelation will come. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but it will come. Soon. And when it does, you will be sorry you ever picked the wrong side," the voice poured from the hole in the mask. With that, Amon stretched out his hand, reaching towards Jay's face.
"NO!" I woke up with a start, only to find myself still on my bed, and alone in my apartment. There were no assassins, no Amon - just me in my small apartment. I sat on my bed for a couple of minutes, realising that it was just a dream - a vivid one, that is. After calming myself sufficiently, I tried going back to sleep, only to give up the moment I laid back down. My back was drenched in sweat, and so was my bed, which made it uncomfortably moist and damp. Glancing at my clock, I realised it was already 5 in the morning, and decided to start the day earlier instead. Brushing my teeth and throwing on my coat, I soon found myself wandering the street towards the harbour, as the shops and stalls begin to prepare for the new day.
The winds at the harbour was unforgivingly chilly, cutting away at any exposed skin. A light fog hung over the harbour, making Air Temple Island just barely visible. Looking at the solitary island, I thought to myself how the air benders were that reclusive. Then again, literally the entire air nation lived on that island, so maybe it was for the best.
Air Temple Island is also where Korra stayed. After the incident with Amon, Naga took us straight to the pier, where we were met by Tenzin and the White Lotus. Obviously they were rather annoyed that Korra had once again sneaked off, but was soon replaced with concern knowing that Amon could take away bending at the flick of his wrist. Tenzin also found out what happened with Mako, Bolin and myself, and had offered us temporary lodging at the island. I declined, and the White Lotus offered to send me home, while Mako and Bolin decided to stay partly due to the injuries they sustained.
"Jay!" a voice suddenly called me, while a hand simultaneously grabbed my arm. I was instantly started, jolting and swatting the hand off me, probably with too much force. I quickly spun to face the person, only to realise it was Asami, who had a concerned look on her face.
"Jay, are you ok?" she started cautiously, probably due to still being shocked by my sudden actions.
"Yea, I'm fine I guess. Sorry about that, you sort of surprised me," I replied sheepishly.
"Surprised? I was calling your name for at least a minute!" Asami started, only to stop. She pulled me closer, staring at me directly. Just as I started to feel uncomfortable, she asked, "Are you alright? What happened?"
"Nothing...nothi, I'm fine Sami," I started, only for her to shake her head.
"There is something wrong. Could you please tell me? I'm really worried for you. You didn't even answered the phone when I called you last night," Asami continued. I blinked. I didn't recall the phone ringing, but then again I collapsed on my bed the minute I reached home.
"It's...I just had a nightmare that's all. Nothing really worrying," I spoke, not wanting to tell her what it was about.
"Jay," Asami spoke, placing her hand over my hand that was on the railing. This caused me to turn to face her. "I know something is bothering you. And you can tell me. Please, I'm worried for you," Asami spoke, her green eyes staring deep into mine. I sighed, "Let's go sit on that bench there. It's a long story."
"So you're saying that this Amon guy can just take away people's bending? Just like that?" Asami asked, shock all over her face. By now, the sun was slowly creeping above the horizon, and the shadows cast on her face only exemplified her shock.
"Yea, and his soldier's can temporarily block people from bending, or even using their limbs," I added, thinking back to how Mako and Korra describe their earlier encounter when Bolin was captured.
"Chi-blockers," Asami helpfully added, rubbing her chin. "Normally it only lasts for a few minutes to half an hour at best, and they can only target specific points in the body."
"However, I am more worried about you. You took on two equalist guards by yourself. What were you thinking? What if you got hurt?"
"Three, actually, and to be really honest I don't know how I did that," I admitted sheepishly, only to get hit on the arm by Asami. "Ow, what was that for?"
"Are you crazy? You're a non-bender. You're not a fighter. And you think you can take on the equalist? The Avatar is the most powerful bender, while Bolin and Mako are top notch pro-benders. They are out of your league!" Asami berated, while I just nodded. She was right. Korra was a really powerful bender, despite still being in training. Mako and Bolin were pro-benders for most of their lives. I was only a non-bender. As smart as I was, sometimes brains needed brawn.
Before long, the sun had already risen, and we decided it was good timing to head to the office. Asami offered to drive me, and with my company car still at home, I accepted. As we were driving past the pier towards Future Industries, I suddenly spotted a few familiar figures disembarking a small ferry. A few familiar figures and a huge polar bear dog.
"Hey, Asami, could you make a detour to the pier?" I asked, and Asami was about to ask why when she herself noticed the figures. Making a right turn, Asami soon drove onto the pier, stopping a short distance away from the figures.
"I'm so sorry for dragging you guys into this, I just... wait Jay?" Kora was speaking to the brothers when she suddenly noticed me getting off Asami's car. "What are you doing here?"
"I was passing by when I spotted you guys. How is everything going?" I asked, noticing Tenzin and a couple of White Lotus guards present.
"Well, Mako and Bolin were injured during the fight, but I managed to heal them," Korra explained. I raised my eyebrows, and was about to ask what injuries when Bolin spoke up.
"Man those equalist really pack a punch, especially the electric guy. Thankfully me and Mako only sustained some cuts and bruises, along with some burnt hair from the electric guy. But other than that, we are as fine as ever," Bolin spoke up, ending by proudly pointing to himself. Did he even realise how deadly electricity could be?
"How are you? Did you sustain any injuries?" Korra asked, while I shook my head. "I managed to avoid getting into direct fighting with the equalist."
"Mr Jay, am I right?" Tenzin suddenly spoke up, slightly startling me. His tall lanky figure, with the air bender robes flowing in the sea breeze, made him look like an apparition from my peripheral vision. "If you don't mind, I would like to ask you some questions, regarding yesterday."
I cast a glance at Asami, who laughed slightly and said, "Well I can't go against a councilman. You can have the whole day off if needed. By the way Bolin and Mako, do you need a lift home?"
"Don't worry, Miss Sato. I will not hold Jay for too long," Tenzin bowed slightly at Asami, before leading me towards the ferry, along with the White Lotus guards and Korra. Meanwhile, Bolin and Mako boarded Asami's car, and drove off not long after.
"Given the circumstances, I hope you understand and wouldn't mind sharing with me about your encounter with Amon," Tenzin began as the ferry pulled away from the pier. "Please understand that the safety of the city is at stake."
"I understand," I assured, before asking, "Is the police aware of this?"
"Chief Lin will be taking action soon enough, but we need to know more about this Amon. I doubt the other supporters at the rally will be of much help, so I can only rely on the few of you for now," Tenzin said, stroking his beard. I noticed Korra walking towards us, before standing next to the railing and pretending to look out to the sea. If my guess is right, she was trying to eavesdrop, although subtlety wasn't her thing. Noticing me glancing towards Korra who stood behind him, Tenzin sighed and said, "If you prefer to discuss it in private, I can get Korra to go away," emphasising Korra's name.
I shook my head, and told him it was fine. By now, the ferry had already reached the pier at Air Temple Island, and we all disembarked the ferry. The island was not too big, housing a temple that reminded me of the Tibetian style monasteries. Small pavilions and buildings dotted the compound, while a tall tower overlooked the entire island. The entire compound was atop the cliffs that surrounded most of the island, with the only entrance being a long staircase. 'Someone should invent the escalator,' I thought to myself as my knees began to feel weak from all the climbing there is to be done.
The climb wasn't too bad, with landings every now and then. The scenery was beautiful, and provided a stark contrast from the hustle and bustle of Republic City itself. The fog still hung even though it was late morning, and I could make out the blurry skyline beyond the fog. Tenzin was at the front leading the way, conversing in hushed tones with the White Lotus while Korra walked behind me together with Naga. However, about halfway up the stairs, she caught up beside me.
"So, umm, Jay," Korra started, while I just turned to look at her. "I haven't really got a proper chance to thank you for helping us yesterday."
"Don't worry, it was nothing much," I replied.
"Nothing much? You took down two equalist guards that were twice the size of you," Korra said in an incredulous tone. I brushed it off, saying, "It just took a bit of luck and some quick thinking."
"I'm just worried about this Amon. If he is truly able to just remove people's bending at will, then it would be a serious trouble." Beside me, Korra nodded in agreement, saying, "He's is dangerous and must be stopped."
"Korra, would you go and train at the panels? Get Jinora and Ikki to help you. I would need some time to speak with Jay," Tenzin commanded. We had reached the top of the stairs without me knowing. Korra let out an annoyed puff, saying to me, "See you later" before walking off to her training. I turned to follow Tenzin into one of the buildings.
"Your story provides a different point of view, but it still corresponds with Korra, Mako and Bolin's," Tenzin said, stroking his beard after hearing my long story. I sipped on my cup of tea to avoid being scalded, before drinking it normally upon realising it had already gone cold. Tenzin was interested in finding out what Amon was capable of, and also what his goals were. I had told him exactly what happened, save for my chance encounter with Rei.
"So what is going to happen from here," I asked, but before Tenzin could reply, a small figure came bursting into the room.
"Daddy!" she called out, only to realise that I was staring at her. She was wearing air bender robes, and her hair was tied into two buns. She took a moment to stare at me, almost as if studying me and peering into my soul.
"Not now Ikki," Tenzin sighed and said, "Can't you see I'm busy with a guest?" Upon hearing that, Ikki turned towards me and continued studying me for a few more seconds. Finally, I spoke up, "Hi, my name is Jay. What's yours?"
"I'm Ikki," Ikki introduced herself. Then, without warning, she suddenly asked, "Are you coming to be one of Korra's boyfriends?"
I nearly spilled my tea. That question was out of the blue, a curveball, and completely random. I was more intrigued at how Ikki's thought processes took her from introducing herself to questioning my non-existent love life with Korra. "Uhh, no? I barely know her."
"Oh, well if one day you change your mind, you would have to compete with the fire bender guy," Ikki replied, and I raised my eyebrow. Fire bender guy? There was only one fire bender on the island recently to my very limited knowledge, and that was Mako. Good to know.
"Ikki, if there's nothing urgent, please don't disturb us. This is important work," Tenzin finally spoke up, standing up from his chair and walking towards Ikki.
"I'm not the one who said it was urgent. It's Korra, she wants to talk to you about her nightmare," Ikki innocently said, seeing that her father was about to shoo her from the room. Wait, did she say nightmares?
"Tell Korra I'll discuss it with her later. Tell her to meet me at the pavillion in about an hour's time," Tenzin instructed, and led Ikki to the door. Finally getting rid of her, Tenzin returned to his seat opposite me.
"Sorry for the disruption," Tenzin apologised as he sat down, but I was not paying attention. Instead, my mind was replaying my nightmare from the night before.
"Mr Jay? Jay?" Tenzin's voice slowly filtered into my mind.
"Sorry, I was just thinking of something," I apologised sheepishly, as I slowly returned to reality. However, unable to resist any longer, I cautiously asked, "What happened to Korra?"
"Korra? She just had a nightmare yesterday and would like to talk to me about it," Tenzin quickly said, not delving into more details. It made sense - after all I was a complete stranger.
"Oh, I'm sure it' s nothing much. I was just curious because I had a nightmare last night too," I laughed and brushed aside this topic.
"You may think it is nothing, but often times dreams are because the spirits are trying to communicate with us. Especially for someone like the Avatar being the bridge between us and the spirits, dreams can be a powerful thing, as are nightmares. This is especially true during or just before times of major imbalances. It's like the spirits are trying to warn us," Tenzin explained, stroking his beard. Air benders were a spiritual group of people, being the furthest from the material world compared to the other 3 nations. If anyone knew anything about the spirits and the spirit world, it would be the airbenders. "But I digress, let's get back to the more pressing issue of Amon."
I nodded, although deep down inside me the thoughts of my nightmare was still continuing to gnaw away at my focus and concentration. Somehow, what Tenzin had said made sense. What if my nightmare wasn't the consequence of the events that happened, but a foreshadowing of what was to come. Normally, I would have scoffed at this idea. But when you're in a world where people can shoot fire from their palms, control water and even hurl boulders at you, it is really eye opening.
Halfway during our discussion, Tenzin had to attend to something in Republic City. Apparently it was last minute, so Tenzin allowed me to roam around the island. It was like a sanctuary, mainly greenery, plants and pavillions. There were many animals too - flying lemurs were the most common, gathering in groups and feeding on fruits and nuts. As for humans, it was mostly the air acolytes, a group of people who decided to live the life of an air nomad despite not being air benders. They mostly acted as caretakers, taking care of the flora and fauna. Oh and the occasional Ikki and what I guess were her younger brother zipping along on a ball of air.
I stood in one of the pavillions overlooking the ocean rather than Yue Bay. Instead of Republic City's familiar skyline, all there was were the emptiness of the ocean. There were some landmasses and ships in the distance, but they were so small they might as well have not been there.
"Stupid air bending. Always being the leaf. Did they seriously not have anything else to be like besides leaves in the air temples?" a familiar voice could be heard in the distance, and getting louder as the owner approached my pavilion. I looked over my shoulder, and saw Korra in her air bending robes kicking the ground as she walked, eyes focused on the ground and kicking any pebble that was in her way. She kicked a fruit that was lying on the ground, sending it flying in the direction of me. I side stepped, allowing the offending fruit to fly harmlessly behind me.
"Jay? What are you doing here?" Korra looked up, surprised that I was standing inside the pavilion. I looked at her quizzically, partly because it was odd seeing her in air bending robes, and partly because she had just kicked a fruit at me.
"I should be asking you that. And why you're in air bending robes. And why you kicked a piece of fruit at me," I replied. "And to answer your question, Tenzin was discussing some matters with me before being called to Republic City for some meeting, so I guess I'll just have to past the time for now." As I was talking, Korra sighed and plopped down onto one of the stools inside the pavilion.
"Is something wrong?" I asked, wondering what could get Korra so down.
"It's nothing really. I just can't seem to master air bending. And maybe it's cause I didn't sleep well last night," Korra sighed as she started to roll up the sleeves of her air bending robes. Was it really that hot till she had to roll up the sleeves? Maybe she was just too used to living in Antarctica. Oh wait, Southern Water Tribe I meant.
"It's ok. I can't sleep too well when I get nightmares too," I assured, casually suggesting that I knew about her nightmare. By my guess, and from the way Tenzin quickly avoided the topic, Tenzin had probably wanted to keep this under wraps and told Korra not to mentioned to anyone about it.
"I know it's just a nightmare, but it seemed so real," Korra said softly as she looked out over the bay. A few seconds passed, then her voice suddenly became loud again as she questioned, "Wait, how did you know about it? No one was supposed to know about it."
"And yet you were the one who told me. I merely suggested that I know of your nightmare," I explained, while Korra's face when a little red from embarrassment. Nonetheless, she still looked as ready as ever to bend a boulder at me, so I quickly added, "Ikki mentioned it when she burst into Tenzin's office when we were talking just now."
"That girl is so dead," I heard Korra mutter under her breath, before looking out again into the distance, saying, "There you have it, your all powerful Avatar affected by a little nightmare." Korra pulled her legs to her chest, resting her chin on her kneecaps.
"I think it's fine," I cooly said, taking a seat opposite her. This caught her attention, and she immediately put her legs down and turned to face me. "I think having nightmares is a perfectly normal thing. Not that I like it and actively wish for it to happen, that would be dumb." Korra chuckled a little.
"Was it about Amon?" I asked, and Korra suddenly stiffened up. "How do you know so much?"
"I previously didn't, but now I do," I laughed a little, and Korra folded her arms and huffed. "I never said it was true, I was just asking how you know so much... wrong stuff."
"Nice try Korra," I said, and she deflated a little. "Well, I figured if there was something that could give the mighty Avatar a nightmare, the closest would probably be Amon," I shrugged, while Korra merely looked down at her feet. "But if it makes you feel better, I had a nightmare about Amon too last night."
"You did?" Korra asked, her eyes wide open. "What was it about?"
"I don't really know too myself, but I was wondering if I could ask Tenzin about it. He does seem to know quite abit about these dreams and spirit things.," I said, while Korra nodded in agreement. "He's Mr Spiritual after all," she added.
"Mr Jay, Tenzin has returned," one of the air acolyte called out from behind me. Nodding in acknowledgement, I turned back to Korra, before giving her a thumbs up sign and saying, "Don't worry, you can do it. You are the Avatar after all." Korra gave a smile, before I turned back to follow the air acolyte to Tenzin's office. It was a good thing he was there, for I would definitely get lost in the maze that is Air Temple Island. However, just before I left, I heard a voice call out to me.
"Jay!" I turned around. "Thanks."
I smiled, nodded and walked off with the acolyte.
"Thank you for your time Mr Jay. Your description and analysis of the events have surely helped us know a lot more of the incidents that happened. I'm surprised that such a young man like yourself have the intelligence rivaling that of experienced scholars," Tenzin thanked me as we walked down the many paths within Air Temple Island.
"You're welcome. However, before I go, I just have one question to ask you," I turned to face Tenzin just before the stairs down to the pier. "Go ahead, I'll try my best."
"Earlier you mentioned that nightmares could be spirits trying to communicate with the person," I asked, and he nodded. "I can't be completely certain, seeing that there are not much information about spirits, but it is mentioned in many ancient air bending scrolls. My father also mentioned it when he was the Avatar."
"You also said that it was mostly linked to times of great imbalances," I asked, while Tenzin nodded. "What do you mean by great imbalances?"
"To put it simply, our world must always be kept in balance, and it is also linked to the spirit world. Times of imbalance is when the world is out of balance, such as during wars, natural disasters or anything that could mess up the balance. Even this anti-bending campaign can be considered one," Tenzin explained, looking over the bay into the city. The lights were starting to light up, flaunting the city's skyline against the quickly darkening sky. "Why are you interested in this?"
"I was just curious," I replied, before asking, "Was Korra's nightmare about Amon?" I already knew the answer, but I was just trying to see how Tenzin would react.
Tenzin looked at me suspiciously, before asking, "Why do you think that way?" Tenzin was a politician, being a councilman, and he was careful not to reveal whether Korra's nightmare was or wasn't about Amon, while still being able to ask me for my information, just as I expected.
"Oh, I had a nightmare last night too, and it was about Amon. Since the rally was a shared experience, I thought maybe Korra's nightmare would be about Amon too," I explained, seeing Tenzin was expecting an answer from me. Stroking his beard, Tenzin asked, "That is indeed worrying. If you don't mind, could you share with me the details of your nightmare."
Tenzin invited me a room within the air temple island. The room was circular, surrounded by bookcases and a few cushions in the centre. He took a seat on one of them, and beckoned me to do the same.
"I'm guessing you want to ask me about your dream," Tenzin said, closing his eyes. I looked around while seated on the cushion. It reminded me of those scenes within the movies where some oracle would be seated. The shelves were filled with ancient airbending scrolls, some of which looked at least a hundred years old.
"Yes. It was about Amon, and I think it's more of a nightmare than a dream," I started. Before long, I had concluded my story, right up to the point where Amon grabbed my face and I woke up. Tenzin opened his eyes, and began rubbing his beard once again.
"This is indeed troubling. While air benders are supposed to be the most spiritual benders, even I myself don't really understand much about your dream. My only guess would be that you will play a part, big or small, I am not too sure, but you will somehow be connected to Amon in the near future. My advice is to stay safe, since we still do not know what Amon is capable of," Tenzin advised, before standing up and leading me towards the door.
The sky was already dark when I left Air Temple Island on the small ferry. Tenzin had invited me for dinner with his family and Korra, but I declined politely. And so I found myself on a small ferry nearing the mainland. The cold winds were nibbling at my ears, and I pulled my coat collar higher to shield me from the winds. Stepping onto the jetty, I thanked the white lotus sentry before hailing a cab to take me home.
For some reason, when I reached home, I was exhausted. Normally I had no problem working late into the night, but today I just wanted to lie down and sleep. Maybe it was because my sleep was interrupted by the nightmare. But then again, who cares, I just wanted to sleep. And sleep I did. However, just before I slipped completely into my sleep, I heard Amon's voice over the radio, mentioning something about a task force.