Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters mentioned here.

This story was made only with entertaining purposes and is not intended to be taken seriously in any social, political or religious context under any circumstances.

"Avatar" and its characters belong to "Nickelodeon".

"Spawn" and its characters belong to "Image Comics"/Todd McFarlane.


Book Two: Earth

Fateful (K)nights

II

The Night of Reckoning


The front door unexpectedly swung open.

Katara turned, rising from her zabuton, finding Sokka and Toph storming inside their house in the upper ring of Ba Sing Se.

"Where's Aang?" he asked.

"He hasn't returned from dropping the leaflets," Katara replied, approaching to them. "What's wrong?"

"We came across something he needs to know." Toph said.

"Is it about Appa?"

"No, it's more of an 'Avatar' issue, about spirits."

"Spirits? In Ba Sing Se? How do you know?" Katara arched an eyebrow, crossing her arms.

"We don't, it's an educated guess," Sokka brushed his chin contemplatively. "We don't know the whole story yet, but it's definitely something to be in the look-out for."

"Look-out for what?"

As soon as the familiar voice sounded, everyone's attention headed towards the entrance, spotting Aang standing beneath the doorframe with a confused look in his face.

"Any news about Appa?" he inquired while he entered to the house.

"Not really," Sokka answered. "Haven't you been in the lower ring lately?"

"No, this is a huge city, you know?" Aang rolled his eyes. "I just came here for a short rest before heading out again. What happened in the lower ring?"

"There's probably a spirit in Ba Sing Se."

"What?"

"We heard it from a merchant," Toph added. "Two bodies were found in the firelight fountain this morning."

"I'm… sorry to hear that, but spirits just don't go around murdering people. Maybe stealing their faces, but still…"

"No, no, no, you don't get it," Sokka snapped. "The bodies were ripped apart. The merchant said one of the corpses had his head in the fountain, below the water, as in 'being drowned by someone else'."

"That's horrible…" Katara trailed off, covering her mouth with her hands.

"It is, but that still doesn't prove a spirit did it," Aang scratched the back of his head. "Did you see the bodies?"

"No, the Dai Li were blocking the street by the time we got there, but tell me that's not indicative of something weird going on."

"Perhaps, but we're not the authority here, and Joo Dee said we should watch our step around the lower ring. I think we should focus on finding Appa before anything else."

"But what if the spirit, or the animal, or whatever is loose in the fountain attacks again?" Katara questioned. "Innocent people could be hurt, or worse, killed!"

"Those weren't victims of a simple crime. If it is a spirit, the Dai Li won't be able to stop it. Aang, we have to act."

"As much as I hate to agree with snoozles, he's got a point," Toph said, stepping in the middle of the group. "But there's one little detail you guys seem to be forgetting… What makes you think the Dai Li will just let us in to snoop around?"

"Maybe if we ask nicely?" Aang shrugged lightly, forcing a smile.

"Toph's right," Sokka commented. "If we're really doing this, I think we should go during the night, wait a bit longer for, you know, see if the dust settles so we get a better chance."

"Alright, we'll wait one day and we'll look into it. In the meantime, we keep looking for Appa."

The trio nodded silently, all of them sporting a serious expression.

"Good. Now, I'll go out to cover more ground, you try to stay out of trouble until then."

After that, Aang spun on his heel, unfolded the fan-like wings inside his airbender staff, then leaped into the sunlit sky with a strong current of wind, leaving the scene.

Meanwhile, Sokka, Toph and Katara walked into the house, sitting around the large table in the main hall, waiting… hoping no more lives would be lost until the moment of truth arrived.


Zuko inhaled deeply.

It had always been difficult to breathe under that disguise, but this was a matter that only the blue spirit could tackle, not the dishonored prince.

At the dead of the night, a pristine, gibbous moon hung low amidst a starless firmament. Enormous clouds projected malformed shades upon the city, carried across the cerulean heavens by a soft, nocturnal breeze.

Taking advantage of the obscurity seizing the streets, Zuko hid on a nearby corner with one clear goal in mind…

'It's not personal.' he told to himself.

Maybe it wasn't, but he couldn't allow what happened to Jin go unpunished, let alone the trauma she suffered because of it.

And he hoped his current targets would lead him to his true objective.

The tall, sleek silhouettes from a pair of Dai Li wandering about the plaza, their long, dark-green robes blending with the shadowy environment.

Silent as a grave, he stared at them for a while, pacing around the firelight fountain over and over again, following their own footsteps in an almost routine fashion.

That is until they took a detour from their predetermined path.

Zuko hastily abandoned his hideout, crossing the square, sprinting as quietly as possible while he chased the Dai Li.

Eventually, they arrived to a blind alley shrouded by darkness.

The duo of earthbenders walked deeper into the blackened passageway. Meanwhile, Zuko remained in the entrance, concealing himself behind a surrounding wall, watching from a safe distance.

Unexpectedly, the Dai Li ceased their advance, stopping right before the shadows could envelop them, both lingering motionless in their position.

"We know you're in there, come out!"

At first there was silence, absolute silence…

Zuko frowned beneath his mask as a chilling tremor crept under his skin. His hand unconsciously moved upwards, wrapping around the grip of his broadsword.

And then, it appeared… Just as Jin described it.

Lurking at the depths of the alley, two eyes opened amongst the dark, shining with a glaring, phantasmagoric green, hovering tall above the Dai Li, who looked like dwarves in comparison.

"By your looks, and the way you speak," a deep, guttural voice answered from the shadows. "I take it that you are the law-enforcers here… If this is about the goons I took care of, you don't need to thank me. All I want in exchange is some peace and quiet."

"In the name of the Earth King, you are under arrest for the crimes of murder, unprovoked assault, disturbance of peace and inducing mass hysteria. Surrender yourself at once, or the charges will be expanded with resisting arrest."

"Those bastards had it coming, and unless you wish to end like them, I suggest you to beat it."

The Dai Li exchanged contemplative looks between each other, and they assumed a fighting stance.

Following a swift, steadfast motion, the stone gauntlets around the earthbenders' fists were propelled forward, resembling arrows cutting through the air, aiming for the entity.

Immediately after, the fabled, living chains emerged from the blackness, striking the volant gauntlets like a whip during their short-lived flight, so only debris remained.

"What the-!?"

"I warned you…"

While the Dai Li endured astonished, the chains rapidly lashed towards them, and surrounded their whole bodies as a constrictor serpent from top to bottom, in the blink of an eye.

The earthbenders forcibly struggled against their restraints, squirming like worms on the mud. Yet, their tethers persisted immovable, growing increasingly tighter by the second.

It wasn't over, though…

With a strong pull around their ankles, the chains brought both Dai Li to the ground at unison, slowly dragging them into the back of the alley.

And they were gone from sight.

That's when it all began…

A thunderous ruckus filled the quiet atmosphere, loud sounds of fighting echoing in tandem with rock-shattering reverberations.

The entire street trembled abruptly, to the point where Zuko momently lost his balance, despite being far from the commotion. Wide cracks appeared on the walls, dust and pebbles bounced across all directions while ceaseless howls of pain seized the plaza.

Then, it stopped.

As quickly as it started, the obscured disturbance concluded, allowing an unsettling stillness to reign over the streets.

Cautiously, Zuko peeked beyond his cover, hoping he could get a closer look of what was happening. Unfortunately, his vision found nothing but pitch-black ahead, along a gentle, nearly imperceptible zephyr flowing throughout the buildings…

But suddenly, a voluminous object was thrown off the shadows, fast enough to become a blur in the wind, landing at the entrance of the passage with a sonorous plunk.

Instinctively, Zuko took a step back, drawing out his swords against the thing that approached him.

However, there was no attack, no movement at all. Everything was suspiciously calm…

In that moment he realized, the unknown mass resulted to be one of the Dai Li, lying prone on the ground with a blank expression tainting his battered, bruised face. His eyes, white as bone, fixated in the sky. Some teeth were absent from his bloodied mouth, while his hands and feet were missing their usual stone cladding.

It was then, that something else came forth…

Acting solely on reaction, Zuko concealed himself behind the nearby wall upon sensing that presence, sheathing his weapons as he did.

From his hiding place, he peeped out into the bottom of the alley, spotting the other Dai Li, severely brutalized, hurriedly crawling away on all fours, seeking to escape the darkness.

Nevertheless, the chains returned, accompanied by a new monstrosity…

A large, crimson shroud waving, expanding in the air as the sail of a ship.

Within a heartbeat, the living cape enveloped the Dai Li's body like a red chrysalis, leaving only the top of his head bare. The chains created a second encasing, then lifted the earthbender above the soil, forcing him to look at the glowing, acid-green eyes that had manifested once more amidst the obscurity.

"Let's try again," the dark entity said. "People around here speak English too, don't they?"

The Dai Li nodded feverishly.

"Good, 'cause there's a message I need you to deliver. You're going to tell your boss or your king or whoever you lick the balls of, that from now on, this alley is beyond his jurisdiction. You're going to tell everyone what happens when busybodies come here uninvited, understand?"

The earthbender gave a couple of additional nods in compliance, grunting and sweating below the shroud.

"Great. Now, get lost!"

With that, the living cloak swiftly unfurled, the chains loosened and retreated into the darkness of the alley, not before mightily tossing the Dai Li atop the other, where he finally lost consciousness while the phantom glow vanished from existence.

And the fountain square grew peaceful again, not a single soul roamed the vicinity. Even the breeze had withdrawn from the streets, submerging the city under a perpetual, otherworldly tranquility, as if it was frozen in time…

Glancing at his surroundings for further reassurance, Zuko hesitatingly abandoned his hideout, peering into the back of the passage, but the red shroud was nowhere to be seen.

Acknowledging his solitude, he approached to the fainted earthbenders.

Mildly concerned, he kneeled beside the beaten men, inspecting their deplorable state up-close.

Surprisingly enough, they were still alive, since Zuko could see their chests slowly going up and down beneath their torn, stained robes.

'It spared their lives… But why? Why would-'

"Get away from them!"

Zuko rose off the land, spinning on his heel. Every muscle in his body tensed when he laid eyes over a third Dai Li standing merely a few meters away from him.

"You… What have you done!?"

He growled underneath his mask as he gazed at the unconscious earthbenders behind him.

"This is not what it looks like." Zuko said calmly, looking up anew to the Dai Li.

"It was you, isn't it? The murdered thugs… You will spend the rest of your life in a cell for this!"

Afterwards, the earthbender retraced a step, setting his feet firm upon the soil. He closed his hand into a fist, and swung an arm in front of him, then the other, launching two rock-gauntlets from them.

But Zuko was quick to react, for he started a frenzied sprint towards the hostile Dai Li. During his run, he lowered his head, skillfully dodging both projectiles under the wire.

Once he stood before the astounded earthbender, he instantly leaped forth, fiercely smashing his knee against the Dai Li's chin, knocking him backwards with a noisy crunch.

Finding his path clear, Zuko continued running at top speed, keeping his sight onwards.

Doubt still lingered in his mind, he wondered if that Dai Li remained defeated, perhaps he was following him already. Whatever the case, his quest for answers would have to wait a bit longer, there were more pressing matters to attend.

He now had a personal score to settle with the dark entity stalking lower Ba Sing Se…

Dragging his despair like an anchor, Zuko disappeared in the labyrinthine streets around the firelight fountain, letting the shadows fully embrace him on the way home.