Destined Girl

Ch.2: New Found Power

I found myself awaken to my father's voice.

"Maddy!" he shouted. "Come on I need help with the chicken coop!"

I reluctantly sat up and rubbed my groggy eyes. I got up and walked down the stairs, I saw my Pa standing in the doorway.

"You fall asleep?" he asked as he handed me a hammer. I nodded.

"It was a tiring day" I replied. "Too much knowledge"

He laughed as we made our way out of the house. We walked over to the small coop that needed to have planks of wood replaced. We began to work on the coop in silence, I tore out rotten boards and toss them aside to use as firewood. I finished hammering in a plank of wood covering a big gap.

"Hey Pa?" I asked as I drove in the nails with my hammer.

"Yes Maddy?" he asked.

"Do you know where I come from?" I asked as I slammed the hammer against the steel nail.

"No Maddy, I don't" He told me. "All I know is that I found you when you where ten years old and you had no memory of any past"

I accepted his answer and bowed my head.

"What's come about this?" he asked.

"Tommy and Sam are wondering where I hail from," I replied. "Where I come from, they and Ms. Fisher say I don't seem I'm from here"

"You aren't" he said. "I can assure you that"

"It seems I'm from a different place, far from here" I said.

"You probably are" he said as he picked up a new plank of wood. "It doesn't really matter where you are from. You're still the same girl I found and I'll love you no matter what."

"Thanks Pa" I said. He smiled.

"Now why don't you get back inside," he said. "I'll finish the rest of this and you can get a start on dinner"

"Sure thing" I said as I dropped the hammer and walked inside.

Later that night, after cleaning up after our dinner, I headed to my room and began to get settle for bed. I pulled the covers over my head as I began to fall asleep.

I had no clue where I was. All I remember was that I fell asleep. I saw the terrain in front of me. It look a lot like a swamp, I was knee deep in mud colored water. I looked around, the sky was covered by big willow and oak trees. I heard sounds of crickets and other critters through my ears.

"Where am I?" I asked myself.

"You are in the Spirit World young one," came a bellowing voice. I turned and saw a man, taller than I was. He looked like he was in his 60s, he wore unfamiliar clothing on him, it was a robe with red and gold sewed to the robe, the man had long gray hair which a part he bundled it up and had a pin in it.

"Who are you?" I asked, confused.

"I am Avatar Roku" he said.

"Okay?" I asked, raising a brow.

"You seem lost young lady," he said.

"I am Avatar Roku" I said. "I do not know where I come from, I have know memory of my past or anything before I was ten"

"I see," he said. "You hail from the-"

He never finished, I woke up before he could say anymore. It was the call of my father. I looked at the window, the sun had come up.

"No!" I groaned.

I was so close.

I walked to my dresser and put a change of clothes. A shirt and some trouser shorts. I snatched my pack and headed down the stairs, Pa set out some breakfast for me to eat, he told me he was out milking the cow. I quickly gulped down my breakfast as I quickly put on my shoes and saddled up Alainn. I rode into town and arrived into school just in time.

I saw Sam and Tommy sitting in the shade under an oak tree. I tied up Alainn and made my way over there.

"Mornin' boys," I greeted.

"Hey Maddy," Sam greeted.

"Mind if I take a seat?" I asked. He shook his head. I sat down, cross-legged.

"So how's everythin'?" Sam asked. "Heard the teacher talked to ya yesterday?"

"She just asked me questions"

"'Bout what?" Tommy asked.

"Just regular questions, she was questioning why I accused Johnny yesterday"

"Some stupid old haggard" Tommy said. We chuckled. I saw kids beginning to file into the schoolhouse.

"Whup, time for school" I said. We got up and walked into the schoolhouse, we took our seats and the day began.

Lunch came and we ate outside on the ground. There was a hill right next to the schoolhouse, overlooking the building. We always sat here to enjoy conversing and eating.

"So any clue where you are from?" Sam asked.

"Asked Pa yesterday, he says he don't know" I said. "Last night I had a very odd dream, some man named Avatar Roku came to vision and was about to tell me where I am from"

"What'd he say?" Tommy asked, mouth full of food. I tossed my apple in the air and caught it.

"Nothing," I replied, staring at the apple, then at Tommy. "I woke up right before he said something"

I took a bite out of my apple.

"This Avatar feller," Sam said. "You think maybe he has some sort of bond with you?"

"Nah," I said as I chewed the juicy piece and swallowed it. "It was just a dream, weird things happen in those dreams"

"Not an Avatar visitin' ya," Tommy said.

"Well what was weird that it was realistic," I said. "He said I was in some place called the Spirit World-"

"That proves that's a dream," Tommy said. "There ain't no place called a Spirit World"

"There's heaven," I said. "It could be another name for it"

Tommy shrugged.

"Life has beginning to become strange," I said. "I feel like I'm needed somewhere else but here and then an Avatar shows up in my dream. This is beginning to become rather strange"

"Wait back up," Sam said. "Needed somewhere else? Like where?"

There was silence as I bowed my head.

"I don't know" I admitted as I glanced back up at Sam. "It's a feeling"

"Is it strong?" Tommy asked.

"Yeah," I assured.

"Strange," Sam said. I took another bite of apple.

"Hey Maddy," came a voice.

"Oh great here comes trouble" Sam grumbled. Johnny and his posy came up the hill, marching rather.

"What are you doing up here?" Johnny spat. "In our area"

"This ain't your area," I replied. "Ain't no one's, and we eat up here every day"

"Well now you won't," he said. "Get yer ass up and walk away"

"Aye," I said. "No we won't"

"Did she just say no to you Johnny?" came Frank's voice from behind.

"Impossible," Johnny spat. "No one says no to Johnny Tamlin"

"I believe she just did Johnny Tamlin" Sam mocking those two words. "Now git!"

"Don't talk to me like that!" Johnny said as he lunged at Sam and grabbed him by the collar. Johnny raised his fist in the air and was at a threatening point.

"Don't touch him!" I shouted.

"Aw yer little girlfriend's defending ya?" Johnny asked. I got up and rolled up my sleeve. Johnny slammed his fist at Sam's nose. Johnny was about to hit again, Sam whimpered. I felt a rush of anger come over me as I absently mindedly raised my hands in the air and swung them around as if they had a mind of its own, within minutes a huge gust of air came out as a result, slamming into Johnny and sending him skidding across the dirt, dropping Sam at his knees. I heard the auditable gasps from everyone around us. I looked at my hands in shock. I rolled my wrist over to looked at my palm then back at the back of my hand.

"An airbender!" came many people's gasps. Tommy was at Sam's side as Sam clutched his bleeding nose. I saw Johnny begin to get up as I saw his shocked face, his eyes were wide-eyed. I looked at Tommy and Sam who looked back up at me. I ran to Sam's side as I knelt down.

"You alright buddy?" I asked as I touched his arm. He nodded.

"Just a nose bleed" he replied. I looked at Tommy.

"Well you know where you're from" Tommy said. "Yer an air nomad"

"I can't believe it" I said as I slumped down against the tree where Sam was leaning on.

"You're right about life getting strange" Sam said to me. I smiled. "You can airbend"

My smile disappeared as I took a good look at Johnny on the ground.

"Airbend" I repeated in shock as I leaned my head against the tree, looking at the light blue sky. Will came up to me.

"Wow," he said. The other two most have ran over to Johnny, leaving me to come face to face with Will. "You are a bender"

"What do you want?" Tommy spat. "Your friend just did this my brother"

Tommy seemed to be furious at Johnny for hurting his brother.

"I wanted to apologize for Johnny's behavior" Will said. "What he did was uncalled for"

"Then why didn't you stop him?" Tommy asked. Will bowed his head and sat down.

"I didn't want to speak out," he said. He looked up at us. "I am ashamed, only because I had my selfish reasons"

"You didn't want get hurt" I cleared up for him. He nodded. I walked over to him and set a hand on his shoulder.

"Why are you friends with him anyways?" Sam asked as he held his bloody nose with a cloth.

"When I lost my brother and father to a raid," Will said. "He was there help me,"

"He comforted you," I said. He nodded.

"He said he would always be there for me," he said. "My brother and father were killed when we were looted and I was there, I defended my own self and when I came to school he saw my scar and asked me how I got it. I told him the story and he accepted me into his group"

"All be damned," I said.

"But today I saw the real him," Will said. "He's nothing but a bully, a big bully."

I nodded.

To be continued.