Chapter 2

There was a softness in the air that wisped through this strange land Korra found herself walking through. For some reason she felt calm and connected to the trees, the river, and the sky that glowed with different hues of pinks, greens, and purples. It wasn't like anything she had ever seen before and wondered how she even ended up here. Korra wasn't scared of the new land she discovered, better yet she felt the complete opposite. For some reason this felt like a safe place for her.

Everything seemed so open and welcoming towards her. Creatures that didn't even exist in real life floated around her. She stuck a hand out to touch a beautiful glowing plant that she would love to have picked for her mother. As soon as her finger met a petal it popped up and flew away as Korra retracted her hand in surprise, leaving a trail of light behind. Suddenly she heard voices mumbling. She looked around, and creatures that looked like spirits were making noises. Korra got closer to try and make out what they were saying. A tiny pudgy spirit with leaves for ears walked up to Korra and tugged on her pelt wrapped around her waist.

"Kor-..y-r..-ate." It spoke.

"What?" She couldn't quite understand it.

"Korra, you're late!" It said louder this time.

"I'm late?" She replied quite confused,

"And why do you sound like my mom-"

-"Korra, wake up you're running late!"

Korra opened her eyes and jerked up. Senna was standing over her.

"Korra, honey you've got to get up and get ready! They're going to choose the benders at noon" she said hastily as she grabbed some clothes for Korra to change into.

"Oh right, the reaping!" Korra finally realized the importance of today.

She got up and peered out her window. People were already gathering outside town hall. She took a moment to think about her dream. She's never dreamt something so vivid before and in fact it didn't feel like a dream to her. It felt more like a memory, as if she had been there before. She quickly snapped back to reality when she realized it was almost noon and she was still in her pajamas.

Ding Ding Ding

The town bell rang signaling it was noon. The sun was up high and the weather was calm and warmer than usual. Korra pushed her way through a crowd to get in the lineup. She saw a couple of girls only a few years younger than her towards the front. She saw a couple of kids she knew who were unlucky enough to have turned 12 this year, which was the youngest you had to be to get chosen. Then she saw Kaito. He stood tall amongst the other boys. His little sister was somewhere with the other children in the lineup.

As Korra peered around she noticed all the high security from Republic City that had invaded the small Southern Water Tribe. Officers in grey metal suits outnumbered the men and women in the town. She then noticed a familiar figure walking up to the stage. He was a slender man with a fancy blue coat, soft brown hair and thin mustache. He stopped right behind the microphone on stage.

"Ladies and gentlemen, you all know why we are gathered here today. We are about to make history once again by announcing the two people chosen to represent the strong and all mighty Water Nation. I, Sir Iknik Blackstone Varrick, am proud to be elected to accompany the young man and woman chosen along their journey in the 74th annual Bending Games" the wealthy looking water tribe man said as he stood tall and proud.

"Varrick... Varrick, where have I heard that name before?" Korra thought to herself. Then she remembered that when she was younger, Varrick had helped her father get elected as councilman and was his right hand man until he left for the Northern Water Tribe for business.

"Now for a brief history as to why President Raiko graciously bestowed the Bending Games upon us" he grabbed the microphone and held it close to his face.

"Ya see, a couple hundred years ago the fire nation thought they were better than everyone, so they decided to use a comet's mighty magical powers to help them become stronger than everyone else and almost wiped out the entire earth nation blah blah blah. You get the point. So to keep everyone in line President Raiko made sure no one would be able to use their bending to control anyone else. With the help of Amon, President Raiko ordered the great equalist movement to cleanse our nations making sure no one would be able to bend any elements."

The crowd was silent. It was the same thing over and over each year. You held your breath until you're relieved to hear your name wasn't called. Then you're forced to watch the games on these big screens that the Republic brings to your town. Korra just stood with a blank expression on her face, just waiting for the day to be over.

"Now to get on with the main event" Varrick walked over to grab an envelope and walked back over to the mic.

"The names have been chosen, and this year... BOTH names hail from the Southern Water Tribe" he said uneasily.

The crowd grew uneasy. The odds of both names coming from just the Southern Water Tribe were slim considering more people resided in the Northern Water Tribe.

"The lucky boy to represent the Southern Water Tribe in the 74th annual Bending Games is..." Varrick opened the envelope and leaned closer into the mic.

"Kaito" he said solemnly.

The crowd gasped. You could hear his mother instantly break down and cry. Kaito looked up at his mother being comforted by the other women and began his descent up to the podium. He was a little shorter than Varrick as he stood next to him peering out into the crowd with an expressionless face. Korra was having a hard time reading him.

"Back to business" Varrick said loudly grabbing everyone's attention as there was one other name that still needed to be called.

"And the lovely lady that will be joining Kaito is..." Varrick opened the second envelope and Korra noticed his eyes go wide for a quick second before he regained his composure.

"Kalani."

The crowd roared with anger after hearing the young girl's name. Kalani, Kaito's younger sister was being brought up to the stage by two officers. Kaito looked horrified seeing his baby sister being dragged along the isle.

"Kalani?... Kalani!" Korra began to yell out but her voice just blended in with the rest of the uproar.

'What kind of monster would put a brother AND sister who JUST lost their father in a game of life or death?!' Korra thought to herself as she became frustrated. Something had to be done. This was WRONG.

As the officers were walking Kalani up to the stage, they heard someone charging at them from behind. They turned around and were immediately shoved out of the way by Korra. She pushed Kalani behind her and yelled as loud as she could "I VOLUNTEER".

The crowd saw what had just happened and quickly quieted down.

"Wha-what did you say?" Varrick asked.

"I… Volunteer" she said trying to catch her breath.

"Well folks..." Varrick was a little surprised, "we have our first volunteer from the Southern Water Tribe. Bring her on up."

The officers grabbed a hold of Korra and brought her up the stage. She took her place next to Kaito. He looked at her with relief and sadness. They both gazed out into the audience.

Varrick grabbed the mic, "Well there ya have it ladies and gentlemen. Happy Bending Games. May the odds be ever in your favor."