Brothers Avatar

The Legend of Two Avatars

Book 1 – Family

Chapter 3 – Minege's Lament

Noises seemed to echo from around Xulo's body. His body felt tender as if it came back from the brink of death. As Xulo began to let his eyes open for light to pour in, he could vaguely make out the voices coming from around him.

"No…We won't…..Until… wake up." was what Xulo could make out from the female's voice.

"But, don't you… talk about what… last night?" another male voice spoke, "I understand that…important that we wait?" As Xulo began to rise little by little he could make the distorted voices out to be Taresc and Minege. Xulo looked around the little room, there were two basic wooden chairs and a cot that he laid on. Outside the window he saw a midday forest and out the other window he could see a bustling marketplace. Outside the doorway he saw the backside of Taresc and Minege standing firmly against him.

"Yes, hun, Xulo is the Avatar and I refuse to talk about anything until he is awake!"

"I'm not saying that we should leave him out, but after what happened… We need to talk about this and I can't wait any longer, he's been sleeping for nearly a whole day!"

"Well, we're just gonna have to wait a while longer, aren't we?!" Minege shouted. Xulo sat up on his cot and say the two bickering outside his door. "Xulo!" Minege spotted the upright Xulo.

"Xulo's awake?" Taresc peeked in and ran immediately to his brother, "Xulo!"

"Hey guys," Xulo spoke half-awake, "where am I?"

"We're at the town over, we rented this room for the night." said Taresc, "More importantly, how are you?" Taresc went over to sit on a neighboring chair while Minege stood beside the other chair.

"What do you mean? I feel great; apparently being asleep for a whole day does that. Shouldn't we be moving? Those Stormbenders…"

"We don't really have to worry about them after what happened, do you not remember anything?" Minege asked.

"…The Stormbenders… I remember they were burning our town to the ground and you picked us up, Minege. We were running away and…" Xulo stilled his speech, "Minege, I am so sorry."

"About mom? I'm working with it, right now," Minege looked like she was fighting back tears, "It's hard, you know? Sweety, this isn't about me, do you remember anything after I told you about Fey?"

Xulo scratched his head, "I remember being so angry and then I think I blacked out from that, right?"

Minege and Taresc looked at each other, "Xulo, you didn't black out." Minege said.

"I didn't?"

"Xulo, after Minege told us her mom had died you were shaking from anger, but you didn't pass out. Eventually your eyes started beaming with light and you jumped off Tanton. You started flying into the sky with airbending." Taresc explained.

"Airbending? I can't airbend yet." Xulo remarked.

"That's not the only impossible thing you did. While you were in the air you bended these giant rocks, the size of mountains up from the ground." Xulo looked at his hands with disbelief, "You were trying to kill the Stormbenders that wrecked Dayue." Xulo looked in Taresc's disbelieving eyes and then into Minege's remorseful eyes.

"Okay," unsure of how to respond, Xulo decided to go with what was most neutral, "what happened after that."

"Well—Uh." Taresc was taken aback from Xulo lack of regret, "I was able to get up to your height and I tried to stop you from killing them. When I did, you shook me off and I almost plummeted to me death."

"I remember now, not airbending, but I remember the fall. I saved you from that death and we rode away." Xulo took a second to breathe, "I see why I was so tired now." Minege raised an eyebrow in response, "So what now?"

"Can I see the map, Minege?" Minege handed it over from her satchel.

"You were able to get the map from Fey?" Xulo asked.

"I nabbed it when I heard commotion happening."

Taresc unfurled the map, "Right now we are here," he pointed to a little spot north of Dayue, he began moving his finger east, "If we keep moving this way, through the mountains up north we should be at the White Lotus Capital. There we can team up with the White Lotus and take down the Stormbenders."

"That easy?" Xulo asked.

"From what I heard," Minege pitched in, "the northern mountains are extremely dangerous, we should probably avoid them."

"Not to come off rude or anything, but what have you heard that we haven't?" Taresc asked.

Xulo gave his disappointed look to Taresc as Minege glared, "Well, darling, my father was a courier, you know, one of those people that traveled the world delivering mail? So, I think I might've heard a little more than you have and from what I've heard of him talking about the northern mountains, a lot of couriers have gone missing. Oh, and by the by, honey, that did come off as rude."

Xulo hit Taresc's shoulder, "Sorry ma'am." Taresc bowed his head.

"None taken, darling, I'm thick-skinned after all."

"What do you recommend we do instead?"

Minege grabbed the map, "Well, we scrap all of your ideas and instead we go a little lower and head through the desert. There are bandits there, but with Xulo they shouldn't be too big of a deal. From there, we can easily—" Minege stopped what she was saying and she began gasping for her breath.

Xulo jumped from his bed, "Minege are you alright?"

"I guess I'm less thick-skinned than I thought," Minege tried to crack a smile, all of a sudden Tanton busted herself into the tiny room and nuzzled Minege, "Aw, girl, it's alright I'm fine."

"Yeah, Tanton she's fine." Taresc said smothered in the corner behind Tanton's large tail feathers, "Do you think maybe Tanton could make a little room, not much space in here to begin with."

Minege gestured for Tanton to move in order to give Taresc space, "Minege, do need to talk about Fey." Xulo stood up and sat her down in the chair.

"Honey, Xulo, I'd be perfectly fine with never speaking a lick about my mom but I can't tell you in good faith to go to the White Lotus Capital," Minege kept stroking Tanton's head with her oblivious expression, "honestly, Xulo, I just can't."

"Why not?" Xulo asked.

"Because I want them dead, Xulo, I want every last one of those Stormbenders dead and I want it now!" Minege's round face was made jagged with anger. "I don't want to go the Capital when the bastards that killed my mom just dance around the ashes of Dayue! I don't care what Rinley told you both, what you need to do is-"

"Minege!" She was now clutching Tanton's head feathers.

She released her grip, "I'm sorry Tanton," Tanton quacked her usual insensible quack, "I'm sorry to you two, as well. I'm just a little fragile currently."

Taresc was completely overwhelmed by Minege's outrage, Xulo didn't faze, "No, you're right." Minege lifted her face and seemed to perk up a little bit, "If we're going to do anything, we need to get vengeance on the ones that did this to us." Taresc could only stare in disbelief as the words came out of Xulo's mouth.

"I've never been so grateful to hear you say that." She hugged the kneeling Xulo. "I'm going to get you some dinner." She walked out with Tanton and as soon as she left, Xulo went back to his cot.

Taresc immediately stood up as Minege left, "Xulo, why did you just say that? You can't mean that you intend to allow her to exact revenge on those Stormbenders? Do you even know if you can take them?"

"When people are hurting like she's hurting, they need something to make them whole. Also, you can't tell me they don't deserve everything that's going to be coming to them. After killing Fey and all the people of Dayue, are you telling me that they deserve to live?"

Taresc couldn't and wouldn't answer that question. But as Xulo spoke, Taresc started to see a milder version of what he saw when Xulo yelled, 'They will pay!' Taresc said, "Do you realize that this is your fault?"

Xulo's distant expression of doom shifted to hellish anger, "Excuse me?"

Taresc wouldn't fear his wrath, "When we took out those Stormbenders outside Rinley's shrine, you proudly told them that you were 'Dayue, born and raised,' and later they appear again at Dayue." Taresc's face bucked up, "You lead them right to Dayue because you were too prideful to keep your mouth shut."

"You're right…" Xulo was somber. "I'm the reason Fey's dead."

Taresc didn't want to waver with pity, "I'm sorry, but it's true."

"I can't tell Minege, however, I'm not the one she needs to be angry with right now."

Taresc exhaled painfully, "You can't misdirect her hate because you don't want to take responsibility for your actions." Xulo looked he got kicked in the stomach, "If you must take out the Stormbenders and I'm not saying I approve… do you think you can take them?"

"If I can do the eye-glowing thing again, it wouldn't be a problem at all."

"But can you?"

"I don't know."

"Well if you can't access the eye-glowy state, they are going to destroy you."

"Noted."

"I'm just saying a nonbender on an alligator-duck and a newly found Avatar can only put so much of a dent into a horde of experienced Stormbenders."

Xulo looked out the window to the dusk turning to night. "Then I guess I'll have to tell her that we need to reconsider."

"That's a good thing."

"I'm waiting for tomorrow morning, though." Taresc glared, "I want to give her a chance to sleep off the anger."

Taresc grunted, "Fair enough, as long as you do it. Minege is probably going to be back soon, we should probably pretend like we aren't bickering over who's responsible for killing her mom."

"Well I'm sure we're not going to get there by saying shit like that."

"Wake up, Xulo." Minege stood over Xulo's cot.

"Minege, what are you doing?" Xulo got up and looked out the window into the darkened sky, "It's not even dawn yet…" Minege hushed him, "and why are we being quiet?"

"For this one." Minege pointed at Taresc passed out on the chair. Minege started dragging Xulo out of the cot into the sleeping center of town where people were once bartering their fruits and furniture.

"What are we doing that Taresc can't be involved in?"

Minege started untying Tanton, "We're going to get the Stormbenders, Xulo." Minege smiled like the day she found Tanton's egg, "I know we said we were going to do it in the morning, but Taresc was only going to get in our way, so why not just get it done now. Plus, this way we can get a surprise attack in on them."

Xulo hid his helplessness behind a smile as he started to pace, "We're going right now?"

"Sweety, I know that you'd want Taresc to be there, but he doesn't feel the same way about this like we do."

"How do we feel?"

"He'd rather call the guards and hope they come within the week to maybe bring justice to Fey, but we want revenge, Xulo, we want them to feel like they made us feel," Minege turned around from the spoke in the ground and stared holes into Xulo's eyes, "that's how we feel, right?"

Xulo had two choices, either he tells a girl whose mother had been cut down in front of her that she had no right to grieve through vengeance or he tells her that her anger isn't just some passing tempest and he would be more than willing to butcher those that orphaned her, "Of course." He wouldn't try to talk sense into someone who's entirely insensible at the moment. "Are we going or…?"

Minege finished untying Tanton and turned around to meet his question with a teary smile, "Yes, honey, let's get back to Dayue."

Xulo spent his time on Tanton just looking between the trees, trying to make out any kind of figure in the dark. In his mind he was trying to make heads or tails of the situation. Up above the trees he saw the giant rocks that he once bended, "Are you ready, Xulo?"

"Very."

"I know I am. All you need to do is summon that Avatar-glow-thing and they'll be all wiped out, that's all you need…" Minege's voice began to dull in Xulo's head and his own thoughts rose. Taresc's advice, telling Xulo that he'd die if he tried to take on the Stormbenders reigned. "Are you listening to me, Xulo?"

"Yeah, I go master bender on the Stormbenders and Fey can rest easy, I know." What Xulo was afraid of wasn't losing to the Stormbenders, under enough adrenaline; a whole heard of a 100 Llama-elks couldn't leave a scratch on Xulo.

"This crime isn't going to go unpunished and that brings me so much relief, Xulo, more than I can possibly say." The idea of Minege killing, enjoying it too, thinking that she's eliminating Fey's killer was what worried Xulo most.

He could see the slivers of light and sound of the Stormbender camp peeking through the trees, meaning they'd soon break the threshold of no return, "Stop! Stop Tanton right now!"

"What's wrong?"

"I said stop her!" Xulo pulled on Tanton's scaly feathers and Tanton quacked throatily.

Minege stopped Tanton in her tracks and Xulo jumped off, "What is wrong with you?"

What would keep Xulo out of Dayue was one simple truth, "I'm the reason Dayue was ravaged and your mother was killed."

Stormbenders were cheering and thriving in the ruins of Dayue, they were dancing at the reemergence of the Avatar and Avatar hunting season being open. A waterbender told another about how they were nearly crushed by the avatar and an airbender told a story about how they almost let a villager nearly escape but snagged them just in time. Just a few miles away were Xulo and Minege locked in place, so addled and shaken, each could barely move their rigid limbs. "What?" said Minege.

"I'm responsible for the invasion." Xulo said

"How, Xulo, how!" Minege barked.

Xulo seeped up his courage, "When Taresc and I went to Rinley's shrine, there was a group of Stormbenders that were blocking the entrance, we beat them and afterwards I told them I was from Dayue."

"You lead them here?"

"I didn't think they'd come here, I thought that they were just going to run away and never return, I didn't know that there were more of them."

Minege looked as if she was about to run Xulo over, "Why? Why did you have to tell those thugs where we lived? Did you want this; did you need some sort of scapegoat?"

"I was prideful, I wanted to boast the fact that someone from Dayue could be the Avatar and—"

"Was it worth it?"

"Huh?"

"Was boosting your fucking ego worth my mom dying?" Minege's tongue snapped harder than a whip.

Xulo was ready to get on his hands and knees, "Minege, I'm so sorry."

"Well are you going to make it up to me and kill those bastards?"

"Minege, I can't let you go through with this, not in good conscience." The guilt that he wouldn't be able to do this for her, hurt him most.

"You can't let me have this, Xulo? Do you know what's best for me right now?"

"What can I say? I'm sorry."

"So what stops me, Xulo?" Minege asked.

"Minege, I don't—"

"What stops me from just going my own damn way with Tanton and just leaving you and Taresc to rot?" Minege was clenching her jaw, "Or better yet, why don't I tell all those Stormbenders that the Avatar is in the woods, because that seems like a great option right now."

Xulo said, "Minege, I promise you, I'll make it up to you, I swear that I won't rest until I make this up to you." Minege was unable to make eye contact, "Do you hear me, Minege? Please, Taresc and I need you."

Eyes shifted back and forth, they narrowed and they cried some more, finally Minege opened hers, "Let's go, Tanton." She turned her head and she disappeared into the woods. Xulo sat by the trunk of a tree and looked into the stars and cried to the obscure sounds of Stormbender merriment.

Xulo decided that he would walk himself home after the fight with Minege, he couldn't get himself to landskate back to the village. At the edge of the village he could see Taresc viscously crossing his arms. When Xulo got into view, he ran to his brother, "Xulo, where exactly were you? I wake up and nobody is here."

"Minege took me in the middle of the night to take out the Stormbenders." Xulo said ready to collapse from exhaustion.

"Well did you?"

"No," Xulo said, "I told her I wouldn't do it, I also told her about the shrine battle." Xulo shook his head in distress, "It looks like we're doing this on our own, Taresc."

Taresc scrunched his face in confusion, "What do you mean?"

"Minege left, I got her mom killed and now she's going to find her own path."

"Is she?" Taresc said, "She's packing up our stuff for our departure, I don't think she's leaving anybody."

"She… not leaving us?"

"I don't think so, I tried to ask about what happened but she pulled the same old, 'I don't have to tell you anything' shtick. You can go see for yourself." Xulo excused himself from the conversation and ran back to the little abode they rented. In the room was Minege, clear as day, packing up Xulo's clothing.

"Hello there, doll." Minege continued to pack.

"Minege, are you okay?" Xulo asked.

Minege turned around and smiled, "Never better."

"I didn't think that you were going to stay with us after last night." Xulo said, abashed.

"I didn't either, to be honest, but I realized that with or without me you were going to do your 'Avatar quest.' I decided that I might as well stick along until I can find a new place to live."

"Minege, I don't know how many times I can say sorry." Xulo was pained to say.

"Well, darling, you'll be happy to hear that I'm in the beginning stages of forgiving you."

"Already?"

"As angry as I am and was with you, you didn't kill my mom. You may have led the horses to the water, you didn't make them drink; they did that. So, maybe one day we'll be fine, until then I'll act cordial. Can't let Taresc think mommy and daddy are fighting, can we?" Minege slugged Xulo on the shoulder venomously.

"Thank you, Minege, I never intended for any of this to happen."

Minege heaped the final pack over her shoulder and headed out the door, "But one little thing still remains."

"What's that?"

"Your promise to make it up to me still stands," Minege twisted so Xulo could only see the side of her face, "One day, I will ask you to do something for me, whether in means killing a whole camp of Stormbenders that killed my mother or not, do you understand?"

Xulo only fears two things, one of which was talking to an angry Baikal woman, "Yes ma'am."

"Sweety, I couldn't thank you more." Minege continued to walk out and from a distance away she shouted, "You might want to hurry, we're leaving in a minute, whether you're the Avatar or not."