Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you the third chapter of A Speedster among Benders. I was hoping to get it updated sooner, but my computer caught a really bad virus and had to be sent away for a couple weeks. Also, my younger brother Trevor smashed his fist into another computer while he was angry and broke that one, meaning there was only one working computer in the whole house. So before I continue, I apologize for the long delay. Thankfully, my computer is working again and I can get back to writing fanfiction, though updates for my stories will still be pretty slow to come; sorry 'bout that.
Before I get any further, I would like to sincerely apologize for taking so long to update. I've been trying to get it done sooner, but between housework, a busted computer, volunteering at an animal shelter, and all the cool stories I find on Fanfiction, plus the other stories I have to work on, it took a lot longer then I hoped it would.
Just so you all know, this chapter and the story as a whole will mostly follow the canon of the Legend of Korra show, but their will be some noticeable differences and I will be doing a couple chapters that are not based on a series episode. Also, I am planning on bringing in a few DC characters that didn't appear in the Young Justice series; if there are any heroes or villains you would like to appear in this fanfic, please leave your suggestions in your review and I will put them to consideration. I can confirm that at least two heroes, two Flash villains, and three members of Batman's rogues gallery will make an appearance, but keep in mind that they might not be the ones you know best.
Now for the disclaimer; The Legend of Korra is owned by Nicktoons, Young Justice is owned by DC Comics and Cartoon Network. Now that we're done with all that information, let us continue the story with chapter 2; please read and review when you finish reading, but I will understand if you choose not to.
Chapter 3: Welcome to Republic City, Part 1
The next few days at the compound passed surprisingly normal, even with Wally now staying in the compound. Wally spent much of his time either hanging with Korra or learning about the world from Katara, the White Lotus elders, and the compound's library; he had a little trouble reading the books at first because the books and scrolls are written in a form similar to Chinese script, and it took him some time for his gauntlet's translation feature to work out the differences.
Whenever he wasn't learning or hanging around, Wally helped out around the compound with basic chores such as moving crates, cleaning floors and walls, and clearing old hay and animal messes from the stable, all of which were finished in record time with his super-speed. Many of the people in the compound grew to like Wally, even if he did eat through a third of the food supplies in the three days he was at the compound. Wally especially enjoyed spending much of his time with Korra, who reminded him a lot of Zatanna, Artemis, and himself.
When the day came where Tenzin would visit the compound, he and Korra were the first ones to wake up. Korra was practically bouncing off the walls with excitement, while Wally kept a more reserved appearance. Regardless, he too was rather nervous about meeting Tenzin. It was a little after lunchtime when Katara called the two of them outside. They looked to the sky to see what looked like a flying bison...which it did turn out to be, to Wally's mild surprise. Said bison was flying towards to compound, losing altitude as it got closer.
On the actual bison was Tenzin and his family, consisting of Tenzin, a man in his early 50s with a bushy beard and arrow tattoos on his head, arms, legs, feet and hands, his 45-year-old wife Pema, currently 6 months pregnant with her fourth child, his oldest daughter Jinora, his excitable younger daughter Ikki, and his son and current youngest child Meelo, currently chewing on his father's head. Tenzin is guiding his Sky Bison Oogi towards the compound while trying to ignore Meelo biting his head and Ikki's constant barrage of questions.
"Are we there yet? Are we there yet? Are we there yet? Are we there yet? It looks like we're there. I know it, this is very familiar! Are we here yet? Are we here yet? Ooh, please tell me we're here!"
Just as Tenzin landed the bison, he answered Ikki's constant questions with both relief and annoyance being heard in his voice.
"Yes, Ikki, as I've been telling you for the last fifteen minutes, we are finally here." That was all Ikki and Jinora needed to hear before they excitably jumped off the bison and rode down its tail on air-scooters. Tenzin got down from the bison as Katara walks up to him, folding his right arm across his chest by way of greeting. Meelo by then had switched to pulling on his father's ears while Ikki and Jinora stood beside him.
"Hello, Mother. I can't tell you how happy I am to see you." His next sentence was more of a desperate plea. "Please, help me." Katara laughed warmly as Tenzin bent down so she could remove Meelo from Tenzin's shoulders.
Meelo started waving his arms and limbs and yelled out "Unhand me strange woman!" Tenzin responded to that with "Meelo, this is your grandmother."
In response, Meelo nimbly pushed himself off of Katara's hand and somersaulted above her head, landing on the ground behind her before quickly dashing away, while Katara's expression changes from one of surprise to a warm smile. "It's so good to see all of you."
Jinora, a quiet and studious 10-year old, approached her grandmother in slight awe. "Gran Gran, I've been reading all about your old adventures, and I've been dying to ask you, what happened to Zuko's mom?"
Katara responded to that with "Well, Jinora, it's an incredible tale!" Before she could continue, Ikki interrupted Katara by jumping right in-between her and Jinora and jumping up-and-down while talking really fast.
"Gran Gran, you look old. How old are you? And why is it so cold in the South Pole? Can we make a campfire, and all hudle around it, and tell scary stories, and make snowmen? And then can you make the snowmen move with Waterbending and chase us? Wouldn't that be fuuun? Huh? Wouldn't it?"
While Ikki is asking all these questions, Jinora stood solemnly beside her with an annoyed and disappointed expression, while Katara is unsure about how to respond to Ikki's enthusiasm.
Wally and Korra just stood a little ways behind Katara, watching the exchange with small smiles. Ikki stopped jumping when she noticed Wally standing a little bit away, and Jinora quickly noticed him as well. Jinora asked about him first, curiosity evident in her voice. "Gran Gran, who's that person behind you?"
Katara looked towards Wally and responded with "That would be Wally West; he's the young man who Tenzin needs to speak too while he's here." Ikki wasted no time in running over to Wally and bombarding him with questions.
"Hi there, my names is Ikki. Where'd you come from? How long have you been here? Are you a nice guy? Why do your clothes look funny? Are you a bender? If so, how good are you? Do you have a girlfriend? Is she pretty? Do you have lots of friends? Can I be your friend?"
Wally laughed, kneeled down to her level and responded to her questions with a warm smile. "It's a bit of a long story as to where I come from, but to answer the rest of your questions: I've been here for 3 days, I am a nice guy, other people where I'm from where these kind of clothes too, I'm not a bender, but I can run really fast, I am a pretty good fighter, I do have a very pretty girlfriend and lots of friends, and I would love to be your friend."
Ikki instantly smiled and responded with a smile and an awed "Cool." Jinora quickly walked up to Wally as well.
"I thought I heard dad mention that Gran Gran said you could run faster then an Airbender. Is that true?"
Wally stood up, smirked, and pulled his goggles over his eyes before he responded with "See for yourself."
With that, Wally ran off at blistering speeds. He started off by running a couple dozen laps around the wall of the compound, then he generated a small tornado a fair distance from the group, then he ran across the field of snow and gathered as much as he could before he ran back towards the group and piled all the snow together into a 12-foot-tall conical shape before coming to a complete stop in front of everyone and removing his goggles. "So, what do you think?"
Tenzin and his family were basically stunned, including Pema from on top of the bison. Korra and Katara were also impressed, but they were better at hiding it because they had already seen Wally run at high speeds. As one, Ikki, Meelo, and Jinora all shouted out "Awesome!" before running over to Wally to ask him more questions. Tenzin was about to follow when he saw Pema climbing down from Oogi, and ran over to help her, catching her hand as she reached the ground.
"Pema, let me help you. Careful now, careful." She walked a couple of steps before retracting her hand.
"Stop doting on me. I'm not helpless, I'm just pregnant." Both Pema and Tenzin put their hands to her swollen belly. Katara walks up and gives Pema a hug before feeling the baby while Pema smiles happily.
"The baby's strong. I see another Airbender in your future." Pema's face becomes slightly unhappy at the mention of her child being an Airbender.
"All I want is one child like me, a nice non-bender, who doesn't blast wind in my face every five seconds." Katara smiles at Pema understandingly while Tenzin starts innocently starts pulling his beard. They were interrupted from further conversation when Meelo called his mother's attention. She looks over to see Meelo covered in snow while Ikki and Jinora hide behind Wally.
"Look mommy, I'm a snowbender!" He then proceeds to Airbend the snow off of him, with Pema's head becoming covered in snow. She shakes it off before looking at Katara again.
"Were Tenzin and his siblings this crazy when they were kids?" Katara responded with a calm tone and a joyful smile.
"Kya and Bumi most certainly were, but Tenzin has always been...rather serious." Tenzin responded to that with a slight pout. "Mother, please." Tenzin then looked behind Katara to see Korra patiently waiting for him to finish.
"Korra?" Korra smiled upon hearing her name and excitably ran up to Tenzin, while Wally and Tenzin's kids run past them.
"Look at you, so big and strong. You've grown into quite the young Avatar." Korra beamed at the praise she was receiving.
"Master Tenzin, I'm so glad you're here. I can't wait to get started." Tenzin's face fell when she mentioned her training. "Yes, well..." He sighed before Pema interrupted.
"You're going to have to tell her sooner or later." This instantly got Korra curious. "Tell me what?"
Katara had a sad look on her face as she said "You're not staying, are you?"
If the look on Tenzin's face didn't confirm her theory, what he said next most definitely did. "I'm afraid not. We're only visiting for the night. Then I have to return to Republic City."
Korra looked sad and disappointed at this news. "No, you're supposed to move here. You're supposed to teach me."
Tenzin sighed and responded with "I'm sorry, Korra. Your Airbending training is going to have to wait."
Wally and the kids were nearby when Tenzin informed Korra and Katara what the problem was, and Wally instantly felt sad at Korra's poor luck. She had been waiting for so long to start her Airbending training, but now it looks as if she'll have to wait even longer.
Later in the evening, Korra, Wally, Tenzin, and the Takeo had all sat down at a kitchen table for dinner and to discuss what to do about Korra and Wally. So far the conversation had been mostly about why Korra is unable to start practicing her Airbending training as soon as she had hoped. Wally for the most part had been staying out of the conversation, listening to what they were saying while thinking about what they're going to say to him when they finish talking to Korra.
"So, how long until you're ready to teach me Airbending? A week? A month?" Tenzin's response was not what Korra was hoping for. "It could be much longer."
"I don't understand. Why are you making me wait?" Tenzin continued to try and have Korra see his reasoning for not staying.
"I have a responsibility to Republic City. I'm one of its leaders, and the situation there is very unstable right now." Despite his efforts, Korra remained defiant.
"But you also have a responsibility to teach me. Believe me, I'd be happy to find another Airbending master, but you're the only one in existence. We're stuck with each other."
Tenzin had to concede to that point. "I wish there were another way." Korra's face lit up and she started speaking excitedly.
"Wait, there is another way! If you can't stay here, then I'll go back to Republic City with you and train there! It's perfect!" Not surprisingly, Takeo did not share Korra's enthusiasm.
"Absolutely not! The city is far too dangerous. Avatar Aang tasked us with keeping you safe while you mastered the four elements." Korra remained defiant.
"I get that, but I don't think keeping me locked up in this compound like a prisoner is what he had in mind." She quickly rounded on a slightly surprised Wally.
"Aren't you going to say anything?" Wally raised his hands placatingly before speaking to all three in the room.
"Hey, both sides are making good points. On one hand, they are concerned for your safety and rightly so." Korra was about to leave at that but Wally continued before she could leave the chair.
"On the other hand, Korra hasn't really been exposed to a lot of what there is outside the compound." Takeo decided to speak up again.
"That's part of the reason why we've been keeping her here for so long. She's been so sheltered that she doesn't know what to expect when she leaves the compound."
Korra cut in when he had finished. "Yeah, because you've been keeping me in here practically 24/7! That sounds pretty hypocritical if you ask me." Tenzin spoke up and tried to mediate the rising tensions.
"I know this is difficult to accept, but it's not the right time for you to come to the city."
Korra just uttered a dismissive "Whatever" and promptly left the room, causing Takeo and Tenzin to sigh.
Wally turned to Takeo and said "You know she's right. It's kinda your fault that she's so sheltered." Takeo just grunted in apparent indifference. Tenzin turned to Wally and spoke to him in a curious voice.
"To be honest, when I first read my mother's letter, I never imagined you being 'gifted' in the way you showed us earlier today. You say you come from another dimension, correct?"
Wally nodded and responded with "The more appropriate term would be an alternate universe, but yeah, that's basically the truth."
Takeo turned to Tenzin. "I honestly didn't believe him until I witnessed his abnormal speed, and saw what he had on that gauntlet of his."
Tenzin turned to Wally with an intrigued look. "What about your gauntlet?"
Wally pressed a button on his gauntlet and showed Tenzin the pictures he had of him [Wally] and the Team and Justice League. To call Tenzin flabbergasted would be an accurate statement. When Wally finished showing Tenzin the pictures, he turned to Tenzin and Takeo and spoke in a serious voice.
"I know I've kinda freaked you guys out, but know that I will never do any harm to this world, at least not on purpose." Tenzin spoke up in a calming voice.
"I'm certain you won't, but there are a lot of things that you should learn about before we agree on the next course of action."
Wally nodded in agreement, thus beginning a long night of discussions and queries as to Wally's future and choices.
When Wally finally woke up, it was almost lunchtime and he still felt like sleeping for a week. Wally, Tenzin, and Takeo ended up talking until 2:00 A.M. until Wally decided to stay with Korra and help her any way he can. After he finished another extra-large lunch, one of the White Lotus members told Wally that Korra had taken Naga out for a ride a couple hours earlier and hadn't returned yet. He also mentioned an overlook near the ocean where Korra likes to go and think when she has a lot on her mind. A quick run in the direction she went got Wally to the overlook and a despondent Korra. She spoke to him without turning around.
"If they sent you to bring me back, tell them I'm not done thinking yet." Wally walked up and sat down next to her.
"I'm not here to bring you back. I just wanted to talk to you, see how you're doing." Korra's reply was more of a sarcastic comment.
"You really came out here just to ask me that? I'm going to have to wait until Tenzin's done with whatever it is he's doing in Republic City before I can start learning Airbending, and that could take up to a year for all I know; heck, it could take even longer. How do you think I'm doing?"
Wally calmly replied with "I think you have every right to be frustrated at having to wait a while until you can learn to Airbend. Also I talked to Tenzin and Takeo a lot last night, and we all agreed that I'd be best off starting in this world by helping you."
Korra's expression softened and she looked at Wally. "Sorry if I sound frustrated, it's just that I've worked so hard to master the elements and become a good Avatar, but everyone seems to think that I'm not good enough to do anything right. The only times I can ever leave the compound to see others are to visit my parents and the Glacier Spirits Festival, and even at those times they make me go with White Lotus members. Is it really too much for me to ask that they have a little faith in me and let me make my own choices for once in my life?"
That much Wally could sympathize with. "I can understand how frustrating that can be. When I first started out as Barry's sidekick, I had to do everything exactly right, exactly as I was told to do, or risk having my new speed powers taken away. It was frustrating, but eventually I made a pretty good name for myself. Even then they still kept a lot of secrets from me and my friends. When we found out that the Justice League had an orbiting headquarters called the Watchtower, it felt the same as when I first started out. Sometimes you have to stop waiting for others to trust you and make them see what you can do. That's what me, Robin, and Aqualad did, and we ended up freeing Superboy and starting the Team all those years ago."
Korra listened to everything Wally had to say, taking it all in. Looking up, she saw Oogi, Tenzin's Sky-Bison, take off and start flying back to Republic City. From what she knew of Republic City, it's a global hub of commerce, diplomacy, industry, and cultural integration, home to some of the most important artifacts and some of the finest works of art in the world. That's not oven counting it's historical significance as a symbol of unity between nations and the political significance as the capital of the United Republic. It's said that anyone who can make a good living there, can make a great living anywhere.
Wally's right, all Korra needs is to follow her own path and show her stuff to the world. And what better place for an up-and-coming Avatar to make herself known other then making an appearance in Republic City.
Wally noticed the look on Korra's face and decided to ask what she's thinking. "I've seen that kind of look before. What are you thinking about?"
Korra remained silent for a second before she turned to Wally with a serious look. "What do you know about Republic City?"
Wally looked a bit surprised by her question, but answered nonetheless. "I know that it's the capital of the United Republic and a major global center of commerce and politics. I also know that it was founded 10 years after the end of the Hundred-Year War by Fire Lord Zuko and Avatar Aang as a way of representing the unity of the nations and the peace that had finally been obtained. Why do you ask?"
Korra looked at Wally and stated bluntly "I'm going to travel to Republic City." That caught Wally off-guard. "Say what now?"
"You said it yourself, I need to stop waiting for a chance and follow what my head and heart tell me to do. What better place to make an appearance then in one of the most important cities in the world."
Wally sort-of understood the logic behind this, but he still tried to reason with her. "I can understand why that would work, but I didn't say those things exactly. This is the kind of thing that needs to be thought through."
Korra turned and looked at her friend. "Wally, I need to go to Republic City. If I have to wait for the White Lotus's say-so to ever leave the compound, then I'd never leave the compound, much less the South Pole. This is a journey I need to take, but I don't think I can do it by myself."
Wally's face developed a contemplating look, which Korra took as a sign for her to continue. "You said that you made a promise to try and help me however you can; this is something I need help with. I admit to being pretty proud, but even I know when I can't do something by myself, and I know I can't ask any of the White Lotus people. You're really the only person I can come to for actual help."
Korra paused to let Wally think things through for a minute before speaking up again. On the one hand, Korra has little to no experience with the outside world and how it works. On the other hand, Korra will never really find out unless she experiences it for herself. Plus, a big city such as Republic City is likely to have a high crime-rate, meaning it could be a potential training-ground for Korra in person-to-person combat.
Wally had just made up his mind when Korra spoke up again. "So, are you with me?"
Wally just grinned and replied with "Like you even had to ask." This brought an instant smile to Korra's face before she reached over and gave him a friendly hug, letting go after a couple seconds.
When Korra let go, she looked at Wally and asked "So, when do we leave?"
I hope you all enjoyed the 3rd Chapter of A Speedster among Benders. Leave all complaints, comments, and questions in your review, and I will answer them when I can; you can also send me a message if you want. This wasn't nearly as long as it was going to be, but the story was getting to be too long and I wanted to update this story soon. Also, I apologize if you wanted to see more of what Wally discussed with Tenzin and Takeo, but I hit another dry spot and decided to stop where I did so that I could update the story faster.
Thank you to all those who left reviews for the second chapter, and I hope to get more good review for this story; if you are unable or unwilling to leave a review, I will respect your decision and enjoy those that I do receive. As said before, no flaming whatsoever unless you really to vent something or express what you feel about my story; please note that all flames will be ignored after I have read them, and I ask that they get sent to me in a message instead of a review. If you do not like this story, then please don't want to flame, leave my story as it is, and go read some other fanfictions.
Next chapter, Korra and Wally sneak away to Republic and see that things are not what they expected; more specifically, what Korra expected. They aren't in the city for a few hours before they get in trouble with the local criminal element and the cops, only for them to get roped into helping the police defeat a pair of highly dangerous mercenaries attempting to rob a bank (I know it's cliché, but it's the best I could come up with), and they later meet up with the chief of police and Tenzin, who makes an important decision regarding both Wally and Korra.
How will Korra adapt to city-life? What sort of criminals will they encounter before they find Tenzin? How will the city take to the new Avatar? you'll have to find out the answers to all these questions in the next chapter of A Speedster Among Benders.