We're back on the next chapter.
REMINDER: I DO NOT OWN LEGEND OF KORRA OR ANY OF THE CHARACTERS.
Meelo was loading bags onto Pepper with airbending. Ikki was standing on top, catching them. Tenzin and Pema were watching them.
"Tenzin, are you sure you can't go with them?" Pema asked.
"Sheng asked me to stay here and help figure out a diplomatic solution to this Kuvira problem." Tenzin said.
"Mom, we'll be fine. Grandpa Aang and his friends were around our age when they travelled the world." Ikki said.
Pema pats a bag of food. "Well, at least I don't have to worry about you starving out there."
"Mom, we're going to be out in the wild, living off the land! We don't need your food!" Meelo said before he turns his back on Pema.
"But I made your favourite treat..."
Meelo was surprised. "Sweet buns with happy faces on them?" Pema nods. "Well, I guess we're not officially on the road yet." Meelo grabs on of them and opens it, to discover that it has a smudge over the face. "Aww, this one is smudged." He turns to show it too his mother. "I can't eat this."
"You know, sometimes things get smudged in the wild." Pema said.
Jinora pulls the bag of food closed and jumps off of Pepper to hug Tenzin.
"We're you able to get a read on Korra yet?" Tenzin asked.
"No, but once we're further out, I'll be able to hone in on her spiritual energy. We should be able to find her within a few days." Jinora said.
Ikki and Meelo, who already mounted Pepper. "Good luck! And be careful! Remember, Jinora's in charge!" Tenzin said.
"I answer to no man. Or girl, even if she does have tattoos." Meelo said so seriously.
"Meelo..."
"Now let's move out, soldiers!" Meelo determined.
"Ugh... Pepper, yip-yip!" Jinora said.
Pepper takes off, while Tenzin and Pema stare after their children.
At a mountainous region in which the bison was flying across, followed by the top of a tower which Pepper lands on. The airbenders get off the bison.
"Finally! I've been holding my pee for an hour!" Meelo shouts.
Jinora gets behind a small tower and sits, closes her eyes, and starts meditating.
"If you get through to Korra, tell her, Vaatu and Raava I said hi." Ikki said. Jinora opens her eyes slightly annoyed. "You feel anything yet?" Jinora makes a frustrated noise. Comes completely from behind the tower, grabbing her hips. "What's taking so long?"
"Ikki, I can't concentrate if you keep talking." Jinora said in an annoyed way. "Why don't you go play with some of those spirits?"
Ikki sighs and goes back to where she was. "Jinora's spirity powers are broken, and she doesn't know where Korra is."
"My powers are not broken. I just need more than two seconds and some quiet." Jinora said.
"While you try to pull yourself together, Poki and I are gonna go into town and find out if anyone has seen Korra." Meelo said.
Ikki bounces in front of Meelo. "Sounds like a good plan to me!"
"Enough chit-chat, you can hold the picture of Korra I drew." Meelo takes an extremely life-like picture of Korra out.
Ikki grabs picture, surprised. "Wow, I didn't know you could draw!"
Meelo crosses his arms. "You don't know a lot of things about me, sister." He turns around and signals Ikki to follow him. "Let's roll!"
Meelo and Ikki jumps off the ledge, opening their wingsuits and flying to a nearby village. They walk around and was shown asking a person in the distance, who shakes his head, before approaching an old lady.
"Have you seen this woman?" Meelo points to the picture of Korra.
"No, I haven't. Well, aren't you an adorable little thing." the old lady said.
"I'm not supposed to be adorable. I'm dangerous." Meelo said.
The old lady pinches Meelo in the cheek. "Dangerously cute with those cheeks." She walks off.
Ikki was teasing her brother. "Aww."
Meelo was frustrated at Ikki. "This. Never. Happened. Let's split."
Pepper was flying through the air at sunset. A man in a tavern with earrings.
"The Avatar of the Balance? Haven't seen her, kid. Sorry."
Meelo and Ikki walks off disappointed.
"Man..." Ikki muttered.
Meanwhile, the children were around a campfire, while Jinora was handing out food.
On the next day, Meelo was on a rooftop, looking around for Korra. He spots a girl in the alley below him and lets himself fall down gently, with his wingsuit open.
"Can I trust you?" he asked the girl.
"I guess so." The girl said.
"I'm on a top secret mission to find the Avatar." Meelo holds his picture of Korra up. "Have you seen her?"
"I haven't, sorry. Top secret mission, huh?"
"Yeah, it's been pretty dangerous. I've seen some things." Meelo said.
"Really? What kind of things?" the girl asked.
"Craaazy things." Meelo said.
"Cool." the girl said.
"I'm Meelo. What should I call you, other than 'beautiful'?" Meelo flirts.
"I'm Tuyen. Nice to meet you."
Ikki starts teasing. "Ooh!" Meelo and Tuyen both turned around to see Ikki sitting on a roof. "Meelo's got a girlfriend!"
"My God! Go away, Ikki!" Meelo snapped angrily.
Ikki jumps down and catches herself with airbending. "Jinora's been looking for you. We're moving on."
"Looks like you got to get back to your mission." Tuyen hands Meelo a flower. "Good luck." She walks away and tossles him in the hair.
Meelo stares after her with a blush and a big smile on his face, before turning around to Ikki, annoyed. "Thanks a lot, Ikki. You drove away the love of my life."
At the dock where Korra stopped in six months ago. Meelo walks past the fish monger and spots the photograph he took of Korra.
"Jinora! Ikki! It's Korra!" Meelo shouts.
Ikki sprints over, stopping herself by clinging onto her brother's shoulders. "Where?! Where?! Where?!"
Meelo points to the picture on the wall, next to Aang's.
"It's just a photo of Korra." Jinora said.
"Pretty neat, huh? She came by here, about uh, six months ago." the fishmonger said/
"Then where did she go?" Meelo asked.
"Oh, I don't know. But she said she's having a good time." the fishmonger said.
"Ikki, this is all your fault." Meelo said.
"What? I didn't do anything." Ikki said.
"Exactly! You need to start pulling your weight! That goes for you too, so-called leader!" Meelo walks off.
"Remember when he used to be so nice and sweet?" Ikki said.
"No." Jinora said.
Meanwhile, at the Foggy Swamp, where Toph was relaxing on a tree root, whistling a tune. Korra, Raava and Vaatu walks up to her.
"So... what's the plan for today?" Vaatu asked.
"You're looking at it." Toph said.
"We didn't do anything yesterday, or the day before that." Korra said before she its down on another root.
"Why don't you tell us the story of how you taught Aang how to earthbend." Raava said.
"What's there to tell? I threw some rocks at the Avatar; he got all whiny and Sokka fell in a hole." Toph said.
"I thought there'd be more to it than that. What about the time you took down Fire Lord Ozai? That must have been epic!" Korra said.
"Oh, yeah. It was hot. I was on a blimp. And I think a giant turtle showed up. Wow. What a day."
Korra was annoyed. "Ok, you're terrible at telling stories."
"You're terrible at listening to them!" Toph snapped.
Korra sighs and starts tapping her foot on the ground. Toph bends a rock up underneath her feet.
"Quit making all that racket! If you're so anxious to do something, why don't you collect some mushrooms for dinner?" Toph asked.
Korra stands up. "You got it."
"Take the path until you see the boulder with the hole in it. Then go to your left. Oh, and make sure you get the big, slimy ones! They're the tastiest!"
Later, Jinora was meditating. Ikki was rummaging through their bags while Meelo runs around playing with Poki.
"Hey, where's all the food Mom gave us?" Ikki asked.
"I threw it in the river." Meelo said.
"You did what?! That food was supposed to last us two weeks, for God's sake!"
Jinora turns around, aggravated. "Hey, keep it down! I'm trying to meditate."
"Yeah, keep it down, Ikki." Meelo said.
"Meelo threw away all our food!" Ikki complained.
"From now on, we hunt for our meals." Meelo said.
"Meelo, we're vegetarians. We don't hunt!" Ikki said.
"Enough whining. Poki and I will go find some grub." Meelo said.
Ikki lets out an angry yell.
Meanwhile, Ikki was somewhere else in the forest.
Ikki was annoyed and starts imitating Meelo. "My name is Meelo. I like to throw away food and fart at inappropriate moments." Then she starts imitating Jinora. "I'm Jinora. I'm above it all because I'm meditating all the time." She blasts air at some bushes in front of her, revealing a scared sugar glider. "Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't see you there."
The sugar glider drops the berry it was holding, sprints up a tree, and glides away. Ikki picks up the berry and flies after it.
"Wait! You dropped your breakfast!" Ikki said.
She catches up to the animal and tries to hand the berry back, but he breaks off and Ikki slams into a tree branch, crashing to the ground.
When she comes to a stop, she discovers the berry was squished on her cheek. The sugar glider lands on her head, climbs down to her shoulder and licks the remains of the berry off her cheek.
"Hey! Does this mean we're friends?" Ikki asked.
Ikki stands up and looks around, seeing a big part of the forest has been cut down. A soldier approaches.
"You're trespassing! Hold it right there." an outpost soldier said.
Ikki runs. The other soldier tries to restrain her with earthbending, but misses twice over. Ikki attempts to fly away, but was caught just before she manages to take flight.
She was turned around and sports a fearful look on her face, while the sugar glider buries itself in her wingsuit.
"All right, little airbender. Tell us what you're doing in the Earth Empire. Are you spying?" the soldier said.
"No! I swear I'm not a spy. I've been traveling with my brother and sister. It's our first big mission and my dad, Tenzin, is counting on us. But if we don't find the Avatar of the Balance, he's gonna be really disappointed."
"Can I talk to you for a second?" The soldiers walk a short distance away from Ikki. "This girl is Tenzin's kid and she's looking for the Avatar of the Balance. Do you know what that means?"
"No, but try this macaroon!" the other soldier said.
The first soldier slaps the macaroon out of the hand of the second soldier. "Get that out of my face! Look, if we capture these three airbender kids and bring them to Kuvira, I bet we get a big-time promotion."
"You mean we get out of this dump?" the other soldier asked before the first soldier nods.
The soldier turns around and walks to Ikki again. "Sorry, little lady, it looks like we got off on the wrong foot. So, you're out here with your brother and sister, where's your campsite?"
"Why do you want to know?" Ikki asked.
"We just want to get the family back together again. Maybe we can sit everybody down and have a nice plate of macaroons." the other soldier said before he grabs a plate of macaroons, puts it in front of Ikki.
"Where did you get those?" Ikki asked suspiciously.
"I found a whole sack of food down by the river! And with each delicious snack, comes a lovely hand-written note." The other soldier takes one of the notes from the bag. "This one says: 'You're my handsome little man.' That is so touching!"
"My mom wrote those notes! That's our sack of food!" Ikki said.
The first soldier was getting aggravated. "Enough with the cute notes! Where are your brother and sister?"
"Who cares? I don't want to see them. I'd rather hang out here with you guys. Hit me with one of those macaroons."
Ikki opens her mouth. Soldier #2 throws a macaroon in it, much to the displeasure of soldier #1.
Meanwhile, at the swamp, where Korra had reached the boulder with the hole in it. She walks through some vines, brushing them aside to see a vision of Amon taking her bending away. Startled, she turns around, but sees Vaatu possessing her.
She trips back, only to get a third vision where she sees herself strung up in the cave of the Red Lotus, at the moment she was in the Ultimate Avatar State because of Meldora's bracelet and was resisting her magic spell.
She lets out a scared yell and Meldora and the two former Red Lotus sentries, Ghazan and Ming-Hua turn around, when she snaps back into reality to discover that she has knelt down into a stream.
Meanwhile, while Jinora was meditating, Meelo walks out of the bushes, looking very miserable, dragging a purple stained sack behind him.
"Are you okay?"
Meelo was sounding awful. "Yep, totally fine!" He gives Jinora his thumbs up. "I hope you're hungry, because we found some..." He overs his mouth, nearly throwing up. "We found some berries!" Meelo hands the sack over to Jinora.
Poki, who gags and vomits. Meelo runs off to the bushes and throws up as well.
Jinora was disgusted. "Looks like you got some bad berries." She throws sack away. "So much for living off the land."
"They're fine, I just ate too many of them because they're so... so delicious." Meelo said.
"Did you run into Ikki while you were picking your poisonous berries?" Jinora asked.
"No, what? Did she run off or something?" Meelo asked.
"I think so." Jinora said.
"Great. Now I've got to go find the Avatar and her. This mission is getting worse by the day." Meelo said bitterly.
Jinora was angry. "This isn't only your mission, Meelo. I thought we were doing this as a family."
Meelo was upset.
Meanwhile, the soldiers and Ikki in the outpost.
"It seems pretty lonely out here. Where's everybody else?" Ikki said.
"I... don't want to talk about it." the first soldier said.
"He's just upset because Kuvira's taking all the troops to Zaofu and we had to stay here." the second soldier said.
The first soldier stands up in frustration. "Well it's the last city left and then the whole empire will be united, and with help from Meldora the witch from Witchvainya! And you know there's gonna be a huge party afterwards."
"It's tough to be left out, huh? I know exactly what you're going through." Ikki
"You do?" the soldier asked.
"Yeah. My brother and sister are always leaving me out of fun stuff. I mean, we're supposed to be looking for the Avatar together, but they won't even let me help. Wait did you say Meldora?"
"Well, that's not fair. Maybe we can help you out!" the second soldier stands up and grabs a map. So, where have you looked for her?"
Ikki pulls her arms from the ropes; the soldiers do not seem to care. "We've been traveling down the west coast, and the only lead we have is some guy who said he saw her six months ago."
"Well, we have troops... pretty much everywhere. If anyone saw her, they would have reported it." the first soldier said.
Ikki points to a large, green area on the map. "What about this place?"
"Well, that's the swamp. No one goes there, do we, Jun?" the soldier asked.
"Yeah, Shan. Don't get discouraged, Ikki. You're a valuable member of the team, and you have a big heart! I know you're going to find her. Now let's get you out of those ropes."
Jun stands up, but Meelo blasts down the door and he and Jinora effortlessly blow the soldiers against the far wall, knocking them out cold. Ikki gives them an angry look.
"You're welcome, Ikki." Meelo said.
Ikki stands on the chair, freeing herself from the ropes; angry. "Why the hell did you do that?"
Jinora was annoyed at her sister's ungratefulness. "We're saving you. Let's go."
"I had everything under control. I just found our food, I just heard Kuvira's working with Meldora, and I have an idea where Korra is."
"You do? Then let's get going!" Jinora determined.
"Hold on." Ikki places a snack on either one of the soldiers' knees, who were still sitting against the wall. "Sorry my brother and sister knocked you out. Nice chatting with you!"
Jun grunts unconsciously. "Ugh... Macaroon..."
The airbenders walks off and the sugar glider flies after them, landing on Ikki's head.
Korra in the swamp, was sitting on a tree root, high above the water. She has a dejected expression on her face.
"Vaatu, Raava, tell me you saw the visions, right?" Korra asked.
"Well, yeah, I remember that night at Harmonic Convergence when I bonded with you and tried to kill Unalaq." Vaatu's imprint said.
"And that's when you had changed your ways." Raava's imprint said.
"Yeah. I remember." Korra said.
Toph startles Korra. "There you are. You got my dinner yet?"
"No. This swamp, it did crazy things to my mind. I had visions, of all the times my enemies hurt me." Korra said.
"Yeah, I figured something like that might happen." Toph said nonchalantly.
"What? You wanted Korra to see those visions? You are one twisted old lady, you know that?" Raava's imprint said.
"Look, I know you want to get better. And so does the swamp! It can sense you're out of balance after your battle with that alien. It will teach you what you need to learn, if you're open to listening."
Korra sighs. "Okay, swamp. I'm all ears."
"You said you saw your past enemies. Now, why do you think that is?" Toph asked.
"I don't know. Because they made me and a lot of other people suffer." Korra explained.
"Sounds like you're carrying around your former enemies. You maybe consider you could learn something from them?" Toph asked.
"What the hell is that supposed to mean, Toph?" Vaatu's imprint said.
"Sounds like the swamp is messing with your mind, too." Korra said sarcastically.
"My mind is just fine, thank you. Listen, what did Amon want? Equality for all. Unalaq? He brought back the spirits. Azula seeks revenge. I never thought she came back as a head. Zaheer believed in freedom. And even that alien witch Meldora wants to invade Planet Earth."
"I guess..." Korra tries to speak.
"The problem was, those guys were totally out of balance and they took their ideologies too far." Toph said.
"Okay, fine. But that doesn't explain why they keep haunting me." Korra said.
"I think you need to face your fears. You can't expect to deal with future enemies if you're still fighting the old ones." Toph said.
"Maybe you're right, but how am I supposed to move on?" Korra asked.
"Yeah. How?" The Avatar Spirits' imprint asked.
"Boy, you Avatars sure need a lot of hand-holding. Get up! We're going to the banyan-grove tree."
Toph gets up and walks away. Korra follows her.
Pepper was flying somewhere above the swamp.
"Those soldiers said there weren't any troops here and, I figure, if Korra's not feeling good, she might come to a spiritual place like this to get better." Ikki said.
Jinora lets go of the reins to meditate for a moment. "There is an enormous amount of spiritual activity here, but I think I can feel Korra."
"Well, that's what we get for listening to Ikki." Meelo said bluntly.
"Guys! We just got here. Let's at least look around." Ikki snapped.
"If you're right, Ikki, I think we'll find her here." Jinora said.
Suddenly a bunch of vines shoot up out of the swamp and pull the bison down into the murky water.
Meelo frees Pepper by cutting some of the vines and the rest of them retract spontaneously.
"Why did those vines pull us in here anyway?" Meelo asked.
"Because they want us here. I'm telling you; Korra has got to be close." Ikki said.
Meanwhile, Toph and Korra were climbing up to the base of the banyan-grove tree.
"It's beautiful." Korra said.
"The roots of the banyan-grove tree spread out for miles in every direction, connecting this whole swamp. Your problem is, you've been disconnected for too long. Disconnected from the people who love you and disconnected from yourself."
Korra kneels down and puts her hand on the root, sending a stream of energy through the swamp. It flows through the vines to Jinora, Ikki, and Meelo.
Jinora turns around in surprise; excitedly. "Korra! I know where Korra is!"
"Yeah!" Meelo and Ikki shouts synchronized.
Back to Korra and Toph.
"Were those…" Vaatu's imprint tries to speak.
"Yes." Raava's imprint said.
"I can't believe it! I saw Jinora, Ikki and Meelo, they're here!" Korra said.
"Good. Hopefully they're here to take you home." Toph said grumpy.
Pepper was flying through the swamp and emerging from the trees in front of the banyan-grove tree.
"Korra!" Jinora, Ikki, and Meelo shouts.
The airbenders jump off Pepper and unfold their wingsuits, flying to Korra and Toph. Korra turns around and starts to cry from happiness. They land and give Korra a hug.
"It's good to see you kids." Raava's imprint said. "Hello, children." Vaatu's imprint said.
"We missed you so much, Korra." Ikki said.
"I missed you so much, too. How did you find me all the way out here?" Korra asked.
"Jinora sensed your energy." Ikki said.
"But we never would have been here if it weren't for Ikki." Jinora said.
"I never would have stormed off and run into those soldiers if it weren't for Meelo." Ikki said.
"I was trying to toughen up these ladies, but I guess it was a team effort." Meelo said.
"I love your hair." Ikki said. "It's so you." Korra said.
Toph coughs, reminding Korra of her presence. "I'm so sorry. This is Meelo, Jinora, and Ikki. Aang and Katara's grandchildren."
"Your grandpa was a real pain in my butt." Toph said.
"Wait a minute. Cranky? Old? Blind? You must be Toph!" Meelo said.
"Oh, I like this one." Toph said.
Jinora turns around to face Korra. "You need to come home, Korra. Kuvira is taking over the Earth Kingdom. And she has help from Meldora."
"WHAT?!" Korra, Raava and Vaatu were in shocked.
"That witch is back after three years?" Korra asked in disbelief.
"You have to stop them." Ikki said.
"The world needs you back." Jinora said.
"All right. I'm ready." Korra determined.
Korra's eyes shoot open, revealing the brilliant white and orange-red glow of the Ultimate Avatar State.
Meelo was excited. "The Avatar of the Balance is back in business!"
"I feel so much lighter and darker than ever. Thank you so much for helping me. I'd like to give you a hug now, if that's okay with you."
"All right, you earned it." Toph said reluctant. Korra gives her a hug.
Meelo was the last to board Pepper. They all wave goodbye to Toph, and Pepper flies off.
"Finally, some peace and quiet."
Next chapter will come soon.
Review if you enjoyed the story.