Disclaimer: We Do Not Own Avatar: The Last Airbender or Devilman. ATLA belongs to Nickelodeon and Devilman belongs to Go Nagai.
Chapter 1
In the blink of an eye, the trio suddenly find themselves falling out of the sky. Akira is the first to gain his senses, spinning himself face downwards as the wind rushed past him. To his right and left, the devilman spots Miki and Ryo spinning in the air, both yelling in shock. As Akira looked down, he saw a rapidly approaching island surrounded by nothing but ocean.
Maneuvering from side to side, Akira grabbed hold of his two friends. "Akira?!" Ryo exclaims, quickly spotting the island as well. "The island, quick!"
Miki clings to Akira, refusing to look down. "Akira!"
Without processing further, Akira unfurls his wings. As they plunge down, he flaps his wings back and forth, gaining momentum and slowing their fall. Akira pushes forward, managing to get them to crash in the sand instead of the water. After a moment, the three of them cough up sand as they push themselves back up, looking at their surroundings.
"Are you guys okay?" Akira asked, quickly scrambling to a now trembling Miki.
Ryo began brushing the sand off his overcoat, "Nothing's broken, so we should be fine." He was still in something of a rush from the fall, but he quickly grits his teeth at the realization that Akira had used his wings. He looked over at Miki, who seemed to be barely coming to her senses.
As Akira helped Miki steady herself, she tried to make some sense of what had just happened. "We were…but then youu…how did you?"
At first, she gripped his hands tightly, but as her eyes wandered about the scenery around them, she noticed the large wings sprouted from Akira's back. The large, bat-like things extended from his frame, a blood red leather held together by obsidian black bones and scales. She pulled away with a yelp.
"What are?! Who?!"
Akira began to take a step forward but froze as Miki began scooting away. He tried to retract his wings, but the adrenaline rushing through him overwhelmed any attempt he was making to calm down, especially as he saw the look of fear in Miki's eyes.
"You're…You're a..." Miki's breathing grew heavy.
Akira's heart began to sink as his childhood friend saw him for what he was. Still, he had to hold onto some hope. "Miki, it's me..Akira. This is..I.."
As a rush of questions and an urge to just run filled her head, Miki saw the wings lower and droop. Her gaze then went to Akira, and the look in his eyes as he could no longer meet hers. "I didn't want it to happen like this..I'm sorry that it's.."
Miki slowly got to her feet, confused but still recognizing her friend. As he attempts to explain himself, she takes a wary step towards him.
Akira freezes, fearing he might accidentally let another part of his demonic form out, but is surprised to hear Miki ask, "You are still Akira..aren't you?"
The devilman dares to meet Miki's gaze, and she faces him in turn. Akira gives her an uneasy nod, and Miki takes a deep breath.
"Akira, I don't know what the hell is going on, but..I know that you're..you..geez." Akira gives his own sigh of relief as Miki's statement, his wings now folding back into his body.
Miki then snaps her head to glare at Ryo, who had been watching them nervously from a few feet off.
"This is your doing, isn't it?"
Before Ryo could reply, figures dressed in green surrounded the trio. They circled around them, closing the gap between the two groups foot by foot. One of the figures threw a fan at Ryo like a dagger.
Barely stepping to the side so the fan barely grazes his cheek, the detective reached into his coat and pulled out his shotgun. Though before he could take aim and pull the trigger, another figure grabs him from behind and holds him in a headlock, kicking the rifle out of his hands. Two more warriors grab Akira and Miki, holding their hands behind their back as they begin to tie their wrists with an elastic band.
Akira, his mind switching to brawl mode, immediately twisted and threw the warrior behind him into the one holding Miki. As the formation fell into temporary disarray, the devilman pushed Miki into a running start. "Get out of here. Go!"
As she did so, Akira then leapt towards Ryo and haphazardly tackled him out of the group. Rolling further along the shoreline, he picks the detective up onto his feet and gets him into a running start as well. "You too! Run!"
He stands between his fleeing friend and the main group, yelling, "You wanna fight, jerks?! You've got one!"
"After them!" One of the warriors points at the others, to which that group nods and splits in the opposite directions Ryo and Miki went.
That same warrior, to which Akira presumes to be the captain, turns towards Akira and raises her fans. Another warrior follows suit and faces Akira from another angle, crossing her fans in an x formation.
Akira took a fighting stance, glancing around at the others around him. He starts by kicking up some sand at the leader, then he goes for a swing at one of the other warriors. The other warrior blocks the hit with her fan and swings Akira around, allowing the leader to grab his other arm and pin it behind his back once more.
The devilman rears his head back, slamming it into the leader's face and staggering them before jumping back to get some distance. He grits his teeth, realizing he's dealing with something far beyond the average thug on the street. Glancing back at the vegetation behind him, Akira decides to make a run for it. Kicking up more sand with his turn, he puts his devil-power to use and dashes inland.
"Don't let him get away!" The leader commands, to which her partner nods and the two hurry after the strong stranger.
(Over in the village)
Sokka walked up to the kyoshi warriors' dojo, where Suki and her squad were warming up with their fans.
"Sorry ladies, didn't mean to interrupt your dance lesson." Sokka says coyly. "I was just looking for a good place to work out."
"Well then, you've come to the right place." Suki replied. "Sorry about yesterday. I didn't know you were friends with the Avatar."
"That's okay. Normally I'd hold a grudge, but considering you are a bunch of girls, I'll make an exception."
"I should hope so." Suki folded her arms with a mock grin. "With a big strong man like you, we wouldn't stand a chance."
"True, but don't feel bad. After all, I'm the best warrior in the Southern Water Tribe."
"Wow, the best warrior in the Southern Water Tribe? Perhaps you can give us a demonstration." Suki suggested.
Sokka hesitated. "Oh, well…"
"Come on girls, wouldn't you like him to show us some moves?" Suki turned to the others with a knowing grin.
The other warriors giggled and nodded, knowing what's about to happen.
"Well if you insist, I'll be happy to." Sokka said, gesturing to Suki to take a step back. "Now you stand right there. This may be a little hard but try to block me." As Sokka went for a punch, Suki blocked the hit with her fan with ease, making Sokka grunt.
"Ah, good. Of course, I was going easy on you."
"Of course." Suki replied with a smirk.
"Let's see if you can handle this!" Sokka went for a kick, to which Suki ducked and pushed him back, making him land on his tush.
"Alright, that does it!" Now agitated, Sokka rushed at Suki. The kyoshi leader grabbed his arm and swung him around before using the band on Sokka's waist to tie his hand to his leg, making him hop a few times, then land back on the ground with a thud.
"Any more moves you want to teach us?" Suki asked mockingly, to which the girls laughed, making the Water Tribe boy blush in embarrassment.
Just then, an unfamiliar girl ran into the dojo, panting heavily. She gasped as she saw Suki and the other Kyoshi warriors.
"There's more of you!?" She panics between breaths, before turning back and running out the same way she came. The group of Kyoshi warriors followed a second later, with two of them running into the dojo.
"Suki, we found three intruders along the shore. They split up and are now on the run as we speak!" one of the two warriors explained.
"Say no more!" Suki replied, holding up her fans. "Training's over, girls. Let's catch that girl!"
Nodding in agreement, all Kyoshi warriors hurried out of the dojo the same way the girl did. Breaking free from the bind, Sokka rushed after them, curious about this girl.
(In another area of the village)
Ryo had appreciated the headstart Akira gave him, but his stamina was quickly running out. Even though he had managed to get inland and hide for a bit, he could tell the strange warriors were on his tail. Suddenly, he caught sight of a hut. He decided to take a chance going in, maybe he could get his hands on a new weapon since he'd lost his gun.
Slowing his pace and peering inside, Ryo saw the oddest thing. There was a girl, dressed in blue and with a dark complexion. Her clothes didn't seem to fit the aesthetic of everything around her, so the detective figured she might not be from this island, wherever this was. But any other thoughts fell aside as he realized what she was doing. There, in front of the girl, was a levitating mass of water. It floated in the air, moving slowly from side to side as she made broad gestures with her arms. Ryo's eyes widened. Was this some disguised demon with water powers?
As the girl noticed Ryo, she immediately sprung to her feet, dropping the water on the floor with a splash. "Who are you?" she asked, beginning to gather the water again from the floor with both hands.
Ryo, not wanting to stay in one place, quickly ran along the inside wall of the hut. He spotted a long stick and some cloth, ripping them from their places as he ran past them. Only glancing back for a second at the girl, he jumped out of the hut from an exit opposite of where he entered from.
A moment later, the group of Kyoshi warriors ran into the hut, turning to the water girl. "Did a strange man with golden hair pass through here?" one of them asked.
"Yes. He went out that way." Katara pointed at the exit.
With a nod, the group dashed out of the hut, continuing on the man's trail.
Katara gathered the water into her pouch and made her way after them, wondering what's going on.
(Over by the village square)
Akira found himself with a lot of ground to spare. Yes, the islanders navigated the vegetation well because it was their home, but Akira had clambered his way through it with the instinct of an animal. When at last he made it out and found himself running into the middle of a village, his thoughts turned back to finding his friends.
That, however, was immediately distracted from when Akira skidded to a stop right in front of the large bison standing in his way. The bison growled loudly, making Akira stumble backwards.
"Argh! What the fuck?" The devilman stared in disbelief at the thing. It was larger than any animal he had seen, and stranger looking too. Its pale fur and brown patch stuck out to him the most. For a moment, he thought it might be a demon of some kind. But he couldn't sense any demonic essence, so it had to be fine.
"What the hell are you?" Akira wondered, quickly getting back to his feet. He gave the bison a curious grin.
"That's Appa. Who are you?"
Akira turned around to see a young boy with a group of little girls behind him. The boy wore an orange robe and had a blue arrow on his head. His cloud gray eyes stared curiously at Akira.
The devilman's hair raised for a moment, but he calmed down quickly. "Nice to not be attacked on sight." He said with a light groan before shifting his weight to one side. "The name's Akira. I'm a bit lost."
"What do you mean?" Aang asked before noticing the way this stranger was dressed. "You're not from here, are you?"
"AKIRA!"
The devilman snapped his head to see Miki off in the distance, still being chased along the shoreline. "Miki!" Without a second thought, he dashed past the bison and ran to her.
Just as this was happening, the other warriors who had been chasing him reached Aang and Appa. "Avatar, that boy is an intruder. Help us catch him!" one of the warriors said.
"Intruder?" Aang's eyes widened in alarm. "So that's why he's dressed like that. I'll get him!" Using his airbending, the Avatar dashed after Akira, the Kyoshi warriors following close behind.
"Go get him, Aang!" one of the little girls shouted.
As Miki was beginning to lose her stamina, she heard Akira answer her call and saw him running towards her. She pushed harder, running as fast as she could while the warriors were quickly closing the distance. Just as she feared the worst though, Akira made within arm's reach and extended a hand. Taking his hand, Miki found herself pulled forward and behind the devilman as he kicked up a cloud of sand at the warriors chasing her.
"Stay behind me," Akira called out as the warriors began backing the two against the shoreline, their fans out in shield formation. The devilman entertained some idea of starting another escape, but soon the rest of the guards chasing him had joined in as well.
The two quickly found themselves encircled. Miki was starting to panic, and so was Akira, not knowing how to keep her safe. Suddenly coming back-to-back, Akira and Miki found themselves nervously reaching for each other's hand. That seemed enough to keep them at least a little bit steady, Akira widened his stance for another fight and Miki remembered something she had on her. Reaching to a belt under her skirt, Miki pulled out and unsheathed a long switchblade, holding it in front of her with a tight yet shaking grip.
"Looks like our intruder has a trick up her sleeve." Suki remarked. "If you surrender now, nobody gets hurt."
Akira and Miki looked at each other. Miki tightened her grip on his hand ever so slightly, and the boy nodded. A peaceful option had been presented, and it would probably end better than continuing the fight. The devilman raised his hands, and Miki dropped her blade in the sand.
"Tie them up." Suki commanded. Two Kyoshi warriors nodded and approached Akira and Miki, one of them pulling out a rope from her garment.
"I'm here!"
Everybody turned their heads to see Aang, the Kyoshi warriors, and the group of little girls coming their direction, the airbender slowing his pace as he came to a stop. "There's two of them?"
"Three actually." A warrior from the first group said.
"What's going on?" Sokka asked the second group of the Kyoshi warriors.
"We found these two by our shores, along with another who had a strange weapon with him." The leading warrior of the second group explained.
"Please, we don't want any trouble." Miki pleaded.
"We washed up here by accident," Akira added.
"Why should we believe you?" Suki replied with a suspicious glare. "For all we know, you could be Fire Nation spies."
"Let them speak." Aang said. "You didn't believe us until I showed you I'm the Avatar. Give them a chance to prove themselves."
"This can't be a coincidence having them show up a day after you did." Suki shook her head.
"Spies?" Miki tilted her head.
"What's a fire nation?" Akira asked.
Before anyone else could respond, the third group of warriors came marching from their side of the island. Clear as day, and with something of a chuckle from Akira, he and Miki saw Ryo. The detective had been tied to a long stick, and was being dragged through the sand, wriggling angrily with a piece of cloth tied over his mouth.
"We caught this one fleeing one of our guests' huts," the leader of that guard team said to Suki as she approached. "Apparently he was trying to fashion a staff." She made a gesture to one of her fellow guards, who removed the gag from Ryo's mouth.
"Breaking and entering, Ryo?" Akira couldn't help making a joke.
"I was going to come back and help you two." the detective returned with an annoyed glare.
Looking at his friend tied up, the devilman grinned, "Good job."
"Who are you three and how did you find our island?" Suki demanded.
"Wait!"
Everybody turned to see Katara making her way towards them, panting heavily.
"Katara!" Aang exclaimed as she came close. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine, Aang." Katara replied, though there was a bit of annoyance in her tone.
"You went after them too?" Sokka asked, pointing at the tied-up trio.
"I'm asking the questions here." Suki said, shooting a quick glare at Sokka before turning back to the trio. "Where are you from? You are clearly not from the Earth Kingdom."
"Earth kingdom?" Akira felt even more confused now.
"Akira, this clearly isn't the world we're from," Ryo groans at him, "They've got people who can move water with their minds."
"What is this place?" Miki asks, her shoulders slumping a bit.
"It's called waterbending," Katara corrected Ryo. "And you're on Kyoshi Island."
"Don't give them information so easily, Katara." Suki said. She unfolded her fan and held it under Akira's chin. "Let's start with your names."
"Akira," the devilman answers, wondering just how dangerous the fan is but deciding not to push things for now.
"Miki," the girl answers quickly after, looking nervously at Akira.
The detective stays silent for a moment, but sighs after the other two give him annoyed looks. "Ryo."
"Very good." Suki replied. "You asked me a moment ago about the Fire Nation. Do you honestly not know what we are talking about?"
"How do I explain this?" Ryo answered aloud, wondering how to rationalize any of this. "We're from a different realm. A…what would you call it...? A spirit sent us here from our home." The detective wanted to facepalm himself, thinking even that sounded unbelievable.
"A spirit?" Suki raised her eyebrow. "Are you speaking of the spirit world?"
"You know about the spirit world?" Aang perked up at the mention of it.
"Not what I'd call it, but sure." Akira shrugged. His gaze began to focus on Aang, and he sensed something odd from him with his devil-senses.
"Oh great, they're bringing up nonsense." Sokka grumbled, to which Katara elbowed him.
"Don't listen to him." Katara said to the trio. "My brother is an idiot sometimes."
"Are you a spirit?" Aang asked Akira. He sensed a similar energy coming from him.
"Are you?" The devilman asked back, wondering if he had stumbled upon another devilman of some kind.
"He's the Avatar." Katara replied. 'The bridge between the human world and the spirit world."
"Stop telling them important stuff, Katara." Sokka said with an eyeroll. "Let's make it simple. Are you good guys or bad guys?"
"Good guys?" Miki looked at Akira, then to Ryo.
"I mean Ryo's kind of a jerk sometimes," The devilman grinned. The other two yelled at Akira as the warriors tensed up, and he walked back on his statement. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry. We're good guys. We help deal with spirits that go after people where we come from."
"Spirit hunters?" Suki's eyes widened. "There hasn't been one since the days of Avatar Kyoshi."
"Is your world at war too?" Aang asked.
Ryo chuckled, "Not on a world scale, the last big one scared us of world wars."
"Does your world have more of these?" One of the Kyoshi warriors stepped forward, holding Ryo's gun. "We do not have weapons like this here."
Akira and Miki exchanged looks as Ryo answered, "Then you don't know what you're in for…"
"If you say you are the good guys, will you help us stop the Fire Nation?" Katara asked.
"We don't know what that is," Akira repeated, "For all we know, they could be dragon people or something."
All eyes go to Aang, making the Avatar uncomfortable.
"The Fire Nation is the world's enemy." Aang reluctantly replied, sadness crossing his face.
"They've been raging a world war for nearly a hundred years." Katara continued. "Notorious monsters who will burn everything and everyone in their path." Katara touches her necklace, her eyes welling up.
"The Fire Nation destroys our friends, our families, our entire way of living." Sokka carried on. "Only the Avatar could stop them, which is why Aang is here."
"The Avatar is our beacon of hope." Suki added.
The devilman took in their stories, seeing the truth in their eyes. He looks between Miki and Ryo, and all three of them seem to understand the gravity of the situation. He turns to Katara, "They sound like demons, and I've no tolerance for scum like that. I'll fight them, and we'll help you as best we can." Akira says with a new conviction in his voice.
"Then, welcome to the team." Aang said.
"I suppose our new allies need better weapons." Suki observed. Using Miki's knife, she freed the trio from their bindings. "Follow us to the training dojo, and we will supply you with what you need."
"May we perhaps get something to eat first?" Miki asked politely.
(A little while later)
After the trio were given some food, Aang and Katara explained to Akira and Ryo about their world and how they're on a journey to help Aang learn to bend all four elements so that he can defeat the Fire Nation. They also mentioned Zuko, and how bent he is on capturing Aang for the Fire Nation. Suki offered Miki to train with her and the other Kyoshi warriors, to which she gladly accepted.
"So, can everyone here move the elements with their minds?" Ryo asked Katara.
"No. Some people like Sokka are born without bending." Katara explained. "Those that are benders can only bend the element of their colony. I'm from the Southern Water Tribe, which makes me a waterbender."
"And I'm an air nomad, which makes me an airbender." Aang added.
"So then there's also fire and earth?" Akira tilted his head, finishing the last bit of his food.
Aang nodded. "Zuko is a firebender, and a pretty good one."
"We should leave soon before he finds us." Katara pointed out.
"Where will you go?" Ryo asked.
"To the North Pole, to find Aang a waterbending teacher." Katara explained.
"You're gonna find Santa…ow!" Akira starts before Ryo elbows him. "Shouldn't you learn earthbending while you're here?" The detective speaks up.
"The Kyoshi Warriors aren't earthbenders." Aang replied. "But I do know someone who's a really great earthbender."
"So, is that your first stop?" Akira asks.
Aang and Katara exchange looks, before slowly nodding in agreement.
"Psst, Aang!"
Aang turned to see the group of little girls that were with him earlier standing at the hut's entrance.
"Do your rock trick again!" one of them asked excitedly.
"Sure thing, Koko." Aang stood up and airbended a few pebbles between his hands, smiling goofily at Akira and Ryo.
Katara rolled her eyes, knowing all the attention was getting in his head.
Akira and Ryo stared blankly at the display, with the devilman eventually going, "So that's what it looks like…"
(Over at the training dojo)
Sokka decided to swallow his pride and ask for a second chance. Entering the dojo, he saw Suki, Miki and the other Kyoshi warriors going through the forms. Miki looked like she was one of them, with her brown hair and dark green eyes.
Seeing Sokka, Suki paused the training and put her hands on her hips. "Hoping for another dance lesson?"
"No, I..." Sokka began to explain. "You see…"
"Spit it out. What do you want?" Suki demanded.
Sokka got on his knees and bowed his head. "I would be honored if you would teach me."
"Even if I'm a girl?" Suki crossed her arms.
"I'm sorry if I offended you earlier. I was wrong." Sokka admitted.
"We normally don't teach outsiders, let alone boys." Suki explained.
Miki rubbed the back of her neck at the mention of it.
"Please make an exception. I won't let you down.' Sokka pleaded.
"Alright, but you have to follow all of our traditions." Suki instructed.
"Of course." Sokka nodded.
"And I mean all of them." Suki added with a knowing grin.
Miki smiled as she realized what she meant.
A few minutes later, Sokka was dressed in a green garment and wearing Kyoshi style makeup.
"Do I really have to wear this?" Sokka asked. "It feels a little...girly."
"I think you look lovely," Miki said with a smile, though that got some chuckles out of the others.
"It's a warrior's uniform. You should be proud." Suki replied. "The silk threads represent the brave blood that flows through our veins. The golden insignia symbolizes the honor of a warrior's heart."
"Bravery and honor." Sokka repeated with a smile. "I like the sound of that."
"Hey Sokka." Aang said as he walked by the dojo. "Nice dress."
Sokka's shoulders slumped in slight embarrassment, which received a giggle from Miki.
(In the village square)
As Akira and Ryo had been following Katara, they came across a large wooden pole embedded in the sand. At its top was a carving of a woman in the warrior's armor, the paint weathered and chipping.
"The founder of their order, I assume?" Ryo studied the statue from where the three had come to stand in front of the pylon.
"Indeed." An old man wearing blue robes approached the group. He sprouted a long gray beard and a pair of glasses sat at the edge of his nose. "Avatar Kyoshi was born here 400 years ago. She split Kyoshi island from the mainland to protect our people from the ruthless Chin the Conqueror."
"Avatar? Like Aang?" Akira turned to the man.
The old man nodded. "When the Avatar dies, he or she is reborn in the nation of the next element. Avatar Roku was our avatar before the war. They say his failure in his duties are what contributed to the Fire Nation spreading the war to the rest of the world." He shook his head in dismay.
"Water, Earth, Fire, and Air," Ryo nods to himself.
"Yeesh, that's some legacy to get saddled with," Akira winced. "Wait, if this war's been going on for 100 years, then how is Aang still a kid?"
"He was trapped in an iceberg all this time." Katara explained. "That's how Sokka and I found him."
"Just like the demons," the detective spoke under his breath, to which the devilman shuddered. "And these fire guys have just been unstoppable without an Avatar?"
Katara nodded. "The men of my tribe had to leave to help draw the Fire Nation back. We have a bad history of their attacks on our tribe." Katara touched her necklace again. "That's how I lost my mom."
Akira grimaced, his hands pulling into fists. He could feel the pain under Katara's voice, and he stepped closer to her. "I lost my mother to monsters…I'll help you avenge yours."
"Thank you, Akira." Katara wiped her eyes and offered a small smile. "May your mother rest in peace."
The devilman returned a grin, patting Katara lightly on the shoulder. "I hope so."
"Hey Katara."
The three of them turned to see Aang making his way towards them. "Remember when I almost got eaten by the Unagi yesterday?"
"Yes?" Katara replied with a raised eyebrow.
"Well, I'm gonna go ride it now." Aang said with a mischievous grin. "It's gonna be really dangerous."
"Good for you." Katara said sarcastically.
"You're not going to stop me?" Aang asked.
"Nope. Have fun." Katara said with a frown.
"I will." Aang crossed his arms.
"Great."
"I know it's great."
"I'm glad you know."
"I'm glad you're glad."
"Good!"
"Fine!" Aang turned away childishly and walked away with a huff.
Akira turned to Ryo, who looked just as confused. "Unagi?" he asked Katara.
"It's a giant water serpent who eats the elephant koi." Katara explained. "He just wants to impress those girls so badly. It's ridiculous."
"Oh yeah?" Akira let out a chuckling breath, "And I guess he wanted to impress you too?"
"He doesn't need to. Being the Avatar is impressive on its own." Katara said with an eyeroll. "But no, he has to go and do something dangerous."
"I feel like you know something that you haven't told us yet." Akira pointed out.
Katara shook her head. "It's not my place to say."
The devilman decided to leave it at that. Ryo simply began to rub his brow with a sigh.
(Back at the training dojo)
Suki watched as Miki and Sokka went through the forms that Suki just taught them. Miki flowed through the forms rather gracefully, while Sokka staggered and wobbled through the stances.
"Very good for your first lesson, Miki.' Suki complimented. "You need to widen your stances, Sokka. Your movement is stiff and rigid."
"This is very different from my warrior training." Sokka said. He crossed his legs forward and threw the fan with a swift jab of his arm. The fan flew outside and hit a tree, falling to the ground.
"It's not about strength." Suki explained. "Our technique is about using your opponent's force against them." she gestured to Miki to take a fighting stance.
Miki takes a deep breath, setting her feet into the starting position. As she goes through the motions Suki taught her, the thought she's putting into her actions is clear. Her movement is a bit slower, but she reaches every stance precisely and stays steady on her feet.
"See how nimble and thorough Miki is?" Suki pointed out. "Let yourself loosen up a little."
Taking in the pointers, Sokka got into a fighting stance and went through the forms again, remembering to widen his stances and swing his arms more freely. His technique is more upright this time, to which Suki nods in approval.
"Much better." Suki said with a smile. "Now let's see you two put those moves into combat." She gets in a fighting stance and raises her fan.
Miki and Sokka mirror fighting stances and hold up their fans, facing their teacher.
Suki rushed at Miki, swinging her fan at her hip. Miki blocked the hit and pinned Suki's arm, sweeping her leg and tripping her over. Suki quickly rolled back up, turning to Sokka who aimed his fan at her neck. She grabbed his wrist and twisted it back, using the momentum to push Sokka back and make him lose his balance. Sokka landed on his rear, but ducked his head as Suki swung her fan at him. Using Suki's focus on Sokka to her advantage, Miki jabbed her fan at Suki's leg, making her stumble. As she staggered back, Miki lunged forward and swept her other leg, making her fall on her back. Before she could stand up, Miki squadded down and pushed her fan against Suki's neck, while Sokka pinned her arms back.
"Great job, you two." Suki nodded with a grin. "You're a natural, Miki."
"We learned from the best," Miki smiled brightly.
"Of course, I made a good distraction." Sokka said with a knowing grin as he released Suki's arms.
"A warrior is never distracted." Suki said as she got back on her feet. "Not even by a handsome Water Tribe man."
"What about the first handsome Kyoshi warrior?" Sokka shot back with a wink.
"I suppose he would be the exception." Suki said with a smile.
Miki glanced between them during this exchange, smiling to herself.
(On the beach)
Aang stood in the water, waiting for the Unagi to show up. The group girls sat in the sand, looking bored.
"What's taking so long?" Koko asked.
"I'm sure it will be here any minute." Aang reassured them, trying to see what he could do in the meantime. "What about this?" He proceeded to do the airbending trick with the pebbles again.
"Not that again. Lame." Said another little girl with a sigh.
"Where's Unagi? It's getting late." The girls stood up and began to walk away.
"Where are you going? Don't leave!" Aang pleaded.
"Sorry, Aang. Maybe next time." Koko replied before walking off.
Aang sighed, sinking a little deeper into the water. His eyes perked up though as he saw a familiar Water Tribe girl arrive on the shore, followed by Akira.
"Katara, Akira, you came!"
"I wanted to make sure you're okay." Katara called out. "You made me worried."
"But back there, you acted like you didn't care." Aang said.
"I know. I'm sorry." Katara rubbed her arm.
"Yeah, I'm sorry too." Aang apologized. "I did let all that attention go to my head. I acted like a jerk."
"Well get out of the water before you catch a cold, you big jerk!" Katara replied.
"You don't wanna freeze into another iceberg, do ya?" Akira says with a chuckle.
"I'm coming!" Aang began to swim back to shore.
Just then, a large fin sprouted out of the water, following Aang close behind.
Katara gasped. "Aang, behind you!"
Aang looked back just as the fin rose out of the water, revealing a large sea serpent.
"Aaaaaahhhh!" Aaang screamed as the Unagi opened its mouth, revealing rows of razor-sharp teeth. It shot a stream of water at Aang before snapping at him. Aang jumped out of the way and grabbed one of the Unagi's whiskers, holding on for dear Unagai swung his head, making Aang sway side to side in the air.
"Hold on, Aang!" Katara shouted.
"You got it, kid!" Akira called out.
Aang did just that, before the Unagi tossed him into the water. As soon as Aang hit the water, he passed out.
Panicking, Katara ran into the water and swam towards Aang.
The Unagi slithered towards the airbender, hissing loudly.
Akira then darted past the two benders, having apparently dived right behind Katara. He slams himself into the Unagi, forcing it sideways and gripping onto his front fin. The devilman began wrestling the beast, getting it to thrash away from his new friends.
Katara grabbed Aang and used her waterbending to make a wave that pushed her back to shore. She laid Aang in the sand and bent the water out of his mouth, making him cough and sputter.
"Katara…don't ride the Unagi. Not fun."
Katara exhaled a sigh of relief. She looked back out at the water, seeing Akira fighting with the Unagi. Her eyes widened. Just who was this guy?
As Akira wrestled with the serpent, he heard the horn of a ship. The Unagi let out an ominous screech before diving back into the water and swimming away from the noise. The devilman let go as it thrashed a final time, and he began swimming back to shore.
Katara saw a small Fire Nation ship approaching. "Zuko."
As the ship stopped, a drawbridge lowered, and Zuko stepped on the island mounted on an armored rhino, two fire nation soldiers followed close behind.
"I want the Avatar alive." Zuko told the soldiers.
As they made their way towards the village, Aang and Katara met up with Akira. "That's Zuko. We must get out of here."
"The firebenders?" Akira clenched his fist, "We have to get back to the town, save our friends."
"Of course." Aang nodded. "You two get Appa and warn the village. Leave Zuko to me."
"Be careful." Katara said with a concerned look.
"I'm always careful." Aang replied with a reassuring smile.
"Let's kick some tail!" Akira punched his fists together.
With that, the three went separate ways.
(Back at the dojo)
Suki watched as Sokka and Miki sparred with each other. Sokka went for a fan to Miki's shoulder, to which Miki blocked and grabbed Sokka's arm, ducked her head under and pushed Sokka back with her elbow. Sokka widened his stance to regain his balance and used his fan to block a punch from Miki, grabbing her arm and yanking her forward, making Miki lose her footing and stumble. Before she could hit the floor, Sokka wrapped an arm around her neck and stood her up, holding her in a headlock.
"I win." Sokka boasted victoriously.
"Nice going," Miki said. With a cheeky smile, she patted him on the head. "Now we're even."
Sokka's cheeks turned pink in slight embarrassment as he released Miki. "Yeah, I guess so."
"Fire Nation on our shores!" The village leader hurried by the entrance. "Girls, come quickly!"
Without a second thought, Suki and Miki rushed after him.
"Hey, I'm not-" Sokka started but gave up as he quickly followed. "Oh, nevermind."
(At the front of the village)
Zuko and the two firebenders on his side stood menacingly at the entrance of the village.
"Come out, Avatar!" The fire nation prince demanded. "You can't hide from me forever!"
The villagers hid in their homes, anticipating an attack.
"Find him." Zuko commanded the firebenders beside him.
As they began to walk into the village, the first group of Kyoshi warriors launched themselves at the firebenders, knocking them off their rhinos.
Ryo, having hid behind one of the huts, considered firing his gun. But realizing he didn't know when he'd be able to reload it again, he decided to let the warriors do the fighting. "What am I gonna do? Get burnt to a crisp?" He grumbled to himself, rushing to the backs of the huts to make sure that those inside knew to leave for safer ground.
As a group of soldiers were making their way through a different part of the town, setting fire to the roofs of the huts as they went, one of them pointed up. "Look! It's the Avatar's bison"
"Get me in close," Akira called to Katara, letting himself hang off the side of the saddle with a sawtooth grin. As Appa swung into a dive, pulling up just high enough to avoid the firebenders flames, the devilman leapt off and shot like a meteor into one of the soldiers.
A controlled crash and roll later, Akira spun himself into a fighting stance and rushed the other soldiers. He had just managed to dodge a burst of flame from one of them and kick him hard in the gut, but then another soldier blasted Akira in the back. Yelling in pain, Akira stretched out a hand as the last soldier fired another burst, only for the flames to split from his hand and peter out. Before either could really process that, Akira rushed the soldier and knocked him out cold with a charging head-butt.
Elsewhere, the fire prince found himself caught up in his own fight.
Suki rushed at Zuko, who shot fireballs at her. Suki dodged the fire and launched at Zuko, only for his rhino to slap her with its tail, knocking her down. As Zuko shot another fireball, Sokka blocked it with his fan, getting in front of Suki. Miki jumped at Zuko and kicked him in the gut, knocking him off the rhino.
"I guess training's over." Sokka said to Suki as he helped her up.
The three warriors surrounded Zuko, pointing their fans at him. Zuko spun his legs around shooting fireballs at them, knocking them all off their feet. Sokka quickly got up and tried to jab at Zuko with his fan, but he twisted the fan out of Sokka's hand and kicked him to the ground.
"Nice try Avatar, but these little girls can't save you." Zuko taunted.
"Hey, over here!"
Zuko spun around to see Aang standing a few feet away, holding his staff ready.
"Finally." Zuko took a fighting stance and with a spin kick, shot a large fireball at the airbender.
Aang blocked the fire with his staff and ran at Zuko, sliding under him and kicking his back, forcing Zuko to stumble. The scarred prince knocked the staff out of Aang's hand with a kick and went for a punch, to which Aang ducked and tolled, grabbing a couple Kyoshi fans off the ground. As Zuko rushed at the Avatar, Aang twirled the fans and with his airbending, blew a large gust of wind at Zuko, knocking him into one of the village huts.
Aang ran to where his staff lay, picked it up and threw it in the air, turning into a glider and flying off. As Aang saw the whole village set ablaze, a sense of guilt washed over him. He looked over at the stature of Kyoshi, which was also on fire, feeling ashamed.
Elsewhere, as the battle continued, the Kyoshi warriors were fighting hard to hold the fire nation soldiers at bay. Unfortunately, the flames worked faster than either side.
As one hut stood burning, the devilman's senses picked up a few screams. Rushing inside, he saw a kid hiding in one of the corners, it was that 'Koko' girl he had seen Aang talking with earlier. "Hey, you need to get out of..!" Akira began to yell out, but just as the kid saw him, they both heard a creak in the burning wood. Jumping at the kid, Akira grabbed her and rolled through the outer wall just as the hut came crashing down.
The devilman quickly sat up and turned to the kid, his now smoldering jacket falling off into charred bits. "You alright kid? Koko, that's your name, right?"
Koko nodded, despite shaking a bit in distress. Akira stood and reached his hand out. "Let's get you back to the others then, ok?"
Eventually the two reached a hut that was away from the fight, and Akira was relieved to see Katara there with more civilians.
"I think that's everyone," the devilman said to her, looking back at the fires in the distance.
"Good. I guess we wait here till the fire dies down." Katara replied.
As Katara and Akira helped bring Koko into the shelter hut, Aang landed on the ground near them, his shoulders slumped. "Look what I brought to this place."
"It's not your fault." Katara said.
"Yes, it is. These people got their village destroyed trying to protect me." Aang argued.
"If they're chasing you, then maybe getting out of dodge will get them away from here too." The devilman said with something of a grimace.
"Akira's right. Zuko will follow us when we leave." Katara nodded. "I know it feels wrong to run, but I think it's the only way."
Aang sighed. "I'll call Appa." He pulled out his bison whistle and blew into it.
"I'll buy the others some time to reach you and get on board," Akira turned back to where the fighting was. "Sokka, Miki, Ryo. I'll catch up once you're ready to go."
"You better come back." Katara said firmly. "No friends left behind."
"I promise," Akira said with a smile, putting a fist over his heart before taking a running start back into the village.
As Ryo and a few Kyoshi warriors forced the fire nation soldiers back, Sokka, Miki, and Suki ran behind an unburned hut.
"There is no time to say goodbye." Suki said.
"How about I'm sorry?" Sokka replied.
"For what?" Suki asked.
"I treated you like a girl, when I should have treated you like a warrior." Sokka said sincerely.
"I am a warrior," Suki confirmed, giving the water tribe boy a kiss on the cheek. "But I'm a girl too." She turned to Miki. "It's been a pleasure being your teacher. Good luck to you and your friends."
"Thanks for accepting an outsider," Miki said, returning a somewhat regretful smile. "I hope we see you again someday."
Suki nodded with a smile, then stood up and pulled out her fans. "Go. We'll hold them off."
As Sokka's cheeks turned pink, Miki grabbed his hand and the two ran in the opposite direction. Ryo met up with them shortly and the trio looked up as they heard a loud growl, seeing Appa flying above them. They picked up their pace as the bison hastily landed, Aang and Katara gesturing for the three to climb aboard.
Off in the burning village, the kyoshi warriors and fire nation were at a stalemate. Reaching the chaos, Akira rushed in and leapt at a mounted soldier, knocking the goon to the floor and taking the reins of his rhino. Charging the rhino into battle with a hoot, the devilman made enough of a scene to catch everyone's attention for a second or two.
"Let's see if we can fight fire with fire!" Akira called out, managing to ram a small group of soldiers before a particularly strong burst of flame blasted him off and sent him tumbling.
Picking himself up with a growl, but feeling his flesh as it singed, Akira looked up to see Zuko standing a few feet away, standing in a fighting stance with a menacing glare on his scarred face. "Where's the Avatar!?" He demanded.
"Wouldn't you like to know?" the devilman answered with a pained grin, "He's not here, you're just wasting your time."
Zuko looked up to see Appa flying towards the open ocean. With a growl, he turned to the fire nation soldiers behind him and pointed at the bison. "Back to the ship. Don't let them out of your sight!"
The remaining soldiers immediately ran back towards the beach. Zuko turned back to Akira one more time with, "You may keep the Avatar close, but I will always be closer." With that, he ran along with his soldiers to the ship.
"Ugh," Akira groaned, getting to his feet and wincing at the fresh burns on his back, "Yeah, screw you too."
As Team Avatar put some distance between them and the island, Aang looked back at the burning village, the guilt in his stomach only becoming more apparent.
"I know it's hard, but we did the right thing. Zuko would've destroyed the whole island if we had stayed. They're going to be okay, Aang." Katara reassured him.
"There's nothing more you could do," Ryo said rather plainly.
With a shake of his head, Aang stood up and jumped off Appa, plunging down towards the water.
"What are you doing!?" Katara shouted after him.
"What?!" Ryo jerked his head in shock.
"Aang!" Miki quickly peered over to the side to see where the boy had gone.
The airbender dived into the water with a splash. A moment later, the Unagi emerged, screeching wildly. Using its whispers as reins, Aang directed the water beast's head towards the island, making it shoot water at the village, dissipating the flames and saving what remained.
"Thank you, Avatar." The village leader stood outside the shelter hut with a smile.
As Aang gestured to Appa to sweep down, he saw Akira running into the water. With a determined grin, he directed the Unagi to swim towards his new friend, to which Aang slid down the creature's long body and extended a hand towards him.
Akira took Aang's hand, and the two jumped up into Appa's saddle, who quickly turned back around and proceeded to fly off towards their next destination.
"I know I know, that was stupid and dangerous." Aang said with his hands up.
"Yes, it was." Katara smiled, pulling the airbender into a hug.
Miki smiles at the exchange, glancing over to Akira, who holds back a chuckle. He scoots to sit closer to her, though the two aren't quite sure what to even say to each other.
"Listen, Miki…I…I didn't want to lie to you…"
Miki shifts a bit closer, "I wouldn't know what to think, I might not even believe it if we hadn't literally fallen from the sky…"
Ryo looked at them closely, worried they might let slip that Akira was a Devilman. But as Miki put her hands together nervously and asked, "You did say you're still Akira, didn't you?"
The devilman offered a grin and patted her on the shoulder, "You better believe it. Nothing in the world could change that."
"Then that works for me," Miki said with a sighing chuckle, and Akira took a deep breath of relief.
Ryo stayed silent and turned to Aang. "That was a clever move…"
Just then, Momo flew over to the detective and crawled up his face, nestling into his hair.
This got a chuckle out of Aang. "I think Momo likes you."
"Argh! Wha…" the detective fell back in the saddle, frantically trying to grab at the creature on his face, "Get it off me, get it off!"
Akira began to laugh, and Miki covered her mouth to hide her chuckle.
"Now that I'm getting a better look at it, how is your hair that color?" Sokka asked Ryo.
Still shaking around, Ryo finally manages to grab the flying lemur and hold it in front of him, his hair now frazzled and his expression very annoyed. He glances at Sokka, "What do you mean? That's how it…is…"
"*they don't have blondes? *" Miki whispered to Akira, who gave a shrug in return.
Sokka raised his eyebrow. "You mean you were born with that color?"
"Sokka, I think that's enough questions for them today." Katara intervened.
As Appa drifted above the ocean, team Avatar looked ahead at the horizon, anticipating their next adventure.
End of Chapter 1
Authors' Notes:
Aladar Caval: Well, here comes one idea at least two years in the making. This started off as a draft for crossover fanfiction ideas around the same time we had started Miraculous Devilman. That project ended up with more wind in its sails, and this one kinda fell by the wayside. But now we have a fresh start, and I have a lot more experience writing the Devilman trio.
Dancecat25: Hello, beautiful readers. I'm really excited about bringing this project back to life again. Don't get me wrong, Miraculous Devilman is still our main priority, but it's nice to start something new too. Since there are no existing ships starting out, we can have fun with both sides going forward.
Aladar Caval: As fun as it is to write Akira and Miki as already together, I did miss out on the chance to write them actually "getting together". Well, with the lighter romcom elements of Avatar, this ought to make things fun.
Dancecat25: There is so much we can work with the elements and the functionalities of the Avatar world, given how drastically different it is from the Devilman world. It will be interesting to see how the trio contribute to the fight against the Fire Nation. Until next time, leave a review and have a wonderful day.