Book I: Reincarnation

Episode 1: With Time

The light of the portal shines brightly as I walk through it. "Fuck!" I'm blinded, for what feels like, the millionth time now. "Why is everything so bright in the afterlife?" I say as my eyes adjust. I come out the other side of the gateway and I'm greeted by, yet another, completely white room.

"So…do you all have the same interior decorator, or is this one of those happy little accidents?" I say putting on a deep southern drawl at the end.

Raava pays my attempt at humor no mind and closes the portal behind her as she enters. After she does so she vanishes into thin air.

I whip my head to and fro and take a defensive stance. "Creepy faceless lady, where are you?" No response. "Ok now I'm freaking out"

I turn in circles, trying to insure nothing sneaks up on me. "No for real what the act-" I'm cut off by Raava's weird multi-voice. "Listen young hero," she says without showing herself , "I was not completely honest with Athena just now." I raise my eyebrow at that. "What?"

I'm starting to panic a little. I've faced and faught terrorists, goblins, bugbears, a dragon(sort of), and even a fucking lich. However, as far as I know, Raava is the God of the Avatar world, and kratos I am not.

"I did not tell her the truth…at least not entirely." The woman says, sounding a little embarrassed.That makes me more tense, but I try to focus my hearing to see if I can find where the voice is coming from. "Oh yeah, and how is that?"

There was a slight pause before she speaks again. "I told her that I had a vision of a future to come." I try to listen carefully but the voice seems to be coming from everywhere at once. "Okay." I say, still slowly making circles. "The truth is," Raava pauses, "that I omitted some things, and It wasn't a vision of the future I showed you, but a vision of my past."

My eyes grow wide, threatening to pop out of my skull. "What the hell do you mean, a vision of your past?" The spirit was quiet for a moment.

After that pause I am, yet again, blinded by another bright flash of light. "Holy fuck, why!?" I squat and cover my eyes. "I swear I'll be as blind as a bat fucking with you…you Gods!" As my vision clears I hear Raava snort and quickly cover it with a cough. "What you laughing at missy?" I quip and look at her.

Raava's shining, featureless form greets me. "It's not funny that my retinas are sizzling right now!" Something clicks in my head. "Wait a minute, I'm off track, you were saying?"

"Yes, well, you see it's ," she pauses, "It's complicated." I stand and face Raava. "What do you mean?" She sighs. I eye her cautiously as she seems to contemplate something. "Ok, let me start at the beginning."

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12 hours ago

Aang huffs and puffs, desperately trying to catch his breath. He is on his hands and knees in shallow water, soaked to the bone, and rapidly losing strength. He hears the roaring of fire and pushes to his feet. Looking up to where he just fell from, he sees Ozai barreling towards him, propelled by a jet of flame coming from his feet.

Aang, in desperation, turns and starts flapping his arms in circles, bending the water, then pushes forward. The water around him acts as a jet propelling him away from the flame powered threat. Aang skims across the water's surface and onto the bank, stumbling a bit as he lands. He checks behind himself, sees the former fire lord hot on his heels, and falls flat on his face as a result. Without thinking he cocoons himself in an earth ball. Ozai lands next to the Avatar, cackling like a mad man.

"You're weak, just like the rest of your people." He slowly approaches the rocky cocoon, a feral look in his eyes. "They did not deserve to exist in this world, in my world!" He smirks. "Now prepare to join them!"

Ozai quickly brings both of his hands up above his head, "Prepare. To. Die!" He brings his hands down hard on the sphere of rock, sending a wave of fire over its surface. The once firelord jumps back, as the attack erupts up into the air. His cocky smirk turns to a determined scowl. "Why not activate your avatar state," the man yells as he shoots more flame at the boy's defensive structure, flinging it this way and that.

"Come on out boy, you can't hide forever!" Aang sits in his rock ball, sweating, and tries to connect to his avatar spirit. More balls of fire hit the rock. Aang can feel his flesh start to cook under the intense heat. "Come out and play avatar!" A torrent of flame follows, pushing the rock ball against a pillar.

Aang knows it won't hold for much longer. His muscles ache but he's only been fighting for a short time. "What do I do?" Aang thinks to himself. "How I'm I supposed to-" Aang is broken from his thoughts as the cocoon bursts open after being hit with a concentrated ball of fire. The boy tries to bend the air around him to stop the fire, but is pushed back hard.

He slaps against the pillar. A jagged rock jabs into the exact spot where he was struck by lightning not long ago. Aang feels a sharp pain before everything goes white, and he lets out a small yelp as he is buried under the rubble.

Inside Aang's mind

In that moment Aang is pulled into his mind and sees all his past lives standing in a line, their eyes glowing white. "Do not fret young avatar." Aang hears an unfamiliar woman's voice, seemingly coming from nowhere. "Wha-who are you?" He asks the voice. Aang swears he can feel the voice smile. "I am Raava, the spirit of all that is good." The boy tilts his head to the side. "You're a spirit?" Raava giggles, "yes, young nomad, I have been watching you since your first incarnation."

Aang shakes his head in disbelief. "So you've been here this whole time?" He yells, a scowl forming on his face."Why talk to me now?" Raava is silent for a moment, then she says, " it is complicated, and we don't have the time, quickly young avatar you must defeat Ozai." Aang's past lives start to fade from view. "Wait, why? What's going on?" Raava speaks quickly, "I sense something sinister coming from within him and it cannot be allowed to escape."

Real world

Ozai laughs as he saunters up to the pile of rubble. "Come on out little boy, you're about to be-" He grunts as he is cut off by a hand popping out of the pile of debris, and grabbing his beard. Aang pops up and brings Ozai's face up to his, using his facial hair as a handle. Ozai, looking shocked, makes a surprised gasping sound.

They stare at each other for a moment, then Ozai smiles wickedly. The avatar state infused Aang raises an eyebrow at this. "Good, now the fight really begins." A sudden explosion of power separates the two, sending Aang flying through the stone pillar behind him,flipping and sliding to stop himself.

Ozai stands in the same place ,cackling manically. His voice now multi-layered and deep. "Now Avatar allow me to introduce to you the power of a god!" The self proclaimed phoenix king started flexing his muscles, his eyes glowing blood red. Aang was confused and it showed. "It is as I feared," he heard Raava's voice in his head, "somehow he has bonded with Vaatu." Aang gritted his teeth. "And that's a bad thing, right?" Raava hummed in agreement. "Yes that is very bad, I don't know how, it should be impossible, but he is basically the dark avatar and this is his avatar state."

Ozai let out a roar and white hot flame erupted from his mouth. "Come Avatar, face your doom, face the god of this world." Aang's eyes narrow and he started bending all four elements at once. A ring of water pulled from the very air around him. A ring of air so strong it's visible to the naked eye. A string of rocks floating around him, as if he were a planet and the rocks his ring.Lastly a burning ring of fire, hot enough to melt the earth itself.

"you are no god." came the collective voice of every Avatar, "yo are a weak man, who in his feeble attempt at power, bonded with an evil spirit bent on the destruction of the very world you seek to rule." Ozai scoffs. The Avatar smiles, "scoff all you want Ozai, but this is your last chance." The avatar gets into his fighting stance. "Surrender now." Ozai laughs and also takes his stance. Aang instantly launches himself at Ozai by bending the air around him into a vortex. Aang stops the vortex and flips in the air, sending two stones at the man, and aims a kick at him.

The firebender dodges the rocks but gets kicked in the face by the airbenders air-enhanced foot. He's sent flying, hitting the ground and flipping over several times, then skids to a stop lying on his back. The dark avatar growls and tries to get up but Aang isn't going to let him have the chance. The avatar jumps into the air and comes back down, slamming the ground with his foot, causing a split in the earth that swallows his opponent. He then bends the rocks closer together, pinning the firebender. "You cannot hold back Aang," the boy hears Raava in his head, "you must end this quickly!" Aang shakes his head. "No, I won't kill him."

Ozai sees the hesitation of the avatar from his position at the bottom of the rocky rift, and uses a burst of fire to blast the rock, and free himself. He flies out of the hole, like a rocket, and lands behind the distracted boy. "Weakling!" He swings at the airbender with a flame coated fist. The Avatar barely dodges in time, ducking under the man's blow, and retaliating with a flaming uppercut.

Ozai avoids the hit by side stepping, grabbing the avatar's other hand in the process. He flips Aang over his shoulder and launches the boy into a rocky pillar. Using flame to propel himself, the deranged man, flies at the avatar at full speed. "Die!" He yells and flips, hurtling feet first at Aang.

He connects, essentially drop kicking the boy through the pillar. The boy screams in pain as he sails backwards. "What happened to me being a weak man?" Ozai laughs out as he follows the avatar. A fireball hits Aang, then another, and another, all sending him flying further and smashing through more pillars. After a few more pillars are broken Aang finally skids to a halt, landing on his stomach. He weakly pushes himself up.

"I expected more from the mighty Avatar!" Ozai says walking towards the boy. "I thought I was not a god, you said I was weak!" Aang is on his hands and knees, He spits a glob of blood on the ground. "You are." The airbender launches himself between the man's legs using airbending. Once behind him Aang sweeps the firebender with his legs. Ozai topples but quickly springboards back to his feet a short distance away.

Aang pursues, throwing ice shards at the man as he charges. Ozai blocks the icy needles with a burst of flame from his right hand, spinning in place, and launching a fireball at the incoming avatar with his left. Aang pushes off his left foot and uses airbending to spin his body like a top, creating a vortex, and whipping the fireball back at Ozai. The firebender sets his feet, claps his hands together then spreads them, splitting the projectile in half.

Aang, still spinning, barrels into Ozai's chest head first. The two slide a good distance and ozai stumbles a bit but doesn't move otherwise. Aang lands with his arms around his opponent still trying to push him. "Weak, pathetic boy." Ozai puts his hands together, raises them, then brings them down on the teens back. Aang still holds on, so Ozai grabs Aang's shoulders, pulls back his head, then headbutts the boy.

Aang's vision flashes white, momentarily jarring him out of the avatar state. His leg slips under his weight and he starts to fall limp. "Oh no, we aren't done avatar." Ozai tightens his grip and pulls the boy to his feet. the boys eyes flickering with light, barely remaining conscious. "I will make an example of you, for all who would try to oppose me!" He delivers a devastating right, fire laced, hook to the boys face. Aang grunts and slumps again. Ozai smirks and pulls the boy back up, then he delivers a vicious left hook, rocking the young avatar.

"Is this all you have?" Another punch. "Where is all that power everyone is always talking about?!" Another blow, and another, and another. Aang isn't even making sound as he's being hit at this point. The only sound is the wet thud of fist meeting face, and Aang's wheezing breath. He can hear Raava in his head telling him to fight back.

"You don't deserve the power you have!" Ozai smiles wickedly. He grabs Aang by his throat and lifts him above his head. "The ability to never truly die!" The avatar weakly grasps at the man's fingers, blood running down his face. "All the skills of your past lives, and still you stood no chance against my power!" Ozai squeezes the boys throat tighter, causing him to choke.

"Aang, you must let go of your doubt and you mustn't hesitate." Raava's voice comes to the fading boy. "He has to be stopped," he hears avatar kyoshi's voice."by any means necessary." Chimes in Roku. Aang doesn't know what to do. "The lion turtle taught me how to end it peacefully." He hears Raava sigh. "I'm sorry Aang but that is no longer an option," she pauses, "but if you can't do this, I will."

Ozai is still cackling and slowly squeezing the life out of the boy as he stares into his blue eyes. "You can't die yet Avatar, first I need-" Ozai is cut off by the boy wrapping his fingers around the firebener's mouth. "Enough!" Aang's eyes glow white once again.

"I will not sit idly by and let you disrupt the balance because the young avatar lacks conviction." The avatar, still being held by the throat, places his hand on Ozai's forehead. A light pours out of both beings, Aang glowing a pale blue, Ozai a fiery red. The two lights struggle against one another, as if locked in a strange dance, each threatening to overtake the other.

Ozai screams and tosses the boy away, severing the connection. He falls to one knee and begins to cough. The avatar flips in the air and lands a few feet away. "Ahh Raava, you've finally decided to stop hiding behind your vessel." The firebender says, hand on his chest. He stands to his feet.

"Vaatu." The spirit possessed avatar murmurs. "Then I'll do the same." Ozai's voice is gone, replaced by a deep, primal one. "How are you here vaatu!" The possessed firebender smiles and taps his nose. "Wouldn't you like to know."

Ozai rushes the avatar throwing fire laced kicks and punches at inhuman speed. The avatar seems to dodge them all effortlessly, then counterattacks with the same ferocity. They continue this way, both evenly matched. One attacks, the other blocks/dodges, counterattacks, block, repeat.

"Enough of this!" The possessed Ozai shouts. He grabs both the avatar's wrists. The avatar jumps up and, using both feet, kicking the man in the face. He lets go and stumbles backwards, holding his face. The avatar pursues. He sweeps the firebender's legs, using air to help. As Ozai falls, the avatar bends a pillar of earth to smack into his side, sending him the opposite way. He smacks the ground head first. The avatar doesn't stop. He uses earthbending to shackle Ozai's hands to the floor.

"This ends now." The avatar starts to wave his hands, bending the water out of the air. The water gathers, is shaped into a ball, and is turned into a blade of ice. "I'm sorry it came to this." The avatar goes to pierce the ex firelord's heart. "No!" Aang screams in his head. The avatar reels at the sudden headache.

Ozai quickly seizes the moment, breaking free of the earthen shackles, and rushing the boy. The avatar notices at the last second and goes to defend the head punch he sees coming. He catches the fist and peers around it. Ozai is smiling triumphantly. The avatar is confused, he stopped his blow, that is until he feels a warm spot on his chest. He looks down and sees the firebender's hand embedded there.

"How?" The man snatches his hand back and steps back. Aang's eyes flicker and he holds his chest. His senses are going wild. His head is spinning, he can't seem to take in enough breath, and all he hears is ringing.His body knows it's about to die.

"Goodbye avatar." Ozai cackles as Aang falls to his knees. In those dying moments Aang hears Raava in his mind. "It wasn't supposed to end this way,it won't end this way."

--

Now

"And so I used almost all of my power to astral project myself and bring you here."I stand, dumbfounded, after hearing her story. "That's not right, vaatu isn't supposed to-" I'm cut off by Raava, "be a threat until Korra?" I nod my head. "But how do you know that?" Raava sighs. "I don't have the time to explain it young hero."

I pout. "Stop calling me that lady, I've lived two lifetimes." I think about it for a minute. "Well technically I lived one whole lifetime, seeing as I was 21 the first time I died and 26 the next...never mind." I hang my head.

"wait, do I have to start over as a kid again?" Raava shakes her head. "No. I'm sending you as you are now." I lift my head in excitement. "Really?" She nods once again. "Okay, but where are you sending me?"

Raava smiles, I think, and says. "I'm sending you to when aang's journey just began." I nod. "Okay, before or after he was frozen?" Raava crosses her arms. "After, you will help guide the avatar to be ready."

I shake my head. "Why me?" Raava floats over to me and puts a hand on my shoulder. "Because you were a soldier with a pure heart. You know that sometimes to keep the innocent safe, the wicked have to die." She cups my downtrodden chin and lifts it. "And because you love and know my world almost as much as I do."

"so, I'm just supposed to help the avatar learn to be a soldier?" Raava shakes her head this time. "No James, you're supposed to teach him to be a hero." I sigh. "How? Without, magic, or like a gun, I'm just a regular guy." Raava drops her hand. "I mean if the gAang were the avengers I'd be Hawkeye...sokka is black widow."

Raava laughs. "What was your classification in your previous world?" She asks me. I stare at her blankly for a moment. "I was a 10th level warlock, technically a hexblade." She motions me to keep going. "And a 1st level cryomancer." She nods. "And what spells did you prefer?"

I stare quizzically at her. "Fire and ice, what's your point?" Raava lifts one hand and it catches ablaze. "Fire." She lifts the other and it's coated in water that freezes. "Ice. Both these are polar opposites, a duality if you will, yet you sook to make them coexist in harmony." She brings her hands together and the ice quickly melts putting the fire out.

"you see that should be impossible, even in the worlds you come from." She lets her hands fall. "And yet you did it." I remember my fight with the dragon and I rub the back of my head as she stares at me. "I guess I did, huh?" She nods. "So you will go forth as my duality."

I scratch my head comically. "Ummm, what?" She laughs. "I have some friends I'd like you to meet." She snaps her fingers. In a puff of smoke appear two small animals, one a black fox with nine tails, the other a white wolf pup. "Ok, what's with the petting zoo?"

Raava sighs. "These are spirits." She squats and pets the fox. "This is haru, he is a spirit of ever lasting fire." Then she turns and pets the wolf. "And this guy is Ragga, a spirit of purest ice." She stands back up and turns to me. "They have agreed to bond with you in order to help me."

I point at the small creatures. "These guys, really? What are they gonna help?" A jet of black flame passes by my face. "Woah!" I say as I fall backwards trying to dodge the fire. As I sit on my ass, checking to see if my eyebrows are still there, the fox comes and sits in front of me. "Haha, really funny. I get the point, just because you're small doesn't mean you're not a threat."

"Ok so I'll be a firebender who can control ice?" I ask the glowing figure. She shakes her head. "No, you will be both a firebender and a waterbender." I stare at her like she's stupid. "First off, how when Rasha or what ever is an ice spirit not a water spirit. Secondly I'm not the avatar, won't people be like suspicious or something?"

Raava shakes her head once again. "No, because as I said you will be my duality, and secondly what is ice but frozen water." I sigh, again. "So basically you want me to tell people I'm spirit touched?" She nods. "Precisely." I rub my hand down my face. "Ugh, why does it sound like you haven't thought this all the way through?" She laughs. "Because I haven't."

I hang my head and fake cry. "I'm more fucked than I was with Athena, at least she knew what she was doing." Raava clicks her tongue in displeasure. "Anyway you know how the story is supposed to go in my world, I want you to try and keep to that as much as possible thank you." I get this weird feeling there is a lot more going on here but keep it to myself. "Ok, so how does this bonding thing work cause-" Raava touches my forehead and creates a blast of light. I pass out.

AN: So another one down. Don't really have much to say other than here it is...Tada (jazz hands)... don't judge me. Anyway see ya next time.

-Sage