Water. Earth. Fire. Air. This is the new cycle after Avatar Korra left open the door to the spirit world and ended the old cycle. And the Air Nomads are awaiting their turn at the Avatar cycle after Avatar Aang and Avatar Korra rebuilt them. Unfortunately, eight years after passed between the death of the previous Avatar and now, and the Air Nomad Avatar has yet to be found.

But there is now a fifth nation at play; The United Republic. A nation born from the aftermath of the Hundred Years War and comprised of descendants of all four nations, it is the perfect breeding grounds for a new Avatar. And it is here where the Avatar Spirit Raava chose to add to the cycle, to begin a New Dawn.

Xiaolong fumbled with his keys to get into his car, relieved that his meetings for the day were finished. Meeting investors for his company, Dragons Unlimited, was never fun, as he had to balance their need for a return on their investment with his need to ensure his employees were paid well and had proper medical care while ensuring his products were extremely affordable, but he managed to keep this balance perfectly. And that's why Dragons Unlimited toys were beloved around the world; brand loyalty built on ensuring that no toys were out of reach for any child.

Xiaolong looked around as he was about to unlock the door when he saw a homeless girl in an alley across the street; her light brown skin made her appear like she was descended from the Water Tribes, so as he started walking toward her, seeing her waterbend snow into a rusty pot didn't surprise him. He was going to help her purchase supplies; winter was harsh in Republic city, and better winter clothes and camping gear would do wonders to help her survive. And if he could help her parents too, all the better.

However, as he got closer to the girl, he saw something he'd never expected from a waterbender; the girl used firebending to light some tinder to melt the snow. Xiaolong had found the Avatar. Missing from the Air Nation since the end of the previous cycle, the Avatar was homeless in Republic City.

Picking up his pace now, Xiaolong knew his responsibility; take in the Avatar and her family, get the Avatar trained and send her off on her journey to become fully realized. This was the most important thing in the world right now, and he would not fail.

Unfortunately, the Avatar was a skittish child, because when she saw a man in his 40s moving toward her with purpose, she panicked. She blasted Xiaolong with air before running off into the alley. After recovering, Xiaolong began chasing her, determined to catch the Avatar, his mind racing on how to calm her after this unintended fright.

But the Avatar wasn't done yet; she erected pillars of rock to slow Xiaolong down, doing everything she could think of to escape, but this confirmed what Xiaolong had suspected; she was completely untrained in any of the elements. She was using them on instinct, a way to protect herself and keep herself alive.

Eventually, the Avatar was cornered, and while Xiaolong did his best to appear nonthreatening, but the Avatar was not having it; she fearfully scanned her surroundings but found no way out. The fence she had scaled to escape had trapped her between Xiaolong and wall, with the fire escapes well out of her reach. And so, the Avatar did the only thing that her panicked mind could; she entered the Avatar State. She began floating off the ground and started creating an aura of flame around her body.

Xiaolong swallowed hard, knowing how dangerous this situation was; right now, the Avatar State was a defense mechanism for this terrified little girl, and with its power, she could wipe him off the face of the earth and leave no trace. And with only the experiences of three previous Avatars and the emotions of an 8-year-old girl, the Avatar State was extremely dangerous.

Xiaolong slowly dropped to his knees and began speaking softly. "Avatar, please, I didn't mean to scare you. I was just excited to finally find you; you've been missing since your predecessor passed 8 years ago."

"What did you call me?" The Avatar said, still remaining in the Avatar State, though the flames surrounding her dissipated and she slowly returned to the ground.

Xiaolong knew he wasn't out of danger yet; she still had access to the knowledge and powers of her predecessors in this state, so he had to be careful. "You're the Avatar, master of the 4 elements and bridge between humanity and the spirits. I didn't mean to frighten you. I just wanted to speak with you. To help you."

At this point, the girl was calm enough to be released from the Avatar State and spoke in her own voice. "Help me how?"

Xiaolong slowly stood and carefully made his way to the child. "Well, the first thing is to get you off the streets; get you some warm clothes, hot food, take care of anything that's making you sick. And when you're ready, we'll get you started on your journey, so you can learn how to protect yourself."

The girl just looked at Xiaolong, trying to figure things out. She was scared, and justifiably so; Xiaolong had not made a great first impression, after all, despite the good intentions behind it. But eventually, she reached out her hand. "I'd like that."

"Good," Xiaolong said, taking the child's hand and began leading her back to his car. "Before we go any further, my name is Xiaolong. What's yours?"

"Yang," the girl said meekly.

"Well, Yang, we've got a long road ahead of you," Xiaolong said, holding Yang's tiny hand in his. "But I promise I'll keep you safe until you're ready."