Avatar: Tale of Tae, Book 1: Shock

by alexr416

Following the demise of Avatar Korra; the Earth Nation seeks out the newest successor to the Avatar spirit Raava. A young earth-bender named Tae is thrilled to discover that she would take up the mantle of bringing balance to the world. In order to protect those dear to her, she decides to embark on her journey to discover what it means to be the Avatar to better ensure harmony.

1. Episode 1

Tale of Tae

Book 1: Shock

Chapter 1: A New Beginning

A starry night graces the illustrious Earth Nation. The spring breeze whistles earnestly to attentive ears. Most nights like these would be a beautiful, endearing sight for those appreciative of the cosmos. The limitless expanse above provides a gateway for spirits to peer down on the living while they restlessly shuffle in their cradles. The blinking celestial lights remind everyone that the present is nothing without its history; looking up towards them reminiscent of an ancient air temple's coded glyphs. Most providences of the once infamous kingdom fade into sleep, while one keeps its tireless eyes open.

The city of Ran-Wei bustles with activities on what should be a peaceful, slumber-filled evening. Faint sounds of metal clanging echo across the structure-coated landscape, laborers no doubt hard at work unstintingly keeping the county growing prosperously. The stars are shrouded from view due to industrial smoke blinding the heaven's view below. What once was a monarchial slice of civilization filled to the brim in historical significance, now only appears to strictly focus on heading towards the future. Not a care in the world for the events that brought the town of Ran-Wei into fruition; not a worry for those great individuals that brought about a new era for benders and non-benders alike. One individual stands out from the rest, and even though she doesn't realize her significance in this tireless country, she'll come to understand her part to play in the grand scheme of the world's development.

A young girl rests her head precariously on a studded window pane, her eyes focused forward on a large white screen located across an ocean of sato-mobiles. The vehicles' windshields point towards this incredible tarp as the people within them keep their bodies aligned to maintain a good view. Glancing around, the young girl's gaze lingers around the city's enormous buildings and hearty workers. Men and women continue to fulfill their duties to the city in the dead of night by bending metal to construct even more facilities for the fair citizens. Engineers flock these buildings to keep the community on track by building up what is already an astoundingly brilliant metropolis within the Earth Nation.

The distractible lass brings her focus abruptly back on the mover screen; a beckoning light has begun to shine across its blank face. Excitedly, she leans her body forward so her fingers were just barely dangling over the windows edge above the city streets below. Her smiles stretches wide with expectation, this girl knows that her favorite classic will make its revival for a rare screening in her city. The film slides audibly begin to crackles and the young girl lets out a joyful squeal, clutching her fists with blatant excitement. A murmur of gracious cheers rises into the air from the numerous viewers; the drive-in theater escalating to a brief, tumultuous volume. A lot of the individuals sit up on the hoods of their cars and raise their hands in the air as the mover begins.

"When we last saw our hero, he had stopped the dastardly shadow bender Vura…" a quirky voice narrates to the many onlookers. The cheering from the crowd has fallen into silence, not a single decibel of movement is audible across the outside parking lot. Some of the construction around slows to a stop; the mechanics and construction workers seemed to want a view as well. Eyes wide as an Elephant Koi's gaping mouth, the restless girl returns her head firmly onto the window's border. The screen's display mirrors off her green-hued eyes filling her brain with the visual sensation brought forth by one of the greatest innovations in the entertainment business. The awe-struck teen had heard of Varrick's ingenious inventions and famous productions but had never once had the pleasure of experiencing one to this caliber. In her town, frivolous events like these are seen to the public eye as a negative influence on the minds of the townspeople and generally are avoided at all costs. It seems the Ran-Wei higher-ups made an exception for this one showing, a delightful choice to the many loyal fans of the great series littered throughout the blackened cityscape. An old-timey voice continues its explanation,

"…but now, the great water-bender finds himself trapped in the Spirit World. What is to become of the great hero of the South, Nuktuk?" With the title character's named dropped, a thunderous applause bounces off the steel walls encasing the temporary theater. One of the most well known characters across the globe in pop-culture sends countless city folk into a fanatical frenzy. Frantically, the perched lass dramatically searches her floor for a desired toy. She quickly scours the wooden platform before locating a fire ferret plush under a cluttered pile of books and scrolls. Grasping the cotton icon closely, she turns her attention back to the powerful water-bender.

"I will find a way out of the Spirit World, with the help of my dear friends!" Nuktuk announces proudly. He flexes his muscles to demonstrate his brute strength, but to many youthful fan girls, it was a much-needed showcase of his manly charm and gorgeous, heroic appearance. A specific example of these fan girls swoons over him from her apartment window as she lovingly coddles her rodent companion, keeping her eyes directed at the mighty water tribe warrior.

The opening commences and the catchy opening tune captures the attention of those in the vicinity. Voices sing out to the melody as the city's countless wind tunnels carry the drifting chants across the providence in beautiful harmony. The childish song playfully advertises the grand adventure throughout the city walls; the sing-songy tone of the introduction warming the hearts of even the toughest personnel.

The fanfare ceases leaving people grinning from ear to ear. The young, aforementioned girl in particular gets so giddy from her idol's fierce comeback that she pushes herself off of her viewing deck and begins dancing about her room in a quirky, spunky manner. Bolin was always one of her favorite mover stars being one of the first to popularize it, the adventures of Nuktuk were some of the leading causes to the mover business's success. She shrieks his name with joy as she touches a poster of the goofy earth-bender. The image of Bolin garbed in blue posing dramatically with his companions Juji and Roh-Tan by his side is one treasure that this Earth Nation girl cannot live without. After a short intermission of frolicking through the populations of literature scattered amongst her furniture, the lass returns to her transom for further viewing pleasure.

A short commercial is played before the adventure begins for the southern tribesman. A beautiful and elegant girl seductively struts forward as she is bathed in a heavenly light. Her silhouette is said to leave girls into an inspired dazed while men will be thrown into a fever of drooling awestruck. The belle finds herself at the end of the rose colored pathway; the velvet carpet signaling to her that it's time for a show. With a burst of gale and a swift curvature of her slender framework, the beauty queen's clothing is brilliantly revealed to the viewers as she glides across the stage gracefully. The camera zooms in to her face after a few minutes of fast movements and stylish spins, with which the model winks to the delighted audience and announces,

"Need to brighten up your everyday wardrobe? Check out my new line of clothing! It's available all across the 4 nations!" More models make their appearance and strike multiple different poses completely entrancing the many Nuktuk lovers. The watchful teenager finds her eyes glued to the dance of the maiden's entourage with eyes drenched in envy. The enthused girl is an avid fan of the young fashion model's outfits and frequently strives to spice up her typically modest apparel. As the commercial reaches its conclusion announcing the expensive prices for the different chemises and blouses, a burly voice bellows up from a distance below the apartment damsel.

"Tae it's bedtime, enough watching that silly event outside!" The girl's father's holler is muffled by the thick material of the building, but Tae knew very well what he said, and knew even more so the consequences of refusing the command. She hops up from the wooden framework and closes the window to silence the army of mover enthusiasts below. Outside, Nuktuk was dashing across the ice-colored cardboard, swinging his arms in circular motions producing streams of hovering water. Tae reluctantly closes the blinds to prevent distraction from the pitiful special effects; Nuktuk was always about the story telling as the fans would preach. Crawling into bed, she looks up at her ceiling and lets out a long sigh of relief. Taped all across her ceiling are images of the past Avatars, completely shrouding the ceiling's metallic disposition. Her eyes scurry along the many recognizable faces, like viewing the family tree of the most powerful beings known to mankind. Tae has always been fond of the lineage of the Avatar, dreaming since she was stumbling about in diapers of mastering the four elements and saving the world from evil wrongdoers. Every night, she visualizes the spectacle of her life in the shoes of the great spiritual leader; conjuring up potential villainy that she would be pleaded into terminating. This night's imaginary tale is about the authoritative shadow bender Vura ushering in a new era of enslavement and scheming shade henchman set on issuing out the orders of the commanding leader. With a striking essence, Tae makes her debut in front of the fiendish entity and begins flying through the air taking out countless ghostly creatures. A wave of her willowy limbs leads the elements towards the conniving beings and each successful hit leads into another more powerful strike. As the fantastical dreams keep the unconscious girl occupied, the celestial bodies above twinkle about. The eyes of the ancient heroes stare down on the people of the Earth Nation as the Avatar's heritage keeps guard of the slumbering teenager from the crowded ceiling. A delighted smile forms on Tae's face as her pretend plights of satisfy her action-driven yearnings, at least for now.

The morning's unwelcomed entrance brings forth a curtain of light peeking through the crevices of the window's drapery. The outlandish noises from the night before have subsided and all that remains are the striking sounds of drills and hammers beckoning Tae to her duties. However, the Ran-Wei sun wake-up call leaves a lot to be desired for the dubious dreamer. Groaning loudly, she wiggles deeper into her cavernous encasement, grasping the blanket tightly as she shuffles around her bed. Locating a suitable position, she curls herself and prepares for the second cycle of rejuvenation.

"You better not be still lying in bed, Tae…" a voice coils around the young girl's ears. Tae already grasps that if she remains encased in the cotton casket that her mother will get livid; a sight most unpleasant. Quickly and violently, she shoots out from the comforter and twitchily tumbles to her feet. Looking at herself in her bedside mirror, an ungodly image of her mangled appearance is reflected back from the evening's tossing and turning. She snags a brush from her elegantly carved bureau and begins taming her beastly headdress with powerful strokes. The gal finishes off her earthly locks with a hair tie to keep the knotty mass from falling into view. With a nod of self-approval, she dashes to her closet and changes into her work attire. Even as an avid fashion follower, Tae finds that her family seems to purposely buy her the most uninspiring outfits imaginable. It's enough for Tae to consider any of her clothing articles to be "work clothes" since they all exude rustic charm. She begins shimmying her feet into her slip-on shoes, stomping aggressively on the floor to slide them over her heels. With her apparel successfully garbed, she begins her brisk stroll for the exit; a feat shortly stunned with a sudden realization. She prances to her dresser and forcibly opens the top drawer revealing a gorgeously crafted bracelet. The bejeweled bangle boasts a lovely shade of green to match her average Earth Nation clothing and brilliantly glistening irises. She slips her hand through the old treasure; warranting a sigh of relief for remembering the heirloom's inclusion on her personnel. Tae could never fathom a day without the dazzling accessory; it was a valued gift that holds a powerful meaning for the young girl. With the reprise of her dress-up completed, she scurries out of her room and lunges down the staircase.

"Tae remember…" her father begins whilst giving her an informed gaze, "…try your best today and don't get distracted. You seem to have a knack for doing that." Tae cocks her head at him sternly insisting that she'll be fine today. Without time to spare for light-hearted shenanigans, Tae grasps her bag filled with nothing particularly useful or necessary aside from some notebooks and writing utensils. Her mother insists she always drag the items along in case any flabbergasting epiphanies occur while Tae is hard at work and she need to scribble in some memos. She seems to have some mind-bogglingly naïve idea that one morning at work her "hidden genius" of a daughter will rise up into some sort of whimsical seer of all knowledge and miraculously surpass any responsibility or task handed to her. Shockingly enough, this has yet to happen, but when the imaginary time comes, Tae will be blessed with a note pad to jot down snippets of her new found knowledge to be documented. Drinking a small guzzle of water, the young girl kisses her parents goodbye.

"Don't mess around with Banto too much today," her mother warns her with an erect finger directed towards her, "just because you like to dawdle doesn't mean you should distract your friend from his important duties."

"I'll be fine mom!" Tae assures her gingerly. "I'll be home before dinner right after I fill this here journal with me mage-like intellect." She gives them a smirk, and dashes out the door with a swift wave behind her. Tae's parents enjoy giving her a hard time because they know she has great potential. The girl strongly begs to differ, but eventually fate will fall into her guardians' favors. Rocketing through the alleyways of the big city, Tae continues her trek towards her part-time job; a frightfully nerve-wracking environment for the young girl. Her work ethic seems to be put into question on the daily by her parents when in reality she tries very hard to impress the Juro family by helping with business. The typical issue is a simple matter of innate clumsiness that Tae suffers with, especially with her employment responsibilities. Some people claim her mind wanders and that's what leads to the bedlam and disasters that soundlessly stalk Tae's existence. But in reality, Tae just sometimes makes little errors with big consequences.

Tae stops her sprint at the entrance of the Juro Mines; an echoing hole etched into the side of a large mound. Breathing calmly, she raises her head and struts temperately into the cave's tunnels. The darkened corridor brings forth nothing but possibility for Tae's brain. She envisions a surprise attack from Kura with a dramatic fight unfolding after a short, banterous interlude. The imagery of her heroic stances and fighting forms passionately fill her head; no dastardly deeds will be crafted under her able-minded watch. She gleefully increases her pace reaching the lantern path leading her to her work station. The volume of the pathway begins to drastically rise as she steps into the central operation zone, a large scaled mineshaft courtesy of the famed Rotaru Juro. Metal shipments screech across the labyrinth of tracks while benders and non benders alike combine tactical maneuvering with heavy machinery to advance the many tunnels into oblivion. Laborers of all sorts congregate into the dirty landscape; all powerful Earth Nation individuals completely honed into the tasks assigned by the head digger of the specific mining sector. Tae allows her ears to adjust to the organized insanity; peering around the cobalt-lined room in a dazed fixation.

"Hey you made it!" a cheerful voice hollers from a couple yards ahead. Tae locks onto the source and gives a hearty wave to her dear friend who meets her gaze. In a collaborative effort, the two meet up halfway down the inner tunnel. An older gent nosily perceives the duo's reuniting as he carves his pickaxe into an iron deposit. "I wasn't sure you were going to come back to work! You left pretty adamantly last time with a sorrowed look on your mug…" Tae nods; her clumsiness has become quite an icon around the mineshafts and her public image is less than stellar because of that.

"Yeah, it just stinks!" Tae complains. "I need to work my butt off at this job because it's really the only option I have and yet I somehow manage to fail spectacularly at that one simply goal. Plus, I'm doing so miserably at the Academy and am not qualified to work anywhere else so I'm kind of grounded to this joint…" She scrunches her face with a lowered brow. She reaches behind her back and grabs hold of her satchel. She pulls out two hardback covers from its pursed lips and displays them with anguish. "Mom and dad keep having me read these stupid books hoping one day everything will click and I'll be able to become a renowned engineer like I'm supposed to. But much to my family's ever present disappointment, I continuously prove to them and the Academy that I'm not cut out for that form of brain power…" She cocks her head at the book's titles, gesturing to them with comical confusion as she promptly returns them to her backpack. Her trusty companion gives her a look as a reply. This particular look is one that Tae has dubiously nicknamed the 'judgy squint' for how obnoxiously hypercritical it appears. Also, the boy usually garnishes the glare by nagging her about self-improvement and the like.

"Tae you realize if you simply studied harder and spent less time reading about the Avatar and the Spirit World and whatever else, you may be more likely to find success with your school work." Everything the lad said voiced the opinions of practically ever able-minded relation Tae had. The life lesson poured from his mouth like a waterfall; each word a droplet of water leaving a deeper indent into her ear canal even with how often Tae attempted to disregard the utterances. Tae agreed that her study habits were minimal especially compared to the genius teenager standing before her. However, due to their long-standing rivalry, it was necessary that she heftily oppose his beliefs.

"Even if I did study more it won't help, Banto!" she assured fiercely. "None of that information ever sticks. I always try to apply it in my head as I learn the concepts but nothing goes together smoothly at all." She stops and glares up towards the sky; her vision only meeting the cluster of stones hanging above. She closes her eyes and exhales slowly adding: "I just wish life could be like the incredible things I always read about. Traveling around the world, exploring many wondrous cities, meeting countless faces with their own captivating story…everyone and everything in Ran-Wei just works endlessly on repeat."

"That's because we have a system…" Banto instructs. "Kids grow up to attend the Academy in an effort to turn themselves into brilliant engineers. From there, they go to work innovating new creations to help the city run smoother or work in the numerous facilities that keep Ran-Wei operating properly. Those that don't make it through the academy typically choose odd jobs that help the brilliant inventors and engineers do their job easier. Like this mining plant for example!" He motions around with his arms proudly. "This place unearths essential materials for the mechanics that collaborate with engineers so that wondrous ground-breaking creations can be built! Just the like the genius Verrick used to do way-back-when; I know how much you admire him."

"Yeah but that's good for people like you who are perfectly capable", Tae explains. "You're already a noteworthy inventor at such a young age, not to mention that you're on the verge of graduating from the Academy no less. Along with that, your father owns one of the biggest mining companies across the globe! You're basically designed to be a flawless prodigy…" She kicks at some dirt on the ground releasing a musty cloud of brown particles that travels listlessly along the underpass. Banto put his hands on his hips and with a smug retort he brags,

"Hard work can go a long way when you put in the hours." His snarky attitude quickly reverts back into his more instructional disposition. "But that's why I'm claiming that you just need to try. I got to where I am thanks to spending my free-time reading and studying whenever I could. Also remember, you have me to help you learn if need be." He places a hand compassionately on Tae's shoulder and gives her a sincere nod to show that he wants to help. Tae warmly smiles as she stares into his auburn eyes; their view obscured slightly by his speckled glasses. She understands how much Banto wants her to succeed and be happy, but the fact that said accomplishments only manifest at the expense of her personal interests aggravates her. Why should she sacrifice her loving devotion towards the cultural arts and worldly literature for a boring life of incessant note taking? Nevertheless, she gives a soft spoken,

"Thank you, Banto." The boy expresses his pleasure in seeing his childhood friend's compliance and appreciation. Before he can provide a rejoinder, the gentleman observer from nearby approaches them with arms respectfully cuffed behind his slender back.

"Hello kids, I see you're off dawdling again," the man chuckles with a smirk. Tae had grown accustomed to the playful jests of her co-workers. Tae huffs and crosses her arms to which Banto signals for him to cool it with the good-natured jabs. He accepts the code and carefully clears his throat continuing, "Well Banto, we need you over at the heavy machines. You'll be powering the Continuous Miner today; we expect progress to double from yesterday considering the extra employees we've hired." Banto affirms the request and meanders over to his work station, leaving Tae with bright, hopeful eyes.

"Does that mean I'll be back on digging duty!?" She hops forward expectantly but is plainly shot down by the uniformed man.

"Sorry kid," he mindfully dissuades. "We can't have an incident like last time happen again. We're putting you on animal care for today." Tae gives a face of strained dismay; she insists disappointingly that she can handle it. Personally, the young girl enjoyed spending time with the various draft creatures. But still, she didn't want to be treated like an incompetent fool unable to tolerate anything aside from babysitting the animals and cleaning their droppings. Passage digging is one of Tae's favorite areas to labor in because it enables her to try out new methods of earth-bending; a pleasantry that she exploits on countless occasions. The man was stern however, "I'm sorry but it's in the company's best interest. Moreover it was a direct request from Rotaru himself. You know how excessively superstitious he can be when bad things start happening". The man bends down and rests his weight on his left knee. He tried to be empathetic but each word he uttered just made Tae's muscles tense up even more. "I know it's annoying, but you have to understand that this job was a gift from the boss. He knows how close you and his son Banto are so he thought this would benefit you and your family. But he's still in charge and you still have to accept the terms that he issues out. I'm sorry." With that short disheartening speech, he gathers his equipment and strolls back to his position. Tae's anger was reaching its peak, but she was aware that unleashing a barrage of tantrums would be an appalling decision to make, especially with the one worker still watching her movement from across the avenue. She stomps off towards the animal pens ready to begin her "work".

Reaching the iron gates, she looks over at the numerous creatures in captivity. The first pen houses a number of armadillo-rats. These hybridized animals are primarily used for transporting machinery and carrying out injured workers from the dangerous areas and out of the mineshaft. To the left of that pen is a tiny herd of badger-moles. The miners utilize these guys to help excavate tunnels and bring ores and minerals up to the surface when need be. Badger-moles love listening to music and the miners always play this intrinsic tune to captivate the creatures into doing their designated tasks. The final caged area holds spider-crabs, an intriguing looking arachnid that shoots out a web-like substance that the medics use to wrap up broken bones and even package large crates. The durable string is an incredible resource for the company since there aren't a lot of water-bending healers in the city. Instead the company relies on other medicines and bandages which are thankfully readily available and equally as practical. Tae places her hand on the corner of the badger mole corral; she likes to hum music to them since they are just about the only creatures that care to listen to her. Her favorite badger-mole is Bentley; he always entertains Tae with his outlandish behavior and humorous noises. Plus, he hates the mines more than she does. He always bickers with the workers that try to force him into labor and will usually be put into time-out for not following instructions. He seems to relate to Tae in that manner of wanting freedom and not being able to satisfy the managers.

"Hey guys," Tae starts while grabbing a huge package of food. "I have a new song for you. I read about it in an old document from my bookshelf back home. It originated in Kyoshi village, one of the most historic cities in the Earth Nation." Tae realizes that the animals aren't particularly interested in the lore of her heritage but she finds it soothing to communicate with them anyway. She pours the grayish mush into their troughs skillfully, filling it to a little above the desired volume. She commences with the phonemic stimulus, receiving a reaction from the perked ears of her furry friends. She sways about the cages gracefully, overflowing the different containers with the proper sustenance for each creature's needs. She shimmies across the bumpy ground, spinning two of the nutrition packets like they were weaponized fans. She loses her footing a couple of times but manages to maintain her stance and follows through with some choreographed lethal slashes. Rotating her body around in different positions, she swipes the packages downwards landing a powerful blow on one of Vura's henchman. The hit causes the spirit to vanish, but more were coming. They had her surrounded; thing's seemed bleak, but Tae was never one to give up. She lunges back and forth and stoically defeats the phantom foes, sending them to their shadowy grave.

"Hard at work as usual huh?" an older gent laughs as he heads over to the animal cages. Tae blushes and abruptly tosses the food wrappers away from her; her trance completely diminished from reality's harsh grip. The man unclamps the badger mole gate and enters the cubicle with a leather harness. Tussling one of the animal's striped fur, he starts trying to interlock the metallic buckles around the entity's limbs. The badger-mole disapproved of the harsh nature of the man's tugs and begins to respond poorly to the attachment. Tae runs over to the fence and ardently discourages the action saying,

"Wait, don't push too forcibly, Bentley doesn't like to be roughhoused with!" The man gave another obnoxious chuckle to the girl's meddling. He tenaciously forces a quip snickering,

"Hey now don't give ME one of your judgy squints as you call it!" He begins to tighten his fingers around the creature's body. "'Bentley is just another dumb animal here to do our bidding. So why don't you let the two of us get to work like we're supposed to." With that he shoos Tae away and continues his onslaught of forceful nudges. Tae clenches her fists at the man's inhumane insults. She yearned tell the old coot off like he deserved, but again had to control herself for the sake of her position. That restraint, unfortunately, was something Bentley lacked.

As the geezer was finishing off the harness's straps, Bentley unleashes a large, guttural scream. It sounded like a bear-mongoose howling in a moonlit forest; leaving the old man to look up at the mammal in fear. With the creature's attitude sparked, the furry beast leaps out of the cage through the open door and rampages belligerently towards the center of the mines. He sprints so fast that no one present had any time to react accordingly. Gasping loudly, Tae runs after the quadruped as fast as her skinny legs could carry her. Reaching an open area, she witnesses the trail of destruction that befell the laborers around her. Bentley rashly slammed himself into a number of the machinery littered around the lot, causing bounties of damage to the company's insurance. His menacing actions only worsened as he touched base with a heavily populated area. Men and women cried out as they frenzied into a panic; a strong kick from a badger-mole could kill a human if forceful enough. Tae just watched the attack in awe, she saw all of the action happening but didn't know what to do or how to help. Everything progressed so quickly that she almost questioned if she was dreaming; she desperately tried to convince herself that this was another one of her fictional conflicts she needed to heroically overcome. Sadly, the devastation was all too real; there was no snapping free from the sight before her. Tae remains petrified with bewilderment and horror, she wanted dreadfully to move but every breath she took was another second of stillness for her body.

The startling fanfare presses on until a group of men, the armed security, enter into the picture. They circle Bentley in a uniformed array, causing Bentley to slow down in place. The regal guards begin pressing their feet into the ground, sliding their heels across the stone flooring with steady strokes. With their routine movements completed, a cobblestone wall emerges from the earth forming a barrier between the people and the destructive rodent. The metal clad members raise their fists upwards causing more rubble to transform into shielding fixtures to protect the innocent bystanders. They bring up enough blockades to form a walkway back to the large holding cell for time-out. However, Tae knew well that Bentley wasn't going to leisurely saunter into the confinement without a little encouragement, and Banto knew this as well.

"Let me in," Banto orders to the guards from next to the crag pathway. They allow him entry into the barricade and Bentley instinctively glares down at the young boy with resentment. Banto shuts his eyes briefly and inhales sharply through his nose. As he exhales, he raises his arms in front of him like a warrior would to a rival fighter. With his meditative breathing in check, he unleashes a wall of fire in front of him, scorching the lining of the carbonate-crusted lane. Upon feeling the heat of the raw expelled energy, Bentley nervously retreats towards his holding cell. Banto follows closely unleashing more flames from his fists and inching closer towards the previously unchallenged beast. The red headband tied around his long messy locks flow behind him as his glasses glare from the fiery light. Tae watches as her friend bravely chases off the gigantic fiend, his rustic clothing barely keeping out of the inferno's reach. With his shaggy ponytail waving violently from the flame's expanding gas; Banto spins around calmly and disperses his fire-bending into the ashy air above. This signals to the metal-benders that Bentley was in the cage and they immediately slam the iron crate's entryway, resulting in a thunderous cheer from the many people around.

Tae lets her body droop downwards finally able to manually operate herself again. She smiles at her friend who gives a spunky thumbs-up in her direction for his valiant work with Bentley. She giggles at his goofy etiquette and turns to her animal companion who was now moping in the temporary holding cube. Even though the subterranean earth giant was the perpetrator of the chaotic havoc, Tae couldn't help but pity him for constantly being shoved into captivity. Suddenly, a man's voice rockets above the random murmurs of machinery and their newly alarmed operators.

"I would like to know who's responsible for this chaos!" The section leader surveys the nervous-looking entourage hoping to pinpoint the miscreant responsible. Tae's forgiving nature made her hesitant to call out the man who foolishly tortured the creature. In her eyes, throwing people under the bus is no way to handle a problem, no matter how stressful. The old man however, followed a different creed.

"It was that girl!" he exclaims frantically, pointing his wrinkly finger in Tae's direction. Tae tensed up and swallows harshly; she was thrown off by the man's wicked words. Her eyes widen three sizes larger as she is only able to force out a raspy,

"What!?"

The fiendish man articulates every one of the 'details' to the crowd. He clarifies that he was fulfilling his role of mounting the blind creature to further sector B's coalmine when the beast got wired. He accuses Tae of daydreaming describing how she was prancing around with the animal grub and was not keeping careful watch of the beast's actions. He finalizes his explanation saying that due to Tae's lack of observation skills, the badger-mole was able to flee his cage and profoundly disrupt the apparatuses. Tae steps forward with zero tolerance to the man's deceitful tongue. She retorts with a hiss,

"I was not distracted! You were hurting Bentley with your improper care and led him to get angry, that's why he ran in the first place! I tried to warn you but you just…"

"Enough!" a voice calls out from the far end of the work zone. Tae juts her head to one side to see a familiar face walking towards her in a relatively composed fashion all things considered. It was Rotaru Juro, Banto's father and the head honcho of the mining facility. He looks out at all of the technology that was damaged; heavy chunks of iron and platinum rested shamefully on the ground's cold exterior. He aims his pupils back at Tae and began talking loudly and harshly. "Cal has been working here for decades and rarely has had any issues functioning in positions I assign him. I can't say the same track record holds water for you, Tae." The astonished girl searches aimlessly for a proper response but can't find any leverage to seize. The man notices how callously he acted, especially to one of his son's closest companions. He sighs quietly before toning his authoritative voice down a few pegs.

"I know you're trying your hardest and I truly appreciate it as an employer and father to Banto. But…maybe its best you not come back to work for a little while. Your two disruptions lead me to believe that you may not be ready for this type of working environment. I'll leave the discussion with your parents in your hands." Rotaru methodically outlines the course of action that Tae should take but she had already checked out. They all think she did it; they all believe that she was this leech sapping the company's funds away with Bentley's crazy escapades. What could she say back? Arguing her case was hopeless when her ineptness and lack of elegance was already in full view to everyone in the facility. She could feel her soul shatter seeing all of the angry eyes pointed at her, a scapegoat manipulated into taking the fall on behalf of a veteran worker. Her eyes begin to wet as her emotions boil into a jumbled heap. She couldn't bare the fault any longer so she hopelessly dashes away from the man into a dark lantern-less tunnel. A voice cries out for her to stop but she didn't care anymore; all she wished for was solitude and obscurity. Banto watches her friend vanish into the thick blackness; her shape disappearing into the cavern's backside. He realized he was on duty and as such should only act as instructed by his father, but also comprehended that his friend needed him more than the protection of his workplace. He takes off in her direction knowing that if anyone could locate her whereabouts, it was him.

Banto paces into the depleting light, listening intently for the sounds of his childhood friend. He creeps down the hallway of limestone aiming to catch wind of any wallowing or maybe some form of footsteps. He squints as the darkness wholly overtakes his vision provoking him to change his approach. He places his palm around a contraption dangling from his neck. The goggle-like device is one of Banto's creations, an instrument crafted to enhance his already poor eyesight. He daintily places the instrument over his glasses and tilts his head in all directions. The object was developed to give visibility in 100% darkness; night-vision eyewear essentially. He uses this throughout the dark corridors of the mineshaft because the caustic aspects of light via fire-bending could damage any abandoned equipment or harm any of the cave dwellers prominent around the area. In general, it is a vastly more effective methodology allowing greater visual distance and better movement detection. The apparatus has other usages as well, but with the current situation Banto opts for the night-vision setting. The boy's stride commands the tunnel with the impact of his footwear echoing off of the igneous décor.

He fearlessly pursues his friend knowing all too well that she could be in trouble; Tae somehow seems to attract all types of drama. After an eternity or so of blind exploration, Banto hears the sound of a young woman crying. He jogs onwards; the shrill squeaks creeping around every corner until eventually the weakened source was located. He finds Tae curled onto the floor of the passageway; her tender figure wrapped tightly like a bow. She rests upsettingly in the center of a large opening encompassed in discarded chunks of metals from inoperational equipment. The void of darkness remains superbly empowering from the untouched lanterns randomly grounded amongst the rubble, not that it bothered Tae. The girl's verdant apparel was masked with a light coating of blotchy mud; her distraught overwhelming her. Banto gets on his knees carefully, eyeing the ground so that no shards of discarded metal tarnish his metallically textured pants.

"Tae?" He calls out softly, placing a tender hand on her quivering arm. A silent whimper hovers from the girl's twitching curled mouth. Realizing that Tae could not view the territory around her with the ill-lighted dusk everywhere, Banto stands up quickly and chucks a wad of embers at a somber lantern nearby. Banto restlessly persists with his dialogue, struggling to find suitable assurance, "I'm sorry about what happened to you…even if you were the cause of the mishap, it wasn't reasonable for my dad to call you out in front of everyone." The comment strikes a nerve in Tae's core; it snapped so hard that the veins in her arms pulse uncontrollably in response. She raises her head piercingly; all of the built up emotions and opinions spew out of her mouth like the aqueducts at the North and South poles.

"'Even if I did it?' So you don't believe me either!" she belts with ferocity. She straightens her torso out and launches up to her feet, approaching the young boy with raw passion and centralized fury. Banto hastily gets upright as well and hurries backwards to give her space, but she keeps stepping towards him.

"Now that's not what I said…" Banto defends trying to explain that he was hypothetically attempting to preach. He holds up his arms defiantly hoping to deter the agitation within her heart, but it was to no avail.

"This is perfect… even my best friend thinks I'm a pathetic excuse for a worker…" she states coldly clenching her eyelids tighter than a mollusk. "I'm almost flunking out of the academy, I can't land a job except for a pity hire from my friend's parent, everyone AT that job thinks I'm just an affable buffoon, even my own family sees me as a disgrace!" As the self-harming sentences flowed, Tae tightens her fists even stronger. Her mind races with her family's demeaning scoffs along with their pleas for a respectable career for Tae. She repetitively envisions the spiteful faces of the miners with their angled facial features shrouded with the eclipsed glow from the torches around. She couldn't control herself, her feelings of guilt, enragement, and self-disappointment lead her to start stomping her feet into the lost chamber's foundation. As Tae's turbulent wrath suffocates her impenitently, she unleashes one final shriek up to the cave's ceiling and beyond.

"No matter what I do I'll always be a failure!" With that comment screamed across the tunnel's walls, the earth starts to rumble around them. The soil below rocks to and fro, grime drizzling down from the gravely plafond's jarring shakes. As the whole room vibrates uncontrollably, stalactites rain down piercing the earth's crust with hectic incursion. While Tae bellows endlessly to the alarmed lad, rigid cracks form across the vicinity, branching out behind her heels alongside her pedaled digging. One such ravine zigzags along, inevitably reaching the room's edge and proceeding to stretch a jagged entrance into the wall behind. Banto was thoroughly freaked out by the whole ordeal so he calls out to his friend,

"Tae you have to cease at once!" he reasons passionately. "If you don't stop you really WILL be the cause of destroying the mine!" The amateur attempt at calming the peeved earth-bender leads the planet to quiver with extra intensity. Tae grits her teeth with enough vigor to shatter diamonds; she throws her fists downwards causing panels of earth to levitate behind her head and remain stagnant in the air. Banto knew one of his worst flaws was his conversation skills and interpersonal understanding during stressful encounters, even when the quarrelsome language sounds so splendid in his cranium. He tries one last technique to calm the tremor-inducing female. This specific tactic was one that he is unendingly taught by his family and private bending teachers as it is a fire-bender's main modus operandi.

"Tae, you have to breathe!" With the cracking voice of an obviously terrified friend, Tae gulps in the most ridiculous amount of oxygen she's ever consumed, filling her lungs to their peaks. Then, with all of her chi charred from her unflinching and vehement hostility, she exhales rigorously; forcing her animosity in a concentrated form. This one eruption of acrimony brings to light one of the most astounding and significant pieces of knowledge ever to grace the modern era. With the expulsion of her pent up furor, Tae unleashes a searing howl of fire from her mouth. The crimson tendrils sprouting from her bowels illuminate the grotto in orange aura. Banto observes dumbfounded as the ribbons of heat encircle the spherical room with brilliant luminosity. The blaze eventually crackles into nothingness leaving Tae in muddled stupefaction. She immediately covers her lips in shock of the energy produced within them. Banto, who had fallen to the ground in perturbed wonderment, rests on his elbows staring up at his friend. Tae could not grasp the events that transpired, but Banto had already processed everything and he uneasily announces the obvious conclusion.

"You're…. you're the avatar." Tae in her stupor falls on her behind with the sudden revelation. She shakes her head, unsure of what to say. Banto's expression metamorphoses into excitement and stunned awe. "Tae you're the Avatar!" The second exclamation snaps her out of her befuddlement and she responds with cautious disbelief.

"I'm… the Avatar?" she repeats almost silently. She touches her neck with distrust, but upon analyzing the situation, her eyes lit up with raw elation. "I'm the Avatar!" She leaps to her feet and innocently dances about the room with exhilarating spirit. Banto returns to his vertical position as well adjusting his glasses, he stares at his childish friend with volatile intrigue. He crosses his arms and questions,

"I can't believe you've been the Avatar this whole time…" he speaks with astonishment. "I mean, you were born around the same time as the last Avatar's demise and all but..." Tae nods excitedly now that they're speaking about concepts she is incredibly knowledgeable about. She holds up her pointer finger, acting like Banto does when he's rambling about his many handmade inventions.

"Exactly around the same time!" she corrects with a fevered grin. "There had been measureless accounts of families across the Earth Nation claiming their offspring was the Avatar but none have turned out to be true. It was rumored that Korra may have been the last Avatar after the cycle was severed with the past Avatars." Banto nods inquiringly with his hand hugging his chin. He tilts his head towards Tae asking,

"Weren't you suspicious of the fact that you were born at an identical time to when the next Avatar incarnation would logically come to exist? If I were an earth-bender in your situation I would've urgently endeavored to bend one of the other elements."

"I did try!" Tae explains, equally perplexed. "I was never able to do it. I read so much on the unique cultural techniques from the different nations but was never successful at producing any other elements. I just assumed I was being too hopeful and eventually gave up." Banto grasps her reasoning and gives a quiet mutter of contemplation. He starts pacing about the rocky juncture as he ruminates about the scenario. He always tends to wander directionless when eager to get to the bottom of something he lacks comprehension of. A couple seconds of brainstorming later and he opts to give his two cents on the situation.

"So to fully understand the predicament were in," he eludes with a chiseled expression. "We are the only two people in the world that know the identity of the Avatar. On top of that, city officials and world leaders are constantly on the search for your whereabouts." He puffs some air onto his goggles and wipes the dust off them with his brown jacket. He turns to his companion abruptly and spells out, "This event can change your life Tae!"

"I know!" she chants with delight. All her life, she had dreamed of adventuring out beyond the city limits to get first-hand experience on all of the fascinating aspects of the world. She had never stepped foot outside of Ran-Wei so her only knowledge of the outside lands was bestowed with scriptures and photographs from her personal library. To think, that adventure would be one of such pertinence as being the Avatar; it was beyond description for the young teenager. Tae graciously expresses her thrill, but the mood is instantaneously sullied when she attains a new point of view. She references her readings on the various Avatars, flipping through the categorized shelves of literature within her mind. She remembers something of the upmost importance; something that completely shifts her view on her newly discovered identity. She covers herself with her crisscrossed arms and peers down at the rubbish on her flats. She skids them along the ground wiping off the excess muck.

"I… can't let anyone know I'm the Avatar…" she grimaces sadly. Banto shoots her a pout with a flummoxed semblance but he could tell that she had already decided. Before he could interrogate on the matter, Tae was already continuing toexplain. "I've read all about my past lives' experiences, every one of them put their loved ones in danger just because they were the famed Avatar. Aang lost his whole civilization to a fire nation attack while Korra's family's well being was put into jeopardy by spirits and bounty hunters…" She locks gaze with Banto and finishes off saying, "I'm not going to get my family or friends into trouble for my actions. Not anymore." Banto offers her a sympathetic touch, gently brushing his hand on her shoulder. He wanted to assist her in grappling this bizarre development, but his intuitive smarts were unable to conjure up a profitable line. They remain in silence for a short eternity, but a jittery wail permeates the hush,

"Banto, are you down here?" a recognizable man asks feeling his way like an olden Beifong trapped in a sandstorm. Rotaru enters the two's private chamber and breathes a relieved pant. "Oh good, you're both okay!" Banto's father approaches the buddies bringing them to their feet. Tae tenses up slightly; the sight of the man summoning images of her getting berated.

"Sorry sir that I caused so much trouble today…" Tae apologizes without any build-up. The lump in her throat prevents her from expanding on her request for forgiveness, but Mr. Juro quickly refuses the respectful statements and instead bows before the young girl. Tae wobbles backwards practically colliding with Banto; astonished by his father's peculiar behavior. The two teens watch him rise up; his posture faintly slouched with a shamed expression.

"You have nothing to apologize to me about. I know you weren't at fault for the mishap today. One of my men had been watching your actions today at my request." He shakes his head with a reprehensible wheeze. "He vouched for you and outlined to me the heinous actions of Cal towards the creatures you were watching. I'm incredibly foolish to not have listened… as clumsy as you can be sometimes I know you are honest to the core." Tae's eyes sparkle with jubilance; she was finally trusted again by her boss. She grins earnestly and in an unpolished screech she yaps,

"No problem Mr. Boss Sir!" She gives him an interested glance asking, "But did you REALLY need some old dude watching my every move around the workplace, just from that tiny situation a couple days ago?"

"You lugged a leaky oil canister around in your backpack which almost ignited the whole west wing of the mineshaft…" the man states aloofly. Tae scratches her head and emotes with the likeness to a kid who haphazardly knocks something breakable over. She was on the verge of supplementing a rebuttal but Banto adds with minimal effort,

"Which if it followed the trail you traversed, it would've detonated the generators littering the excavation site and causing millions of dollars in damages and probably more than an abundance of injuries…" He drifts off a little from his tangent upon seeing Tae's face of discord. He clears his throat and mumbles a softly spoken: "Sorry…"

"Yeah well I'm just glad I will no longer be looked at like the root of all evil," Tae concludes casually, proudly grandstanding with her hands locked onto her hips. "Plus, everything worked out in the end and nothing seriously problematic happened on my watch!"

With these remorseful verbalizations concluded, an earthquake-like rumble starts to thrash the dimly lit area. The surroundings shiver aggressively as boulders could be heard being pushed around from somewhere. The group frantically search around for the source of the tremors when a humungous cave-in occurs at the far end of the cavern. The three whip around to see a foreboding snake-like creature burst out of a roughly cracked area of the wall. Instead of scales lining the slitherer's hide, a smooth fleshy-looking pattern briefly pops into view before burrowing underground. Rotaru catches enough of a glimpse to diagnose the serpent pests immediately.

"Shovel worms… I should have figured," he identifies with notable shakeup. Normally, these fearsome annelids stick to their own manually paved passages but apparently this clew had an alternative viewpoint. One breaches the earth for a moment to let out a frightful screech with its rotating serrated teeth in its abysmally gargantuan mouths. The three outsiders flinch as Mr. Juro speaks on the topic further.

"They are the reason we abandoned this underpass; we discovered that we were digging too close to their burrows." Rotaru presses the edges of his fingers around his eye sockets to help center his sight. "Hm, it appears that a fissure may have happened recently leaving a cracked crosshatch across the far wall, they must have gotten agitated and dug right in." His personality shifts into a more dismal character as he nestles his face into his hands. "Oh boy…this really is some kind of bad omen…"

Tae's staggered face recalls that her immature complaining had led to the manifestation of those earthly scars. Luckily, her powers only affected a small perimeter around her or else she really could've been the scourge of the mineshaft. Of course, she and Banto both knew that no mention of this fact would even be conceived giving the circumstances. The two simply nod in affirmation and gingerly decide to drop the subject faster than a mongoose lizard.

The cave dwelling monstrosities begin racing towards the exit behind the group; leading directly to the central hub of the mining camp. To thwart any auxiliary devastation, Tae and company needed to act fast and efficiently. The worms' rounded frames wriggle along the alloy littered mineshaft disregarding the deposits of hardware and knocking into them with their oversized figure. Banto holds his fists in a fighting stance and bravely proclaims,

"We can't let them out of this sector, if they get crawl their way to the base of operations then the wreckage from the badger-mole will seem pathetic by comparison." Tae and the boy's father feel the same way; they unify and form a barricade blocking the only route towards the work zone filled with coal miners. Tae takes a deep breath; her first fight as a realized Avatar was about to unfold. She knew with Mr. Juro present that she would be unable to practice any fire-bending; not if she wanted her secret to remain clandestine. Tae rotates towards the exit and fiercely elevates her open palms causing a large concreted panel to ascend, removing any traces of an escape route. To cease their advancement further, Banto throws a substantial punch allowing a wall of flames to stir the worms from encroaching. The worms faulted and scattered across the cave to avoid the bending.

"We need to get them to retreat back where they came from!" Tae instructed authoritatively. She swings her arms leftwards and a couple shards of metal that were lodged in some rubble propelled outwards and rocketed towards one of the beasts. They fly inches from the Shovel Worm's face making a loud scraping tune that pierces the animal's ears. Tae dashes frontward and slams on the ground with her fists, causing a tsunami of gravel to accumulate forwards. It pushes the creature's exposed flesh towards their entry hole, but they were more persistent than predicted. Tae's calf muscles tightened as she pushes herself off the ground. As she hovers in mid air, a massive boulder supersedes in front of her, carefully raised by the Avatar herself. With profound might, Tae slowly arches backwards and mounts her feet on the mineral's surface. She then grunts ferociously and jolts the rock with great velocity at the creature's head. It slams into its crown, provoking an ear curdling whinny from the injured invertebrate. As the condensed sand drips from its fractured crown, the Shovel Worm buries under the ground and out of sight. Tae wasn't about to relent without a hitch, so she removes her dirt-crusted sneakers from their habitat and widens her stance. She pounds her entire foot into the earthy terrain and unleashes her seismic sense; one of the great abilities gifted to earth-benders well-versed in the unique bending style of the Beifongs. She uses the sonar waves to perceive the worm's location as it dexterously permeates the solid dirt below her feet. Upon discovering its temporary position, she twists through the torch's smoke and forcibly bends her arms towards the ceiling. This powerful move forces the being out from underground like a cluster of magma spouting from an unstable volcano. As he soars towards the roof, Tae extends her fingers at the soon-to-be impact site causing stalactites to root from above. These armored tentacles jut into the Shovel worm's segmented body and send him flying for the designated exit. With the attacks proving her remarkable endowment, the crippled fauna sensibly flees the room at once towards its burrow.

As the Avatar was wrangling the noodle-like invader, Banto had been monotonously scorching the other two attackers with his fueled hands. He throws continuous jabs unleashing heated bullets from his knuckles' peaks. Unfortunately, the flames were scaring the beasts, causing them to move around too much, making them an increasingly challenging foe to vanquish. He focuses his attention on one of the Shovel Worms as he weaves through the trashed equipment graveyard. Little did he know, the second allied creature was readying a gnarly slam attack from behind his line of vision. The beast lunges towards Banto from behind, its maw spinning violently like a drill head. Lucky for the fire-bender, his charming pal was observant enough to notice the flanked head butt.

Tae contorts herself away from the exiting worm she had just bested and quickly spins her arms in a spiral motion. The earth under Banto's body begins to whirlpool into a soft, granular substance which gravely startles the fire-bender. In a flash, he sinks into the flowing pitfall and Tae immediately solidifies the earth. The animal's alarming lash chafes the ground and chips off a couple of its angular teeth. With Banto's safety in check, Tae opens up an airway in the ground, and raises a stone platform beneath him. This launches the flailing, pony-tailed hero towards his aggressor, an impromptu strategy that he was no expecting. Thankfully, seeing the lack of compose in the giant maggot he was sailing towards grants him a moment to ready himself. Banto habituates swiftly and fires a close ranged flare punch into the face of the enormous devastator. He touches base with the floor and spins his legs out from under him. He break-dances around on his hands and his oscillating limbs form a tornado of fire that practically engulf the boy. The twister beckons the beasts away from the children and they back-up just outside the twister's range. Banto stops rotating and brilliantly notes that the pair of diggers had wormed their bodies on some layers of metal. With two fingers dancing in the air, he unleashes a spark of electrical energy from their tips. The powerful surge instantaneously conducts to the steel fragments sending a current through the bodies of the unsuspecting targets. They cry achingly; the lightning coursing through their bones with Banto's honed fire-bending talents.

Fire-bending is a tough skill to master, but Banto was assuredly excellent in any area he trained in. There was never dispute over whether he would be able to accomplish lightning-bending; it was only a question of when he would master it. The smoked Shovel Worms had had enough, they retreat limply away from the scene, and a final lowering of her hands allows Tae to block off their passageway with a fallen boulder. She turns to her stupefied employer who claps his hands together graciously.

"That was incredible! You both saved my business!" he chirps excitedly. "You both showcased some intense teamwork as well. You especially Tae, I've never seen earth-bending used in such an unconventional way. You really have a gift there!" Tae flicks her wrist playfully stating,

"Oh ho ho it was no big deal at all." She places her hands comfortably on her hips. "I've read about different bending techniques for years now and have had ample time to practice it. Just…not everyone appreciates such an…unorthodox usage of my bending ability." Rotaru nods inquisitively at the hearty lass, prodding his lips with subtle fortitude. He points an experienced finger at Tae and with consummate vernacular he chants,

"Well I think you were amazing! I wish I could've been of more assistance; you really acted like a true earth-bending master. I bet that Avatar Kyoshi would've had a field day watching you pull off stunts like that!" Tae shifts uneasily at the mention of her past life's name and gives a forced chuckle at his patter. Banto interjects to divert attention from his feeble-minded friend's mischievous shuffle.

"Father, shouldn't you give Tae her job back? She did assist in keeping the mineshaft protected after all," he leads daringly. The man regards the comment with complete acceptance and reaches out a hand for Tae. He speaks no words as he does this; he simply requests a firm hand from the young earth-bender. She takes the bait and relinquishes her palm to the gentleman's extended gesture, grasping it tightly to demonstrate her mettle.

"I expect you back at work next week for more of your individuality," he smiles politely. Tae acknowledges the kind gesture and thanks him accordingly. However, her face begins to droop slightly; Tae had been processing everything in her head since she first unleashed fire from her mouth. She was delighted to be appreciated by her boss, but she wasn't sure how long that title would be justifiable for Mr. Juro. An Avatar can't spend her days toiling underground.

They make their way back up to the main area which had been nearly cleared out since the work hours were over. Tae flips around briefly and drops a rockslide onto the pathway to make sure no one approaches the abandoned mineshaft and cause another Shovel Worm outbreak again. Banto gives a thumbs up; showcasing a bright grin to her friend for all that she's done. Mr. Juro hikes in front of them directing them towards the mine's exit. While he was ahead scouting the path, Banto fastens his pace and begins discussing the phenomenal ordeal that the overwhelming day dragged them into.

"So what now?" he inquires quietly. "We now know you're the Avatar. I don't believe life can logically return to the way it was anymore." He reluctantly takes his glasses off and fiddles with the circular viewers. Tae cricks her neck to the side in concentration; she then straightens out and replies stating,

"I… really don't have a clue…" She crosses her arms defensively. "The Avatar is supposed to be the bridge between the physical and spirit world; a deity protector for both realms. But, I don't have any training. I don't have any influential bending teachers around to help me. I don't even know what I should be doing with my new found identify!" She clenches her flesh in desperation and slows her stride to a standstill. She faces her friend for guidance pleading, "What should I do Banto?"

The young engineer shifts his eyes from side to side absolutely dripping with answers but none that'll be easy for his companion and definitely none that would benefit the populous. Instead, he chooses a vaguer solution as a means of satisfying the girl's internal debating.

"Well… I think that you need to figure that out for yourself," he blurts out finally. The girl gazes at him aghast that he doesn't seem to care what she does. He quickly corrects himself augmenting his consultation. "Every Avatar before you had to make choices for their own destiny. I believe that you need to make your own; I can only provide input."

Tae inquisitively weighs her options. She mentally recalls what the many scrolls she had skimmed over the years had told of the past Avatars. She eventually pieces together a possibility.

"I guess I should start off by learning some other elemental bending. The master of all four elements probably shouldn't rely on throwing stones her whole life huh?" Banto smiles and gave a nod, a twinkle forms in his eyes as he excitedly riddles,

"Plus, you already have a wonderful fire-bender in your presence to get you started on that!" He pounds his chest pompously giving her a devilish crooked smile. She shakes her head and ruminates joyously. She peers around the empty cavern, rising to her tip-toes to scan the far walls for any signs of life. Regrettably, she could not seem to locate this so called 'wonderful fire-bender' that her companion was speaking about. Banto places his hands on his hips with a sassy stance and refuses her coy prank. "I'm talking about me Tae."

"Oh!" she exclaims with a strained thunderstruck expression. "Well yeah I guess you'll do for now." He groans and starts pressing onwards while Tae laughably tails the gent. He examines his surroundings and proposes an idea.

"What if we come here to the mines after everyone leaves for closing." He thinks out the rest of the notion in his head and it seemed highly successful if executed properly. "You could metal-bend a breach in the mountainside entrance and we can train in one of the mineshafts to keep a controlled environment out of sight from others." This exhortation came as quite a surprise to Tae since her friend had always been a rule follower and a loyal preacher of the laws of the land. It seems that those assertations become irrelevant upon learning that the Avatar is the boy's reliable klutz of a friend. Tae processes the suggestion and prematurely accepts the logic and dramatically exclaims,

"That sounds really fun! We can meet up after our classes finish and formulate our way of entry." Banto nods but cautiously holds up a hand to verify a couple of points with her. Tae immediately objects to the statements by stating, "I'll be careful and make sure I get my homework done before we practice, mom…" Banto lets his arm dangle with a hearty grin. The two smirk at one another as they follow Mr. Juro out of the mines and into the light. The working day had ceased production leaving a quiet gust sliding amongst the valley of buildings. The avenues hum an unfamiliar lullaby as the teenagers clomp along the Ran-Wei roadways. The stars helplessly observe the new iteration of Raava, the Avatar's spirit, race towards her new unrecognized destination by blindly chasing her future. Not even heaven's noblest onlookers would be able to predict the path of the young girl.

Tae returns home after parting ways with Rotaru and his son. Her parents had already retreated to their rooms leaving the apartment desolate and eerie. She drops the unused backpack onto the kitchen table, its scribble-less hardbacks tumbling onto the curved, wooden surface. Tae skips up the stairs and hastily shuts the door, carefully halting the doorknob from slamming into the hinges. The gleeful lass steps forward and grabs an article for reading; one that actually pertained to her interest. She plops onto her mattress and opens up the biography with a new sense of purpose. Automatically, she begins reading the written documentation aloud to the unshaken eyes hanging on the ceiling above. In a clear voice she recites the title for wandering ears:

"The Legend of Korra".

Chapter 2: Hero Unleashed

An educational facility sits stoically at the corner of Main St. and 2nd St. The building serves as a gateway for students planning for the working world; instructing them in the fine art of engineering and general machinery. This style of teaching is unique to Ran-Wei as many other cities in the Earth Nation lack focus on individualistic careers and jobs. However, being a large mining city with worldwide shipment of industrial equipment and innovations, the Ran-Wei economy requires for teenagers to pursue education in mechanical engineering/mining to prosper. Thus, the young Avatar finds herself poised in an uncomfortable wheeled chair in the front corner of a classroom. The idle chatter of fellow peers ricochets off the iron clad fortification and sinks into her ears. The children display their avid excitement for the class to terminate within minutes; they had been working on memorizing the inner mechanisms of a 30 ton Back-Crawler Drill for what felt like an eternity. Tae struggled with remembering all of the bibs and bobs that function contemporaneously within the beckoning tool. To her, an iron tipped fracking screw was identical to a titanium bell-bottom screw; a simple misconception that her friend Banto would have surely corrected had he been tutoring her. But Banto had already passed the Machinery II class the semester prior to the current one and was already partaking in independent studies and seminars for advanced mining which is required of all students. The boy thoroughly enjoyed expanding his knowledge on the industrious topics; even though he has already hammered most of the classroom concepts into his skull from toiling in his father's mine most of his life. The murmuring of students hushes exponentially as the instructor Mr. Kyro returns from a radio call. The sounds fall to a standstill as the obdurate figure clears his throat.

"Sorry about that class," he states with blissful gestures. "Now since our time here is almost up, I wanted to let you know that we'll be having a quiz next class about the types of digging equipment we've been discussing." The poor tasting news lead to a number of groans and a handful of monstrous growls from the learners. A notable one was spouted from Tae as she rolls her back over the support of her chair. She puts her hands onto her face and shakes with frigid dismay while her male companion simply shrugs the news off. Her writhing is shortly interrupted by the teacher as he states,

"I know I know, you guys have been doing a lot of work but I know you can handle it!" he assures admirably. He lowers his theatrical fist while adding, "Just make sure to do well on it or you'll fail the class… have a good day everyone!" He promptly exits the room with suitcase and coffee in hand, leaving a flock of confused students. Tae lunges out of her seat and slams on the desk of Banto who was quietly scribbling in his agenda about the announced examination.

"Did you hear that!?" Tae bellows aggressively. "He just threw that quiz at us without warning! Does he want me to fail out of school? Because he's making it increasingly easier for me to do so…" Banto chuckles at Tae's wild antics and calmly puts his books and pencils in their proper pockets of his backpack. He stands up and casually states,

"Well, we can study together sometime." He grins at Tae earnestly while asking additionally, "But for now, isn't there something more pressing for you to learn?" Tae hops up from her angered hunch and sports a dutiful stance with glittering eyes. Without answering, she glides over to her seat and frantically shoves everything on her wooden plinth into one pocket of her satchel. The disorganized mess would more than likely horrify her parents if they were to peer into her luggage but desperate times call for not so desperate measures. She frolics over to Banto and grasps his arm forebodingly. With daring emeralds glaring at Banto she utters in a deep voice,

"It's time for Dr. Juro's private lessons." With that, she drags Banto out of the corridor and out of the building leaving him no room to call out for assistance.

Tae's unmatched thrill leads her to skip joyously down the many winding roads as she and Banto chat about the overall plan. Banto mumbles to himself about optimal learning methods for their training while Tae assists him by unthinkingly day-dreaming. Tae merrily dawdles about as distinctive images flash through her noggin about what's to come. The entire idea of her receiving formal Avatar training was something so alien to her and yet it felt so appropriate. As the Avatar giddily trots through town, her more sound-minded companion raises his voice.

"Now I know you hate hearing this Tae…" Banto prompts intruding into her scintillating brain visuals. Tae perks her ears to his presentiment as she's knocked thoroughly back into reality. "…but you need to really focus with this element. Lots of detriment can come from improper execution of fire-bending; it could prove disastrous if not careful." Tae's kooky demeanor reforms into an expression of complete sincerity. She passionately assures,

"Banto, you already know how hard I want to prove myself. I already caused a slew of problems in the mines and the workers nearly mauled me when they thought I let the badger-moles out." She delicately rests her hand on the fire-bender's shoulder. "I will be extremely cautious and follow every instruction to your lofty expectations." Banto, being delighted to hear his friend's potent enthusiasm, forges ahead while dangling a message from behind his back.

"Good, because the Avatar will get no sympathy from me for any major screw-ups, especially if she decides to disobey her instructor's direct command." He dashes ahead in a snarky manner leaving Tae to puff up from a couple stances back.

"Hey! You're no Master Tenzin, why don't you get off your high horse-jackal?!" She scampers towards the alleged master of fire-bending and trails him the long distance towards the mine. The sun had already grazed the horizon line and the dusty atmosphere bedimmed into a quiet eclipse. The soothing embrace of the midday's wind playfully jostles the children's hair as they run. As their legs hustle past signs and streetlamps, the shadows of market stalls and fellow Earth Nation capitalists teeter along the marble walkways. Eventually, a familiar structure comes into view. Unlike last visit however, there are no motor vehicles or equipment managers waiting outside since the mine is completely closed down. Instead, a gated blockage coated in colorful warnings and governmental threats obstructs their training grounds. Banto reads the hazard signs and begins to second guess himself mentally. Tae picks up on his unsure posture and attempts to lighten up his bleak expression.

"Here, I'll make the choice easy for you…" With her mind adequately made up, Tae effortlessly separates the gridded wires to either side of the entrance leaving a gaping crevice for the kids to squeeze through. She casually strolls inside and turns to her less than comfortable sparring mate. "I know upholding rules is your deal, but whether you like it or not, I need to learn fire-bending. If you won't come in, I'm just going to practice on my own inside." She continues inching deeper into the cavern uttering solemnly, "Who knows what'll happen to your dad's precious mineshaft without someone supervising the Avatar…" She slips through the stygian shroud, causing Banto's voice to rise up.

"Hey that's not fair!" he wines cohesively. He follows along carefully while shouting after her. "Just because you are keen on breaking the law doesn't mean I'm okay with it!"

"I'm not keen on breaking anything!" Tae retorts clambering along the obscure gravel lane. Banto flicks his fingers and a small flare hovers above his palm allowing a dim guide to assist the duo. "Besides, this was your idea originally. I would never try to get on your parent's bad side purposefully."

"Well technically speaking…" Banto illustrates intellectually with his glasses catching the glare from his fiery palm. "…this was the only suitable environment for your training. Anywhere else could've wreaked havoc; injure a passerby, damage property…"

"Okay I get it!" Tae interjects, jutting a stopping hand to silence the word vomit spewing from Banto's lips. Banto increases his stride length and surpasses Tae in order to direct her down a new branch of the mining facility. "Where are we going anyway? I closed off the one room already and everywhere else has Juro industries equipment everywhere."

"Not everywhere!" Banto states with a tumultuous grin. This face of his rouses suspicion in Tae; she proceeds with prudence. Banto darts towards some large machines that Tae's never seen anyone operate. Their bulky frames leaned along some Oakwood supports with a number of industrial doodads lining the hefty domain. Banto stalks around the metal monstrosities and finally showcases to Tae their new bending campus with pride. A minuscule recess peeks from the far edge of the structure under an anticline of crusted wall. Tae lowers her brow and shoots Banto an intrigued glance.

"Okay even I can tell that this crevice isn't supposed to be here…" Tae announces analyzing the rigid scuttle. "Did you dig this opening yourself?"

"Yeah…" Banto admits, shifting some wires around for a more manageable entry point. "When my father first taught me how to use one of the Fissure-drills, he coached me at this spot and had me coordinate a straight tunnel of my own." The two benders begin their crawl through Banto's earliest mineshaft. The fire-bender makes sure his fire is controlled so that no oxygen gets depleted and the embers don't scorch any of their apparel. "Well I wanted to impress my father more than anything; he was a huge inspiration to me!" he continues. "So when I finished my work early I would snag one of the unused diggers and would continue my tunnel without anyone knowing; my own personal mining vein." Tae listens in awe as she bobs her way around the jagged outcrops of minerals. She clasps strands of hair that escaped their proper position and inquires,

"Do you still continue to dig through here?"

"I would have…" Banto responds. He pauses his story as the ceiling elevates exponentially. He pitter patters a couple yards forwards and then ferociously unleashes a wave of infernos all around him. The individual pockets of fire scatter in a uniform motion until they collide with some well-placed obstacles. They all precisely light a circle of skyward torches which illuminate their surroundings. Tae's mouth opens up into an "O" shape at the sight of the chamber. A number of colorful crystals and ores encompass the suite creating a dazzling sensation all around them. Banto looks at Tae and with a quick adjust of his collar utters,

"But the situation is… I already found what I was searching for." Tae's awestruck body shifts across the minefield of multi-hued gemstones, unable to coherently articulate any type of excited vociferation. She feels lost in an oasis of riveting sapphires and topazes; most of the remaining exposed ores were unrecognizable to the lass. She lightly slides her fingers along a jewel's member, feeling the raggedy angles and polished surface.

"There are so many beautiful jewels in here Banto!" Tae exclaims while rummaging across a couple of other protruding beauties. "Why haven't you shown this to anyone?"

"Oh I plan on it whole-heartedly…" Banto guarantees. "I just want to personally excavate the different paragons myself. Most of these gems have no practical usage so I was going to unearth them and sell them to local jewelry stores and geologists to reel in some big bucks." He stares intently at one of the larger fragments of shapely essences and finishes his explanation. "I planned on using a portion of the money to fund some of my more expensive hobbies. Though, most of it would go towards bettering the education program in Ran-Wei; the university in particular could use a bit of work honestly…" He reorients his train of thought for a subtle moment before adding one final option. "But, I think a handful of it would be beneficial as gifts to families like yours Tae who the Juro's have always had close relations with. You are my closest companion after all." Tae turns to him and rests her hand close to her heart. He flashes an endearing smile and the two share a tender moment together before Banto remembers their destiny. "Anyway, you're here to learn so let's get to work. This room should be a suitable capacity for any accidental air-bison sized embers."

"Right!" Tae pipes passionately, lifting herself to her feet. "Let's get started! Um… what's the first thing I should know about being a fire-bender?"

"Well, it's vital to understand that while earth is a very rigorous element utilizing patience and precision, fire is primarily expelled using power and will. You see, they are different entirely because earth is very much about the orientation of your body; whereas fire is about the orientation of your breath. It takes a specific mindset to safely conjure fire from your own body and control it accordingly. It is also vital to note that earth draws energy from a person's physicality while fire is strengthened by inner emotions, along with the sun naturally."

"Then….shouldn't I be outside in the sun then so I can harness the solar energy?"

"Well….probably… but I want you to master bending without the extra fuel. If you can fire-bend in here then you'll be able to fire-bend anywhere!" Tae gives a snooty nod; she could see from a mile away that Banto didn't consider the lack of sunlight being a factor. Lucky for him, he's pretty good at improvising excuses for his mistaken actions to keep his charming wit intact.

"Anyway, the hardest part for you will be focusing on the positive jing instead of the neutral jing. Earth-bending typically relies on rigid, defensive postures and a more patient, 'sit back and wait' approach. Instead with fire, you must focus the inner strength stemming from your breath and release it assertively if you are hopeful to produce even a solitary ember."Banto approaches Tae closely and holds his head upwards. "Now, give me a standard earth-bending stance."

"Alright…" Tae bends her knees and keeps her limbs close by her core to prepare for any attacks. She squats down to keep as close to the ground as possible allowing for stronger pushes and keeping herself endured for any surprises. Banto blankly stares at her new position and quickly utters,

"Yeah that won't do at all…" He begins pacing around the furrowed girl. "You see, the praying mantis style pattern will not be beneficial for your new skill set as it is a staple for waiting and listening for an adequate striking timeframe."

"But… it's my favorite stance…"

"Now, a fire-bender's source is all in the chi energy flowing through their body. Without understanding how the movement of chi through the body fluctuates and flows, it'll be hard to grasp the movements of the Fire Nation."

"I thought the power and energy come from the sun and my wheezing…" Tae's sassy attitude ensures that she is getting rather annoyed with Banto's over explanation. However, he is too lost in his teachings to pick up on the ridiculously obvious hints.

"Breathing Tae, breathing!" he exemplifies, framing his neck to help illustrate his point. "The power comes from all three. Chi is the direct source of the flames discharging from our hands, feet, and mouth but it takes breathing to accurately manifest them into the world. They're like the flint and steel needed to unleash that first spark, can't have one without the other. The sun's energy simply boosts the strength of the bending.

"Got it Banto, but really I think…"

"Back to what I was saying before: the Sun Warrior stance is what you should be practicing. With unflinching desire being the primary aspiration in executing fire-bending, your movements should be less about constantly pushing against opposing forces with unwavering kicks and punches. Fire-bending is a sort of middle grounds between water and earth; you want the brute-like force to flow from your body as you breathe along your chi pathways. Only from this wave-like movement can you sufficiently train yourself in this art."

"Banto that's real interesting and everything, but I think I'll get it better with…"

"Plus, earth-bending focuses much less on the emotional side of manipulating the elements. Geokinesis is a very physical action more honed into the muscles and bones while fire is stoked through the feelings and yearnings of the subject. Without your feelings being expressed through bending, it is nearly impossible to…"

"BANTO!" Tae furiously bellows at her friend who had be rambling on for what felt like decades. She had been trying to level with him for the last few speeches but the constant textbook-like rendition of her task was driving her insane. As she fiercely interrupts his blabbering, she tenses up and allows her rage to build up inside of her. When she finally unleashes a shrieking groan of irritation, she viciously moves her arms in a vivid motion in front of her torso. As she stretches outwards, a bright slash of fires pours out across the field in front of them both. The burning tips reach forwards towards Banto as they fill the zone in between them with excruciating warmth and illumination. Banto stumbles backwards in complete shock, being caught off guard by both Tae's yelling and the sudden demonstration of his preaching. The flares dissipate into the cavern's belly, leaving the smoky remains crowding the ceiling's view. Tae watches as the room clears and visibility returns. She notices Banto's shock and contemptuously slingshots a haughty pose at her astonished companion. He adjusts his clothing and regains composure; arrogantly praising,

"I guess my lesson is already taking effect…" he then light-heartedly relinquishes his prim persona and adds, "It appears you already know how to create fire well enough, so let's just heighten those skills a little bit."

"Does that mean more of you talking to yourself for an hour…?" Tae rudely interjects. "I'm not going to fire-bend well by just listening, I need to see it in action! I doubt the dastardly Vura is going to wait for me to sit through 20 more of Dr. Juro's incredible lessons…."

"Who's Vura?"

"Never mind… Can you just demonstrate some cool fire-bending techniques for me to mimic?"

"Of course," Banto states confidently. "The tedious explanations were just to make sure you could produce fire properly. Since you've already done it twice, I suppose we can move on to practicing some proper forms and attacks." Banto lowers his frame and slowly rotates his arms around his upper-half. As his limbs sway in the crackling ambience, he briefly reiterates the proper mentality. "Emotions are fuel; use your rage and raw passion for firepower. For a powerful flame burst simply clench your fists and relinquish the built up chi energy out of your knuckles, like this." He lets out a hearty exhale as his loose wrist movements become rigid and concentrated. His now protruding hand expels a large puff of fire which swirls in the air like a spiraling hurricane. Tae watches closely and readies her form as the glowing embers reflect in her motivated eyes. She sluggishly crooks her elbow joints backwards and inhales loudly. As she exhales, she lets her drive and desire to fire-bend overtake her and focuses gallantly on a targeted boulder a couple yards away. She extends her muscles fiercely causing embers to circulate around her fists. Fully straightening her arms allows a fury of red heat to assimilate in front of her; she follows its tip with her pupils until the fiery talon scrapes the sides of the bedrock. An ashy glaze is imprinted along its molding, demonstrating that she perfectly seared her target. With a surprised and exuberant expression, Tae wildly flutters about the enclosed space beaming brightly to her equally impressed friend.

"Did you see that!?" Tae enthuses charismatically. "I actually meant to do that this time! Seems like this Avatar's already…turning up the heat!" Her abysmal quip results in an exasperated groan from her talented associate. He covers his face and snickers a bit before lifting his head.

"That was really good!" Banto finally congratulates accordingly. "But let's see if you can throw a couple more punches. Once you finish practicing some standard fire-bending approaches then we can move on to some more complicated techniques that will incorporate your legs and feet." Tae accepts these instructions and begins tossing out a couple quick flames from her hands, easily doing so with no exhaustion. The warming grip of the fire slowly became a natural feeling for the girl and she attempts to fortify some awesome, unrehearsed fire-bending skills that will stun Banto more than a chi-blockers tenacious jabs. The vigorous training regiment continues uninterrupted; Tae's mandibles continue to ignite different targets while Banto watches with a piercing gaze.

Minutes pass and Banto quickly peers down at his wrist to one of his wondrous contraptions that he's built. Inventing was one of Banto's pleasurable hobbies that Banto trifles with when free of studying and laboring in the barracks. The spectral goggles were one of his first creations; created simply through analyzing the visual capabilities of nocturnal birds that traverse the skies of Ran-Wei. Since fire can only illuminate a deposit expanse, the goggles were essential for scouring new mining tunnels for any dangerous creatures or pitfalls. From there, he kept tinkering; even adding a magnifying element to the goggles. Through sliding different circular lenses along the glasses' rims, more finite excavation and mechanization could be safely achieved by zooming in for particularly petite details. The contraption he was currently viewing however is a mechanized time-keeper that relies on a mainspring being wound periodically in order to maintain its rhythmic ticking. It was crafted with an assortment of cheap metals unearthed from the shafts and has been Banto's lifesaver for time-management and scheduling. The patterned clicks alert Banto that the night is growing near.

"Oh jeez, so much time has passed!" he panics and quickly recalls all of the flames resting on their wooden spokes. The ignited flares spiral into air leaving a sole glistening torch near the exit to the robust cavern. "We should get out of here. We need to return home so we can prepare for the exam tomorrow." Tae fires a final flame blast upwards before begrudgingly asking,

"You're not actually going to study are you…?" Banto shoots her a fearsome judgy squint, leading Tae to swiftly retract her comment. "I mean… you don't really need to study do you? You're very knowledgeable on everything anyway." The substitution pleases Banto since his ego was radically boosted. He cackles in an uncharismatic way and sassily waves his extended finger to proclaim more of his ever-expanding wisdom,

"Even geniuses need to study. In fact…it's the very foundation of our brilliance." He chuckles forcibly and nobly struts towards the outlet tunnel. Tae's only natural response is to roll her eyes with the force of a lion-turtle's pounce. The duo scurries up and out of the mineshaft, making sure to leave nary a trace that could incriminate them if discovered by an employee. With prudent pace, Tae and Banto begin the honorable trek home.

That journey becomes short lived as a group of shadowy figures suddenly loom nearby from a degenerately uncouth alleyway. The group of shaded profiles catches Tae's eyes as the mysterious individuals approached their location without prompt. Tae quickly clutches Banto's forearm and drags him behind a stash of trash reciprocals. They crouch low to the concrete flooring and defensively raise their arms in self-defense. Their town has been known to have dangerous thugs and suspicious activity during the late hours of the evening. They begin hearing a dissonant melody of voices echo throughout the city's grandiose labyrinthine corridors while the lot of questionable entities closes in. They whisper to one another for a short time before hushing quickly as they near the open roadway leading to the family mine. Amidst the silence, a cranial shape peers around a corner towards the mining facility; bouncing to and fro from side to side to assure that no witnesses are present. Luckily for the two youngsters, the corner they were squatted in was dimmed by the lack of street lamps allowing them to remain unnoticed. The person peeking out gives a quick flick of his wrist towards the mineshaft and in one swift motion, the crew makes a calculated dash for the cavern's provocative opening. Banto carefully analyzes the foes and notices they're lugging a multitude of mining tools and looting parcels in their inventory. He gasps whisperingly:

"Oh no, they're going to raid my father's mine!" Tae whips her coiled hair away from her face and silently responds with an agitated tone.

"What!? They're going to break in? Isn't there some kind of security detail for such a prized production quarry?" Banto nervously bites his nails and sadly shakes his head in a disaffirming motion.

"Typically the howler-mules alert the security with their perturbed howls whenever unwanted individuals try breaching the mine, their pen is positioned adjacent the main admittance point. But after the incident with Bentley, the animals were most likely transferred out of the main work zones to fix the damages without fear of a second sparked incident…" He clenches his fists frustratingly and glanced back to the bandits. "Why did they have to choose now to invade right after the mishap? If they excavate this area of the mine, the guards will likely not notice given its distance from the main mining cavity" Upon hearing those words, Tae gazes straight forward with a sorrowed pout. As her friend alluded; had the incident not happened involving her, the mine would still be protected and they wouldn't need to worry about a few random villainous thugs. However, the lucky fiends conveniently had to choose now to launch their assault on the Juro mineshaft. Her sensation of melancholy from the self-accusations floating throughout her psyche leads her to make an important decision. At that moment, she chooses to take action and stop wrong-doing from happening. With a determined shake of her head, she springs up from her curled position and calls out to the problematic mineral thieves.

"Hey you!" Her heinous shout forces a recoiling flinch from the unsuspecting entities. Banto nervously tugs on his companion's sleeve like a child begging for candy. He whispers to her to immediately get back into position but she continues to bombard the brutish silhouettes with her crooked tongue. "You guys are scum; trying to steal from the Juro family for your own selfish greed!" The group of men all exchange bewildered and bemused glances before haughtily chuckling at the bombastic teenagers they stumbled upon. The largest of the crew; a muscular, bearded man wielding an uncharacteristically bulky sledgehammer, confidently struts forward and raises his arms gallantly. With a puffed chest and a powerful stride, his voice ricochets viciously against the titanium buildings surrounding them.

"Selfish greed?" the intimidating chap begins in a coyly baffled conduct. He diverts his gaze from the girl and points a dried, scarred finger at Banto and continues his speech. "You don't seem to know a thing about your father's business there kid." Banto stands up alarmingly and cocks his head.

"You… know who I am?"

"Of course we do!" the man continues. "Everyone in this wretched city recognizes Rotoru Juro's perfect little genius." The man spits on the ground as forceful as an iron bullet, then angrily snaps back: "Seems like you're on your way to being the rightful heir to the whole Juro Corporation; as the city expects…" He scoffs and slams his sledge hammer into the pavement, cracking the cobble resting beneath his feet. Banto pushes his glasses to his eyes and shakes his head in a humorless fashion. He ignores the indirect deriding and states firmly:

"I can't even fathom what ludicrous reason you would have for breaking into my family's mine, but if you don't cease at once…" The young boy is quickly interrupted by the head honcho. He once again raises his crooked finger to the lad, his knuckles chaffed and tarnished as is the rest of his profoundly scraped up frame. With a shake of his head, the brawny crook utters disappointingly:

"I wouldn't expect you to understand… a boy riding his father's coattails into riches; a boy rewarded with nothing but exceptional grades and town-wide praise…" Tae's face perks up to the words of the man. She begins analyzing the lyrics to the man's stanza, provoking a sensation of intrigue the likes of which concern her. She steps forward and questions the armed goon.

"What do you mean? What do you have against Banto?"

"It's not him." The man begins aggressively. "It's his father. That man seals off access to the riches beneath this city, claiming them all as his. While he reaps the landscape of its priceless gems and minerals, everyone else fights and toils to find a way to prosper in this awful city." The man drags his metal tool along the rocky terrain, causing an ear rupturing screech. He paces left and right as he continues his exposition. "People like us never had a chance. We tried out hardest to get through the education system here, but our grades didn't make the mark. A couple of dropouts like us have no reason to exist on these streets; at least the public feels that way. With no education and no associates who could give us a job, what were we to do? There are no nearby towns for miles, and the people of this city don't look kindly to those lacking success and merit. With no help and no way to find work elsewhere, was there really any other decision possible aside from taking from those with merit and success to spare?"

Banto's eyebrows furrow while the man rambles. Banto cannot respect anyone who does not achieve prosperity by their own hard work. For generations his family has been building this town and mining these caverns in order to completely revolutionize Ran Wei. Without their dedication to education and engineering, the populous would be living among impoverished stone shacks and primitive technology.

Tae's face however takes a different form entirely. The man's words lead Tae's eyebrows to rise with fear and sympathy. To her, the man's lecture represented the terrifying reality that she had feared her whole life. Tae herself isn't exceptional at school, especially with engineering and machinery. She also just briefly lost the one job opportunity she had, gifted generously from her companion's guardian. If this man who is physically built to work the mines and operate machinery couldn't survive in this civilization, what chance would Tae have in being successful here? She looks down solemnly and takes two slow steps backwards with reluctant understanding. Meanwhile, Banto steps forward with embers in his palms. He furiously raises his voice to the crew of ruffians.

"Just because you didn't care enough for your success, doesn't mean you have ANY right to take it out on me or my family! If you had worked harder, then maybe you wouldn't be living in whatever compost heap you lay your head in at night." The man's lowered head bobs with an accompanying soft exhale parting from his nostrils. He clenches his eyelids shut before raising his head in dejection. He grits through his teeth:

"Sorry kids, but we're not leaving so easily; we need desperately need this. But…if you both are so determined, then I guess we'll have to work a little harder for your riches, huh?" With that he lunges forward while bringing his weapon overhead. Anticipating the downward strike, Banto looks to his friend and notices that she is distracted from the situation. He leaps to his right and swiftly tackles Tae to the ground, calling out to her as he does so. The hammer slams into the paved rocks with a powerful clang. The three individuals behind the muscular gentleman sprint towards the duo and surround them accordingly. The smallest of the group wields a metal chain which he begins slinging around his wrist. He smirks devilishly at the two teenagers as they lift their heads up to the four foes approaching their position. Another of the gang; a tall lanky chap smacks a steel pick onto his open hand and repeatedly does so as he closes in on the teens. The final man, a more rotund presence, lifts a metallic shovel to his shoulders. His hulk-like body towers over all of the other burglars in the dimly lit plot of land. Banto and Tae quickly jump to their feet as the leader approaches again.

"Tae," Banto states suddenly. She turns in astonishment, his voice knocking her back into reality. She looks to him with a strained questioning expression as he continues. "We can't let anything happen to our place of employment, right?" The words struck Tae toughly. There's a lot she has on her mind and the overbearing weight of her future is something she needs to mull over. But this wasn't the time. She smiles to her friend with feverish determination and nods with affirmation.

"Of course not!"

With the supportive pep talk from her companion, Tae confidently raises her fists with unbridled swiftness. Two towers of common minerals rocket out from under the duo's feet launching them high into the air. The bearded man swings his weapon as they do so; only managing to make contact with the air beneath their toes. While soaring above the gang, Banto fire-bends a couple quick bursts behind him propelling himself towards the back two enemies. The man wielding the chain link swings his body forwards and launches the metallic rope at Banto. The strand meets Banto's wrists and the foe cackles menacingly at the successful capture. Banto, however, is fully composed and he genially smirks right back. The man's expression becomes worrisome at the boy's composure; he was not bothered in the slightest by the predicament.

Banto then takes a deep breath and powers himself up with his elemental ability. He channels that energy throughout his entire person; the hairs on his arms and legs obediently straighten themselves out as the startling power courses through them. A bolt of lightning begins to dance around Banto's body as the errant sparks move towards his hands. The electrical current effortlessly flows along the metallic chain; a guiding pathway that politely directed the voltage to the dangerous criminal. The alarmed attacker lets out an agonizing yell as the lightning zaps his body. The potent blast renders the man completely helpless as he topples to the ground. Banto skillfully whips the chain back up to his body as he glides towards the second foe.

The man with the pickaxe quickly looks up towards the floating boy, and raises his clenched fist. With a muffled grunt, he unleashes a blast of fire at the boy. Banto immediately reacts to the familiar element by spinning his body in the air. This allows the flames to disperse around his propelled torso, and sizzle out in the sky above. Recognizing the fact that the thug is a fire-bender, Banto calculates a new plan of attack. He plants his feet firmly as he plants his heels into a landing squat and raises his arms defensively. The ruggedly-clad rogue rushes Banto by shooting a quick burst of flame behind him increasing his velocity. As he closes in, he swings his weapon downwards directly at the young teen. Banto effortlessly twists his wrists to the side and shoots a flare of ember to his side allowing him to sidestep the attack. The pickaxe meets the rocky terrain below with a deafening reverberation, but the man was not yet through. He swings to the right where Banto just evaded, clipping the lad's locks as he ducks.

The two dance around each other's toes dodging powerful blows and counter attacks. They occasionally attempted to scorch each other with fire but it was clear that they both could simply cancel the flames out with their own bending ability. Banto keeps his eyes keenly focused on the man's body with every attack waiting for an opportune moment to go in for his planned maneuver. After a short span of time, the man clasps the weapon with both hands and strikes downwards once more, only managing to pierce the earth as the tactical engineer back flips out of harm's way. With the hearty swing, the weapon gets lodged in between some boulders lining the ground; this was Banto's chance.

He sprints forwards, unwrapping the chain he had previously swiped from around his wrist. He whips the coil snuggly around the man's wrists, pulling viciously so they tighten and prevent his movement. Banto then slinks his body around the backside of the enemy and pulls downward on the entangled cufflinks bringing the foe to his knees. A few more knots and tangles is then all it takes for the man to be rendered defenseless.

Meanwhile, Tae lands on the ground from her brief flight with a flawlessly spin and stomps on the pavement behind her. A crack forms along the ground from her feet and begins snaking its way towards the sledgehammer-wielding enemy. Upon reaching the man's legs, the fissure opens up and sucks the man right into the ground. He squirms a bit, but then realizes he can use his hammer to break himself out of the ground; so he begins swinging with violent intensity. Tae then turns her attention to the largest of the crew, who yells with intimidating vigor as he approaches the lass with his large shovel. She chuckles before evasively crouching towards the ground where she chops into the top layer of earth beneath her hips. Her hand slices through the rock as a knife would to butter, and with a flick of her wrist she smacks up a handful of sand. The gravel-like substance calculatingly invades the attacker's eyes, melding his combative shouts into grimaced yelps. Tae dashes ahead and snatches the weapon from the man's distracted mandibles. She thrusts the shovel to the ground and spin around to kick the foe in the muzzle. He stumbled back onto the ground in an obstructed stupor. The force of the kick leads Tae herself to tumble backwards onto her butt as well. She rubs her back from the slight disturbance before perking up in realization that the man would surely recover from such a weak attack. She speedily raises her arms to the sky allowing two totem shaped chunks of earth to stretch from the ground and clasp the man by his limbs, preventing his escape. She brushes some patchy dirt from her pants as she peeks back at the hammer-wielding man who was attempting to unearth himself from his tomb. Tae hurriedly locks his arms in place with some more careful usage of her earth-bending, locking him properly in his burrow.

Tae hops to her feet happily and brushes off some dirt from her outfit. With the foes rendered powerless by the two's combative prowess, Tae proudly wraps her hands around her waist. She turns to Banto who is checking his slider lenses in his goggles to make sure none were damaged in the crazed encounter. She points to the thugs with a questioning expression.

"What should we do with them?"

"Well…" Banto begins with a subtly strained edge in his voice. "If these guys yearned for a place in this city, then maybe they'll find a suitable position in the Ran-Wei prison". He glares at them intently while his words echo passionately amidst the construction courtyard. Tae nods in agreement but looks down with a slight pout. The spoken perspective of their captured assailants repeatedly chips away at the depths of her mind. She turns to Banto whose steady focus showcases that he's already planning out the next stage of the nefarious group's incarceration. "Right… I'll remain here and keep these men under surveillance; can you head to the station and alert the authorities of what happened?" Tae calmly nods with a tired smile.

"Yeah…sure thing". She turns towards the center of town and begins her stroll, her eyes glooming towards the earth with thoughts of dread and worry. She pauses after a few steps, and looks to her partner with concern coating her pupils. She opens her mouth and is met with an aching throat and a quivering chin. Even though Tae was given an order, a niggling question kept tugging at her heart. She picks at her cuticles as she pipes up once more. "Hey Banto, do you ever think about leaving home?" Banto turns to her with an expression of disdained perplexity. She continues in a strained tone, "Like… do you ever think your skills may be better suited elsewhere?"

"Why suggest such an idea like that, Tae? Is it because of what this man said?"

"It's just that… I don't really think I belong here anymore." She closes her eyes and breathes with the fierceness of a fire lord. She turns to her friend with open arms hoping that he would comprehend her qualms. "Being the Avatar means that I may need to help others in the world anyway. Currently, I've proven that I'm not exceptional at work or with my studies. On top of that, living with my family means that they are now at risk of who knows what that may try to hurt them as leverage to get to me. It just seems like…it might be time for me to leave here for the time being…"

"Tae…" Banto utters, removing his spectacles from his eyesight. He peers up at his friend with a look of soft warmness that only he could display. "I understand your reservations about your role in Ran-Wei, but you've only just begun training to be the Avatar. For me, I have a job to do for the city, for my family, and for me. I have a lot of expectations on me, and I need to deliver on those for the sake of others." Banto fiddles with his collar before proceeding. "Moreover, I need to do it for myself. I love working with my family and I'm not about to leave everything I've built up here." Tae refrains from commenting in favor of solemn silence. A strand of hair sways in front of her bowed head, which she carefully drapes behind her ear. Banto walks up to her and places a hand confidently on her shoulder. He beams at her with a kind and fervent smile. "Plus, you're doing great things here. You just helped me save my father's quarry, twice! Not everyone's buddy would do that so exceptionally without question." Tae looks up and responds with a slow and unimpressive head nod. Without question huh? How untrue that was considering the mountain of uncertainties bubbling up throughout the wells of Tae's brain.

"Okay, your right," she states in a deadpan timbre. "I'll go get those authorities". She once again starts her amble inwards towards the police station, her emotions at their peak. Even after the supportive conversation with her friend, Tae can't help but feel like her calling is elsewhere and that by her remaining here, she could wind up making things worse for others, including her family. Banto adjusts his clothing once more and turns towards the felons, his hands placed pertinently around his pelvis.

"People will now be able to rest easy knowing you thugs are behind bars," he states mockingly at the group. Tae can't help but flinch at the comment. Even though they clearly were breaking the law by attempting to steal from Banto's family, they did it out of survival and lack of alternative solutions. It doesn't excuse their misguided actions, but Tae did not feel nearly as vindictive as Banto did towards the crew of cronies. Especially not after what the head burglar mumbles next. As her pace remains uninterrupted for a short couple of seconds, the voice from the captured man perks her ears. His whispered muttering echoes along the edifices looming around the Avatar.

"Well, I hope you're happy," he expresses with a slight sniffle. "Because of you both, I may never see my children again…" Tae's face clenches as tears well in her eyes. Banto disregards the statement while Tae does everything in her power to do the same. But ultimately, she fails. Instead, the image of a broken family gets imprinted in her mind; the wallowing of heartbroken children overpowering her thoughts. The simplicity of her ideal world was forever gone. Her heartbeat hastens as she becomes overloaded with insecurities about her future choices in life. She dries her cheek with her muddied shirt and increases her tempo away from the situation.