Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender and Avatar: The Legend of Korra. Both belong to Nickelodeon, Michael DeMartino, and Bryan Konietzko.
196 AG…
The early morning sun fell on Kyoshi Island and the statue of its namesake as it had for centuries. It was a sign of another day, and the natives left for work again, using their watches to keep track of time instead of the sun. However, the young man by the statue's base hadn't paid attention to the time. He didn't pay attention to anything, really.
He sat on the grass, hands resting in his lap. He pushed aside the itchy feeling on his legs, along with the buzz of a Satomobile engine and the soft wind breezing by. Remembering his lessons, he focused on his breathing, his state of mind, and his inner self. He kept his aim on being calm as water.
But he was not calm. There was the slightest irritation, the tiniest prick which stopped him from attaining the goal he sought. And the worst part, only he could see it–
She stood atop the empty ocean as her dark hair blew in the wind...
–He squeezed his eyes shut to block out the image. He tried to shift his focus to something else, anything if it kept the woman away. His efforts were fruitless–
... her Water Tribe outfit, once newly made, was torn in several places…
–and a frown cracked his calm façade. "Come on," he whispered, pleadingly. "Not again–"
... and she slowly turned to face him with an expressionless face and a dead stare...
–At last, he opened his eyes and slumped his shoulders in defeat. "Ugh, great," he groaned.
After running a hand through his short dark hair, his gray gaze trailed up the statue of Kyoshi. "There has to be a better way than this," he said, almost pleading at the old Avatar's feet. The stories of her accomplishments, firmly embellished into legend, shrouded him like her shadow. If only she was here to answer him, he thought.
"Meditating again, Mushi?" said a voice unmistakable as a full head of brown hair loomed over.
A startled Mushi jumped and whirled to the stranger. "Sifu Niko, don't do that!" he exclaimed, a hand on his thumping chest.
Keeping his back in a hunched position, Niko shook his head and laughed. "I don't think I had any other choice. You were doing it again. I swear you are too tense sometimes."
"I'm not tense!" Mushi snapped up then relaxed his shoulders, realizing the irony himself.
Holding his hands behind his back, Niko patiently frowned. "Mushi, you've been at this statue all morning. I don't know what has gotten through your head but stressing over it will do you no good. You need to relax."
"I told you, I'm not–!"
Something jabbed at the back of Mushi's neck, interrupting him. The joints in it went crick-crack, and Mushi's shoulders spasmed from the built-up tension now trailing down his spine. All of it happened so suddenly he never noticed his own lanky body shaking like a leaf in the last wind of autumn.
After it all faded, Mushi felt more relaxed. His mentor smirked as he put his hand behind his back again. "Well?" Niko asked.
"… Okay, you win," Mushi grumbled and grabbed his coat lying beside him.
Niko led the younger man away from the statue into the paved street. As annoying as Niko could be, he was also endearing. He always took personal interests in all his guests. It wasn't hard since Kyoshi Island's population was less than two thousand. When Mushi arrived a few months ago, the atmosphere took him by surprise. There were fewer Satomobiles, one or two telephone lines, and rows of modern buildings added to the centuries-old wooden houses.
Niko, the governor of it all, stopped to avoid a speeding Satomobile. "Close one," he breathed in relief. Glaring after the vehicle, he went on and mumbled, "Spirits, I need to set up new laws. I can't have these junkies drive wherever they want."
"Maybe you need a new road," Mushi suggested offhandedly. "I think it's one way to deal with traffic."
"We have one road already. No need to make another one!" Niko huffed then changed the subject. "So, tell me, why are you at the statue and not with your classmates?"
Niko turned with a flourish of his long green jacket. His patient stare was the opposite of Mushi's pursed lips. "I don't think it's a big deal. You always said I need to focus more, so I just thought I'd try some techniques you had taught me," Mushi explained.
Now, it was Niko's turn to frown. "I know you want to work hard. You've have shown that over the past few months, but today is your last day here, Mushi. You should be with the other students. You may not ever see them again."
Mushi shouldered his coat in uncertainty. True, he wasn't sociable. It was obvious by the other students rushing past the two. Wearing forest-green gis, all of them gave Sifu Niko their greeting while ignoring Mushi. "Maybe," Mushi said, eying his fellow students, "but I'm not sure if they'll ever miss me."
"They will," Niko assured. "You just need to give them a chance to know you first."
If Mushi had anything to say, he stopped it and drifted his eyes to the side then up. On the cliff above stood a girl with soft brown hair tied into a bun. Mushi had seen her over the past few days, always at a passing glance. Then, and now, he watched the girl take a typical Earthbending stance, right arm up and right leg forward to raise a boulder from the cliffside itself.
"Mushi? Mushi?" Niko said from the side, but Mushi was too busy with the spectacle to listen.
Swerving to the side, the boulder levitated a foot into the air before splitting into two tinier halves which orbited each other. "Oohs" and "aahs" left the spectators–all of them nonbenders from Mushi's class. Mushi was more interested in the Earthbending girl. Her form was near perfect, her expression the epitome of calm he wanted. The girl herself could've been from another part of the Earth Confederation–maybe Zaofu. Her outfit was a mix of green and blues, so it wasn't easy to tell.
"You know, you could always talk to her," Niko whispered to him, rather cheekily.
Reality fell onto Mushi and his hopes, pushing down his lips into a frown. "Thanks for the advice, but I don't think I have the time now. I have to get going."
"Always the spoilsport. I swear you're like my wife sometimes." Niko sighed. He paused when he remembered something important. "Oh, one more thing. I have a gift."
Niko reached into his jacket, and Mushi froze at the present held out to him. It was a tiny statue, no bigger than Niko's palm. A piece of wood sculpted into a woman. With a strong physique and shoulder-length hair, she held a posture proclaiming strength and confidence. Those things alone Niko hoped to bring out of Mushi.
Mushi, suppressing a frown, hesitantly reached out to touch it. "It's..." he said, swallowed, then finished, "It's well-made, sifu."
"Good. I spent hours working on it. I think it may help you on your way back home," Niko smiled and pushed the token into Mushi's hand. "Please take it."
"I'm not sure, sifu," Mushi said and tried to return the token.
Niko pushed the token back. "I insist. Please."
"Sifu, I can't–"
"If you don't take it, I'm going to give it to that girl over there and say how my ungrateful student didn't want it," Niko said with his oh-so innocent smile.
The mental manipulation pulled down at Mushi's lips. It took everything he had to not frown as he at last accepted Niko's gift. The governor, unaware of Mushi's inner conflict, smiled and said, "Be safe on your journey. May Avatar Korra's spirit guide you."
Mushi unknowingly tightened his grip around the token. "Thank you, sifu," he forced a smile and pocketed it.
Mushi let his smile disappear once he turned and put on his long coat. He didn't want his mentor to see it and ask what was wrong. After all, he had to get going.
"Ugh, come on. Get going, already!" Mushi groaned for the fourth time.
Standing in the same spot for thirty minutes, Mushi peaked over the couple waiting in front of him. They and the other people in front were just one long line extending from the actual docks and down the beach of Kyoshi Island. Each was dressed in an assortment of clothes, ranging from rags not washed for days to clothes any schmuck could barely put together. Mushi, among the second group, sighed from to his spot and wished he could "get going" already.
In his impatience, Mushi looked at the ship waiting for him. It was an old ship, a United Republic Gyatso-class vessel from before the Equalist Revolution. Its gray hull was already filled with a chattering crew and boarding passengers. Maybe he should've just up and left instead of meditating. At least he would've found a spot earlier.
While looking at the ship, Mushi noticed someone else walking by him. To his surprise, it was the girl from before, the one dressed in blues and greens. She walked on the beach, her eyes searching back and forth for something or someone.
A part of Mushi's mind told him to shut his mouth and wait to get on the ship. Sifu Niko's words shut that part out, so Mushi squared his shoulders and called out, "Hey there!"
The girl whirled to Mushi with those grey eyes. "Oh, hi!" the girl waved.
"Are you looking for a spot?"
"Oh no, thank you! I'm just looking for some friends of mine!" the girl replied, her eyes drifting past the lonesome ship. "They were supposed to be here to meet me."
"Well," Mushi looked around the docks, "I only see us and the ship. Are you getting on it?"
"Thanks, but I have my own," the girl said, smiling. Her smile frowned when she still found nothing and murmured, "If only they could get here on time…"
Mushi tried not to chuckle. Maybe it was just waiting in line for so long, but he was glad he wasn't the only one impatient to get going. He could see it for the girl, who turned around to go back the way she came.
Or would have if she hadn't glanced at Mushi and stopped right in front of him. "Uh, I'm sorry but have I seen you before?" she asked, curious.
The girl leaned a bit forward, and Mushi instinctively leaned away from someone who was a few inches shorter than him. Up close, he noticed the oval-shaped face, one thinned brown brow raised, and light skin without a single blemish. Most of all, her eyes were a special green color. Forest? No, maybe fern. Whatever color they were, the eyes almost sparked in the sun–
Mushi blinked and mentally cursed himself. Now wasn't the time to be distracted. "No, I don't think so," he finally answered.
"Really? Because I'm pretty sure I have…" the girl said, her fingers tapping at her chin. Those fingers snapped as she smiled and asked, "You were in Chief Niko's chi-blocking class, right?"
"Uh yeah, I've been here for a few months," Mushi nodded and diverting his attention anywhere other than those eyes. "… um, how about you? I haven't seen you around often."
"Oh, I only came here four days ago. I was trying to catch up on my Earthbending studies for a bit," the girl said, finally leaning back and thankfully giving some space. Her smile never faded, though.
While trying to blot out it from his mind, Mushi went on. "You could've gone to Gaoling or Zaofu for that."
The girl's shoulders shrugged, and her head tilted to her right. "Maybe… buuuut, I don't really like big cities. I prefer places with some open space."
Mushi shrugged back. "Whatever works, I guess."
"Plus, I like it here!" the girl beamed, ignorant of the stares she got from people in the line. "It's so nice and quiet, and you don't have to worry about other benders always nosing around in your business!"
"Well, I can get behind that last bit," Mushi chuckled in agreement. It was a strange sound but one his ears welcomed.
The chuckle died when a gigantic shadow fell overhead. A roaring engine drowned surprised screams of guardsmen, officers, shipmates, and passengers old and new. Mushi himself gaped at the balloon-shaped airship hovering overhead, its twin bows almost blotting out the sun. "Where did that come from?!" he exclaimed.
The girl, the only one smiling, explained over the cacophony, "Oh, don't worry! It's for me!"
The sight of a roped ladder lowering pushed any doubt aside. Mushi backed up when the girl slammed her feet down and bent a large mound under her feet. It carried the girl up, close enough to leap. The blue patterns waved on her green outfit like water on a seashore while she caught the ladder several feet off the ground. Watching her about to fly off, a thought popped into Mushi's head.
Cupping his mouth, he shouted after the girl. "Hey! I never got your name!"
The girl somehow heard it. Dangling from her ladder, she looked down, and smiling, she said, "Oh, it's…"
With a loud roar, the mystery airship flew back up. It turned, carrying the equally mysterious girl across the water from whence she came. And Mushi just watched, not having heard the girl's name or even see her wave from so far away.
It was then that the line finally moved. Much faster, in fact. It was a nice distraction from the new uneasiness sinking in Mushi's stomach. Sadly, the closer he got, the more he noticed the terrible odors coming off the ship. Mushi gagged from the smell and prayed for the trip to go quickly.
Mushi's prayers had been answered, partially anyway. The hours went by quickly, but the stench remained. The ship, especially its less-than-pleasant restrooms, looked as though they never were clean. The open deck proved that since the people in dirty rags outnumbered the neatly dressed tourists.
Hand over his nose, Mushi stood up to leave the deck. He hadn't paid attention to the father and his little girl taking his spot a millisecond later nor to the clearly hungry duo devouring their bowl. More of their ilk rested on the lonesome staircase of the ship tower, but their numbers lowered the higher Mushi went. Soon, he saw no one, meaning more space to himself.
With the smell of the sea and a rail in front, Mushi took in to enjoy the blue ocean. In doing so, he felt Niko's gift in pockets and pulled it out. His eyes frowned at the tiny statuette of Avatar Korra, wavering between malaise and uncertainty. Mushi had no love for it, but he admitted Sifu Niko put a lot of work. There was no way Mushi could throw it away.
"My, what a nice piece of work!"
The tiny Avatar Korra leaped out of Mushi's startled hands. His eyes widened, and he rushed to grab at Sifu Niko's gift once, twice, and thrice over the railing. At last, he caught the idol in his palms and pulling it back.
A relieved Mushi turned to the old man who had surprised him. Said old man sat on a higher step, his bare and bald brow wrinkled with worry. "Oh, I apologize. I did not mean to frighten you," the old man said, his white whiskers drooping over light lips.
Mushi pocked the Korra statuette. "It's no problem. Kinda happens to me a lot, I guess… I didn't know anyone else was here."
"Yes well, that is why I am here… or so I had been."
"Sorry," Mushi now apologized.
"No, it is quite alright. I was getting bored anyway! Why don't you join me?" the old man assured and held out his bowl. "I have some lunch if you want it."
Mushi's face scrunched at the brown and orange sludge. "Uh… thank you, but I'm okay."
The old man shrugged and pulled his lunch back. "I believe you are from Kyoshi Island, correct?" he asked the boy now sitting beside him.
"I was staying there a bit. I'm more from… the mainland…" Mushi began but trailed off. He couldn't say anything, not when the old man carried the strange goop on his fingers and put it into his mouth. Looking away, the young teen noted his elderly companion's makeshift clothing: brown boots from the Si Wong desert, a blue sash from the Northern Water Tribe, a red Fire Nation undershirt, and a tattered Air Nomad robe with patches of brown holding the dead orange fabric together. "Uh… so, where are you from?" Mushi asked.
"Nowhere in particular," the old man said after he wiped his mouth. "I'm a traveler, you see. I've been around to the poles, the Fire Nation, and even a bit of Republic City."
"Well," Mushi began, paused at the old man drinking down his bowl in a loud "sluuuuurp," then said, "when was the last time you've been home?"
After parting with the bowl, the old man pursed his now-mucky lips in thought. "Hmm… fifteen, twenty years? Or was it longer? I find it difficult to keep track of time these days… Honestly, I've been more focused on the present. It is not hard to notice, after all."
"What do you mean?"
The old man's emerald eyes studied a confused Mushi, then looked past him. "Look below," the old man said. It was more of an instruction than a command.
Mushi looked. Now, he truly saw the open deck he just left. Too many sat on that deck, Mushi realized, pushed together with little to no room. Even the few guards had trouble moving between them. As sad as the sight was, Mushi saw it before he arrived on Kyoshi Island. And to think he worried about Sifu Niko's gift in all of this.
The old man, too familiar with the scene, went on, "They all were farmers from the nearby archipelagos, but the great drought destroyed all their crops. They barely had any money to support themselves and their families. I doubt they have anything left back home."
"It's been happening everywhere," Mushi loudly noted. "I never thought it was this bad until I first saw it myself."
"Yes," the old man agreed solemnly, "but it is how things are. I hear some may head for the Si Wong Desert."
Mushi whirled back in surprise. "The desert? But there's no farmland there? Don't they have anywhere else to go?"
"I'm afraid not. Most cities are already filled with refugees. Not even Zaofu can take them in."
"Omashu might. There's still some land left and–" Mushi suggested after a second, but a shout cut off his train of thought. It was a cry of shock and surprise, quickly drowned by aggressive shouts and following murmurs.
They were signs of a struggle.
Instinct forced Mushi on his feet and down the stairs in a hurry. He almost bumped into a few passengers, but he ignored them for what was happening below. Once sitting on the open deck, dozens of the deprived stood and backed away. Passing by them, Mushi heard words of "crazy man," "he needs to let it go," and more like them. "Give it here!" one voice shouted from further down.
"Please, we need–!" another voice begged, but a grunt cut it off. Not a second later, Mushi found the source of the commotion.
Three figures spread out and hunched over the crowd of refugees. They were as dirty as the rest but must've been strong to demand food from one person after the other in a rushed pace. A few smart people gave their half-empty bowls. A few others had their meals ripped from their hands.
Among the latter were a father and a daughter, the same ones who took Mushi's spot. When he arrived, the father grabbed at one of the thieves' legs. "Please!" he begged, falling to his knees. "Spare some for my girl, at least–!"
The woman whom the father held onto, kicked him aside. His daughter rushed to his side, screaming, "Daddy!"
Mushi rushed in with righteous anger and grabbed the wrist of the young woman. "Hey! That doesn't belong to you!" Mushi snapped.
The woman whirled and glared with sunken eyes. She may have been young, but it was hard to tell with her skin hugging at her cheekbones. "Let go!" she demanded.
"Give that food back and I might!" Mushi retorted, holding on tightly. The woman's arm was a brown twig of skin poking out of a raggedy dress. She might've been strong to bully others for food, but not against Mushi, whose grip forced her to let go of the stolen bowl.
"Get away her!" Mushi heard. Reminded of the other two, now charging, he let go in time to dodge a shooting pebble and take a few steps back. Where did that rock come from?
After everyone parted to give him room, Mushi found his answer. The trio, all siblings, glared with eyes as dark as their unkempt hair. Their clothes, bathed in the putrid green color, draped limply on them. And on their left wrists were a ring of pebbles, bound by rope.
Faced with all three, Mushi dropped into a stance, two fists held out and one foot in front of the other, as Sifo Niko had taught him. He couldn't afford to face all three head-on, not when they could take him down from a distance. Instead, Mushi kicked the spilled bowl by his foot.
It flipped up and at the three siblings. The eldest, a dark-mustached man boring three pebbles, jabbed two from his bracelet. Both projectiles went through the orange bits of food. One clunked off the bowls rim, turning it around. Another bounced off the curve, sending back into Mushi's hands.
Gripping the bowl, Mushi shielded himself from another pebble, fired from the woman whom he tried to stop before. Her sister, a slightly taller woman, fired two with a single punch. In turn, Mushi ducked and threw the bowl again, rushing after it. The brother rushed in front to swat the bowl away with his large arm, exposed enough for Mushi to strike.
The brother, too late to react, didn't make a sound after Mushi jabbed into his elbow. If he did, the cries of astonished bystanders drowned it away. Mushi continued to strike at the right side with enough punches, forcing the brother and his limped arm to back into both of his now-worrying sisters. The taller sister rushed at Mushi; her fist cocked back–
–and Mushi caught it in one hand. Flinging the arm over his head, he spun the woman around and dug his knuckles into her shoulder. "Gah!" the woman screamed as she mimicked her older brother.
Mushi pushed that woman aside for her sister–the instigator and the one he first confronted–to come at him, her hands clenched into fists. He almost counted her steps. Just a little closer and–
A pebble struck Mushi's shoulder first. "Ow!" Another hit the back of his head. "Oof! Who–?"
Another pebble killed Mushi's glare. At that moment, he had seen it. The woman, the one whom he thought was going to charge, remained still. However, her hands moved like flails. With each movement, a pebble returned from wherever Mushi had directed it previously.
And all of them came at him.
When one stone hit Mushi, another followed, and when it too left, the first one came back. There might have been four or five, but it felt like ten stones while Mushi raised his arms to protect himself. Another rock hit his legs, forcing him on one knee. Through his arms, he glared at the woman–the Earthbender–standing over him with a victorious glint in her eyes. That irritated Mushi. He wanted to punish her. He wanted to–
A blast of air fell over Mushi. If he hadn't been crouching, he would've been thrown off his feet. The woman in front, however, was blown towards her siblings and crying along with everyone else around her. Mushi, the only one not screaming, lowered his arms in surprise. That gust of wind. There was no way it was natural. It had to come from an Airbender but where…?
"That's enough!" a man shouted with an authoritative tone, and he marched onto the scene with a United Republic military uniform. "What's going on here?!"
Immediately, the father whom Mushi tried to rescue stepped up. "Those hooligans over there stole my food!" he shouted, pointing at the three siblings. "One of them kicked me after I asked for it back when this brave boy stepped up and–!"
"A'right," the uniformed man sighed like he had heard this story before. He then turned to the three other crewmembers who had joined him. "We've got more thieves. Kick 'em off at the next stop."
"No!" cried the brother of the trio. "We can't get enough food–!"
"You shoulda thought of that before you started stealing." The uniformed man looked over to his colleagues, now pulling out cuffs. "Alright, put the cuffs on 'em."
Mushi stood up, thinking he had won in some way. His thought stopped after a pebble hit one of the men with the cuffs. They, Mushi, the Earthbending trio, and everyone else turned to find someone further in the crowd of bystanders.
There, a twig for child who was no older than eight, shouted, "Hey! Let my family go!"
Another child, smaller and younger, joined him. "Yeah! Let them-ack!" he started, only to cough with the other boy.
Mushi, to his surprise, found the young woman, whom he first fought, ran over to the two boys. "What are you two doing here?! You're supposed to be resting!" she said whilst checking on the two kids, before her two older siblings joined her to do the same.
"We were-ack!" said the older boy between coughs.
The three siblings' judge, eying the two coughing kids, asked, "They related to you?"
"Yes, they're our little brothers," said the eldest brother of the trio, which was really a group of five. "They were like this since this morning. We've been trying to feed them, but they can't eat and…"
The crowd's murmurs and whispers drowned the words, but Mushi understood them well enough. The trio were asking for medicine, something the crew had spent already on other sick passengers. Without any help, desperate and frustrated, the trio grabbed whatever food they could for their little brothers. Resorted to stealing.
Mushi stood up on legs shaking with uncertainty. First, he thought he had won in some way. Now, his perspective was turned upside-down. "I…" Mushi began to say something but stopped to look at the people before him. What… what could he even say? They were starving people, desperate to save their little brothers. As much as he hated bullying, could he blame them for doing what they did?
An answer came when the old man from before stepped past Mushi, offering his bowl to the confused and tired group of siblings. "Here, have some of my food. There is more than enough."
The three older siblings took it without question, while the two younger ones looked at their new food in uncertainty. The man in the uniform frowned with the same thought and said, "I dunno if that's going to help… I've seen this before, and this kinda sickness won't go away with a bit of food."
"That shouldn't be a problem. I added a little something to help with that. If I'm right, and I believe I am, it will help build their bodies' immune systems," the old man assured, turning away. He didn't need to look at the two little ones, who were slowly but surely eating their meal.
The old man did look at a surprised and confused Mushi. "Perhaps, we should go," he told Mushi. "They had a busy day and need their rest."
"Uh, yeah," Mushi said hesitantly as he followed the old man, but not before sparing a glance at the worrying, and yet relieved, expressions of the older siblings he had tried to fight a minute ago.
"The ship has stopped! All departures, please leave the boat in an orderly fashion!" a crewmember announced, ending the awkward silence that was the rest of the trip. The words were a brief relief to Mushi, who stood up from his spot along the ship's railing.
The old man, standing beside Mushi, looked away from the distant city. "Is this your stop?"
"Yeah," Mushi answered, pulling up his jacket collar. After everything that happened, his tone was as solemn as it could be. His eyes trailed over to the five siblings in the crowd, too busy with each other to notice Mushi. He noticed them and their relieved faces while the two siblings were starting to have color back in their once-paled faces.
"It seems like they're getting better," said the old man, who noticed the siblings as well. He also noticed Mushi's look of guilt. "I understand it can difficult. However, if you didn't step in, things could've been worse. Even if no one else knows it, you may be a hero."
At that, the girl and father from before walked by Mushi, the former waving her tiny hand. Mushi waved back, but he addressed the old man in his low tone. "Maybe, but I think you're the real hero. After all, you fixed the problem. I'm not sure I did that much good."
"You did what you thought was right. That is what matters," The old man paused to give an awkward smile, "However, a little caution can go a long way."
"I'll try to remember that for next…" Mushi told the old man, and he stopped after his hands grazed against something wooden in his pockets. After pondering for a long moment, Mushi took out Sifu Niko's gift from his pocket. "Here, maybe you should have this," he said and put the Korra statuette into the old man's hand.
"Are you sure?" the old man asked Mushi after a staring at the figurine in his hands.
"Why not?" Mushi shrugged, walked past the old man, and turned to address him. "I think you'll need it more than I do. You'll need all the help you can get."
After eying the idol, the old man smiled at Mushi. "Thank you for the gift. I shall treasure it," the he said and waved a free hand. "Have a safe journey."
Waving back, Mushi turned around for the ramp. Within minutes, he was off the ship and walked past another line of more refugees waiting to get onboard. The smell faded the further Mushi trailed onto the bridled path. The line faded, leaving only the grove of trees and grass that led into his new destination. Mushi did stop under the grove to look at something curious: a tiny pebble obstructing his path.
After making sure no one else was around, Mushi mimicked the movements of the siblings he fought. He focused on his mind on the stone, wanting it to float as it would for any Earthbender. He clenched his fists, closed his eyes, widened his feet, hummed-anything to raise stone–until a bead of sweat formed from the exertion. Mushi peaked open one eyes and found…
… the stone was still.
"Should've thought so," Mushi mumbled angrily and kicked the stone away. It bounced off the road and out of sight as Mushi went on his way, hands in his pockets and shoulders slumped in dismay to not notice the figure watching in the distance.
AN: This was a preview for Avatar: Tales of Mushi, my fanfiction sequel of Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra. I've already posted the first few chapters on wattpad, but I want to write a bit more before I ever post the story on this site. Until then, I hope you can enjoy this preview. Take care.
Raika out.