Avatar: The Last Dicebender (A:TLA/A:LOK Quest)

Omake: Tie's Thoughts: Why Am I Needed?
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Tie sits meditating. Or at least, that's what he should be doing. But he keeps having this nagging thought in his mind. Why is the Avatar needed? He knows that it's said that the Avatar is needed to maintain balance, but couldn't a group of people do it as well? Avatar Aang traveled with a group of people. A group of people with all four elements in it. And a Nonbender too! So why is the Avatar needed?

Why is he needed?

He feels confusion. And a feeling of lostness. Is he needed because he's the only one that can Master all the elements? But again, couldn't a group do that? Is he needed because he's the only consistent one able to do what he does? But then what's needed from an Avatar in a time of peace? What is their purpose then?

Confusion. Confusion is what he feels. Why? Why why why why? Why can he master all four elements? Why can he reincarnate? Why can he call upon his past lives for guidance? Why can he access the power of the Avatar state?

Is his purpose to help with spirits? But why couldn't others be born with that ability? What makes him so special? Frustration growing, he scowls.

Why did he have to leave his family? Sadness washed over him at that thought. Why did Avatars need to leave people behind? It's not fair! He's still human! He's still just a child. So why?

He takes a deep breath to calm himself. What is the Avatar needed for? What makes them special? What gives them the power to do what they do without being judged. Speaking of that, why can only the Avatar master all four elements? What good comes from someone doing that? Why not just give them unparalleled skill in the kind of bending they'd be born with? And then a dark thought enters his mind.

Is the Avatar really such a good thing to have? He thinks on that thought. People waited for Avatar Aang for a hundred years, convinced only he could stop the war. But why? Why were they so convinced about that? Couldn't someone else have done it? Why did it need to be an Avatar? The Avatar is just one person. One simple person. And they suspected them to stop an entire nation by themselves? It's just weird to think about.

What stopped them from trying to end the war themselves? Couldn't they have just banded together to stop the fire nation? Or was the fire nation so strong they could defeat all three of them together? But then, if that's the case, what made them so much stronger than the other nations? And what convinced those nations only the Avatar would finish this?

His head was starting to hurt from this thinking. Of all these questions he had no answers to. Did anyone know why the Avatar could do the things it can? Did anyone know why no one else could do what the Avatar could? Would he ever find the answers to his questions?

Does he want to know the answers? He shivers at the thought and shakes his head. NOPE! Not going down this line of thought anymore. Deciding that, he tries to return to his meditation. He wants to get something done today after all.
---
On a slightly related note, apparently according to the wiki, the Avatar is stronger in the Spirit World. Strange, huh? As for a time frame for the Omake, it's something that happened during one of his meditation sessions before traveling to the spirit world. He's a child after all, you can't tell me his mind hasn't wandered off before.

If this is canon, this will likely only be 1 CP. So, 1 down, if so, and 10 to go!

The words leave your mouth. "Siph, I'm the Avatar." Your stomach sinks and your hands get hot at the statement. The fear that she might not take it well, or worse, that she might actually be overjoyed enough to start telling everyone. That would be a nail in the coffin for you.

She flinches after processing the sentence. Several, long seconds pass. Only the sounds of the jungle provide any ambiance to the noiseless hug. You feel anxious, but also awkward, since you've kind of ruined a moment. You felt this was a good time to tell her, but your timing seems to have been off.

Then, you feel Siph's hair brush around your neck. She's shaking her head in denial. "No," she answers confidently and calmly. Another long second passes, and Siph begins to release you slightly. "No, you're not." The hug ends, as she pulls back and levels a happy look at you. She seems confident in her statement, "You can't be."

In contrast to her happiness, you frown. "I am!"

"You can't bend four elements, you're lying!" she accuses, almost upset.

She's not wrong, but you've done it before, by accident. Aang never bent numerous elements in his childhood, but you've heard the Avatar before you did. "I'm not. Believe me."


"Nope," she refuses. Her confidence dissipates into calmness, however, worry soon returns to her face. She levels a piercing look at you. Hard lines of irritation draw on her face, until she finally speaks her mind, "Then bend! Bend, erm, how about you bend air!?" Her hands fall on her waist.

You stand up, then take several steps back. Bend air.

How?

"Siph..." You look in her direction. She has folded arms and is smirking smugly. You look forward, "Fine."


You cast your hands forward, trying to create some kind of gust of air. You try to channel your thoughts into the effect. Nothing happens. Your eyes glance sideways at Siph. She has grown in her confidence and is now standing. You want to prove to her you're the Avatar. You want her to believe and know that you're the Avatar. You need to try again.


You take a deep breath with closed eyes, calmly standing and feeling out your chi. You need to mentally alter the flow to focus the chi onto the outside. The sparkling energy flows through your mind, into your body, and then extends into your limbs. You open your eyes, performing a simple movement of your hands. They are cast forward, and from them extends a distortion of air, that causes the nearby grass and leaves to push away. Siph's eyes shrink in disbelief while strands of her hair drop into her open jaw.

She stands there in awe, removes the hairs, and stares. You look back at her, holding your hands close to your body. Her gaze makes you feel heavy and uncomfortable.

"That..." Siph speaks, shell-shocked. "That was awesome!" she exclaims in excitement, her hands shooting up to level with her face. "My brother is the Avatar!"

She proceeds to declare herself the sister of the Big A-guy, then leaps at you in a hug and topples you over. Siph laughs at you, like a madwoman, while you struggle to survive from the pain you're feeling in your back after her tackle.

You're vaguely aware that you are precocious and mature for your age, which only makes the next statement all the more appropriate, "Grow up."

"No way!" Siph says, then stands up. Instead of patiently waiting for you, she takes your hand, forces you to stand with her own, ridiculous strength, then drags you across the jungle and towards the hole in the ground. As she runs, she says, "We have to tell mom and dad!"

"Whoa, hold on!" You stop, digging your feet into the ground. Siph halts, still holding onto your hand. She looks back, slightly confused. "I know we have to. I will, just... Not yet."

Siph eyes you for a moment, then scoffs, "You're the one who just told me to act responsibly."

"Yes, that's not what I meant." You turn around and look at the jungle. "We're not done here."

"Not done here?" Her eyebrows furrow in confusion. Siph cocks her head to the side expectantly. She's waiting for you to expand, to explain what you mean by 'not done here.' You did get chased by a big, bad wolf, after all, which is usually a sign that it's time to leave.

Simplicity at its finest, "Avatar business."

"Aah..." she utters, pretending to understand. After a long pause. "And what's that?"

You sigh. "This jungle's calling out to me. There's something in it that wants to speak with me." Who would have thought that this many great secrets hide beneath the desert sands?

"You're sure it won't eat us?" She walks up to you, then beside you, returning in the direction of the jungle depths. You stare, awestruck, not by her actions but by her words. You turn around, still a little ghastly after what she just uttered.

"Us?" You follow after Siph.

"Indeed," she says vibrantly, in a mysterious tone. She almost managed to sound like a wise guru on that one. She levels a cold look at you. "You bailed on me with the wolf. You're not bailing on me again."

"Pffft," you loose some air from your mouth. You grin sheepishly. "I didn't bail on you."

Siph's cold look grows and crushes your resolve. You look down in shame, muttering, "Okay, maybe I did."

+200 XP!
+1 Airbending Training!

---

"So, you're the Avatar." After a long walk of silence and treachery through the jungle, she finally talks to you. You suspect an incoming conversation and a load of questions. You want to be on your feet, prepared for anything, which is why you'd prefer silence for once, but you decide to indulge her.

You nod, looking around the jungle. "Yeah."

"Four elements?"

"Yup." You nod again. Still watching the jungle.

"Intermediary between humans and spirits."

Nod-nod. Jungle-jungle. "Mhm."

"Reincarnation cycle shindig?"

"Yes." You get slightly annoyed at these obvious questions.

"So you were a girl."

You pause, both physically and mentally. "Where did that come from?" you ask, looking at her with red cheeks. Siph also stops, then grins at you. She's enjoying this, not speaking, just looking you in the face and savoring the sight. You look away in response, not wanting to feed her.

"Look at you getting all flustered," she says, snickering. Her chuckle turns into an all-out laughter soon after.

Gosh, she can be really annoying. You walk for another minute, slowly calming down. After that, Siph stops you. She says something you'd never expect her of all people to say. "Maybe we shouldn't go much further? What if we get lost?" She is the last person you'd ever expect to be this worried about getting in danger of any kind. Is it possible that she is maturing?...

Nah.

"Meditation," you simply answer. Not that she's ever been into meditation or other spiritual things like that, but she nods in agreement, understanding that somehow, the Avatar can find a way out by sitting in the lotus position and not thinking. Now that you consider it, that does sound pretty ridiculous.

With Siph assured you can return, the two of you proceed onward.

Cue walking.

The two of you find a doorway of trees, similar to the one where the big, mean rock king lived. You enter through it. Instantly, you feel your body brightening. There is this static feeling in the air that makes your hairs stand up on your back.

Before you is a huge tree. From it, comes a powerful multi-layered voice, as if ten monks were talking at once in nearly perfect sync but still enough out of sync for you to make out the difference between them. It's almost intimidating. "Step forward."

You walk up to the tree. It's fifty meters tall, if not even bigger. Its bark glows an unnatural, blue light, while its leaves themselves seem to be blue and glowing. The tree is mighty and venerable and it is the spirit talking to you. "I am Hue-Sar. I am the heart of this jungle and the giver of balance. And you are the Avatar."

He knows. The venerable tree that called to you from probably a kilometer of distance knows of your status. Is that bad, or good? Hard to tell.


"Greetings, my name is Tié."

"Tell me, Avatar," he insists on using the name of your title. Is it a title? Can it be said you have a title? Avatar Tié. No one knows yet, so you doubt it's official, but it's still a neat thought. "The reason you came here is to find a place for your people to live?"

"Yes."

A second passes before the tree speaks again. "The others won't allow that. Humans and spirits are meant to coexist, but live separately. We have already claimed domain down here."

You grit your teeth and feel a warmth in your chest. Your whole body turns hard at his words. "But you don't need water! You don't need food! We do!"

"And I agree with you, Avatar, that it is regrettable that you cannot live down here," the tree speaks. "However, these rules are your own, as you set them countless centuries ago. We dwell in the Spirit World, whereas humans dwell in yours. This jungle is a sacred bridge between worlds. A bridge must not be inhabited by anyone. A bridge's purpose is to be passed, not to build houses on it."

You...

[] Disagree. Humans and spirits can live together. They should live together!
[] Agree. Your past incarnation said so and that incarnation was clearly older than you. You can't disagree with yourself.
[] Do neither. You tell the tree you will need to grow as a person and gain a deeper intellect to know what the right choice is. Acting on whim is stupid.
[] You think that humans and spirits should live together, but you agree that a bridge is no place to live.

+600 XP!

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I feel like this update also falls on the short side, but I did my best. Oh, well.