Avatar: B+N - Chapter 1

Avatar: Bandits & Nomads

A Tale of Earth Meets Air


(A/N - This is a purely fan made text, which includes characters and concepts from the television series, "Avatar: The Legend of Aang" - (c) of Nickelodeon, as well as themes and characters of my own.)


Prologue: The Lonely Bandit

Toph slumped heavily into a nearby tree, exhausted from her lengthy trek up the mountainside. The road had been steep, suddenly falling away into a foreboding crevice, which could undoubtedly injure a blind traveller if she was not careful. But, somehow, the young Earthbender found her way, scraping her heels firmly through the dirt, and listening to the soothing hum of waves smothering rock, her thoughts drifting.

  It had been six months since she had begun her journey alone, and in that time, the Blind Bandit had already championed at least a dozen Earthbending tournaments across the Kingdom, and being Toph, she did not hesitate to gloat proudly one bit. After the defeat of Fire Lord Ozai, she decided it was time to separate from her friends. Each of them had different ideas of how to spend their days, but before disbanding they made a promise to keep in touch, a pact that some day soon they would reunite, sharing stories of their own adventures.

  Huddled silently within the shade of flowering undergrowth, Toph wondered whether news of her success had reached the others, for tales concerning them had managed to catch her ear. According to a pair of gossiping school girls, Avatar Aang had been working day and night to restore each of the nations to order, yet still found time to visit the Southern Air Temple ruins, paying his respects to the memory of his old companions and mentors. Every now and then, the young Airbender would be caught at a local celebration, relaxing and teaching the next generation to let the music guide their movement in a variety of his favourite dances. Flicking a fleck of dirt from beneath her fingernail, the dark-haired Earthbender slouched further, remembering Aang’s departing goal, hoping, for his sake, that he would relinquish the desire to search for other surviving Air Nomads. They were gone, and he needed to accept that and move on.

  Meanwhile, Toph had learnt that Katara had turned to teaching permanently, her experience with the Avatar leading her to nurture a new age of young Waterbenders down in the Southern Water Tribe, whilst Sokka set out to further his understandings of swordsmanship, as well as soaking in the glory of being named a war hero. Smirking, the Blind Bandit marvelled at how none of them had changed, her milky green eyes staring blankly out onto the horizon, visualising the blurred faces of the old gang.

  In a way, Toph missed their companionship. Before the adolescent Airbender came along, she had never really had any friends, or been allowed any form of freedom, her overprotective parents shielding her form life itself. Now, she was free to live however she wanted, but the sting of loneliness grew with each pebble she rolled into the sea, and though it hurt to admit it, the Blind Bandit longed for someone to talk to, someone who understood her.

  As the air around her cooled, the sun falling beneath the edge of the sea, Toph dropped her shoulder bag onto the damp blades of grass, rummaging in its contents for her sleeping bag, pulling out a couple of dry nuts and gulping them down greedily. With a casual slide of her foot, followed by a swift downward stroke from both palms, a tent chiselled from rock rose up around her, encasing the sleeping bag and other belongings. Yawning, the small Earthbender began to unfasten her shirt, when a violent shift in the evening breeze froze her in place. Toph barely had a chance to duck as a loud shout sailed inches past her nose, before swooping up into the darkened sky, awkwardly colliding with vicious claws of bark.

  Stunned, the Blind Bandit could only listen intently as a battered figure tumbled from the grasp of branches, skidding to halt at her feet with a muffled yelp. She could not know that there was a pale blue arrow visible on the stranger’s forehead.


Chapter 1: Like Yin and Yang

Taken aback by the sudden arrival, Toph stumbled forward, her jaw hanging limply and her crystal like eyes widening. At a slight shudder among the dirt, the young Earthbender recovered her thoughts, instantly adopting her usual fighting pose, both elbows curled inwards with her hands cupped in front, braced and ready to strike. But the wounded mass hardly breathed, silent shivers being the only sign of life that the Blind Bandit could comprehend.

  Curiously, Toph poked the earth with the tip of her toe, a sharp stem of mud spurting up beneath the torso of the body. She leapt back at the shrill cry, alerting herself to the now standing form before her. But there was something strange about the unknown arrival, a familiarity she had not felt for a while, not to mention the puny build. Dark brows slipped into a questioning frown, the adolescent Earthbender growing impatient with not knowing the answers to so many queries. Her thoughts were broken when the hunched form spoke.

  “Ow…that could have gone a lot better…maybe I should have tested it before I left.” Rubbing a tender gash, seeping just below the right shoulder, the figure focused on the weaving of images beneath, desperate to recover the use of movement and feeling. The voice was small and delicate, clearly belonging to a child, but Toph could recognise a more mature note within each syllable, suggesting this kid had been forced to grow up quickly, experiences leaving a scar in their tone. An abrupt intake of air reassured the Blind Bandit that she had been spotted by the youth, who now staggered clumsily into the exposed tree roots behind, squealing as skin came in rough contact with merciless uncut wood.

  Toph sighed, ashamed that she had been worried about a fight with this harmless infant. Advancing, the black-haired bandit offered her palm to the young outsider, a somewhat disappointed smile on her lips. “Come on, get up. I rarely hurt kids anyway.”

  Gulping loudly, the quivering child gingerly reached for the Earthbender’s dirt coated fingers. “Y-you’re…you’re not going to turn me in?”

  The Blind Bandit cocked an eyebrow at the uneasy response. “Turn you in?” Shrugging, a smirk appeared on her face, sparking a glimmer in those pale green spheres. “Depends. How much are you worth?”

  A light chuckle escaped the stranger, vibrant emerald eyes locking on the dark-haired Earthbender. “I don’t really know what people would pay for me…it’s just that the secret I know could change a lot of things if spread around too much. To be honest with you…I shouldn’t even be here.” The words rushed from the throat, that same tone of adulthood showing through, and the more Toph listened, the easier it became to see the figure crouched atop the rising tree roots. She was certain the child was female, with loose shreds of material draped across her chest and hanging limply down by her thighs. The cropped-sleeve shirt underneath was slightly tighter fitted, yet still seemed too big for her petite shape, tucking messily into worn baggy trousers. There was a hint of scraps of cloth bound around her forearms and lower legs, trailing of into scruffy slip on shoes.

  Blinking innocently, the young girl touched the still outstretched hand, her slim fingers shaking in the firm grasp of the skilled Earthbender. It was at that moment Toph understood everything she had revealed, the final pieces falling into place as her questions faded away, the callused tip of her thumb brushing against the raised skin stretching across the back of the young outsider’s hand, tracing the memorable shape of an arrow.

  The Blind Bandit shot back from the adolescent stranger, struggling to comprehend the prominent tattoo markings etched into the girl’s limbs. A gentle thud startled Toph further, arousing a shriek of horror from the youngster, as she collapsed over the source, nestling something in her battered arms, before facing the dark-haired Earthbender once more. In her hands lay the remnants of a mahogany staff, mechanised wings slashed ruthlessly until hardly any fabric remained along the thin hand carved spokes.

  “I…I can’t believe this…there’s no way I can fix it.” Tears were welling up in her eyes, pain lingering after each pause. Searching the current of vibrations, the Blind Bandit located the staff, instantly recognising it as a rather battered glider, an instrument Aang had used frequently to fly across the Kingdom whenever his faithful bison Appa was indisposed. This was the proof she needed to convince her throbbing head that the girl was an Airbender, a descendent of the Air Nomads, which must mean that somewhere out there existed others. The world had been wrong; the Nomads were not gone after all.

  Toph’s knees buckled, brought on by sheer disbelief of the girl’s identity. Picking up on her distress, the eleven-year-old Airbender hesitated to approach the bewildered bandit, clutching the handle of her glider closely, as if in some feeble attempt to protect it from further damage. Crouching on all fours, she faced the misty-eyed Earthbender. “I didn’t mean to scare you. I guess now you know what I am.”

  Seizing the bright vermilion collar of the younger girl, a snarl slipped from the Blind Bandit’s grimace. “Scared?! I’m not scared of you! I am the world’s greatest Earthbender!” Cold cyan eyes hovered over the Airbender’s face, before calming silently, shifting back to the horizon overhead. “I just didn’t expect to run into an Air Nomad…I thought you were all dead.”

  “That’s what you were supposed to think.” There was no fear in her voice, a smooth palm easing Toph’s hand away from her throat. “To protect our nation, the wisest of the head monks sent a small party of the youngest Air Nomad children to a hidden village in the Earth Kingdom, a few weeks before the Fire Nation attacked. Over the years, we have had to move across the Earth Kingdom to new hideouts every time we are close to being discovered…to guard the secret of our existence.” Dropping emerald orbs, her voice fell to a whisper. “…I shouldn’t be here…”

  A frown settled on the dark-haired Earthbender’s brow. “Then why are you here? If the secret of the Air Nomads is so important, why did you just tell me?”

  The adolescent girl smiled, rubbing her arms to keep the blood flowing to her fingertips, but Toph could feel that her exterior confidence was false. “I know I can trust you, Blind Bandit.”

  Puffing out her chest proudly, Toph grinned. “I see you recognise me then. Well, I shouldn’t be surprised, I am a champion in quite a few countries after all.” Her lopsided smirk faded at the sound of giggling, raising an eyebrow in its place. “What?”

  “That’s not why I know you, I mean, I am a fan of your bending, but in my village we followed the journey of Avatar Aang. I also know about Katara and Sokka, your friends from the Southern Water Tribe. It was the best day of my life when I learnt Aang had defeated the Fire Lord…everyone was so happy.” She trailed off, shoulders tensing around the base of her neck. Leaning forwards, the Blind Bandit held out her hand again, pulling the younger girl to her feet as she rose up from the damp chill of wet grass. It was getting darker now, echoes of light touching the edge of the sea gingerly, as the sky exhaled a bitter wind in mournful sighs. Nervously, the auburn-haired nomad shifted her weight, fidgeting to generate warmth, or just out of uncertainty for what she would do now.

  The sensation annoyed Toph to the point of sweeping her own foot back, stopping with an abrupt slam of her heel, causing the earth to encase the younger girl, holding her in position. Alarmed, the Airbender almost tipped over, her balance disrupted. She lifted her head at the sound of the Blind Bandit’s exasperated yawn.

  “Well, it’s getting late, and I’ve got a lot of training to do tomorrow. There is a village that way if you need a place to stay.” Waving her hand lazily in the direction of a dusty footpath, Toph staggered towards her rock shelter, releasing the adolescent Air Nomad’s legs as she passed. She was about to seal off the outside world, when delicate fingers folded around her forearm, the light feathery touch reminding her of Aang.

  “Toph…can you teach me…Earthbending?”

  Fully awake again, the dark-haired bandit’s unseeing eyes widened. Sitting bolt upright, she stared at the girl quizzically, a slight chuckle escaping her closed throat. Finding her voice, Toph could not restrain the sarcasm. “Sure, and then you can teach me Airbending, so I can live a peaceful life of blindness up on some cloud, only coming down to swim in the big wide ocean.” The trademark crooked grin returned to her lips. “Forget it, you are an Airbender. Only the Avatar can master all four elements blah blah blah.”

  Scowling, the young girl tugged at the vibrant green shirtsleeve. “I know that!…but for some reason, I am able to do both types of bending, Air and Earth I mean. I am better at Airbending, it feels more familiar to me, but I can Earthbend too.”

  “Is that so?” Curiously, the Blind Bandit leant back on her elbows, the sarcastic smirk still twisting her face. “Alright, come here in the morning and show me what you can do, then I’ll decide if you are worthy of my time and skill.”

  Nodding, the green-eyed Air Nomad turned to leave, but stilled at a call from within the muddy tent. “What’s your name?”

  Smiling to herself, the Airbender tilted her head, picking up the mahogany glider from the ground. “Chiyu…my father named me after an old friend of his who died in the war.” Laying the staff carefully up against the side of Toph’s shelter, the brown-haired nomad scrambled nimbly up the bark of the tree she had originally crashed into, snuggling down on a larger protruding branch, the silver blossoms cushioning her as she drifted into sleep. “Goodnight Toph.”

  The blind Earthbender stayed awake for a few minutes more, listening to the rhythm of tremors emanating through the roots of the tree beside her tent, knowing the silent breath of Chiyu was the source. Grinning, Toph collapsed into her dreams, wondering if perhaps she had found someone who might actually cure her loneliness, even if they were as different as yin and yang.