Avatar: The First Shadow

"You've got to get out of here, I'll hold them off as long as I can!"

There.

Right at that very moment; Raava, the Avatar Spirit, floated between the threads of the Spirit World and the Physical World. Her ephemeral eyes, watching as the hope of the entire world slowly fades.

Avatar Aang, struck by lightning BEFORE he could fully harness the powers of his predecessors. His body, now being carried away in a spiral of water; much like his short life, filled with excitement but ultimately ends.

How many times? How many times has Raava watched as the incarnations of her most beloved are swept away by the torrent of the Physical World?

…And how much more must her most beloved have to fight? He had fulfilled his promise almost a thousand times over.

Rest.

Rest– a wishful thinking.

Raava was bound by the balance of everything that exists. She was the Spirit of Light and Peace; for her and her dearly beloved to rest would mean the world being thrown into darkness for ten thousand years.

And so, once again, like she had done hundreds of times before, Raava finds her dearly beloved. Perhaps the term 'find' was an exaggeration, as Raava, would, without fail, always be drawn towards the next incarnation of her dearly beloved, Wan.

And so, Raava freely lets herself float once again to her destiny– a cry.

A cry that whispered in the air at the very moment of Avatar Aang's death; a cry that whispered through the vast wetland located somewhere in the southwest of the Earth Kingdom.

A cry that made Raava's ethereal form shiver. A cry from the new Avatar.

Once again, she thought. Once again, she and Wan will try to balance the world– to stop the aftermath of the war that is now surely lost without Avatar Aang.

[...]

Raava then stares at the boy, cradled by the frail arms of her mother. The warmth he feels, Raava also cherishes. The mother then slowly lifted up her son, the new Avatar; wrapping him in a large leaf to protect him from the harshness of the world.

"Kho," the mother whispered the boy's name as she finally surrendered him to her husband; letting her body rest from the stress of creating life.

It will take a few years before Kho would be able to harness the powers of the Avatar; and so, Raava begins to sleep. Closing her non-existent eyes to recover the strength that will no doubt be needed by the boy once he is–

[!!!]

And before the thoughts of slumber could drown Raava, a heartbeat rippled through her entire being. Her Spiritual Form, suddenly being forcefully evicted from Kho's body.

[W… What is happening!?] Raava's humming voice echoed between the Spirit World and the Physical World; neither, however, could hear the panic she carried.

[...What?] And as if to suddenly answer her question, the familiar feeling that previously surrounded Kho disappeared. The spirit of her beloved, no longer to be found inside him. Instead, she could once again feel it in the physical form of the previous Avatar, Aang.

[How… is this possible?] Raava muttered as her presence inside Kho faded by the moment, [Was he… resurrected?]

"Kho!? What's happening!?"

"He… his body is getting cold!"

"He's not breathing!"

[...No,] Raava's voice soon became weak; not because she was forcefully being transferred back to Aang, no. But because Kho was dying.

Without the spirit of Wan, without the Spirit of the Avatar… Kho was just an empty husk.

This kind of situation had no precedent, causing Raava to slightly panic and waver.

Is the only thing she could do was watch as this frail, innocent child died?

[...]

[...]

[...I am truly sorry, child.]

And with that, the last of Raava's spiritual form flew away from Kho's body. Her light, bit by bit pulling away from his small and cold body.

[I don't think so, Raava.]

[!!!]

But before Raava could go far, she once again felt a small pull, tugging on the tails of her existence. She turned around, only to see a tall woman grabbing her by the ends; the woman's other hand, still inside Kho's body.

[Avatar Kyoshi!?] Raava's loud hums once again echoed between the borders of the world, [How… are you doing this?]

[Why does that matter?] The voice of the female Avatar, Kyoshi, remained filled with authority even as her translucent arms tremble from the sheer force of trying to hold Raava back,

[Are we really going to leave this infant to die?]

[That's–]

[Leave me here,] Kyoshi did not let Raava speak as her arm slowly digs deeper into Kho's body.

[I'm afraid that's impossible, Avatar Kyoshi,] although there was still a hint of sadness inside Raava's voice, her once fading spirit started to glow, [Avatar Aang needs us now.]

[Avatar Aang does not have what it takes to stop this war,] Kyoshi shook her head, [The boy is too weak to do what must be done.]

[The chain can not be broken!]

Kyoshi could feel her spirit slowly being dragged away by Raava as her voice resounded throughout her entire existence,

[Do you think I don't want to save this child? I would have already done so if it was–]

[Then stop making excuses and leave me here,] Kyoshi did not waver as her arm once again disappeared into Kho's body.

[I do not know what will happen to you if you separate yourself from the chain, Kyoshi,] Raava reasoned, [I could fix the hole you leave behind, but as for you… There is no telling what will happen to your spir–]

[You talk too much.]

And before Raava could finish her words, Kyoshi unchained herself from her.

[The Balance, Avatar Kyo– !!!]

And just like that, without any more say in the matter, Raava returned to Avatar Aang.

As for Kyoshi– her Spirit remained intact, contrary to Raava's expectations.

As for Kho…

"He… he's alive!"

"T… thank the Banyan Grove!"

…Everything changed when he lived.

***AUTHOR'S NOTE***

Pa treon.com/romeru

I have always been a fan of Avatar. Granted, I am not the most informed fan/hardcore fan, but it was and still is my favorite show. I've always wanted to write a fan-fic of it… and so, here we are. If you liked it, I would really appreciate it if you subscribe to my pa treon. I might continue writing it and post chapters in advance there.

Pa treon.com/romeru

I will be taking liberties with the story as well; so this will be a fiction of a fiction--so please do expect some craziness. This is basically a different version of the universe... so, like a multiverse?