Braya : The Lost Guardian

Hear Me

After Braya burned the man who tried to rape her, no one made any more special trips into her room. She had no control over her firebending, but the men still feared her. Two months had passed since the incident, and Braya's life in captivity had changed dramatically after Gang discovered she was a firebender. He no longer starved her; she was fed a well-balanced diet that helped her maintain her strength. He made it clear the reason she was fed better now was because she behaved at night and didn't start fights with guards. She still had her beatings, but it was just one man hitting her instead of three to four. She adjusted so well to being hit the healer rarely came to see her anymore in her cell.

The only time Braya saw the healer these days were after her fights. Gang told Braya he was going to train her to be an excellent bender. His training started with Braya fighting other benders in an arena to the death. In one of the rooms located underground where Braya was held captive, there was a giant arena that was completely closed off from the crowd from above. The men would watch for entertainment and make bets on who would win. Braya fought with other firebenders. She found whenever she was furious, she could produce the fire. She would focus all her thoughts on the bad experiences she had while being locked up. Each fight she would only win because of the amount of power she possessed and her ability to see attacks coming.

While fighting in the arena she also found that whenever she was scared, she could earthbend, and whenever she was extremely sad, she could waterbend. She had only been able to waterbend a handful of times. Each time was when she was fighting someone she didn't want to kill, like the young girl who didn't want to fight but was being forced to, or the old man to sick to defend himself. Even though she could use three of the four elements, airbending was not one she had figured out yet. Another thing she found odd was every time she was able to let her mind rest, she saw the same gray fog. There was always a figure in the fog calling for her, but she was unable to respond. Once she woke up, she would forget instantly about her dreams and go on with the day.

Braya had started making the cell more comfortable. Gang had given her a blanket, pillow, and change of clothes. Every night he also went into her cell and visited with her for two to three hours. He would talk about her powers and how she was like a daughter to him and how her mother Chun was so proud of her. She had never met Chun, and she didn't know why Gang would view her as a daughter, but as time went on her mind started molding to the new life he described. She would feel pride when he said he was proud of her, and even give him a hug for his praise. Her cell was no longer a cell, it was now her bedroom. She was allowed to decorate it how she wanted and would get excited when Gang would bring her something new for her room.

After ten months of being held against her will, Braya had completely lost who she was. She no longer thought about her family at all. She now had her new family that Gang had made for her. She had new memories of her childhood that Gang often reminded her about and told her the stories of how much destruction the Avatar had caused in the world. The stories about the Avatar scared her because in her mind she had never met him before. All she knew now was what Gang had made her believe and if he attacked her family, she would have no choice but to stop him.

The dreams continued throughout the months, but as she got closer and closer to Gang the dreams started to change. Laying down in her cell she let her mind wonder, exhausted from the day. Once again, she saw the fog and the figure in it. "Hello?" the voice said. Braya tried to speak but couldn't. "I want to know what you're doing here in the spirit world?"

"I think she would probably like to know that as well," said a creature appearing next to her. This person looked like a giant coyote but walked and talked like a human did. "I think its time we talked Braya, that way that figure can maybe help you. Walk with me." Braya walked with the strange creature through the fog. She still couldn't speak so she just listened to what he had to say. "I am your spirit guide. I have been a friend to the Guardian for many lifetimes. When the war started out, we had the Guardian before you seal the power to protect the future Guardians. Your power was to lay dormant until you absolutely needed it. Now is that time. In the physical world your mind is being manipulated, but because you were made in the spirit world, we can protect your mind when you are here. That is how we helped you fight Kyoshi when she started to go down the wrong path. Normally we would have been able to help sooner, but because your powers were sealed, we couldn't reach you until it was broken. That is why Avatar Aang could not tell you were the Guardian and could not sense you until your seal was broken. The figure you see in the fog is the Avatar. He is trying to reach out to you so he can figure out who you are. I know you are new to this but communicating is fairly simple. All you must do is focus on what you want to say. It takes time to master it, but you will get it."

Braya focused on what she wanted to say, "Help. Me."

"My dear, we will help you. I promise. Now go back to the Avatar and focus on him. He will find you. The Guardian and the Avatar always find one another." The creature disappeared. All that was left was the figure in the fog. He wasn't saying anything, but Braya focused on the figure. "Help. Me."

"Who are you? Where are you at?" Aang's voice echoed through the fog.

"Guardian. Captured." Braya said in a quiet voice. She had little control of her voice in the spirit world.

Braya was awakened in her cell by the scream of a girl down the hall. She got up and walked to the door. She knocked lightly twice before a guard opened the door for her. She was allowed to look outside her cell but not leave it. She looked at the girl fighting against the guards. She wanted to go and help her but thought the only reason she would be there is because she wronged her dad Gang. She heard two men talking behind her. "I guess that is the one they are using to get that family off our back."

"It's been almost a year. I can't believe they are still trying so hard," the other man said back.

"Well, this should do the trick. After they burn her, the girl will be unrecognizable so they will think it's the one they've been looking for."

"Hopefully this will make them stop looking for us." Braya was bored of the conversation. She had completely forgotten the dream she had and decided to work on her bending. She could hear the screams in her room, but the time with Gang had made her cold and heartless. She had killed her fair share of people, most being criminals that were dangerous, but some that were not. Death was second nature to her now. If her family was safe, she was happy, and she wouldn't let anyone ruin that, not even the Avatar.