avatar azora

ch 1

Thunk. Thunk. Thunk. 

A heavy stream of water pounded the net over and over again.

"Surely it's been more than ten minutes," I grunted, continuing the water flow from the pool next to me, through the air, and into the net.

"No. You have four more remaining. And when you are done with that, we need to practice your lightning bending" my instructor Li, a sharp man even in his 70s, said, completely disinterested in my pleas for salvation.

The rest of the exercise was completed in a grumpy silence. As the Avatar, I understood the necessity of training, to keep the world at peace, but at that moment, my mind was elsewhere. I found my thoughts diverging more and more from my Avatar duties daily. It was hard to believe all my work was going anywhere when I had yet to use my skills in actual combat. 

I was out the door the moment Master Li finished his final words, instructing me to sleep well, drink water, and to practice. Tying my ballet flats while running, I barged out of the immense training facility and broke into a run towards Republic City. I arrived at Zhang's Noodle Shop slightly sweaty, but intact, and right on time for to see my friend Irosi.

"Azora," she grimaced, untying her working apron and sitting down at the nearest empty table.

"Mei!" I cried out, ignoring my best friend's pained look and taking the seat across from her.

"He's yet to call me back. I think I messed up." She was talking about her job interview for a different noodle shop, halfway across town.

"Why can't you keep working at Zhang's?"

"I'm starting a new chapter of my life. I met Tzai here and I need to move on. I keep thinking about our memories together here and it's starting to get to me. Besides, the new noodle shop pays much better."

Tzai was her ex-boyfriend. They had been dating for nearly six months before Irosi caught Tzai getting particularly friendly with a frequent customer. 

"Ok. But if you stop working here, how am I going to get my free fire flake noodles?"

She laughed, flipping her auburn waves over her shoulder. "You can get resourceful. How was dance practice?"

Ever since the termination of the Avatar cycle, new precautions have been made to protect the Avatar's spirit. Such as not being able to tell anyone about being the Avatar. I have lived all sixteen years of my life with my powers completely concealed. My parents and the mysterious Avatar Council are the only ones aware of my state. My friends think I'm a very highly trained ballerina who takes martial arts to stay in shape. The plan has been successful, aside from a few close calls, and it's only real drawback is forcing me to keep my entire life a secret from the people who love me the most!

"It was fun!" I smiled. "Can we order, I'm starving."

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