Kenji's story ended without pain or suffering. At sixty-nine, he simply never woke up. With his final breath, I was finally free.
"This... this was too real!" I thought. Well, I still recognize myself—just much wiser, I guess. Or more experienced, really. His life definitely affected , though it's hard to notice at first. Teenage problems, for example, feel huge at the ti but seem trivial years later. I should've told my parents about my abilities and extended lifespan sooner. They wouldn't have blad .
"Wan Shi Tong! This was enlightening, but let out already!" I tried to think "loudly" so they'd hear . I don't believe this was random—the Spirit of Knowledge must've orchestrated it. I'm starting to understand why.
"Again?!" I felt another vortex pulling in.
I could sense my body but still couldn't see. Sothing felt familiar. Focusing, I realized it was seismicsensitivity. This ti, I was a Earthbending mage.
The body felt too light, and I seed to be a girl?!
Once again, I was sucked into a kaleidoscope of mories—hers or mine, I couldn't tell. This ti, it was faster. The girl was about eight. First, she was blind, but it wasn't all bad—she could sense vibrations through the earth as an Earthbender. Second, her parents were killed near a city they'd hoped to move to for a better life. During the ti of the Dao Fei, safety was rare. A child's mories are fragnted, and further analysis was cut short as I was thrust back into her body.
At first, I survived on scraps thrown away by wealthier residents. In hard tis, no one cares about a blind, ragged street kid.
"Scram! You're scaring away custors!" a harsh woman shouted, chasing away from a food display I'd been staring at.
"Haha! Look, she's fighting dogs for spoiled food!" mocked guards, watching struggle to push away a starving dog's snout.
"Mommy, where are you? Take with you..." I mumbled, wrapped in rags, shivering at every sound.
But there's always kindness in the world...
"Hey, what are you doing here?" an old man asked, sitting beside . "You'll freeze. Can you hear ? Oh, you're blind, poor thing. Co, I'll take you sowhere safe," he said, offering his hand. Too weak to resist, hungry, thirsty, and cold, I followed.
We didn't walk far. Soon, we stopped at a rundown house.
"Sorry it's late, Nana, but I have a reason," he told the woman who opened the door.
"It's fine. I just started putting the kids to bed," she said wearily.
"I found this girl near my lodgings. I know you're already full, and donations are scarce, but..." He brought into the candlelight.
"Spirits, she's blind! Covered in dirt—how long has she been on the streets?" The woman examined . "You know I'll never turn away a child. Leave her here. Thank you. She could've faced worse than just dirt."
"Whatever," he shrugged. "Teach her not to trust strangers," he added. "I didn't trust anyone—I was just too weak!"
The next day, I t the other children.
"I'm Nana," the woman introduced herself. "What's your na?"
"Beyfong," I whispered, hiding behind her skirt from the other kids' eyes.
"Such a beautiful na!" she cooed, stroking my head. "Kids, we have a new family mber! Don't bully her!" she warned sternly.
"We won't!"
"No one will touch her!"
"Her eyes are so pretty!"
Here, I felt love and care again. Though food was scarce, clothes often torn, and illness common, no one complained. Most had experienced street life.
It wasn't all bad. Older kids found work and contributed what they could. We helped around the house. Sotis, bad people took our ager earnings. I wanted to fight back! But my body was frail, so I practiced Earthbending. It was hard to learn alone, but I had a goal, and it drove .
Ti passed, and more children arrived. Even elders said our king was weak, and Dao Fei factions tore apart more territories. I never stopped training—those skills would soon be needed.
Aunt Nana overworked herself in her old age and was now bedridden. I beca the oldest in the orphanage.
An underground Earthbending arena opened in the city. They promised good money for finalists, and you could bet on yourself. Disguised in a hooded cloak, I fought to earn money for the orphanage. Early on, I got bruised, but my skill grew.
Soon, Nana passed. She refused to leave until she knew the orphanage was safe. Before I knew it, I beca the beloved aunt to the children.
Life went on. Once, during practice, I sensed tal particles! The feeling grew daily until I could manipulate a coin.
I never started my own family—why would I, with nearly thirty children? Older kids left, but sadly, fewer were abandoned. The frightened people hoped the new Avatar Kyoshi wouldn't be as careless as Avatar Kuruk.
One calm sumr day, I indulged in my forced hobby—embroidery.
"Lu, you can't do that! Aunt Beyfong, tell him!" The most energetic kids in the Earth Kingdom ran to .
"Wui, why follow if you disapprove?" Lu, a fifteen-year-old, gestured wildly.
"What happened now?" I asked, setting aside my embroidery.
"Lu spent food money on sothing else again," Wui taunted, sticking out her tongue.
"I can explain!" Lu began. "An unplanned caravan arrived. I bought spices, thinking I could sell them in a richer part of the city before news spread. The profit would double or triple! It worked—look!" He dumped coins into my palm.
"But buyers might beat you again!" Wui worried.
"You don't get it! Real money always involves risk!"
"Did you hear that from a rchant? Do you have your own thoughts?"
"Enough fighting," I clapped, grabbing their attention. "Lu, what do you want to be when you grow up?"
"A trader, of course! I'll have an army of workers!" He gestured grandly. "And mountains of gold!"
"Why so much money?"
He paused, serious now. "Then you won't need to fight in those arenas anymore," he said, pointing to my bandaged ankle. "Others might not understand, but as your Earthbending student, I know that's not a random sprain."
"I'll provide for our family," he continued, fire in his eyes. "We'll eat our fill daily! When I'm richer, I'll open orphanages in every city—you'll see!" He raised his fist.
"I'm with you, Lu!" Wui added, raising her tiny fist.
"Already have a symbol?" I asked.
"A flying boar!" he declared confidently.
"That's tasteless! What does it an?" Wui scoffed.
"Many wrongly see boars as easy prey. But once they charge, they're unstoppable. We'll be that unstoppable boar!" he said proudly. "And wings just look cool," he added, scratching his neck.
"I should start thinking of a surna. All aristocrats have one, and I'll definitely beco one," Lu dread.
"Wait! Do you hear that?" Wui asked, worried.
A bell rang. Dao Fei had avoided our city for too long. Our luck had run out.
"Kids, pack essentials and head to the underground tunnel! It leads outside the city! Hurry!" I urged the panicked children.
"Too late," I frowned, hearing bending clashes.
"Lu, you're in charge. Take the hidden money and raise worthy people. I believe in you," I ruffled his hair.
"You're coming with us," he grabbed my hand.
"They're here," I said, raising an earth wall to block a boulder. "Don't just stand there! Take the smallest kids—they'll spare no one!"
"Okay," he nodded weakly. "Soon, the Earth Kingdom will know the wealthy Beyfong family! Lu Beyfong—sounds good?" He smiled through tears, sealing the tunnel with Earthbending.
"I hope you achieve your goals, Lu," I said. No, I *know* he will.
"So bitch is resisting! Get more n!" soone shouted outside.
"I love breaking female benders. They're so proud at first," a bandit laughed disgustingly.
Ti for talbending. Sensing hidden tal spheres in the house, I pulled them toward . One man entered my range. A sharp hand motion sent a sphere through his empty head.
"She killed Zik! Kill her!"
Their first attacks destroyed the house. I dove underground.
"She's behind you!" Too late—a foot twist sent spikes through two more.
Within a minute, I was surrounded by ten benders, dodging arrows. I took down twenty before...
"Who'd've thought this backwater had a master Earthbender—one who controls tal, no less. Pity you killed so many of my n. I'd've made you my right hand," the Dao Fei leader sighed.
"You'll be jerking off with your right hand," I spat out a needle I'd hidden in my mouth.
"Figured you'd pull sothing," he dodged. "Kill her—too dangerous alive!" I had no strength left, magical or physical. Sharp stone projectiles and arrows pierced my body.
"My kids are safe now," I smiled despite the pain.
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