Chapter 3: Chapter 3: Bending Energies
*Hi again. Here's the rewrite of Chapter 3, which will now be called "Bending Energies". Part of this was taken from the original Chapter 5, so from now on, Chapters 4-8 will be completely new content in between the main plot. I hope you enjoy what I came up with for this one until that point, though.
After finishing their flight around the Southern Air Temple, Aang safely escorted Appa back to his most common rendezvous point alongside Goku. As the monk detached Appa's saddle and placed it in the bottommost storage area of the temple, Goku hopped off his new Nimbus Cloud. The yellow cloud came to a sudden halt, awaiting further instruction from its owner.
"Thanks, Nimbus! You were just as great as the one I had back in my world!" complimented Goku. "I'll call you once I need to use you again."
With that last remark, the Flying Nimbus flew into the distance, leaving behind a prominent stream of gold in its path. Aang, still feeling butterflies in his stomach from the recent flight, tugged on Goku's sleeve.
"That was a whole lotta fun, Goku! Appa hasn't been able to fly that much in a long time. Isn't that right, buddy?" Aang proclaimed happily. He then looked at Appa with a wide, infectious grin.
"Grrragggh!" Appa yawned loudly. He crouched downward, deciding to take a rest after having to keep up with Goku's Flying Nimbus.
"I'll take that as a yes. Hehe." Goku sniggered in response to Appa's drowsiness.
"Though, I'm surprised that Nimbus can fly so fast. Appa was really struggling to keep up with you at times."
"Believe it or not, that wasn't even the Nimbus's top speed. I managed to make it go much faster in the past."
"Seriously?! That's insane!" Aang shouted in disbelief. Before now, he didn't even think anything could really go that fast period. The wonders of the Spirit World, and wherever Goku came from, must be really something.
"Yeah. I'll have to show you more of the Nimbus's tricks later on. It can do a lot more than just move fast, believe me." Goku promised.
"I'm definitely looking forward of that!" Aang chirped in delight. At the mention of these tricks, however, another idea suddenly came to mind.
"You want to meet some of my friends, Goku? They're all airbenders too." Aang asked. This was more of an excuse to show off the air scooter, but having Goku get more familiar with the other monks wasn't bad either.
Already sold by the paired aerodynamic skills of Appa and Nimbus, Goku nonchalantly shrugged his shoulders in agreement. "Sure. I don't see why not."
"Cool! I'll show you the way there."
Goku then followed the path leading to Aang's next intended stop. Meeting new people like Aang could, admittedly, be a pretty interesting experience. It took a few minutes, but the Avatar in question eventually led Goku to one of the Southern Air Temple's courtyards. It was an area where novice airbenders were free to either play with one another or improve their abilities.
Goku's eyes darted toward multiple kids the same age as or younger than Aang zooming around in circles. Each of them crossed their legs together and sat down on spheres of dense air, using their own bending to manipulate the direction they wanted them to travel. Curious by this, Goku placed a hand over his mouth and leaned over to Aang.
"Hey, Aang. What type of move is that?" Goku whispered. Proudly crossing his arms, Aang gave him a basic rundown of how the airbending technique of his own design functioned.
"It's called an air scooter. It's sort of like your Nimbus Cloud, but I can create one anytime I want and use it travel on the surface. Neat, huh?" Aang subtly bragged.
"Anytime you want?" Goku wondered obliviously. Aang smirked, preparing to give him a personal demonstration.
"Wait here." Aang hoarsely advised. He then walked up to his friends and gave out his own two cents on their fast progress.
"Not bad, guys. You must have been practicing!" Aang complimented.
"Not only that, Aang! We made a whole game you can play with the air scooters!" A younger monk shouted in happiness as he spun around on the air scooter.
Wanting to join in and give some sort of incite to Goku, Aang placed one hand over the other and started to circle them around, gusts of blue wind being drawn into the open space between. Once a sphere was formed, Aang manually expanded its size and balanced his entire body on top of it, resting both knuckles together as he did so.
Goku, now understanding how the air scooter was formed, ran up beside Aang in considerable admiration.
"Wow! It is like a portable Nimbus! I wish I could come up with something as unique as that. Most of my techniques were passed down to me." Goku commended Aang's creativity. Flattered by this reaction, Aang just scratched the side of his face modestly and snickered.
"Heh, thanks, Goku." Aang replied. The other kids dispelled their own air scooters to gather around Goku. They audibly gasped at the sight of his signature black hair.
"Wait a minute! Aren't you the kid who was riding that yellow cloud in the sky?!" gulped one of the monks. The martial artist pointed at himself in earnest, ignorant to what exactly the big deal was about the Flying Nimbus.
"A-and the one who shot energy out of his h-hands?!" another monk stammered nervously.
"Yep, that was all me. What about it?" questioned Goku with a childish face void of self-awareness. Upon this confirmation, each monk propelled their respective scooters, creating a figurative twister that dogpiled Goku with various questions. Goku's eyes began to roll around in fatigue, making him extremely nauseous.
"You're the coolest, man! That attack or whatever it was seemed more powerful than any type of bending I've ever heard!"
"Could you do it again?! Please, please, please, pleassssse!"
"Did you glue that tail on?"
Wanting to spare Goku from this bombardment of curiosity, Aang plopped himself in the middle of both parties. Goku, mentally thanking him, slumped over back-first into the pavement, his eyes all, but black swirls of dizziness.
"So, you guys said something about a game?" Aang cheerfully reminded his fellow monks. Unfortunately, they only peered at him awkwardly with sympathetic frowns. Goku, taking note of this sudden change in mood, lightly narrowed his eyebrows.
"Well, about that, Aang…" One monk scratched the side of his face timidly.
"…we just…erm…think that, with you being the Avatar and all, it's kind of an unfair advantage for whichever team you're placed on." A tall, lankier airbender stated with a reluctant shrug of his two hands.
"But, the Avatar is just a title. I'm the still the same! Nothing's changed…" Aang reassured them with his usual carefree smile.
He darted his eyes from left to right, looking for anyone to change their mind. Sadly, each airbender remained silent, and gave him the same sad, regretful expression.
"So, what? I can't play?" Aang asked in disbelief.
"That's the only way it'll be fair." The tall airbender regretfully sighed with no hint of malice. Aang, disappointed by the inherit rejection of his closest friends, took the hint and slumped his shoulders.
"Oh, ok…" Aang muttered in reply. His eyes drooped down to the floor as he slowly walked away. "Come on, Goku. Let's go somewhere else."
Goku grimaced as Aang despondently went on ahead. Without Aang noticing, Goku glared at the other kids in anger for their selfish actions. If there was one thing he would never do, it would be turning his back on the people he cared for the most. Krillin, for instance, was a perfect example of that fact. After he died, Goku blindly rushed into battle against Tambourine, even when his chances of winning that particular bout were slim to none. That situation might have been more extreme, but nonetheless, choosing to isolate Aang for being the Avatar was still unacceptable behavior.
Giving them the stink eye, Goku harrumphed irritably and followed after Aang. A collective shiver went down each of the airbenders' spines in that moment.
"T-Tell Aang we're sorry…" A young monk stuttered out in fear. Making sure that Goku was gone, the kids resumed playing with their air scooters right after.
"Those kids don't know what you're going through, Aang. You shouldn't take it too hard." Goku attempted to comfort Aang. Both of them ended up returning to the Sky Bison stables, so Aang could properly cope with Appa by his side.
He rested his back against the aforementioned bison's fur, crouched down into a fetal position out of sorrow and loneliness. The light in his jubilant eyes was all but gone, replaced with bristling tears. He crossed his arms on top of his knees and rested his head, thinking of everything that happened as a result of becoming the Avatar; a position that Aang, frankly, didn't even want.
Aang glanced at Goku in sadness. "How can I not take this hard, Goku?! Like I told them, I haven't changed at all since the Council of Elders selected me as the next Avatar. Why is everyone suddenly painting me as if I'm something above them?! That they can't compare to?"
Bitter tears streamed down Aang's cheeks. He looked up at Goku, searching for answers that he most likely didn't even have the answer to. Frowning deeper, the martial artist stared down at Aang and shared direct eye contact with him.
"I haven't." Goku blankly replied.
"What?" sniffled Aang as he wiped the ensuing tears from his eyes. He wondered where Goku was exactly going with this.
"I haven't seen you as better than me, Aang. You are the Avatar and junk, but I know for a fact that you can't be compared with me in terms of power. Not yet, at least." Goku stated straightforwardly. Aang inspected his hands, mentally distinguishing the Kamehameha from his blasts of air. There really was no contest in that department.
"And? How is you being stronger supposed to help me?! You were only brought here to train me; to train THE AVATAR how to do your energy projection thing!" Aang scowled harshly, his previous sadness transitioning into direct antagonism. In response to this, the blue tattoos aligned on his head and arms glowed a harsh, vibrant white.
"I NEVER EVEN WANTED TO BE THE AVATAR!" Aang roared with intense anguish, his now pupilless eyes lighting up like Avatar Roku's when Goku was first sent to this dimension. Goku jaw dropped slightly, impressed by this odd "transformation" the troubled monk somehow underwent.
"His entire chi just skyrocketed in a millisecond! A-And why do I feel multiple presences in one body?" wondered Goku in confusion over this never-before-seen energy signature. "Is this what Roku and Aang meant by past lives?"
The paranormal nature of this aura triggered Goku's inner fighting spirit. He couldn't help, but wonder how much power Aang truly inherited from Roku and his other past lives, piquing his excitement to even greater heights. Aang, on the other hand, was not so impressed by this abrupt display of rage-induced power.
"I-I don't know what…what I am anymore…" Aang whimpered miserably. His arrow tattoos reverted back to their initial blue tinge as he collapsed from exhaustion.
The emotionally despondent airbender fell to his knees. Goku, impressed by the limitless potential Aang inadvertently displayed, placed a hand on his new student's shoulder.
"This was what I meant, Aang. While I may have been transported here to train you, you being the Avatar isn't what I care about. I care about who you are as a person. And from what I've seen so far, you're a pretty fun guy!" Goku pointed out with a content smile. Aang timidly raised his head, quirking eyebrow in uncertainty.
"But, you just met me a few hours ago? How can you be so sure?" Aang grumbled in a halfhearted attempt to push Goku away.
"So? Back home, I've met a lot of people throughout my adventures. Although I only knew some of them for a short time, they still left a good impression on me, I think. Some of them are still my friends to this very day." Goku reminisced about the people he's met and fought in the past.
"Each varied in terms of strength compared to me, but I neveronce treated them any differently because of it. They all had something special that made them equal to me in importance, just like you!" Goku implored, patting Aang's shoulder a few times in assurance.
He then narrowed his eyes and frowned, once again thinking of the other airbenders' disregard for Aang's feelings. "That's why those baldies were wrong to think that you being the Avatar made you any different from them. You are you, Aang, and no title ain't ever going to change that, no matter what it means in the grand scheme of things."
Aang took a moment to think over Goku's words before giving him a pained smile. His inner turmoil subsided for the time being.
"T-Thanks, Goku. That helped a little." Aang expressed his gratitude.
Beaming, Goku offered the monk a hand and helped him stand. Aang, wanting to further cheer himself up, thought of another activity on his and Goku's theoretical to-do list.
"How about we go see what Monk Gyatso is up to? Maybe I can convince him to teach you the rules of Pai Sho!" Aang offered excitedly. Goku, stuck in his own little world, drooled at the utterance of what sounded like "pie" and gleefully bounded in place.
"The old man's going to show me a pie?! I can't wait!" Goku hungrily exclaimed.
Aang rolled his eyes, starting to get used to Goku's thickheaded nature. He chuckled to himself whilst picking up his glider off the floor. Goku took note of the brown staff, mentally comparing its smooth design to his own Power Pole, the red baton used to connect Korin's Tower with the Lookout. Since he just acquired a replacement for the Flying Nimbus, Goku thought of trying something.
"Hey, Aang? Are there more gliders like yours hanging around?" Goku asked. Not seeing the harm in giving the naïve boy a glider of his own, Aang walked out of the plaza and led Goku to another one of the Southern Air Temple's many storage areas.
Coincidentally, Goku managed to find a staff that was slightly longer and reddish brown compared to the others. Normally, Aang would find such a find to be a bit too coincidental, but as long as Goku liked it, who was he to judge? They continued walking back to Gyatso's room whilst Goku spun his new glider around at rapid, stupidly fast speeds.
"So, I'm assuming you had a staff like this back in your world?" Aang guessed based on Goku's skill wielding the weapon. Goku nodded, not bothering to keep his eyes off his staff.
"Yep! It was a magical staff called the Power Pole. My grandpa gave it to me when I was younger." Goku explained his personal attachment to said bō staff. "Whenever I said, "Power Pole, Extend!", it could grow as far as the eye could see and then some! I even managed to reach the moon with it."
Aang froze in place, utterly stupefied by what Goku just said. "Did you just say the moon?!"
"It's a long, weird story, but yeah! I brought this one rabbit jerk and his two friends up to the moon, so they wouldn't be able to turn people into carrots anymore. Then, I descended back down to Earth with the Power Pole, and that was it." Goku recalled the whole dilemma with Monster Carrot that took place three years ago. "Come to think it, I'm not even sure if those guys are still up there or not…"
Everything Goku just mentioned was so ridiculous and absurd that Aang couldn't believe it was real. The mere thought of Goku breathing in outer space was enough to give Aang a massive headache alone, but talking rabbits and people turning into carrots added further insult to injury.
"What you just said makes absolutely no sense, but considering that you have a monkey tail and fly on top of clouds, I can't really doubt that it happened." Aang replied in defeat. "I'm simply baffled that a staff like the Power Pole even exists."
"Trust me, that's not even the weirdest thing I've encountered. My world has a lot of strangeness to it." Goku chuckled, remembering all the weird misadventures he's been on, including Arale's home, Penguin Village. "I'm sure this one can be pretty strange too."
"Can't really argue with that, to be honest. Haha."
Goku closely inspected his staff. It was mostly identical to Aang's in terms of appearance and functionality, but Goku doubted he would have much use for its wings. With the Flying Nimbus around, gliding around like Aang wasn't necessary. Then again, maybe his chi could help keep him elevated for short distances. He couldn't say for certain.
"It'll take some time to adjust, but I think this staff will work well enough in a fight." Goku thought aloud. He lightly swung the staff around to test its weight and flexibility within both hands.
"Fight? Given your strength, I don't even know if anyone would be able to properly challenge you." Aang pointed out.
"I know that. By "fight", I mean for the sparring we'll do once we begin your training." Goku reiterated.
"S-Sparring?"
"I mean, how else will you manage to unlock your chi? I'll need to test your speed, stamina, and other characteristics in order to get a basic idea of the type of fighter you'll become." Goku listed off the steps of Aang's training with his fingers. These conditions made the monk feel a bit uncomfortable.
"But Goku, I'm not really that much of a fighter in general. Gyatso raised me to be pacifistic, so I don't really want to harm anyone." Aang stated. Goku glanced at the airbender, wondering how far his pacificism truly extended.
"Even the Fire Lord?" Goku thought concernedly. He didn't like killing people either, but he knew certain individuals were malicious enough to use lethal force against. King Piccolo and anyone in the Red Ribbon Army were notable examples.
Goku shook his head, choosing to save this kind of conversation for later. The Fire Lord, whatever type of person he truly was, needed to be dealt with by Aang and Aang alone. It was his responsibility to decide their eventual fate.
"There's nothing wrong with that, Aang. You'll mainly be evading my staff anyway, so these spars won't require any physical attacks yet. You're just starting out, after all." Goku eased Aang's worries about being potentially forced to fight. "Heck, the training I had with Master Roshi didn't involve fighting at all. My friend, Krillin, and I lugged around turtle shells all day long."
Aang chuckled at that tidbit. "That's good to know. Will I have to wear one of those turtle shells then?"
"Unless you want to carry around 50 or 100 pounds the entire day, then probably not. We don't have as much time for that." Goku shook his head dismissively.
"100 pounds?! How is his back not permanently damaged after that?!" Aang thought with widened eyes. Carrying that much weight for hours on end did explain why Goku was so fast, at least.
"The important thing to focus on is projecting your chi in the first place. Technically, you've already been using it to airbend and whatnot, but it'll still be a bit more complicated." Goku briefly summarized the focus of Aang's initial lessons.
"How'd you know bending utilized my own energy?"
"As an experienced fighter, I can sense the chi signatures of others. I was able to see the energy within your body circulating around to manipulate the nearby air. They seemed to be traveling through individual paths, in a way." Goku said, giving a vague description of what he interpreted the process of bending to be.
Aang was visibly impressed by this. Based on what he learned about bending from Gyatso, Goku's rundown of its connection to a person's inner chi was pretty accurate. It almost seemed like Goku was already an expert on this stuff, regardless of his young age.
"Sheesh. You pretty much figured out how bending works in only a few hours. No wonder Roku sent you to help me." Aang whistled in admiration.
"I wouldn't say that. There's still a ton of stuff I'm confused about. Like that whole thing where your tattoos glowed white and caused your energy to get bigger all of a sudden." Goku recalled with a confuddled expression. Aang, weirdly enough, was just as confused by this statement.
"Glowed white? What are you talking about?" Aang inquired.
Goku raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Huh? You don't remember? You got angry and released a surge of power all of a sudden. I think I saw your eyes glow too."
"I-I didn't even realize that. Everything that happened right after I yelled was a blur for me."
"That's weird then. You think Gyatso would know anything about this?" Goku pondered.
Aang casually shrugged his shoulders. "There's no harm in trying. He knows more about the Avatar's history than I do, honestly."
"Guess we'll have to ask." Goku ultimately decided. They reached the entrance of the building Gyatso lived in, preparing to walk up its staircase.
"Over a good old game of Pai Sho, you mean? Haha." Aang said.
"As long as I get some actual pie, I'm down for anything." Goku hungrily licked his lips.
With Aang leading the way, both kids went upstairs and knocked on the wooden door of Gyatso's room. Gyatso immediately answered, surprised to see them back so soon.
"You're back already? That's a bit surprising." Gyatso stated curiously. "Did something happen?"
He let the two in and gently shut the door behind them. Aang didn't want Gyatso to worry about what happened with the other airbenders, so he kept his response a bit more general than specific.
"Not really. We just flew around a bit, met some of the other kids, and that was pretty much it." Aang briefly summarized the events of his and Goku's small tour. "I thought you could maybe play a bit of Pai Sho with Goku."
Based on Aang's body language, Gyatso could tell something else was bothering him. He, however, though it best not to pry further. Aang would talk to him about it when he was ready, just as he's always done.
"Hmm, I see. Looks like Goku wants to learn how to play the hard way. Heh." Gyatso chuckled with mischievous attempt. Aang had never won a game of Pai Sho against his mentor, so as a novice, Goku probably wouldn't fare much better.
"Play? I thought you were showing me a pie to eat?" Goku ignorantly tilted his head to the side.
"Goku, Pai Sho is a board game. It has nothing to do with food…" Aang sighed.
"Why didn't you say so then? Hmph. Now, you got my hopes up." The martial artist grumbled in disappointment. "How does this game work then?"
"Come over here and I'll show you." Gyatso motioned for Goku and Aang to follow him. There, at another corner of the room, was a small table with the Pai Sho board resting on top of it. It was divided into a grid of colored squares with over sixty, individual game pieces being designated on each side. This one, however, was set up for two players in mind due to the amount of time Aang and Gyatso spent playing against one another.
Taking a quick glance at these circular tiles, Goku thought this was a good opportunity to ask Gyatso about Aang's transformation, or whatever it was.
"By the way, me and Aang wanted to ask you something else too." Goku said. Gyatso turned his head to look down at the boy.
"Oh? And what might that be?" The monk asked calmly.
"Well, right before we came here, Aang got a bit upset about…erm…him being the Avatar and stuff. Aang couldn't remember it, but when he got angry, his tattoos and eyes glowed white for a second. When it happened, I could sense the energies of many different people too, not just Aang's. Do you know what that was?"
Gyatso frowned, his suspicions about Aang's behavior being proven true. Maybe something happened when Goku and Aang met up with the other monks; something that most likely had to do with Aang having so-called "privileges" as the Avatar. He didn't think it would be enough to upset Aang that much, however. It concerned him, but presumably, Goku must have said or done something to calm Aang down. For that, he deserved be given some context about the Avatar's unique abilities.
Gyatso closed his eyes, breathing out a light sigh of breath. "That…was the Avatar State."
""The Avatar State?"" Goku and Aang asked in unison.
"From what I know, the Avatar State is an immensely powerful ability that grants the current Avatar with the knowledge and experience of all their past lives. It can exponentially increase their strength and bending abilities tenfold in moments of extreme adversity." Gyatso explained based on prior accounts of this formidable state of being. "That, I assume, is why you were able to sense multiple energies at once. The white glow of Aang's tattoos was all of the previous Avatars' chis being focused into his physical body."
Aang was stunned speechless by this description. He had no idea being the next Avatar could bring forth this much power, even in the most tenuous of moments.
"You mean…I went through that?" Aang stammered in disbelief.
"For a few seconds, but yeah. Now, I can definitely tell you'll be super strong in the future. Hehe." Goku toothily grinned. He patted Aang on the back in an encouraging manner.
"Easy for you to say. I didn't even know how I activated it in the first place." Aang thought to himself.
"Though, a part of me is still a bit confused by all this. How many past lives does Aang have exactly? Are they all contained in his body somehow?" Goku questioned in bewilderment. He really wasn't used to the concept of reincarnation, even if Piccolo Jr., his next opponent, technically was a product of it.
"The exact number has been lost to time, unfortunately, but there were hundreds of Avatars before Aang. As soon as one Avatar passes on, a new one takes their place in a continuous cycle of death and rebirth. This cycle can be categorized based on the four nations, going in the order of fire, air, water, and earth. Beforehand, there was Avatars Szeto, Yangchen, Kuruk, and Kyoshi. Now, there's Roku and Aang. Then, the cycle will continue with a waterbending Avatar and an earthbender after that." Gyatso thoughtfully broke down the conditions of the Avatar Cycle. Goku, obviously, wouldn't be able to memorize most of those names, but he got the basic gist of what Gyatso said.
"Hundreds of Avatars? That's a lot…" Goku whispered in awe.
Gyatso slowly nodded. "Although, they are born in different nations, their united role as the Avatar is to protect the world and maintain balance within it. Aang, as Roku probably explained to you, is no exception."
"He did. That's why Aang has to bend all four elements alongside his own chi." Goku replied. "Still, I wish I could know more of what this Avatar State thing is capable of."
"I'd like to know too, actually. It seems like it could help me communicate with the former Avatars directly, including Roku." Aang expressed determinedly.
"Unfortunately, that's all I really know. There is a sanctuary located in this temple that details more of the Avatar's history, but you aren't quite ready to enter it yet, Aang." Gyatso solemnly proclaimed. "When the time is right, you'll be able to discover that room's secrets. I'm sure of it."
"I understand, Gyatso. It wouldn't be right to rush this stuff." Aang said wisely.
"That's good to know, Aang. Recognizing your own limitations is one step closer to true progress and development." Gyatso said in an encouraging tone.
He then sat down on one of the green cushions propped up next to the Pai Sho table. Smiling, the old man looked from Goku to Aang in quick succession.
"Now then. Which of you boys wants to get their butt kicked in Pai Sho?"
Aang took a step back, leaving Goku directly in front of the Pai Sho board. "Eh, I think I've already lost enough this week. How 'bout you try, Goku? That is what I wanted to show you."
Goku scratched the back of his head, not entirely sure if Pai Sho would even be interesting enough to play. He was a martial artist, not a strategical mastermind. But, then again, how hard could some old board game really be?
"Alright then. Are there any rules to follow or something?" Goku inquired, plopping his bottom onto the open cushion facing Gyatso's.
"Pai Sho has many rules that vary based on the nation it's played in, but to keep things simple, I play it as a slow game of strategy. Each of us have a collection of tiles, including…" Gyatso paused to selected a specific tile from his collection. He then held it directly in front of Goku's eyes.
"…the white lotus tile." Gyatso revealed. It was a tile with the symbol of an orange and yellow lotus flower painted onto it.
"White lotus?"
"Mmhm. The goal of the game is to overtake each other's tiles until this one, the white lotus, is all that remains. Whomever places the white lotus in the center of the board, wins." Gyatso explained while gesturing to each of the tiles placed on the board. "Is that easy enough to follow?"
Goku still couldn't quite wrap his head around the game, but he supposed the instructions weren't that complicated. He just had to move some circles around and that'd be it.
"Think so." Goku shrugged absentmindedly. Aang placed a hand over his mouth, knowing that Goku was oblivious to what a Pai Sho game with Gyatso exactly entailed. For a kind, wise old man, he didn't play fair by any means.
"Let's begin then. Just place one of the tiles wherever you want and we'll take turns from there." Gyatso offered his younger opponent the first move.
As told, Goku moved one of the tiles he had forward. He noticed that each of them had their own unique symbols; some which symbolized the four existing elements in a way.
"Be careful, Goku. Pai Sho's a deceptively easy game, so keep your guard up." Aang warned his new friend.
"Eh. It can't be any harder than the fights I've been in." Goku casually brushed off Aang's warning. The airbender, while not really knowing the type of fights Goku's been through, knew this was true. Even so, he still wanted to give a Goku heads-up about the "tricks" Gyatso liked to pull.
"Also, I forgot to mention that Gyatso likes to—" A gust of wind suddenly blew Aang's shirt over his face. This left the Avatar a bit discombobulated, much to his annoyance.
He fixed up his shirt to playfully glare at Gyatso. The old monk in question grinned, pretending as though nothing happened.
"Sorry. There must have been a light breeze from outside." Gyatso motioned to the open window nearby. Goku, blinking a few times in confusion, just kept moving up his tiles.
The two continued taking turns in an almost monotonous, drawn out pattern. Goku really didn't have much thought put into his moves, apart from covering as many squares as possible. Although, on some unintentional, subconscious level, Goku was actually removing some of Gyatso's tiles from the board. However, it was hard to tell if he actually knew this was happening at all.
"Very interesting. For a first time player, he's doing surprisingly well. Perhaps he experienced some mental training of sorts?" Gyatso thought in astute wonder. Wanting to get some additional fun out of the game, the old airbender grinned and brought his hand underneath the table.
"You've done a good job, Goku. I'm impressed." Gyatso commended the boy for his efforts in-game.
"Really? I'm just placing these coin thingies down whenever it's my turn." Goku said, resting a fist on his cheek in mildly deep focus.
"You are, but…" Gyatso projected a gust air onto the floor, causing Goku to spin around in a state of temporary weightlessness.
"Woah!" Goku yelped. As he continued spinning, Gyatso swapped one of his pieces for a white lotus tile and had it positioned directly near the center.
"…did you miss this one by any chance? Ohoho." Gyatso pointed at the white lotus in amusement. While dizzy from all the spinning, Goku couldn't help, but laugh at the old master's mischievous sense of humor. Aang did the same.
"Hey! That was a dirty trick. Hahaha." Goku chuckled.
"That's Gyatso for you. You should see the pie catapult I made with him. Now, that was a good trick! Hehe." Aang mentioned humorously. He recalled how priceless Monk Tashi's face was when a pie smacked into him from afar. Tashi was probably still bitter to this very day.
As they all broke out into laughter, a knock was heard at the door. Gyatso then cleared his throat and signaled for the two boys to quiet down.
"I wonder who that could be." Gyatso said. He opened the door to see, weirdly enough, Monk Tashi standing there once again.
"Pasang wishes to see Goku and Aang, immediately. He wants a demonstration of how chi should be activated during a session of training." Tashi informed matter-of-factly. He upturned his chin to see the Pai Sho table, visibly irritated that what he said to Gyatso didn't get through to him at all.
"I'll be accompanying you there, so I suggest you don't dawdle any further." Tashi glowered in a serious tone. Gyatso, albeit amused by Tashi's growing temper, nodded his head.
"Alright then." Gyatso whispered. "Come along, boys. We'll finish up our game later."
Goku and Aang exchanged quick looks with one another before doing as their guardian said.
"Uh…okay." Goku replied. His tail anxiously twitched about as he and Aang walked behind Gyatso.
Tashi examined Goku from top to bottom with a piercing glare. "Let's go. It's best not to keep Pasang waiting any more than he has."
With that, the four of them shut the door behind them and walked back to the Council of Elders. Aang, while in the middle of this walk, couldn't help, but feel nervous.
"I hope unlocking my chi won't take too long…" Aang silently prayed. Then, he took a deep breath and anticipated the beginning of his training.
Like how the meeting was structured earlier, Gyatso sat amongst his fellow councilmembers and waited to see what orders Pasang would give out. Goku and Aang, on the other hand, were placed in front of the entire council, waiting for this demonstration of chi control to begin. However, another person, to Goku's confusion, was present within the temple this time.
It was another elderly airbender with a bushy, white beard and moustache that concealed his entire chin. Wearing his own pair of orange robes, he was seated upon a cushion similar to the Council's, and had a lengthy scroll of paper resting on his lap. A bottle of black ink and a single paintbrush were placed on the left side of his seat as well.
"So, uh, who's that guy?" Goku asked.
"As I told you, we wish to record your usage of chi for future reference. To do that, we have brought in Monk Shui to give a written and drawn account of your teachings." Pasang reminded the monkey-tailed fighter of what was going on.
Goku suddenly grew a bit hesitant about this decision. "These…drawings won't be shared with anyone else, right?"
"Not at all, Goku. Although they may eventually be shown to leaders of the Northern, Western, and Eastern Air Temples, these recordings will be kept hidden from the rest of the world. You have my word on that." Gyatso kindly assured the boy.
"Phew. That's a relief. It just wouldn't feel right to have my chi abilities shared with everybody."
"Well, also remember that the world has no idea you are even here, boy. Your powers, while obviously real, wouldn't be trusted right away. If anything, someone who looks upon these scrolls might doubt your existence as nothing more than a childish fairy tale." Tashi explained the world's skeptic view of abilities beyond bending. "I would, at least."
"Huh. Never thought of it that way before…" Goku murmured in sudden realization. By all intents and purposes, he might as well be a ghost to the other three nations. Then again, he was used to staying out of public view in his own universe.
"Anyway, you can start teaching Aang as soon as you're ready, Goku. There's no rush at all." Pasang said whilst overlapping his orange sleeves.
"Okay. Sounds good." Goku responded with a thumbs up. "You ready, Aang?"
"Erm…I guess so? It's a bit hard with Gyatso and the others watching like that." Aang timidly rubbed his right shoulder in an up-and-down motion.
"Aw, don't be like that! The first step is easy. Just follow what I tell you, and you'll be good to go!" Goku encouraged the nervous airbender. Aang, seeing Goku's infectious grin, felt his nerves gradually easing up.
"If you say so, Goku." Aang nodded.
"So…hmmm…where should I start with this…" Goku muttered as tapped his foot in uncertainty. A figurative lightbulb then came to his head. "Oh right! The first step is to focus chi into a single portion of your body. Mainly the area between your hands."
Directly afterwards, Goku sat down and crossed his legs. He lined up both hands with one another and set them in the middle of his abdominal area.
"With this pose, you can generate energy into a smaller, condensed space. The key is to keep yourself focused until…" In only a few seconds, yellow energy surged to life between Goku's palms and condensed into a small, yet complete chi ball.
"…a ball of chi is created. Simple as that." Goku said cheerfully. He dispersed the chi ball and stood up straight.
Monk Shui, amazed by this spectacle, quickly painted a description and illustration of what just took place. He tried to capture as much detail as possible, including the appearance of Goku himself.
"Now, it's your turn. All you need to do is repeat what I did." Goku instructed. Aang, feeling more confident in himself, crossed his legs and sat down.
"Alright then! I think I can get the hang of this!" Aang chirped in sheer enthusiasm. He then copied Goku's stance and aligned his hands with one another.
"That's the spirit!" Goku chuckled. Aang, sticking his tongue out, intently focused his eyes on the center of both hands.
Unfortunately, no matter what Aang tried to do, a ball of energy just wouldn't appear.
"Did I do something wrong? It's not working." Aang wondered in concern.
"It takes a bit more time for beginners. As long as you clear your mind, your chi will eventually appear."
"Fair enough."
A few hours passed and Aang still wasn't close to bringing forth his inner chi. The Council of Elders, including Pasang, were all starting to dose off from a mix of exhaustion and boredom. Monk Shui almost collapsed over his new painting, but managed to stop himself in time at the last second. Goku also kept himself awake in order to properly monitor Aang's progress.
Aang himself was starting break out into a cold sweat. The boy felt frustrated since he did everything Goku told him, yet no results could be found. He glanced at one of the temple's windows, noticing that it was almost nighttime.
"W-What am I doing wrong, Goku? This doesn't make sense." Aang stammered in annoyance.
"You need to keep yourself calm, Aang. Your emotions are getting out of control." Goku calmly replied. Aang's gray eyes were filled with longing and newfound sadness.
"But, I was calm! I did everything you said, yet it's taking forever! I don't understand…"
Goku, maintaining a calm, composed demeanor, shook his head in response. "There's nothing to understand, Aang. Just picture yourself bending the energy within your body; like you do with the air. Picture the chi circulating through each pathway leading to your own fingertips."
Hearing this, Aang looked away from his palms and instead, shut his eyes. He now sported a more enlightened, meditative position as he pictured his own chi taking part in what Goku described.
"Bend the energy…within my body…" Aang calmly whispered. Taking slow, deep breaths, Aang's tattoos suddenly glowed a brilliant white. The Council of Elders, including Gyatso, were immediately woken up by this surge of power.
"I-It can't be! Is that…that…" Tashi choked out.
"The Avatar State itself. Who knew Aang could call upon it so early on?" Pasang mused to himself.
During this brief glimpse of the Avatar State's power, a spark of chi emerged in Aang's hands and slowly grew bigger. It, after a few seconds, fully evolved into a ball of chi as promised. Only this time, Aang's appeared to be as light blue as the air itself.
"You did it, Aang! Nice work." Goku shouted.
Aang slowly opened his eyes, causing the glow of his arrow tattoos to disappear. Upon looking down to see the ball of chi in his hands, Aang's face lit up in pure happiness.
"Alright! I knew I had it in me!" Aang cheered as marveled at the orb in his hands. "Everything else should be smooth sailing from here!"
Aang began bouncing the chi ball from hand to the other. Knowing how destructive even the smallest conjurations of chi could be, Goku attempted to calm the monk down.
"I wouldn't go that far, Aang. You should still be careful with—" Sadly, he was too late to stop Aang from accidentally letting go of the chi ball.
"…with what you just made." Goku muttered nervously.
It sailed over Monk Shui's head, causing the poor airbender to duck for cover right as he was painting. The ball continued its path until it hit the wall and spontaneously combusted in a moderately large explosion. Smoke billowed throughout the room, blocking out Goku, Aang, and the Council of Elders' sights for a few seconds. By the time it cleared, a massive hole was left in the temple's rightmost wall. A bunch of nearby airbenders peaked inside in fright, wondering what in lord's name just happened.
An awkward silence permeated throughout the entire room. The Council of Elders, especially Gyatso, were all stunned speechless by what the absolute carnage that just took place.
"W-Whoops." Aang squeaked apologetically.
"W-Well…erm…" Pasang coughed a few times to regain his composure. "It appears that this session of training has proven successful. I say we call it a night for now."
"Successful?! Aang just blew a gaping hole in this ancient temple! One that's centuries old, mind you!" Tashi screamed in anger.
"Now, now, Tashi. This kind of damage is temporary and can be fixed. Aang's ability to use chi, on the other hand, will last indefinitely for as long as he lives. So, in that sense, I'd say things went rather swimmingly." Gyatso brought up the more positive results of this training.
"B-But, the boy was reckless and treated that energy ball like some toy! He can't just get away with that!" Tashi argued furiously.
"As his guardian, I'll hold myself accountable for the repairs that need to be made. He and Goku can help out with that tomorrow morning. Consider it a form of community service and…training, if you will." Gyatso offered out of consideration for both the temple and Aang's wellbeing.
"Construction work was part of my own training back in the day, so I think that's a great idea!" Goku added with a toothy grin. Tashi, utterly dumbfounded, just sat back down in visible defeat.
"I…I give up. Just do you want." Tashi grumbled.
Shaking his head at Tashi, Pasang then stared down at Goku and Aang. "Before you go, we must see how Shui's painting turned out."
Shui shakily got up from the floor, and held up his painting. As expected, it was a detailed depiction of Goku projecting chi into his hands with a step-by-step process written on the side in Chinese characters. There was one problem with it, however: a long streak of black ink was present where Goku's face should be.
The Council of Elders all collectively groaned. They assumed this error was made when Shui had to duck down to avoid being blown up by Aang's sphere of chi. On the bright side, it wasn't as bad as it could have been. None of the text, for instance, was smeared in any way.
"Why didn't you guys tell me I had some black stuff on my face? I could have rubbed it off or something." Goku questioned as he tried to rub away something that wasn't there. Gyatso and Aang lightly palmed their faces while Pasang ignored him.
"Ah, well. Once Shui does some much-needed touchups on this scroll, we'll place it in the temple archives alongside the others." Pasang surmised resolutely.
"Others?" Goku wondered.
"Each nation has scrolls that dictate techniques unique to their respective bending element. Us airbenders are no different." Pasang elaborated. "You, my boy, will be the one to create a new set of scrolls relating to chi manipulation. This is the first and I'm sure, with your help, there will be countless more."
What he said made logical sense, but Goku still didn't feel comfortable showing them how to use more complicated techniques like the Kamehameha Wave. He was passed down that move by Master Roshi, so it more or less had sentimental value to him. Goku wondered if he should hold back on that particular "scroll" for as long as possible.
"That's good with me. As long as it stays here and nowhere else, there won't be any problems." Goku said reasonably.
"Good. Thank you for your cooperation, Goku." Pasang expressed his gratefulness for Goku's help. "This current meeting is adjourned. We'll meet back here tomorrow morning."
The Council of Elders then got up from their seats and walked to the exit. Monk Shui followed after Pasang with his paper, brushes, and bottle of ink in toe. Gyatso, in contrast, reconvened with Goku and Aang.
"Come along, boys. You deserve some much-needed rest." Gyatso called out.
Goku and Aang followed, doing as they were told. Aang, however, still felt a bit guilty about creating that giant hole.
"You don't think that's going to cost money, do you?" Aang asked in worry.
"I dunno. I'm not even sure how money works in this world." Goku threw out his hands ignorantly. "As long as we gather all the same pieces together, repairing that hole shouldn't be too bad, I think."
"If there's any pieces left, that is, but I get your point." Aang said.
"Though, you will be starting some weight training tomorrow, so it might take a bit longer. Hahaha." Goku sniggered, offhandedly revealing the next step of Aang's training.
The next Avatar slumped his shoulders. "Oh, man. My poor back…"
Gyatso led the two boys to Aang's current room, the Avatar's living quarters. It was a single room with a dark wooden floor and bison wool carpeting. This carpet was woven to resemble the swirls of the Air Nomads' symbol. There were stations dedicated to the practice of meditation and additionally, a single window that looked down upon the Southern Air Temple's central plaza. Avatars of the past lived in this very room during their training here.
Since there was only one bed, Goku agreed to sleep on the floor with a single pillow and blanket for comfort. After all, he's slept in far less comfortable places than this.
"My room is just around the corner, so if you need anything, feel free to come find me." Gyatso nicely remarked.
"Will do, Goodnight, Gyatso." Aang said.
"Goodnight! Thanks for all the help." Goku proclaimed out of gratitude.
"You're welcome, boys. I'll see you in the morning." Gyatso stated with a warm smile on his face. He then opened the door and quietly shut it behind him.
"Man, Gyatso and my grandpa are a lot alike. That's for sure." Goku chuckled while covering himself further with his blanket.
"It's probably cause of his fatherly attitude. He's always been there for me, ever since I was little." Aang warmly reminisced. "I never met my actual parents, but with Gyatso around, I don't really need to."
"I get what you mean. I have no idea what my parents even look like." Goku replied in a hoarse whisper.
"That does make me wonder how you got the monkey tail, though. You think your dad or mom had it?" Aang asked curiously. He hoped that one of his parents didn't turn out to be a giant monkey or something. That'd be too weird, even for him.
"I've never really thought about that, honestly. I just accepted the monkey tail as a part of me, and that was it." Goku murmured, looking up at the ceiling. Admittedly, it was odd that out of all the people on Earth, he was the only one with a tail like that.
"Hmm, guess it'll be a mystery then. At least it suits you pretty well." Aang admitted with a small shrug of his shoulders. "You might need to hide it once we go to another nation, though. People will freak out."
"Hehe. Yeah. You're not wrong there." Goku laughed.
"Welp, goodnight, Goku. It was good to hang out with you today." Aang yawned. He then twisted his body around and concealed himself in the covers.
"You too. Goodnight, Aang." Goku yawned the same way, albeit in a louder fashion.
The martial artist rested his head on top of the pillow, looking deeper into the ceiling once more. His mind began to wander, thinking over the friends he left behind to help with Aang's journey. He only hoped Master Roshi, Krillin, and Chiaotzu were already revived with the Dragon Balls by now. That way, once Aang completed his destiny, he'd be able to officially reunite with them at the 23rd World Martial Arts Tournament. But, for now, Goku would have to wait.
"I hope Kami and Mr. Popo are doing alright while I'm gone." Goku thought. He then drifted off into a deep, tranquil slumber, curious to know how long training Aang would actually take.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone