New Beginnings
Chapter 18
Written by rachel76m
Edited by Don Kaufman

The list of characters mentioned in this story belong to the various authors that created them. This is a fan-fiction story.

~~~000~~~

We arrive back at the dojo with no problems. This time we meet inside the dojo. Toph walks over to a small table and picks up a coil of metal wire. Toph unrolls it so we know how long it is. The cable wire is about ten feet long.

“This is my idea for the metal bending police force in Republic City. This cable wire will be used to bind the hands and feet of a convicted person. Use your mind to bind this cable around these wooden posts of different diameters. I’ll show you.” Toph holds out the metal cable. She concentrates on it. Soon the cable wire is flying around the dojo. She sends it to a wooden pillar. She quickly wraps it around the wooden post ten times. She pulls it tight so it doesn’t fall off.

“Now you try it, students. Each one will use five coils of metal wire.”

We all concentrate on the several small tables. We quickly elevate a coil of metal wire. We fly it about the dojo quickly. We then send them to several wooden posts. We wrap it around the wooden posts quickly.

We keep at it until we use five coils of metal wire. Then my fairies and Brianna try it as well. Soon, they wrap five coils of metal wire around the wooden posts.

“That’s very good. You’re catching on fast into being a good metal bender. Now I want you to use the metal cable on each other. Just do your friend’s hands and ankles. Now you need to concentrate on not pulling the cables too tight to bind them. We don’t want to injure them or the thief. We don’t need to be accused of hurting them.”

We practice on each other this time. This time we pull the metal cable wires carefully until the other student tells us when to stop. This time, the concentration is a little harder to know when it is tight enough. Eventually we determine when it is tight enough so that we are not hurting each other.

“Now I know my first three students witnessed me taking the bolts out of the tanks when Zuko brought his Fire Nation army here. I want you to do the same thing as well. I was able to bring a tank here. It is located near the outdoor practice area here.”

We follow Toph to the backside of the dojo. We walk down to another area. Soon, we see a huge metal tank like the one that was used by the Fire Nation.

“All right, as you can see, it is assembled. Each one will have a turn to take the bolts off and putting them back on. Obviously when the bolts are taken off, the wheels will fall off and the tank will be on the ground. Now you will have to concentrate in lifting the tank into the air and putting the bolts and wheels back on. This is really a lesson in multitasking. I want to Richard to try it first. See what he does and learn from it.”

I walk up to the tank. I look at it. I think out loud of what I need to do. “I think I need to get the tank into the air for a brief second with a double elephant stomp. Then I can concentrate on the bolts quickly. Yeah, that might work. All right, here it comes.” I have my hands toward the tank. I jump in the air and let both of my feet do the elephant stomp at the same time. “STTTOMMMMPP!! STTTOMMMMPP!!” The tank jumps up in the air for a brief second. I quickly remove the four bolts. The four wheels fall off the tank before the tank hits the ground. “Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!” The ground shakes a bit when the tank hits the ground. “BOOOMMM!! RRRUMMMBBBLLLEE!!”

“Whoa! That took some planning to do it quickly.”

“That’s very good, Richard. Now get the wheels back on. Think it out loud before you do it.”

“Yes, Toph. I need to lift the tank in the air first with my left hand. Get it at the right height. Then use the mind to line up the wheels on the shafts. Then with my right hand, I put the bolts on. I think that I’m ready now.”

I point my left hand at the tank. I slowly lift it up in the air. Then with my mind, I lift up one of the wheels. I move the wheel with my mind until the holes are lined up. Then with my right hand, I put the bolt into the shaft. “That was easy, let’s do the last three at once.” I focus my mind on the last three wheels. They rise up from the ground at the same time. Then with my right hand, I raise up the three bolts. I quickly insert them into the three shafts at almost the same time. Then I let the tank back onto the ground. I turn around to see everyone clapping and cheering me on, including Toph.

“That was great, Richard. All right students, it’s your turn to do it.”

~~~000~~~
~~~000~~~

Azazel looks at Appolyn from his throne. “What is the latest news from Japan, Appolyn?”

“It’s going very well, Azazel. I estimate in about six months, the Japanese Royalty will be dethroned in all eight multi-verses.”

Azazel smiles evilly. “That’s great, Appolyn. There is no way the Omega Unicorn Dragons can defeat those element bending demon masters. Fortunately, the Pantheon Gods won’t be there to confront them. They are stuck on their own worlds because of their stupid vows. They vow not to interfere with any Earth in the multi-verses.”

‘Heh, heh, that’s right, Azazel. When are you going to have your meeting with Loki?”

“I’ll have it at the same time while my plan unfolds upon Japan.”

“Yes, then you can boast of your latest achievement of chaos. I like it. Is there any word from Leonard, Mullin, Pyro and Pruflas?”

“I just received a message from them. Apparently they don’t want any new assignments from me. I find that very strange. Before, they accepted any ideas from me. I don’t like it, Appolyn.”

“Yes, that is very strange. Well, we’ll call upon them when we invade the Earth where you were imprisoned first.”

“Yes, I will need everyone there for that grand invasion. Well, let’s keep monitoring Japan.”

“Yes, my King.”

King Azazel conjures up at large black cloud. Then it straightens out to look like a movie screen. Then quickly, they see the events happening on each of the eight Japans. They smile evilly that it is going well in bringing down the Japanese Royalty. The people are rioting in the streets that aid is not coming to them in their time of need. They have many typhoons, earthquakes, tidal waves from the earthquakes and torrential rains. They see the Japanese Yakusa is having a great time in making a great profit from the people’s woes.

King Azazel and Appolyn laugh evilly at the same time, “Hah, hah, hah . . . !!”

~~~000~~~
~~~000~~~

Location: NC State Prison

Darren looks at the note he just received from Michael. “Read the book, It Takes Two to Tango.”

“Hmm . . . All right, I’ll humor him. It is probably some sort of book that teaches one how to dance the Tango.”

Darren walks to the Prison Library to find the book. He eventually finds it on the shelf. He takes the book and sits down in a sofa chair. He begins to read the book. “What? This is a book about relationships. That’s a bunch of crock!! I’m putting this one back.” Darren gets back up and set the book on the checkout counter.

“Aren’t you going to read that book, Darren?”

“No way! It’s a stupid relationship book. I have my own ideas on how to get the women.”

“Have they worked?”

“Well, no. They haven’t worked yet.”

“Then read the book. You might get some better ideas how to relate with women. The book helped me a lot. I have a much better relationship with my wife now. I thought I knew it all. Give the book a chance, Darren.”

“All right, I’ll check out the book and read it.”

“That’s a good decision. You won’t regret it.” The Prison Librarian checks out the book for Darren to read.

Darren takes the book and starts reading the first chapter in the sofa chair. It takes him fifteen minutes to read the first chapter. “Hmm . . . that’s a good first chapter. I think will read the rest of the book.” Darren takes the book with him to his cell.

The Prison Librarian smiles as he walks by. There is another one for you to work on, Creator.

Oh, yes. After him, then you will focus your efforts on Brent Morgan. But, he will be a tougher nut to crack.

Well, I had a lot of practice to get it right, Creator.

Yes you did, JT. Have a good time at the Sunday Services, tomorrow.

Thank you, Creator.

You’re welcome, JT.

~~~000~~~
~~~000~~~

Each of the students takes a turn to take the bolts out of the tank. Some tried my approach in jumping at the tank. For some, the tank does not get off the ground high enough. Then they used their hands to lift the tank. This time they are more successful.

It takes another two hours for them to try it. Eventually they succeed in removing the bolts and putting them back on.

“You’re right, Toph. It is a lesson in multitasking.”

“Just keep at it, students. We’ll be practicing this every day. After you are comfortable with it, then we’ll move onto larger metal objects. Try it again. It should come easier now. I’ll give you another hour at it before we break for the day. Right now, I need to teach Richard and his family some of the other forms of Earth Bending.”

“Okay, Toph.”

Toph walks over to me. “Richard, I think it is time to do some serious Earth Bending. The first one is Earth Tunneling. I am going underground and appear on the other side of there.” She points to the other side of the practice area. She points her hands downward. She quickly sinks into the ground. The hole she created gets filled in. In about five minutes we see her appear on the other side of the practice area. She then enters into the ground over there. In another five minutes, she comes out of the ground in front of us. “So, do you think you can do it?”

“My only question is the air to breathe.”

“You can draw it from the ground and rocks while you are down there. You will be able to create a cavity of air around as you move through the ground. Use the seismic touch to know where you are. Using your ears is another way to get a fix on your location.”

“Obviously this is useful to sneak up on someone.”

“Yes, it is, Richard.”

I point my hands to the ground. I concentrate on the ground. Slowly, I sink into the ground while the earth piles up around the hole I created. “I know I left the dirt up there, Toph. I am trying to get myself oriented here.”

“I understand, Richard. You’re doing fine. Now move forward as you place the dirt behind you as you move forward.”

“Okay, Toph.” I point my hands straight ahead. Quickly, the dirt moves behind me. I keep the mind focus on the destination.

Brianna kneels down to Robert. “So, Robert, is daddy okay down there?”

Robert thinks a bit. Then he nods his head up and down.

“That’s good, Robert. I feel Richard is safe down there.”

I travel quickly through the ground. I come to a stop when I think I’m on the other side of the practice area. I point my hands upward. I move the dirt around me as I rise up the hole. Soon, I’m in the open air.

“That’s great, Richard. Now do the same thing getting back here.” Toph immediately puts the dirt back into the hole I created earlier.

“Okay, Toph.” This time I find myself using this technique faster. Quickly, I’m back where I started two minutes later.

“See, it’s not so bad, Richard.”

“What’s weird is not knowing where you are at. I had to use my ears and the seismic touch a few times.”

“I know. Now this will work when the earth is perfectly dry. You can’t use this technique if there is mud or sand. You must be on solid ground.”

“Yes, Toph.”

“There are many techniques used by the Earth Bender. In the Avatar state, Kyoshi was able to break her peninsula town from the mainland and created Kyoshi Island. Aang was able to create a huge dust tornado. When his fist slammed into the ground, it leveled everything in a large radius. General Fong will remember that incident very well. In the Avatar state, you can move large statutes and large hills. In the Avatar state, you can compress rocks to be more dense.”

“Yes, Toph.” Creator, will I be able to achieve the Avatar state?

It won’t happen until you achieve the title of Shaolin Dragon Master, my servant. So will the other Omega Unicorn Dragons in the other multi-verses. The only ones who can do it instantly are from the Q-Verse.

Hmm . . . that’s interesting. Well, I will be patient until then. Thank you, Creator.

You’re welcome, Richard.

“You can also create Rock Gloves and Rock Shoes. This can enable you to cling to rock ceilings and move along the ground at a faster speed.”

“Toph, I was able to use the rock glove technique to hang in a cave with no problems.”

“That’s good, Richard.”

Then one of the students walks up to Toph. “We are all done, Toph. Everyone had a chance to do it like Richard did.”

“That’s great, Dark One. I felt it from here that you finally succeeded.”

“Yes, it took some great concentration to multitask while lifting the tank in the air.”

“That’s the idea. Well, it’s time to call it day. Be back here at the second mark in the morning. I’ll be ready with another metal bending task.”

We all answer in one voice, “Yes, Toph.” We all bow toward her. She acknowledges us when she nods her up and down slightly.

We all leave the compound together. Once we enter the city, we go our separate ways.

“Richard, we all need a bath before we use the steam rooms.”

“Okay, Brianna.” We push Robert’s carriage into the inn. We walk up to the front desk.

The lady notices us. We are very dusty and dirty. She smiles, “Oh, oh . . . it looks like everyone needs a bath before using the steam rooms.”

We smile at the lady. “Yes, we do, ma’am.”

“Okay, do your own cleaning in the bathroom. There is piping there to bring the water to you. I wouldn’t be surprised if you have to do it two times each. Once you are clean, don the bath robes. The bath robes are already in your room. It is folded up in one of the dresser drawers. I’ll meet you in the hallway. Then, I’ll escort to our steam rooms.”

“Thank you, ma’am.”

We turn around and walk to our room. I insert the key into the door latch mechanism. I open the door and we enter in the room. We see it is all neat and clean. The fairies quickly flutter out from our coat pockets.

“We’ll have our shower here, father.”

“That’s fine, Tiger. Go ahead and get it set up.”

I put their satchel on the chair. They quickly open it and take out the shower setup and place it on top of one of the dressers. Brianna decides to get clean first using the tub. She enters the bathroom and turns on the faucet. Immediately she feels the heat from the hot water. She adjusts the cold water faucet until it is just right for her. She starts using the soap and wash towel to get herself clean. She washes her hair with the shampoo she brought. She sees the tub water a bit dirty. She unplugs the stopper and drains the water out from the tub. She fills up the tub again.

“I will definitely need to use the moisturizer on my body.” She uses the soap and a different wash towel this time. She also washes her hair one more time. She smiles that she is perfectly clean this time. She gets out of the tub and pulls the stopper to drain the water out. She pats herself dry with a fluffy white towel and dries her hair. She then spreads some moisturizing cream onto her body. She puts the towel on her head and creates the turban look. She takes another white towel and drapes it around her body. She sees there are two more large towels left in the bathroom. She finally exits the bathroom.

I see steam coming from the bathroom. “I heard you drain the tub and fill it up again.”

“I had to, Richard. I was really dirty. Don’t be surprised if you have to do it two times. There are two large towels left in the bathroom. Save one for Robert. The soap from the inn has a flower scent.”

“Okay, Brianna.” I take the small container of shampoo from my satchel. Then I enter the bathroom and close the door. I put the drain plug in the tub. I turn on the hot water and cold water and adjust it until it is just right for me. I ease myself in and do my hair first with the shampoo. I see the dirt in the water right away. I then to begin to scrub myself down with the soap and the wash towel. Once I am done the first time, I get out of the tub and pull the drain plug to drain the dirty water out. Once the tub is empty, I fill it up again. I get into the water and do it again. This time, I see very little dirt in the water. Once I am done with my body and hair, I get out to drain the water again. I dry myself with the towel. I step out of the bathroom.

“Now you look much better, my love.”

“Thank you, Bri. Yes, I was really dirty. I think most of the dirt came from the Earth Tunnel.”

“It probably did, Richard. Let’s hope you don’t need to do that technique during the rest of our stay here.”

“I agree, Bri.”

“Please do the laundry, Richard, while I get Robert cleaned up.”

“Yes, Bri.”

I see Brianna has dried her hair the best she can with the two towels. It is still a little damp. She unlatches the basinet from the carriage. She carries the basinet into the bathroom. She also brings in another set of blankets from Robert’s satchel to change the dirty ones in the basinet. She turns on the water to fill up the tub to about three inches. She makes sure the water is the right temperature for Robert. She picks up Robert from the basinet. She carefully puts Robert into the water. Robert gives a big smile when the temperature is just right. He makes little splashes with the water as Brianna cleans up Robert. She uses a small amount of shampoo for Robert’s hair.

At one time, Robert brings up a stream of water and lets it fall back into the water.

“That’s good, Robert. Yes, you can water bend as well.”

Robert gives another big smile.

I put the dirty clothes into an empty dresser drawer. I close the drawer and recite the spell to clean the laundry. When I open it, I see the clothes are perfectly clean. I take them out and place them on the bed neatly. “How are you all doing, my fairies?”

“We are almost done, father. We had to wash ourselves two times as well.”

“That’s good, Tiger.”

By the time the fairies are done, Brianna is finally done in getting Robert cleaned up. She places the last towel on the floor. She takes out Robert and places him on the towel. She then pats him dry all over and his hair as well. She changes the blankets in the basinet. She then picks up Robert and places him in the basinet.

Robert smiles again.

“Yes, you are all clean now, Robert.”

She opens the bathroom door. She carries out Robert and latches the basinet into the carriage. She walks back into the bathroom to pick up the dirty blankets from the basinet. “Here you go, Richard. Robert’s blankets need to be cleaned as well.”

“Okay, Bri.” I take the blankets and put them in the empty drawer. I close the drawer and recite the cleaning spell. When I open it, the blankets are perfectly clean. Brianna takes the blankets and folds them up and puts them into Robert’s satchel. We fold up our clothes and put them into the dresser drawers.

The fairies quickly take apart the shower set up and place the pieces in their satchel.

“Okay, let’s put on the bathrobes. Fairies, fly in once we have them tied. Brianna is carrying Robert into the steam room.”

“Thank you, father, mother, Omega.”

Once the robes are tied. Brianna picks up Robert into her arms. She has a towel around him. All of the fairies quickly fly into my bathrobe. Soon, their heart beats are in tune with mine. I take the room key and the satchel with the valuables with me. We exit the room and enter the hallway. We see the hostess ready to escort us to the steam rooms.

“Ah, now you are much cleaner. Please follow me.”

We follow the hostess to another part of the inn. We go through the doors. We see another building in the complex. We see there are five doors facing us.

“There are another five steam rooms on the other side. They are very popular here.” She opens one of the doors and we walk inside together. “We have lava rocks here. The cold water slowly drips onto the lava rocks to create the steam.” She walks over to the lava rocks table. She opens a small door to turn on the gas flame to heat up the lava rocks. “It doesn’t take long to create the steam here.” She adjusts the water faucet until is slowly dripping onto the lava rocks. Quickly steam is coming from the lava rocks. “I’ll be back in about three-quarters of a mark. You don’t want to be here for a full mark or more. Your skin will be very wrinkled. If that were to happen, you will need a lot of skin cream to bring the moisture back into it. I’ll knock on the door when the time is up. We’ll put fresh towels in the bathroom. Enjoy!!” She exits the steam room and closes the door.

Immediately the fairies quickly fly out from my bath robe. They see several places for them to sit down and enjoy our presence. Brianna and I take off the bathrobes before we sit down together. Robert is between us. The fairies sit on the wooden ledge behind us. Each one is grouped by soul mates and siblings. We get comfortable as we enjoy each other’s presence. Robert closes his eyes as he enjoys the security he feels from us.

Soon, our hair is matted down again. We feel that blissful glow on our skin. We feel our muscles are totally relaxed. Then we hear the knocks on the door. “Knock! Knock!”

“It is time! Get yourself robed. I’ll be out here when you are ready.”

I get up first and put the bathrobe back on. I steady Robert while Brianna puts on her bathrobe. She picks up Robert again. Robert has another big smile on his face.

Brianna smiles, “Did you like that steam?”

Robert gives another smile.

“We loved it too, well let’s get ready for dinner.”

The fairies quickly fly into my bathrobe. I pick up the satchel. Quickly their heart beats are in tune with mine. We exit the steam room together.

“So, how was it? Was it fantastic?”

“It was wonderful, ma’am. We are now fully relaxed and refreshed. Now let’s get dressed to have a dinner. I think we’ll try out that grill when we are ready.”

“That’s great.”

We follow the hostess back to our room. The hostess continues to walk to the main lobby area. I use the key to open the door. I put the satchel onto the bed. Once the door is closed, the fairies fly out from me.

“We’ll have our meal here, while you have yours at the grill.”

“Do you think there are flowers there, mother?”

“They probably do have them, Esmeralda. But, I don’t know if they have any outdoor seating area.”

“We’ll follow you anyway, mother.”

“Okay, that’s fine by me.”

We get ourselves ready to have dinner at the nearby oriental grill. Once we are dressed, Brianna sprays a mild perfume on her wrists and neck. I put a little bit of cologne that Brianna likes on my face. The fairies quickly fly into our coat pockets and get comfortable quickly. Once we leave the room, I set the lock on the door knob panel. Then I close the door. We push Robert’s carriage through the inn and exit out the front entrance. As soon as we get outside, the fairies leave our pockets as butterflies. They follow us as we push the carriage down the sidewalk. We see several oriental grills. We smell the wonderful aromas coming from the grills. Soon, we find the grill that the inn owner owns. We see his name underneath the name of the grill. We are warmly greeted by the hostess.

“Welcome to Dao’s Grill. Where do you like to sit? We do have an open inner court area here.”

“Yes, please take us to your inner court. We would like to have some fresh air while we eat.”

“That’s great, sir. Please follow me.”

We follow the hostess until we exit the door to the inner court yard. It is a beautiful court yard. It is a beautiful landscape of small trees and some statues. There is a pond about ten feet in diameter. It has grass around it. There are little mounds of dirt scattered about the landscape of the garden. Soon, we see our butterflies fluttering into the courtyard. They immediately find the flowers scattered about the garden. All of the people sitting there, smile when they see the butterflies. We are escorted to a table on the perimeter. We push Robert’s carriage between us. The hostess puts a menu at each of our place settings.

A waitress comes up to us asks what we want to drink. “What will you have to drink?”

“I think green tea will do for the both of us.”

“Yes, green tea is fine, Richard.”

“Thank you very much. I will be right back with the green tea.”

We look at the menu some more. “I think we better do chicken and vegetables tonight, Brianna.”

“I agree, Richard. We’ll have to alternate in feeding Robert again.”

The waitress comes back with a tray of hot green tea in a pot and two cups. She places the cups at each table setting. Then she pours the first cup for us. We take a sip from the cups.

“Oh, that is very rich. It is very delicious.”

“Thank you for the compliments. Are you ready to order?” She gets ready to write down the order on a small piece of paper.

“Yes, we are. We would like to have chicken, rice and vegetables for the main dish. The desert will be the fruit of the day.”

“How spicy do you want it?”

“How about a mild spice that is savory?”

“That’s a good choice, sir. I’ll be back with a bowl of wonton soup for both of you. Do you have your own food for the baby?”

“We do.”

“That’s good. I’ll be back with the wonton soup.” The waitress turns around and returns to the kitchen. She comes back with a tray of two bowls of wonton soup. She places the bowls in front of us with two large ceramic spoons in them. She also places a bowl of dried noodles in the center of the table.

The butterflies come closer to us and rest on the plants near us. Brianna and I look within us.

Thank you Creator for your wonderful blessings. We are learning a lot from Toph. Indeed, she is the greatest Earth Bender for her world here. Thank you for this food we are about to eat. Let it restore our strength for tomorrow. Thank you, Creator.

Then we hear from the fairies in our minds. Thank you, Creator. Then our butterflies fly about from flower to flower to get their drink of sweet nectar.

Brianna and I take turns in feeding Robert while we have the wonton soup. We get done with the soup in about fifteen minutes. In about another five minutes, the waitress comes out with our meal on a large tray. We move the bowls to one side of the table. She sets the hot plates in front of us. Immediately, the aroma invades our senses. The taste buds immediately cause our saliva glands to water a bit. Once the plates are set, she refills our green tea cups with the pot. “Enjoy!” She takes the empty wonton bowls and ceramic spoons back to the kitchen. She returns to hear our comments on the food.

We see that all of the pieces are bite size already. There is no need for a fork. Besides, all we have for utensils are chop sticks. We take a piece of meat and put it into our mouths. “Oh, this is very good. Give our compliments to the chef. It is another masterpiece.”

She smiles on hearing our praises, “Thank you, sir. I’ll be sure to tell the chef he did another masterpiece.” She returns back to the kitchen to give our praises to the chef. The chef smiles that he did another masterpiece.

We take our time eating the evening meal for about a half-hour. Brianna gives him a bottle of breast milk to drink while we finish our meal. Once we are done, the waitress appears by the table.

“That will be two silver coins for each table setting.”

“That’s fine, waitress.” I reach into my satchel and open the coin bag within it. I retrieve four silver coins from the bag. I place them on the table.

“Have a wonderful evening. We hope to see you again another day.”

“We hope so, too.”

We see the butterflies have their fill of sweet nectar from the flowers. They leave the courtyard and wait for us as we exit the grill. We get up from the chair. Brianna takes the bottle of breast milk from Robert and wipes it clean. She puts the bottle into Robert’s satchel. We see Robert getting sleepy again.

We push Robert’s carriage out of the grill and walk down the sidewalk. We see the sun setting at this time. We see the clouds change color as the sun sets. Then we see some of the stars coming out to shine brightly in the night sky. The butterflies quickly fly into our coat pockets when we see no one else on the sidewalk. We enter back into the inn where we are staying at. Once we enter our room, the fairies quickly fly out and get ready for bed.

We see Robert is fast asleep by now. We stay quiet for Robert’s sake. We change our clothes and get into our evening night clothes. The fairies quickly remake their beds in the top dresser drawer. We get under the covers for another great night of sleep. We get no unusual dreams during the night. It is all nice and quiet.