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Language:
English
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Published:
2019-10-28
Completed:
2024-01-23
Words:
1,103
Chapters:
3/3
Comments:
22
Kudos:
113
Bookmarks:
19
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1,496

Avatar: The Last Gamer

Summary:

My grandmother used to tell me stories about the old days, a time of peace when the Avatar kept balance between the Water Tribes (The Bronx), Earth Kingdom (Queens), Fire Nation (Manhattan), Air Nomads (Brooklyn), and Staten Islanders. But that all changed when the Manhattan gentrified Brooklyn. Only the Avatar mastered all five boroughs. Only he could stop the ruthless firebenders, but when the world needed him most, he vanished. A hundred years have passed and the Fire Nation is nearing victory in the War.
Some people believe that the Avatar was never reborn into the Air Nomads, and that the cycle is broken. But I haven't lost hope. I still believe that somehow, the Avatar will return to save New York.

Chapter 1

Chapter Text

It’s a beautiful winter afternoon in magical New York City. The Statue of Avatar Liberty is covered in a light dusting of fresh snow. Katara and Sokka emerge from a subway downtown. Katara is wearing a sky blue over-sized hoodie underneath a tan trench coat. Her hair is in space-buns and she has shimmering blue eyeshadow on. Sokka wearing a counterfeit Off-White Supreme Louis Luitton sweatshirt and Timbs. He turns to Katara, “A pigeon-rat deadass flew into my room last night”
“Deadass?” Katara inquires
“Well it is now, its leg broke so I had to whack the shit out of it with a broom to put it out of its misery”
“What!?!” Katara asks, surprised by her brother’s cruel -
Suddenly they see a large piece of ice floating over the East River… or is it an iceberg? Sokka throws a boomerang at it, cracking the mass open. It covers all of New York City in a divine light for a split second, before a 12-year-old boy is revealed to be inside.
Miles away, in studio apartment in Bushwick, Zuko looks out over the city, spotting the glorious light. “Do you know what this means, Uncle?!”
Iroh cough on his tea, "Zuko, calm down, it was just New Year’s fireworks set off mad early."
"Uncle, I am deadass going to Manhattan right now; you can’t stop me.”
Sokka and Katara managed to fish the boy out of the water before he could grow a third arm from the pollution. It must have already hit him hard because he was super bald. His strange orange robes were soaked, but he was able to dry himself off with a whirl of wind. Katara was flustered, “Are you… an airbender?”
He answered, “word.”

Chapter 2

Chapter Text

Zuko stood in a crowded J train cart, pressed up against a door.
“Uncle I don’t understand why we couldn’t take an uber, this is urgent business.”
“Zuko relax. I’m sure it was all nothing. And when you’re done buggin’ out we can sit down and have some jasmine milk boba tea.”
“I don’t need tea, uncle! I need to find the Avatar!” Zuko’s outburst was so loud that people started to stare. Luckily, it was their stop.

Zuko emerged from Fulton street station wearing khaki pants with a chain and Gucci sweater that’s just a red sweater. There’s no label on it. You just have to know that it’s Gucci.
Directly behind him was his dear uncle Iroh, rocking some classic old man sneakers and a belt that holds his cell phone.
Upon exiting Fulton, it wasn’t long before Zuko spotted a suspiciously dressed kid floating in the air. The Avatar! No wait… False alarm, just a street performer. He wasn’t sure where to start his search so his uncle just dragged him into the nearest bubble tea shop.
And just by fate, inside that boba shop were two water tribe kids and a twelve year old boy with strange tattoos and bald head. This had to be him! Zuko, the dishonored heir to Manhattan, was now face to face with the Avatar, heir to New York.

“I just wish we lived in a part of the Bronx that had access to the subway!” the girl said.
“Katara, would you deadass choose this kid over your tribe, your own family?” her brother replied.
“Hey.” Zuko interrupted them. And like true New Yorkers, they completely ignored him. ”Hey, my dad’s the fucking mayor. I need that kid, hand him over.”

“Bet. You wanna catch these hands?” Sokka gets up.

He pulls out a boomerang, to which Zuko replies, “You can’t just pull out a weapon in a public place like this. The hell is wrong with you? I’m gonna call the police. I’m gonna call my lawyers. They’re going to financially destroy you.”

Aang approaches Zuko with caution, asking, “If I go with you, will you leave them alone?”
Uncle Iroh finally receives the tea he ordered and asks Zuko what he missed.

Zuko, still lacking an inside voice, answers, “UNCLE, GET AN UBER TO THE UPPER EAST SIDE, I’M DEADASS GOING HOME.”

Chapter 3: Chapter 3

Summary:

lunch break

Chapter Text

“Ock, can I get a baconeggandcheese… salt, pepper, hot sauce… actually can I get turkey bacon?” Iroh asks the deli clerk.
“Only regular bacon boss”
Zuko approaches the counter, his head barely peering over to the grill, “I know you have turkey bacon! I can see it right there!”
“Zuko relax. Regular bacon is fine. This lunch break will fuel us for the long trip all the way to 86th st.”
“This is taking forever! I feel like we’ve been waiting in this bodega for like four or even five years. This whole situation is already ridiculous enough as it is! It feels like some stupid bit somebody started in college and then picked back up again because they were unemployed as the result of a perpetual pandemic and awful economy.”
“What”
“And the Avatar is taking too long to pick a drink!”
“Patience Zuko. I’ll go check on him”
Stepping through the tight labyrinth of shelves in this 100 sq foot corner store, Iroh finds Aang at the Arizona cooler.

The young boy speaks, “There’s so many more flavors than there used to be… So much has changed since I got stuck in that ice. I was just gonna get an Arnold Palmer but now… I’m paralyzed by the options.”
“Ah I’m sure you know that among all the treats one can find in a local deli, all the past avatars have chosen an Arnold Palmer as their go-to. Personally, I usually prefer a less sweet tea, but they mixed up my order at the boba shop so now my whole day is thrown off. I came to this store because it’s the only one where I know I can always get an Arnold Palmer Mucho Mango.”
“Mango AND Lemonade AND Iced Tea? Wow you really can have it all!”
“Oh and I will!” Zuko announces from the other side of the store. “Once I turn you, the Avatar, over to my father, Mayor Ozai, my honor will be restored and I-”
The clerk cuts him off, “Did you say your ass is Zuko, the banished prince? For real?”
“Listen. I’m not gonna be banished for long, I-”
“That’s fucking tough little bro, everybody haaaates you. Haha. Can I get a photo with you for the wall?”
Zuko sighs, “yeah.”
After taking a selfie at the worst possible angle with the deli guy, Zuko turns to leave, “Hey uncle, where is the Avatar?”
“Yeah nah I uhh haven’t seen him in a minute. I think he left with his friends.”