Episode 13: The Enlightened

Between the cold seas between the Northern Water Tribe and the Northern Air Temple lies the sacred and isolated island of Kimmirut. The people of Kimmirut have lived on the island for generations, surviving in the tundra with the Salamanta, a rare species of spiritual, amphibian beasts who are believed to have a deep connection with the spirits. For generations, the people have served as guardians to these unique species, facing off poachers from the Earth Kingdom, hunters from the Fire Nation, and even renegade Air Nomads who seek to take the Salamanta for themselves. Their entire culture revolves around the Salamanta; from a young age, children are raised as warriors, healers, and caretakers, all with the intent to preserve and protect the Salamantas of Kimiruit. 
Legends say that one day, a young Kimirut child would bond with a Salamanta that would be born from a glowing egg. "The Chosen Ones" would signify a cultural shift in the Kimmirut; their arrival would signal the arrival of a spiritual threat, which would mean the people of Kimmirut must begin to spread around the world to face it, lead by "The Enlightened."
On a cold, misty morning, Kitchi, a young Kimirut boy, is woken up by his friend, Pak. Both boys are late for their daily chores. Pak is joined by his freshly hatched Salamanta, Muki, who observes Kit's Salamanta egg that hasn't hatched. After he tends to his egg, Kit joins the pack in the tundras to clean the Salamanta's manure, which is used as fertilizer. There, they are met by Uncle Juk and other children who are singing a song the Kimmirut sing while scooping manure called "The Heart". Children make fun of Pak as he and Muki are covered in manure when they fall into the pile. Pak rushes to the oceanside to wash Muki off.
At the manure site, Kit senses his egg calling to him from home. Kit heads to the oceanside to find Aunti Amkah, a healer and warrior elder of the tribe. She is teaching other children how to heal as they sing another song, "The Wound" Pak meets him there, and the Amkah tells Kit to go home to take care of the egg.
The boys rush to Kit's house to see the egg glowing and shaking. Kit tries to comfort it, but it begins to rumble from the inside and glow vigorously. They decide to return to Amkah to ask for guidance, who is now teaching a martial arts class in the town square. When she sees the egg, she takes it from Kit and tells him to meet her at "The Fountain" after class. She goes off to assess the situation with the elders. 
Kit and Pak are jeered by the other children to spar because they are late to class. The children sing another song, "The Fist." Though Pak puts up a fight, Kit ultimately wins and uses his victory to escape the crowd and rush to The Fountain. 
The Fountain is a serene waterfall on the west part of the island. On top of the waterfall, the Salamanta are gathered, humming a song. The Elder Makki stands on an altar under the Waterfall with the egg, surrounded by the other Kimirut Elders, including Amkah. The Elders explain to Kit that he is likely the prophesied child with the glowing egg. Makki tells him that he will have a sacred duty to lead his people to combat the spiritual threat the legend foresaw. As he is told about the legend, the people of Kimmirut join the Elders in the Fountain, and they all bow to Kitchi, calling him "The Enlightened." As the people rejoice, Amkah declares that they will have a festival that evening, which springs the people into confusion as they are unprepared. Amkah and Kit use this opportunity to get away from the crowd and go to his house.
Amkah tells Kit about how their people have protected the Salamanta for generations, as the world covets them for different purposes. She explains that the Salamanta have a deep connection to the spirits, and some say they can detect their presence. Kit will have to understand his new partner and raise it well when it hatches, and the two would lead their people and the other Salamanta to extinguish the spiritual thread in the world. 
That evening, the village, celebrates the coming of The Enlightened with a festival that Auntie Amkah sprung on the Elders. Kit's parents meet him and express how proud they are, teaching him another song and dance that is meant for a Guardian to call forth their Salamanta, "The Soul." 
However, as the Kimmirut rejoices, six figures descend from the sky. When they land, they use a gust of wind to push everyone away from the town square. Everyone and everything gets thrown around the island, including Kit, who gets separated from his egg. Kit notices that the visitors are Air Nomads, and they begin to surround the island with violent winds to prevent escape. 
As this occurs, Earthbenders begin to surface at the shores, led by General Fang of Ba Seng Se. They begin to cause earthquakes around the island, which kill many people, including a friend of Kit's. Some people escape on their Salamanta, only to be forced by the strong wind barrier around the island to come crashing down. The entire island is leveled as a sinkhole appears in the middle. 
Kit finds Auntie Amkah in the rubble, protecting his egg. She is impaled by debris and she heals herself. She instructs Kit to get away using the canoes on the other side of the island, on a shore called "Salamanta's Bite." 
Kit is forced to leave Amkah and runs into Pak. They witness people and Salamanta being violently murdered by the Earthbenders. General Fang descends to the bottom of the crater in the middle of the island and uses an ominous power to bring a dormant volcano to the surface. He uses Lavabending to force it to erupt, killing more Salamanta and Kimmirut, before he joins his men in the slaughter. 
An Earthbender engages Pak, and Kit is forced to help him. The Earthbender signals for General Fang to come in their direction, forcing the boys to run to safety. They barely manage to escape before they are forced into a battle by General Fang, who declares that he is only there for the egg. Muki divebombs from the air to attack Fang, and he impales the young Salamanta, who dies in Pak's arms. Pak lunges at Fang but is stopped by Amkah, who tells the boys to run while she faces Fang. 
Before they can escape, Fang uses Earthbending to erect pillars and a giant wall to separate them from the Serpent's Bite. The three are forced to go into combat. Pak holds Fang in place and blasts him with a powerful stream of water. Kit appears from the stream suddenly and can hit Fang directly in the face, sending him flying. Fang conjures an armor of earth around him, but Amkah launches icicles from the sky to imprison him. Fang destroys the ice prison with his earth armor and sends everyone flying. He sinks Amkah to the ground, where she is trapped, before using Lavabending to melt the pillars and wall he erected into Lava, which begins to consume the shore. Amkah uses her mouth to spit icicles at Fang, who is slashed directly on his left cheek. As he bleeds, he hurls lava toward the trapped Amkah, who yells for the boys to run. Amkah dies in battle but is able to weaken the general. The boys use Waterbending to ice skate to safety. 
When they arrive at the Canoes, they notice the quakes have stopped. The entire island has been ravaged by lava. Suddenly, General Fang emerges and summons the Snakeparrot spirit from its Chaos Shard. The Snakeparrot possesses him and he takes the form of a stone stake with wings made of lava. He begins to strike the boys with intense strikes that boil the seawater. They try to escape but are almost caught in the boiling water. Pak realizes that he has to stay behind to face the Snakeparrot General Fang while Kit escapes. He pushes Kit's canoe away and erects a giant ice wall to get him out of Snakeparrot Fang's sight. Kit escapes to safety and witnesses Pak die behind the ice wall. 
Exhausted, he drifts aimlessly into the ocean in the dark of night. When he comes to, he washes up on the shores of the Northern Air Temple. He erects memorial graves on the beach for his people and the Salmanta as he breaks down from the weight of his loss. Suddenly, his egg glows intensely and pulses a blue light into the sky. A young Salamanta emerges from the light, and Kit calls him "Kohshu." The two journey into the new land.