Author's notes: Greetings! And welcome to the first entry of what will become a long story to span out over the upcoming months.

Before we begin, I must clarify that the events of this story start from episode 15 of ATLA's second book (Earth), and the 'Spawn' characters follow the storyline from the animated series aired on HBO from 1997 to 1999, instead of the comics, as they have small but significant differences between each other. It's labeled under the 'comics' category because tags for the animated series are not available in the 'cartoons' section, for some reason.

But regardless, thank you so much for reading! I hope you enjoy this as much as I enjoyed writing it! Feel free to let me know what you think of the result, don't be shy! Cheers!

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters mentioned here.

This story was made only with entertaining purposes and is not intended to be taken seriously in any social, political or religious context under any circumstances.

"Avatar" and its characters belong to "Nickelodeon".

"Spawn" and its characters belong to "Image Comics"/Todd McFarlane.

Book Two: Earth

Fateful (K)nights

I

The Night of the Awakening

"It's complicated. I have to go…"

And before she could say anything, Zuko ran away, keeping his back turned on her as he faded in the depths of the streets.

Jin let out a heavy sigh, dropping her gaze to the ground while she stood frozen, thinking…

'What did I do wrong?'

She made her move too soon? Did she overstep her boundaries? Perhaps… but if that was the case, he wouldn't have kissed her back, right?

'Then what was it? I don't understand…' she wondered as she revived the whole soirée in her mind, pondering about the moment where everything seemingly went wrong…

'Was it something I said? Maybe I just-'

Suddenly, Jin's train of thought was severed when a powerful gust of wind flowed across the plaza, one strong enough to frizz her hair and extinguish the lampposts around the firelight fountain, as well as the lanterns floating within it.

After that, the air-current vanished, leaving the square submerged under nigh-absolute darkness, barely countered by the dim glow of the moon hanging over the clouded, starless nightsky.

"Ugh, great." Jin released another deep breath while she palpated her body with her palms, wiping dust off her clothes. Then she spun on her heel, and walked crestfallen in the opposite direction.

Moonlight only made act of presence upon the city, outlining the buildings and lighting the road ahead. The rest however, was occupied by obsidian, misshapen shadows obscuring the alleys.

Ba Sing Se was a jovial, safe and welcoming place during the day, but that all changed when the sun hid behind the mountains. Aside from her footsteps, the square remained completely silent, not even a soft breeze to keep her company.

Jin hugged herself, hastening her pace, glancing at her surroundings with a mix of fear and expectation. Fortunately the way home wasn't long, but being alone inside a dark place with no other soul in sight didn't help to soothe her nerves.

"Well, well, well…"

She stopped dead on her track, her eyes widened as plates when a tall, bald man emerged from the corner before her, blocking her path.

"What is a girl like you doing in a place like this?" the man whispered in a husky voice, walking closer with a wide smile on his scarred face.

"I-I don't have any money! P-please-" Jin stammered, taking a trembling step back.

"Oh, but we don't want your money, sweetheart…"

'We!?'

Upon hearing that sentence, she immediately looked over her shoulder. There was another man standing behind her. This one wore a gray robe and had a quite-lengthy braided beard.

"Yeah, we mean no harm," the newcomer said. "We just wanna' help you. It's not safe for a lady like you to be out in the streets at this hour, all alone…"

Jin's breathing became erratic, she knew perfectly well what they wanted, but she had no means of defending herself. Zuko was long gone by now and there were no Dai Li in the vicinity.

"We can do this the easy way, or the hard way," the bald man in front of her spoke, bringing to sight a curved knife. "You decide, lady."

"N-no… Please…"

Both men continued growing closer. Jin gulped as she anxiously scanned the environment again, searching for somebody who could help her, anything that could get her out of this crossroads in which all ways led to the worst fate a person can suffer.

However, she was truly alone, at the verge of tears, with only the moon as her witness…

Or so they thought…

A faint, metallic hiss echoed in the bottom of a nearby alley, earning the thugs' attention.

"Scream or move and I'll cut you," the bald man said to Jin, pointing his knife at her. "Sao, go check it out."

The robed male nodded, pulling out a dagger of his own from within his loose sleeve, then parted to investigate.

"Hey!" he yelled as he stepped before the alley filled with pitch-black obscurity. "Whoever's in there, you better come out quickly or we'll make you regret it!"

There was no answer, no movement, nothing but an unbearable quietness seizing the atmosphere.

"Are you deaf!?" the robed male shouted once more, walking inside the dark corridor. "Come out or I'll-Argh!"

Out of the sudden, the man was cut off when a long set of iron chains emerged from the alley, and rapidly entangled themselves around his ankles, knocking him over, dragging him into the darkness.

"W-wait! What are you-No! Please no-!"

Questions quickly became pleas, pleas became long, piercing screams of pain, followed by loud, crunching sounds reverberating across the square for what seemed to be an eternity.

But soon, the tortuous cries became muffled groans, then soft gargles, which shortly later drowned into unintelligible hums.

And silence reigned once more.

"Sao!?" the bald man called, yet the noiselessness endured.

The wind began to blow gently on the streets…

"Sao!? Are you in there!? What happe-"

Something flied off from the alley. A hazy, shadowy mass traveling through the air, landing in front of the bald man with a sonorous, wet 'thud'.

"What the-! … S-S-Sao-o?"

Jin gasped loudly, covering her mouth with her hands, her eyes snapping open at the nightmarish image of an amorphous, bloodied pulp before her feet. Flesh and bones tightly compressed into a rock-sized mush, arms and legs were twisted around a limbless torso like a wringed piece of cloth, crowned by an incomplete head above the meat-pile. The skull was visible in some parts, missing the jaw, and the eyeballs hung loosely from their sockets.

"Let her go…"

A low, raspy whisper was heard in the chilling breeze.

A tremor ran down Jin's spine, cold-sweat formed on her forehead while she wandered with her gaze across the buildings, becoming more concerned for whoever, or whatever spoke in such guttural, inhuman voice, rather than the thug beside her.

That was until…

"By the spirits…"

Two green eyes burned brightly at the bottom of the alley, looming tall over them, surpassing their height, by the very least, an additional meter.

On that moment, the bald man stepped behind Jin, wrapping his free arm around her neck in a chokehold, keeping his knife near her face.

"S-stay back! Or I will kill her!" he yelled between chattering teeth at the thing amidst the obscurity.

No response came from the dark.

Instinctively, Jin's hands clamped on her captor's forearm in hopes of undoing his grip. She squirmed, writhed, dug her nails into the skin within her reach, but the suffocating clutch surrounding her throat remained immovable.

She screamed to the top of her lungs. However, only a hoarse whisper left her lips. She couldn't breathe, her strength was fading and tunnel-vision started seizing her sight.

'Please… Help me…'

Suddenly, the living chains appeared again, waving in the air like a flying serpent, swiftly enveloping the bald man's arm.

A deafening crunch thundered throughout the streets, alongside a sharp, painful cry when the chains tightened in a constricting fashion, breaking the thug's limb, tearing it off with frightening ease.

Jin fell on her knees, suffering a coughing fit while she rubbed her throat, but she was free…

Once her breathing stabilized, she glanced to her side, facing the bald man holding the fleshy stump that used to be his right arm, lying in a puddle of his own blood as he wailed and whimpered.

It was then, that something on her peripheral vision caught her attention.

A fast blur, which resulted to be the chains coming back, surrounding themselves around the thug's neck and effortlessly lifted him in the air like a puppet.

He cried, kicked and begged as he was raised from the ground, fruitlessly since he couldn't avoid being taken away. The chains led him to the fountain, and forcefully sank his head below the water.

Petrified, Jin watched the bald man do everything he could to undo his shackles, shaking spasmodically, yet the chains kept him in place.

The fountain continued bubbling as if it was boiling.

But eventually, the gurgling sounds in the water ceased while it turned red, and the thug's convulsions finished with one last shudder.

Only after that, the living chains released the warm corpse, returning to the dark alley they spawned from.

Anew, an eerie calm settled upon the streets.

Unable to spot further threats, Jin desperately glanced at the square, searching for whatever terminated those criminals. At first she thought herself alone, for there were no other signs of life, just an omnipresent blackness tainting the plaza.

But then she found it…

Her heart began racing beneath her chest.

'What… is… that?'

Was the only thought she could articulate when she saw the towering pair of glowing eyes slowly approaching towards her.

Unexpectedly, all her energies vanished.

Jin tried to scream, but her throat went dry, and her vision attenuated into darkness.

Every fiber of her being yelled 'move!'. However, her limbs weren't responding accordingly, as if her head and her body were two completely different entities, oblivious to each other.

Then her arms started trembling, making her fall to the ground while her consciousness abandoned her.

"Sometimes I just can't believe them," Sokka said as he walked down the street alongside Toph. "I mean, I put a lot of time and effort in my posters, too much for them to just dismiss it. Aang and Katara don't realize we should not draw attention, they never stop to think about those things, I do!"

"Ugh, yes," Toph replied, rolling her eyes. "You're totally the victim here, snoozles. Now, if you're done complaining, we still have a lot of posters to hand out before sundown. Appa is missing somewhere and the best you can think of is-… Wait…"

Sokka stopped his advance, spinning on his heel, finding Toph kneeling upon the ground, frowning lightly and pressing her palm against the land.

"What is it?" he asked.

"There's a lot of people gathered nearby," she answered. "Like a crowd or something."

"Great! We can ask for Appa there! Where?"

"Close, just around the corner."

Sokka spun again while Toph rose from the soil, then both started sprinting forward, turning right in the next street. However, as soon as they entered the alley, a plethora of men, women and children obstructed the path ahead. A thousand voices, demands and profanities echoing at unison.

Beyond the seemingly-displeased mob, Sokka spotted a group of Dai Li blocking the road leading to the public square.

"Huh, that's weird." he mumbled, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, the townsfolk sounds angry." Toph said.

"The Dai Li blocked the street, not sure why though… Hmm… Let's ask that merchant."

After that, Sokka and Toph approached to an old man with a grey beard wearing yellow, loose garments, standing beside a wood, vending cart of two wheels filled by several cabbages.

"Excuse me, mister," he spoke, tapping the merchant's shoulder, who turned. "Do you know why the street is closed?"

"Oh, hello there! Don't you know what happened in the square last night?"

Sokka and Toph shook their heads, not saying a word.

"Well, it was something… terrible, to be honest…" the man said while he brushed his beard. "I arrived to the fountain first hour in the morning. By the time I got here, the Dai Li were already patrolling the place. They kicked me out, but I was able to get a small glimpse. Not too much, just enough."

"A glimpse of what?"

"Two dead bodies were found in the square. One was in the fountain with his head under the water, missing an arm."

"Oh, that's uh…" Sokka shivered and grimaced. "That's an awful way to leave this world."

"Believe it or not, that was the lucky one. The other was… something nobody should ever see… The corpse was smashed together, beaten to a pulp. Its arms and legs were twisted around the torso like a pretzel, there was blood everywhere! In all my travels, I've never seen something like that before."

"That's horrible…" Toph whispered. "What kind of person would do something like that?"

"That doesn't sound like a person," Sokka added. "Maybe an animal but, if you ask me-"

"I didn't."

"This has 'spirit shenanigans' written all over its face."

"Uh, spirits usually don't meddle with people. Especially not in such a barbaric way."

"It doesn't matter!" Sokka threw his arms to the air. "Whoever, or whatever committed those murders is still out there. We should hurry to get out of its way so, you know, we don't end up the same way!"

"Wow, so brave, 'Captain Boomerang'." Toph scoffed, crossing her arms.

"But that's a wise choice, actually," the merchant intervened. "Something strange is happening on Ba Sing Se, I can tell. And I'm afraid we all will be caught in the middle of something far greater than ourselves…"

Sokka's eyes snapped open at the sentence, his skin grew visibly paler as his body froze out of sheer dread. Toph simply gulped, maintaining silence in a way that was way too uncommon for her.

"But enough of that. Now, how about some cabbages to brighten your mood!?" the merchant chanted with a wide smile, holding a cabbage between his palms.

"Um, maybe another time, thanks…" Sokka replied a bit awkwardly. The man gave a displeased huff and spun, facing his vending cart. "Let's go back, Aang needs to hear about this."

Toph nodded, and the two of them quickly returned from the way they came, exiting the blocked alley, fading in the distance.

It was a quiet day in the 'Pao family' tea house.

The last customer had just left. Zuko picked up a couple of dishes on the table, placed them in a tray, and dragged his feet towards the counter.

"This is strange," Iroh said while he arranged some spice jars in the cabinet. "Usually we get more customers at this time of the day."

"Good," Zuko replied, walking past him. "That way we'll have less busybodies sniffing around."

Iroh didn't answer, he simply let out a deep sigh, watching as his nephew scrubbed a table with needless roughness.

But then, a sonorous creak echoed, and the front door slowly swung open.

Zuko raised his sight, huffing, mentally cursing at the idea of dealing with another annoying customer while he still was figuring himself out.

However, a freezing shiver traveled across his spine when he laid eyes on the newcomer who, much for his utter dismay, resulted to be that girl from last night, 'Jin', stepping into the shop.

Zuko grimaced and quickly lowered his head, hoping she wouldn't recognize him.

Surprisingly enough, there was no greeting or salute gesture. They didn't even cross gazes as Jin walked to the corner table, sat down, then hugged herself while she remained crestfallen.

Unconsciously, Zuko stopped cleaning, fixating his gaze on her.

He wouldn't say, by any means, that he knew that girl, but he could tell there was a something wrong with her. Based on the attitude she displayed during their date, and her sudden change from being bubbly to… well, gloomy, in just the span of a single night.

Zuko looked above his shoulder, spotting his uncle Iroh at the back of the shop, flashing a wide smile while giving him a thumbs-up.

He sighed heavily, rolling his eyes. Both of them knew what he had to do, she deserved an explanation, at least.

Thus, Zuko inhaled deeply, straightened his posture, and gathered enough nerve to approach Jin's table. Once there, he audibly cleared his throat, making his presence known.

However, that caused Jin to jump slightly in her seat as she released a small gasp.

"Sorry," Zuko hastily said. "I didn't mean to startle you."

"Oh, h-hi Lee," she replied, panting, placing her palm on her bosom. "I-It's alright, don't worry about it…"

"So, um… Would you… like some tea?"

"Y-yeah! S-same as always, please."

"Right, um… yes. Uncle! I need-"

As soon as Zuko turned, Iroh was already standing beside him, holding a tray with a teapot and a cup filled by steaming tea.

"It's good to see you again, Jin," he said while he cautiously handed her the mug. "Here you go."

"T-Thanks…" Jin grabbed the cup with her trembling hands, taking it to her lips, spilling a little in the process.

"I'll be on the back if you need something else, excuse me."

Following the sentence, Iroh bowed slightly, spun on his heel and walked towards the counter, leaving the scene.

After that, a long, unpleasant quietness seized the atmosphere as Zuko nervously scratched the back of his head while Jin kept her gaze down on her teacup. Not a sound echoed in the air for what could only be described like a fleeting eternity.

"I'm sorry," Zuko unexpectedly spoke. "For running away. I was a little… confused."

"Don't apologize," Jin answered, glancing upwards. "It was my fault for being too straightforward. I should've respected your space… I still enjoyed our date, though."

And she fell dead-silent again with her sight lingering on the table, completely lost.

Zuko arched an eyebrow, taking notice of the way her hands shivered around her mug.

"Is everything alright?" he asked, sitting down on the chair opposite to her. "You seem nervous."

Before replying, Jin looked at their surroundings in a suspicious manner.

"If I tell you a secret, you promise to keep it?"

Zuko nodded, staying quiet.

"Something strange happened right after you left," Jin said. "It was dark, the wind just blew out all the lights in the fountain. When I decided to go home, two men holding knifes ambushed me… and they…"

"Did they do something to you? Are you hurt?"

"I'm fine. They tried to hurt me but… there was… something, in the shadows…"

Zuko frowned, tilting his head to the side.

"Chains… Long, living chains came out from the shadows and… k-killed those men… Teared his arm off and drowned him in the fountain! And they dragged the other into the alley… Then the chains just smashed his whole body together like clay… I-I could see his bones, his insides… There was so much blood… I… I… I'm sorry, it's too horrible!"

Jin's voice cracked and she broke into sobs, burying her face between her palms.

"Hey, its alright," Zuko said softly as he gently took her wrists, making her lower her hands to reveal her crystalline eyes. "I'm sorry you had to go through such a thing."

"I-It's okay…" Jin replied, wiping away some tears from her cheeks. "The living chains actually saved my life… But, what they did to those men…"

"Listen, you don't have to keep talking about this if you don't want to but, do you remember something else about the… 'living chains'?"

"There is one thing… Before I passed out in the street, I remember seeing a couple of green eyes shining in the dark, approaching to me. When I woke up, I was in my room, and the Dai Li were at my house talking to my mother. I came here for a cup of tea, hoping it would help to calm my nerves, but I don't think it's working, heh…"

"You should go home," Zuko rose from his chair. "You'll be safer there."

"Maybe you're right…" Jin stood up as well, and reached down for one of her pockets.

"Don't, it's on the house."

"Thank you, for the tea, and for listening."

Zuko gave her another light nod, forcing a faint smile. But suddenly, Jin threw herself against him, wrapping her arms around his torso in a tight embrace until she pulled out a few seconds later. Then she waved him goodbye, approached to the door, and left the shop.

Meanwhile, Zuko's smirk immediately became a scowl as he spun on his heel, tore off his apron and dropped it to the ground.

"Zuko, what happened?" Iroh asked, emerging from behind the counter.

"I don't know," he answered bluntly, stomping towards the back of the store. "But I'm going to find out."

There was that laugh again, mocking him… Kicking him whenever he was down…

"Congratulations, 'Spawnie'! You just did it again! And here I thought you were losing your touch…"

Al quickly spun, encountering the fat, dwarfed silhouette from that damned clown standing in the entrance of the alley, casting a deformed shadow across the soil.

"You!"

He yelled as he lunged towards the newcomer, grabbing him by the collar of his blue jacket.

"What the fuck did you do!? Where are we!?" Al shouted while he lifted him from the ground, pinning him against the wall.

"Me? That's the beauty of it, Spawnie…" the clown replied between chuckles. "I didn't do anything…"

"What are you talking about?"

"Did your mommy never tell you not to talk to strangers in the street? Maybe next time, you and your hobo compadre will think twice before messing around with dark magic."

"He… He knows? How!?"

"I already told you, Spawn… There's nowhere you can hide. If you go take a shit, be sure the boss will know if you washed your hands and wiped your butt-crack clean… You see now? He still owns you…"

"Take us back! Get me out of here!"

In a fit of anger, Al punched the wall near the clown's head, effortlessly cracking it as the thunder from the impact reverberated throughout the wind.

"Not yet, crispy, you still have a job to do here. If you really wanna' go back to your dear, precious Wanda, I suggest you to start moving your worthless ass, unless you're in the mood of waiting a few centuries to see her again."

Al growled with pure rage, but he eventually released the clown.

"I don't understand, why the long face? I thought you wanted to be away from everything. Well, guess what? The boss, being as cool as he is, made your little wet, sociopathic dream come true, and sent you thousands of years in the past, away from the mafia, Jason Wynn and those nasty allies you like to jerk off on!"

The clown's raspy voice was bursting into hysterical shouts of laughter that could shatter glass cups.

Al swiftly turned around, ready to silence him by any means necessary.

Much for his surprise, however, he had vanished from the scene alongside his devilish giggles, leaving only an absolute quietness filling the streets under the moonlight.

Alone in a strange land, disoriented and outplayed, the Spawn continued walking into the shadows lurking at the depths of those unfamiliar alleys.