Kai

"air"

- The person who stole that stuff was the old me. Once I got airbending, I changed. I don't know how to explain it, but I feel like airbending chose me for a reason, like I'm a new person.

Kai is an orphan who became an airbender after the Harmonic Convergence of 171 AG. He is a mischievous thief who was eventually caught by the Dai Li in Ba Sing Se for using airbending, but was later liberated from their control and went with Tenzin and the other new airbenders to train his skills and learn Air Nomad culture at the Northern Air Temple.

Joining Team Avatar


Kai grew up an orphan. When he was finally adopted by a nice family in 170 AG, he took advantage of their kindness by stealing their life savings and spent six months on the run from Earth Kingdom authorities. Following Harmonic Convergence, he soon discovered he possessed airbending. Soon after, he encountered Team Avatar, who was searching for airbenders to rebuild the Air Nation. He told them a false story on how his parents were killed by outlaws who were pursuing them, earning their sympathy and quickly being accepted in their company. Just as he boarded their airship, ready to depart, a sheriff and his deputies arrived, whom he falsely claimed to be outlaws. After Avatar Korra bested them, the sheriff revealed Kai's true identity as a thief. The boy attempted to run off with his loot, but was caught by Mako. The sheriff quickly took custody of the young lad, intending to send him to prison. However, in exchange for returning the life savings to Kai's family, Korra convinced the sheriff to allow Kai to turn over a new leaf with Team Avatar. Though the compromise was accepted, Mako warned Kai that he would be watching him, stating he knew the kind of person Kai was, due to having a similar past. Promising to change, the young boy turned to board the ship, where he gladly accepted Jinora's offer to teach him more about airbending, just before she blushed.

Ba Sing Se


While en route to Ba Sing Se, Kai attended an airbending lesson under Jinora's tutelage, during which he swiftly took down Bumi with one air swipe. He stole the retired commander's wallet during the skirmish, engaging in a game of chase after Bumi found out.

Upon arriving in Ba Sing Se, Kai's kleptomania got the better of him and he slipped away to use his airbending to pickpocket the wealthy. When the team noticed his absence, Kai was found by Mako and Bolin while he robbed a rich Ba Sing Se citizen. He ran away from them, though as he boarded the Ba Sing Se Monorail, he was grabbed by the collar by Mako. However, he used his airbending to free himself and managed to exit the cart just in time before it left for the Lower Ring, leaving the brothers on it without their wallets.

That night, he used his loot to settle down in a luxury resort, where has was addressed as "Master Fong". The following day, he resumed his scam to rob more citizens, though by nightfall, he was cornered by two Dai Li agents in a small alley. Although he tried to make a run for it, he was captured by their rock gloves and subsequently thrown in prison with other airbenders, where he was notified that he had been conscripted in Earth Queen Hou-Ting's first airbending regiment.

Later, Kai was pitted against the other airbenders during a training session, and was bullied by his Dai Li overseer for holding back against and apologizing to his sparring partner, Yung. When the session turned to defense against earth projectiles, Kai proved more adept than the others, prompting the overseer to attack him more furiously. Kai retaliated with an airblast, which his opponent evaded and punished the boy for his insolence by throwing him in a cell known as "The Hole". Shortly afterward, Jinora's projected spirit appeared before him, having focused on his energies to find his location so she and Team Avatar could rescue him and the others.



Later that night, Mako, Bolin, and Jinora located and freed Kai from his prison cell. Jinora first greeted him with a kiss on the cheek, causing Kai to blush. He then faced disapproving glares from Mako and Bolin, prompting him to apologize for what he had done. Bolin quickly forgave him with a hug, though Mako complained about the loss of his money. As the foursome attempted to leave, they were confronted by a trio of Dai Li agents, among them the overseer, who declared that Kai's desertion would be punishable by death. Though Bolin was able to down two Dai Li agents, the overseer grabbed Jinora, though Kai saved her and defeated the overseer using airbending. They then escaped the Earth Queen's temple, before Bolin catapulted them onto Oogi. Once they had left Ba Sing Se, Kai joined the other airbenders in following Tenzin to the Northern Air Temple.

Northern Air Temple
After arriving at the Northern Air Temple, Kai dozed off during Tenzin's lecture about Monk Tang Xu, though woke up and laughed as Bumi mocked Tenzin's lesson. He later watched in amazement as Tenzin performed several tricks on Oogi and asked when they could fly around as such on their own bison, but was disappointed to learn many years of training were required. He also asked if they could ride a passing wild herd, but got the same answer. When the airbenders from Air Temple Island arrived, Kai joined the others in going over to greet them.



Later, Kai and Jinora watched the wild herd of bison fly by. Kai was fascinated by the animals, calling them "bisons". Tenzin attempted to correct Kai's grammar, but Kai continued to refer to multiple animals as "bisons". Kai suggested going down to ride the bison, convincing Jinora by explaining that no one was around and they could get back before anyone spotted them. Using their gliders to fly down, they saw some calves. Kai wondered why they were not flying and was told by Jinora they could not do so for their first couple weeks of life. Kai decided to sweep down and pet one of the baby bison despite Jinora's warnings about their mothers being protective. He was soon confronted by the calves' mother, who charged him, but was saved at the last second when Jinora quickly swept in on her glider and pulled him out of the bison's path. After the two settled, Kai told Jinora she was an incredible airbender and wondered why she did not have her tattoos. Jinora replied that her father did not believe she was a master yet, but Kai continued to be encouraging, stating that she could everything her dad could in addition to having spiritual powers, thus making her a master.

The next morning, Kai and his fellow recruits were suddenly awoken by Tenzin, who led them on a ten-mile hike. Kai was the first to finish behind Tenzin and Jinora, but was left exhausted as a result of the exercise. After meditation, a sleepy Kai followed the group to a balancing exercise. Later, as Tenzin told them about shaving their heads, Kai sneaked over to Jinora, asking her if she wanted to see the baby bison again, but was shushed and advised to pay attention, prompting him to shrug and walk away. Upon being asked if he wanted his head shaved, Kai joined the rest of the group in disagreement, and they made their way to the obstacle course.

The young airbender made his way through most of the obstacles safely until the rash cacti, where he collided with Yung on a post and fell into the plants. Ultimately, he completed the course but was left exhausted and mud-covered. He remarked what Tenzin was doing was just as bad as what the Earth Queen's prison was like. He also sneaked quietly under the crowd when Jinora told her father about his suggestion that he could get his tattoos, irritating him.



Kai found Jinora at a temple overlook where he apologized to her. Jinora assured him that Tenzin's outburst was not his fault while lamenting her father's lack of belief in her. At Kai's suggestion, they returned to the forest, but realized neither spirits nor bison were to be found. They soon found themselves captured by bison rustlers and taken to their camp. Kai listened in fear as their leader, Ganbat, declared they would be sent to Ba Sing Se with the baby bison. With the two locked in separate cages on a truck, he suggested she try using her spiritual projection technique; ultimately, she instead had one of the spirits send a message about the danger they faced.

Kai soon got himself out by picking the lock on his cage and went to free Jinora, but she told him to free the bison first. He was soon grabbed by a rustler, but kicked up a blast of air to free himself. At that moment, the rest of the airbenders, led by Bumi, swarmed the camp and attacked the rustlers. Kai's attack failed and he was knocked down by a rock wall. He recovered just in time to keep pursuit on his glider as Ganbat fled with the truck full of bison calves and Jinora. Kai got up alongside the truck and used his bending to jump in through the open window on the driver's side, but he was grabbed and held down by Ganbat. At that point, however, Tenzin arrived on Oogi and two other adult sky bison; he successfully pulled Kai over to him. After Ganbat's truck was toppled by a bison, Kai attacked the defenseless man with an arc of air, slamming him into his truck's hood twice as payback, but Tenzin stopped him, telling him an airbender should not attack a defenseless opponent. Nevertheless, Kai was complemented on his technique by the master.

That evening, Kai and Jinora happily played with an adult bison. Tenzin approached them, saying the bison warmed up to them because they recognized their own kind. The young boy soon caught sight of the calves taking flight, excitingly telling Jinora to look.

Ambushed by the Red Lotus
When the Red Lotus arrived at the Northern Air Temple, Kai tracked down a group of airbenders and warned them that they needed to evacuate, but before reaching the temple's interior, Ghazan blocked their path with his lavabending, causing them to leap backward. Kai and the rest of the airbenders were soon gathered into a courtyard, where they were told by Zaheer that the Red Lotus wanted nothing, rather, they were being used as leverage for Korra; they would get away safe as long as they cooperated. While Tenzin and his siblings held Zaheer, Ghazan, and Ming-Hua off, Kai and the rest of the airbenders were told by Tenzin to head to the bison stable and stay out of P'Li's line of sight because of her combustion attacks.



The airbenders, along with Pema and Rohan, made their way down a hallway, but they were stuck near the stables because of the threat posed by P'Li, whose attacks continuously blocked their path. Kai decided to distract her to allow everyone else to escape. He used his glider to fly in the vicinity of the Red Lotus' airship while dodging P'Li's blasts. Kai was even able to hit her with an air blast, causing one of her shots to deflect off-target. However, while trying to shield himself from another beam, Kai was hit, sending him flying down the mountain in smoke. The young airbender fell into a small tree and was knocked unconscious, but he was woken up by a baby bison whom he named Lefty, who licked his face. Kai mounted the calf and, upon commanding the baby, flew back to the temple in an attempt to sneak back in to rescue the others. However, the moment he arrived, he saw an airship leaving the temple and followed it toward some Air Nomad caves a few miles away, where P'Li handed over her captives to several Red Lotus sentries. Realizing he could not fight them all, he returned to the temple, hoping Team Avatar and other reinforcements would appear to help them.



As he made it back to the temple, Kai witnessed how Bolin created a hole in the side of the mountain for him, Mako, Asami, and Tenzin to escape the incoming lava. Finding them trapped, he offered to give everyone a lift to safety on Lefty. They regrouped with the rest of Team Avatar and Suyin's forces at the base of Laghima's Peak. Although Kai was dismissed a few times, he managed to get through to the adults and reveal the airbenders' location to them all, to which they asked him why he had not mentioned it to them sooner, much to his annoyance. As he mounted his bison to lead everyone to the impromptu prison, he was approached by Mako, who apologized for his earlier skeptical behavior toward Kai. The young airbender readily accepted the apology, smiling it away by stating that he probably deserved it.



Leading the rescue party toward the caves, Kai was reunited with a relieved Jinora, who excitedly hugged him. He exited the caves and witnessed Korra's battle with Zaheer. As she was struggling with fighting both the poison coursing through her veins and the Red Lotus' leader, he offered to fly up on his bison to help her, though his suggestion was shot down by Lin, who stated that he would never be able to keep up with Zaheer's power. Upon Jinora's instance, he and the other airbenders followed her to form a circle and together they bent a powerful tornado, which enabled Korra to bring Zaheer down.

Two weeks later, Kai had returned with everyone to Air Temple Island and he was present at Jinora's anointment ceremony as an airbending master. Upon Tenzin's sign, he and the other new airbenders bent the incense behind them and used the scented air to jingle the wind chimes in honor of the new master.

Personality
While living by himself as an orphan, Kai sported a cunning and opportunistic attitude and he would deceive and use those around him to benefit himself. However, when he allows himself to get to know the people around him, he shows a more emphatic and compassionate side, as evidenced by how he appreciated Jinora training him in airbending, as well as how he protected Yung against the Dai Li. He is protective of those whom he holds dear and is willing to be merciless to ensure their safety, such as assaulting Ganbat for attempting to kidnap Jinora and the baby bison, as well as to risk his own life, as evidenced when he attempted to distract P'Li in order to give the other airbenders a chance to escape. Overall, Kai is a mischievous, yet fun-loving, young boy who takes every opportunity for adventure, and is willing to sacrifice himself in order to save those whom he holds dear.

Airbending


Kai is a capable airbender, even though he is relatively untrained. He was able to use significant air blasts to knock Mako and Bolin onto the monorail, allowing him to escape, as well as directing specific gusts of air to facilitate his thefts. After training while held captive by the Dai Li, Kai displayed remarkably improved abilities in combative airbending, being able to knock out the Dai Li sergeant while rescuing Jinora in a single maneuver. During training with Tenzin, he was also the third one up the cliff and airbent to the top while the other recruits crawled. He completed the obstacle course relatively easily compared to the rest of the airbenders, showing his skill compared to the rest of the group. By the time the Red Lotus arrived, he could use a glider to fly and to attack at the same time. He is also capable to use a range of airbending techniques such as an air shield, which enabled him to survive a direct hit from P'Li's combustion blast. Despite being a new airbender, he took on P'Li, a firebending master, and yet managed to land a blow on her.

Other skills
Kai is stealthy and evasive, as he was able to slip away from Team Avatar when they arrived in Ba Sing Se, with Bolin noting that he is "surprisingly hard to catch", as well as being able to follow P'Li's airship without being detected. He is also a good liar, as he managed to convince Team Avatar to believe his story before the sheriff arrived. He can make quick decisions, which also makes him a very skilled pickpocket. His thievery skills further extend to lock-picking, which he used to free himself from a cramped metal cage.