Author's Note: This is the new and improved version of Republic City's Finest. If you are a fan of the old version, the last chapter there is an announcement detailing why this decision was made.

The summary will be updated to better reflect the entire series over time. Without further ado, I hope that you enjoy the series!


Republic City's Finest

Book 1: Sacrifice and Redemption

At seventeen years old, Mei strives to uphold her father's legacy as one of Republic City's finest officers. After years under the tutelage of the Metalbending Elite, her dreams are jeopardized. She must find a way to master neutral jing if she is ever to be worthy of her badge. All the while, tension has been building between benders and nonbenders, threatening to give rise to a civil war both in the city, and in her own home.


Chapter 1: Insubordination


Deep within police headquarters, Mei was brooding in the hallway, her smooth hair hanging just above her armored chest. As her thoughts simmered on her predicament, she was approached by her best friend with two cups in hand. Despite being two years her elder, Taifeng wasn't much taller than her. His mid-length black hair was neatly styled, framing his diamond-shaped face, and pairing nicely with his wrinkle-free uniform. He raised a thin eyebrow upon noticing the brunette's scowl, though he brushed it away with a smirk.

Still, he couldn't mask the concern in his pale-blue eyes as he handed her a cup and teased, "Can't even go fifteen minutes without me, huh?"

Mei forced a smile as she took the cup. "Thanks, Taifeng."

The tan teen leaned against the wall and took a sip of his own morning tea. "Hey, you know you can always talk to me, right? What's wrong?"

She let out an exasperated sigh before venting, "I just don't understand why this is taking so long. I became a cadet and broke the record for the longest training period after fourteen months. Now I've nearly quadrupled that. I should've been made an officer years ago!"

He narrowed his eyes and scoffed, his tone harsh as he commented, "At least you have an option, and aren't stuck as a beat cop."

If Mei could get paler, she would have. "Taifeng, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean it that way. I just..." She sighed. "I feel like I'm just spinning my wheels."

He pursed his lips for a few moments before flashing her a false smirk. "Hey, it's fine. I know you're not like that."

Before she could respond, Taifeng's father came rushing down the hall. She could see the resemblance in their faces, though Lee's deep green eyes, trimmed facial hair, slight wrinkles, and pale skin helped to tell them apart. Not to mention that Lee was significantly taller and had a broader build.

The middle-aged man stopped before the teens as he turned to Mei and explained, "There's a brawl between triads on Thirty-Ninth Street. Chief Beifong is sending out the team."

She pursed her lips and gave a short nod.

Taifeng whipped around in a huff as he called back, "See you later, Mei."

The brunette frowned as she watched him go, but followed her mentor up to the roof of the massive headquarters where the other metalbending officers were waiting. As she stood and watched for the zeppelin to take off, Captain Lee faced her.

"Cadet, this is a dangerous mission," he began. "Our goal is to stop the fighting, and that's it. The others and I will arrest any stragglers, but I want you to stay by my side no matter what. You haven't been on any triad raids, so this is just an observational experience for you, understood?"

The young metalbender took a nervous breath before saluting. "Yes, sir!"

Right on time, one of the massive police airships arrived and extended its ramp from the bottom of the ship and onto the roof. Everyone quickly boarded, and took off.

Captain Lee put his hands behind his back as he addressed the group. "This is a level two emergency, so there's no time for slow maneuvers. Everyone needs to hit the ground running to disperse the violence as soon as possible. Am I clear?"

In unison, the officers and cadet saluted. "Yes, sir!"

Sirens blared from within the airship as they arrived, drawing Mei's full attention as the hatch opened below. Winds whipped around the cabin as she looked down at the street. Two groups of rival triads were fighting in the Small Business district, but they had just stopped. The men all glanced up before dispersing down the streets and alleyways.

Two senior officers jumped out first, using their cables to direct their falls to the lines of wires above the streets before propelling themselves ahead in pursuit of three gang members. Another two officers came down and went in the opposite direction. Following Captain Lee and another pair, Mei jumped from the airship and extended a cable from her sleeve to grab onto a wire and swing to the street below.

She shortened the length of her cable and stumbled as her feet hit the ground a little too soon. Captain Lee looked back and waited until she retracted her cable and ran behind him into the alleyway. Adrenaline coursed through her veins, both from nerves and excitement.

The teen was only a few steps behind her mentor as they gave chase to the triad members. From the colors of their outfits, she could tell that there was one of each of the three common bending disciplines. The waterbender glanced back before splitting off into a smaller alley while the earthbender raised a wall, blocking the way. Mei pursed her lips as Lee launched himself over the barrier.

She hesitated for a moment before pursuing the waterbender down the dark and crowded alley. It was thinner than the last one, and lined with all sorts of small dumpsters, dirty mops, buckets, and boxes. The man whipped around as he bent a bucket of dirty water into her path, freezing it just under her foot. Still, she managed to propel herself forward, sliding until she hit the ground again and continued her chase. He glanced back and scowled before frantically throwing whatever he could get his hands on into the cadet's path, but she weaved through the mess, full focus on her target.

A waking homeless man froze as he saw them go by. Just ahead, the waterbender stopped as he came across a tall chain-link fence blocking his path. He tensed before reaching to a pouch on his back and taking a horse stance, ready to fight.

Mei waited as he launched water at her, prompting the earthbender to raise her arm to block the liquid attack. He grinned and clenched his fists, freezing the water over her dominant hand, leaving her unable to bend with it. She scowled as she pulled it to her side, but she didn't have the time to free it. The gang member was already halfway up the fence, clearly out of water to attack with.

She frowned. "Oh, no you don't!"

Using her non-dominant hand, she shot out a cable and wrapped it around his ankle before flinging him behind her. The man slammed into the ground with a loud thud. He groaned as the cadet retracted the cable and ran over, handcuffing him with her foot on his back.

The brunette released a quiet sigh before raising her frozen hand and using the other to bend a cable through her sleeve, morphing it into spikes to break through the ice. She repeatedly clenched and stretched her hand to relieve the stinging numbness. Once the teen was certain that she was otherwise unharmed, she smirked at the triad member, grabbed him by the handcuffs, and forced him back down the alley. At the intersection, she saw Captain Lee standing there, a deep frown plastered on his face as he watched on.

Her mentor was silent the whole trip back to headquarters, even after the arrested gang members were brought in for processing. With nothing else to do for the moment, Mei went off to take her lunch. Meanwhile, Lee was called into the chief's office.

He frowned as he stepped inside, but stood at attention.

Chief Beifong was sitting behind her desk, a serious expression on her face as she asked, "Do you know why I sent your team instead of Saikhan's?"

"No, ma'am."

Lin weaved her fingers together as she explained, "Keeping Chen away from tough jobs won't help her. She would've been ready sooner if you had allowed her to go in the past. You have to trust her abilities, Lee. You can't hold her back because of what happened to Shang." She lowered her hands as she added, "She'll make a good officer."

Captain Lee pursed his lips for a few moments. "With all due respect, Chief, if she can't listen to orders, I'm not so sure about that."

Lin furrowed her eyebrows as a frown tugged at her lips.

Right outside the chief's office was a room filled with the desks of all the officers. Mei was standing beside the one she used when she didn't have any Metalbending Elite assignments. Taifeng was looking up at her from his own desk as she finished her story with a frown.

"...I'll have to be more wary the next time I face a waterbender."

He laughed and playfully poked her side. "Come on, Mei. Have some confidence in yourself!" He grinned as he added, "You know... you just pulled off your first tough arrest on the job. I'll have to treat you to dinner to celebrate."

The brunette smiled back at him, but before she could respond, Chief Beifong stepped out, her tone clearly displeased. "Mei. In my office. Now."

Glancing to Taifeng, he gave his friend a shrug. Mei immediately followed the chief into her office and stood at attention. As she sat down, the cadet found Captain Lee standing beside her desk. Mei furrowed her brows slightly as she waited for them to speak.

Lin weaved her fingers together as she told the trainee, "Due to your failures to listen to your superior officer, I'm putting you on paid leave until further notice."

Mei frowned as her shoulders drooped. "I'm sorry. I just wanted to help. I really want to be an officer."

Lee's voice was stern. "If you really want that, then you should listen to my orders. If you can't do something so simple, then maybe you aren't cut out for this job."

Her gaze fell as she pursed her lips and nodded.

After a short silence, Chief Beifong addressed her again. "Captain Lee will contact you when you're allowed back on the force. In the meantime, I suggest you read over the handbook again. You're dismissed."

Her voice was hoarse. "Yes, ma'am."

-:-

The sun was setting when Mei was finally entering her small house, a permanent scowl on her face. As she closed the door behind her and took her first steps inside, she saw her sister gathering her purse—she must have been on her way out. Jin tensed as she saw Mei before flipping her dyed red hair in a haughty motion.

"Why are you home so early?" she asked.

"I got in trouble and was put on leave," Mei grumbled. "If it happens again, then that's it—I'll be fired."

Jin rolled her eyes. "So what? Big deal."

The earthbender's eyebrow twitched as she hissed, "Well, someone has to uphold Dad's legacy."

Her sister narrowed her eyes as she snapped, "Just because you're the only bender, that doesn't make you the only one who can do it!"

"Well, I'm the only one trying," the teen argued. "You're too busy mooching off your thug of a boyfriend to care! Dad's probably rolling in his grave right now for you even associating with that loser."

The twenty-year old scoffed. "Tahno's not a thug! And being a defending pro-bending champion hardly makes him a loser. At least I can make meaningful relationships, unlike you!"

She stormed out, roughly pushing Mei out of her way. The brunette huffed as she stomped into her room and closed the door behind her. She took a seat before running her fingers through her hair. As much as she didn't want to admit it, Jin was right about one thing: she really didn't have many friends.

After composing herself, the metalbender dug out the Elite handbook and started reading.


Rule 1: Officers should work as a team for the good of everyone. Solo hero acts often lead to officers being killed or injured. Trust your colleagues and show them that they can trust you.


A clear image of her father's body in his coffin flashed across her mind's eye. She tensed before shaking the memory away and focusing on the book.

-:-

Later that evening, Mei heard the front door open. There was a pro-bending game that night, so she was certain that it wasn't Jin. With that in mind, she put down her handbook and peeked into the foyer to find her mother closing the door behind her.

"Girls, I'm home!" She turned and frowned upon catching her youngest daughter's expression. "Honey, what's wrong?"

Mei sighed as she approached her mother and explained everything that had happened that day. When she was finished with her tale, her mother put a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

"I'm sure Lee means well. He just wants to make sure you're ready," Ping told her with a soft smile. "Don't worry, he'll let you back soon enough."

Mei sighed. "I hope you're right."

Ping flashed her a grin. "I'm always right, honey. So, please, don't worry yourself over it." She then placed her bag down as she explained, "Nanuq is still with a patient, so we're inviting Haku over for dinner."

The metalbender's thoughts turned to her neighbor as she nodded. "Do you want me to set up another plate?"

"No, thank you, sweetheart," she declined. "But could you go get him?"

Mei smiled. "Of course."

She stepped outside and onto the small sidewalk that lined the street. Dull houses were clustered all around with only short fences to separate their small yards. Across the street, an old couple was listening to the radio on their balcony. From the cheers, she could tell that it was probably one of the first pro-bending matches of the night.

Turning to the side, she made her way over to the house directly beside hers. Having finally gotten used to the placement of all the cracks, the teen was able to navigate in the dim lighting without tripping. Once at the front door, she knocked loudly. A few moments passed with no answer, as usual, so she let herself in.

The interior of Haku's house was much like Mei's, though the furnishings were vastly different. As she walked to the back of the house, she passed Nanuq's healing dummy where she practiced on her days off and held the occasional lesson or two. Making her way up the narrow stairs to the second floor, she found the light on in Haku's room at the end of the hall—marked his by the overflow of books right outside the doorway.

She smiled as she peered inside and saw him engrossed in the mounds of open texts before him. Being of Water Tribe descent, he had flawless dark skin, and long brown hair that he kept tied at the back of his head. His mother had a tendency to cut it unevenly, though, leaving him with layers of thick hair flowing around his ears. Truth be told, if he ever bothered to go out and talk to people, girls would probably flock to him—or should she say, women? After all, he was a year older than her.

Mei was silent as she watched him focus on his reading. A few moments passed before he hesitated and turned to face the doorway.

He jumped initially, before releasing a sigh upon recognizing his neighbor. "Ah, Mei. Forgive me. I didn't know you were there. What brings you here?"

She flashed him an apologetic smile. "Sorry about that. I came to invite you to dinner, but you were so focused that I felt bad disturbing you." A few moments passed before she clarified, "Your mom's working late tonight."

He raised his eyebrows before glancing to the clock on the wall. "So she is." He smiled graciously. "Thank you for the offer. I'll only be a moment."

"Please, take your time."

She watched on quietly as Haku marked all his pages and stood before meeting her in the doorway. He towered a full head taller than the metalbender, smiling down with deep blue eyes as he thanked her again for her generosity. With neighbor in tow, Mei made her way back home.

-:-

Long after dinner, Mei found herself alone in her small backyard, looking up at the stars as she listened to the radio. Shiro Shinobi's voice rang out loud and clear as he commentated on the pro-bending match.

"There you have it folks, after being in Republic City for only a few weeks now, the Avatar has joined the rookies, saving the Fire Ferrets from forfeiting the match! She may have mastered the elements, but can she master pro-bending in time to snatch a win?"

She tuned out the announcer as her mind wandered elsewhere. It had been a while since her relationship with Jin grew sour, though she couldn't pinpoint the exact trigger. It felt like forever, yet Mei knew in her heart that her sister wasn't always like this. She just wished that she could figure out how to mend their broken relationship—if it could even be repaired.

She sighed as a star twinkled in the night sky. "What should I do, Dad?"