Book 5: War

by IGdude117

20 years after the Battle of Republic City and a devastating socioeconomic crash, chaos threatens to engulf the world once more as increasingly radical and nationalistic countries begin to square off in the name of conquest and resources. Can Korra and the Gaang prevent the largest conflict since the Great War? Rated T for violence and language.

1. Chapter 1: Prologue

The year is 194 AG, and the storm clouds are gathering.

It has been two decades since the Battle of Republic City and the fall of Kuvira's Earth Empire. Years of progress, prosperity, and universal growth have made the world ever more connected and at peace- to an extent.

In the years directly after the Battle for Republic City, the world thrived. Avatar Korra and the Air Nation kept a watchful eye over the world as things changed for the better. Prince Wu, last heir to the Earth Kingdom throne, assisted in forming the Earth Confederacy- a loose collection of states and city-states all answering to an elected congress in Ba Sing Se.

With the cessation of hostilities, the world entered a golden age, as the Six Nations traded, innovated, and contributed to making the world a better place.

However, in the year 180, things changed. For the worse.

The Fire Nation's lucrative trade infrastructure, after years of increased spending and debt, suddenly collapsed, the powerful Share Market that served as the lifeblood to the Fire Nation's powerful corporations crashing nearly overnight. This sudden economic depression quickly affected the rest of the world, culminating in an event known as the Collapse. For nearly a decade, rampant inflation, poor wages, and unprecedented violence took hold throughout the world, shaking it to its very core.

While every Nation struggled, the Earth Confederacy struggled the most, its ineffective government helpless as its constituent States waged war and fought against bandits and criminals with little to no reprieve from Confederate authorities. Hundreds of thousands across the world died, as millions more struggled through poverty and unemployment. The Avatar, nearly helpless against the primarily economic disaster, did what she could, fighting criminals and self-proclaimed warlords where she could.

In the wake of the Collapse, the world has become a very different place.

The Fire Nation, now primarily led by a parliamentary government, has taken a radical turn towards the right, with neo-imperialists and nationalists holding the majority while the nearly-helpless Firelord Iroh II and his mother look on in concern as militarism once more rises in their beloved home.

In the two Water Tribes, internal squabbles and lingering resentments over the Collapse's devastation have led to two mostly isolationist countries, waiting to see how the coming conflicts resolve themselves.

The Earth Confederacy, however, the site of some of the darkest horrors of the Collapse, has changed the most. In the wake of the crushing destruction of the Collapse, a political party calling themselves the "Gonglu" have gathered a wave of supporters, threatening the incumbent Moderate Party as it receives more and more support all over the Confederacy. Hailing from the state of Omashu, its leader, the so-called 'Shen the Great', promises a return to the peace and prosperity of before, as well as a powerful Earth Nation unlike anything seen before. His charismatic charms sway millions throughout the Earth Confederacy, and he and his party stand poised to wrest control of the government from the seemingly ineffective Confederate government.

Meanwhile, the two nations to largely escape the horrors of the Collapse, the Air Nation and the United Republic, do their best to ease the rising tensions throughout the world. Master Jinora, leader of the Air Nation, works with her siblings and the great leaders of the Air Nation to keep the peace in the face of gangsters, pirates, and bandits while her father explores the Spirit World and builds the Air Nations to their pre-Great War heights.

In the United Republic, President Mako, after a highly successful career as Chief of Police, turns to his friends and advisers more than before. Avatar Korra and her wife, Asami Sato, do their best to help him in a significantly more tumultuous world, fearing a return to the conflicts they suffered through as teenagers.

As storm clouds brew over the world, few notice that the Spirits, once happy inhabitants of the material plane, are slowly but surely returning to the Spirit World, no doubt anticipating the bloodshed to come.