Triad War
An LOK fan-fic by J.W. Appel
Disclaimer: I own nothing except my own creations. All things Avatar belong to Bryke and Nickelodeon.
Author's Note: Well, here it is at last: the next installment of my Paradoxverse and first fan-fic of 2014! I hope everyone is having an awesome New Year so far and I'd like to officially welcome back Silver Omega 01, whose been sorely missed. Her newest fan fic "the First Avatar: New Cycle" is an incredible reboot of her already awesome fic "the First Avatar", written to honor the canon established in LOK Book 2. It's even better than the original so please check it out. For those who are following, this story starts right after the Epilogue of Real Connections.
"Y-you're serious Korra, you actually visited the Spirit World with Aang!?" This was Tenzin's shocked response after the Avatar had explained exactly what had transpired during her coma-like sleep during supper. Everyone was amazed for Korra's spiritual weakness was well know and while she had finally made a true connection following Amon's defeat, few had thought she would advance far enough to reach the Spirit world in such a short time. The fact that she was even receiving visions from his father was enough for Tenzin.
Korra simply laughed at their disbelief. She wouldn't have believed it herself not long ago. "It's true" the Avatar confirmed with a warm smile "Aang showed me so much and told me how proud he was of each and every one of you. I can see now why everyone loved him so much,"
"He was a great man as well as a great father" Tenzin said with a touch of sadness in his voice "I'm relieved beyond words to know I've made him proud despite my mistakes." The Air bending master fell silent then and Pema lay a comforting hand on her husband's own. Tenzin's brother Bumi also had a sad little smile on his face at the mention of his beloved father.
"You and me both little brother" the United Forces Commander said with a nod before turning his attention to Korra. "So tell us Pops, what's this other news you mentioned before we sat down? Some new kind of trouble I think you said?"
At that, Korra's face turned grim. She didn't even bother to scold Bumi for calling her "Pops." "Before I left the Spirit World, Aang gave me a warning" the Avatar said "he told me something or someone worse than Amon was going to show up in the near future and we'd have to work together with the Equalists to stop it. I know it might sound crazy but I know Aang was telling the truth. As much as we might hate to admit it, the Equalists did have a point about life in the city."
Everyone turned to each other with looks ranging from guilt to confusion and even pity. Bumi in particular looked thoughtful before finally saying "Korra's right, it's not like it was during Mom and Dad's day. At least with Fire Lord Ozai and Yakone, it was easy to tell who the bad guys were."
"It's true" Tenzin said with equal parts guilt and frustration "If I had been more assertive on the council in opposing Tarrlok, they wouldn't have acted foolishly enough to actively oppress non-benders and give Amon so much leverage, to say nothing of the Triad activity over the years."
"We can't change the past but we can influence the future" Korra said, sounding uncharacteristically wise "I'm going to try my hardest to convince the Equalists and all non-benders that the Avatar cares about equality and will fight for everyone."
"Great" said a new voice sarcasticly "maybe you can start with helping the Equalists unload their bombs." Everyone turned to see Lin Beifong standing in the doorway, trademark scowl on her face. The air bender children suddenly became ecstatic.
"Yay, Hero Lady is here!" Meelo squeeled as he and his sisters raced towards the new arrival. No one noticed the annoyed look on Pema's face but they did notice the slight smile on the Chief's face at the children's presence.
"What are you doing here Lin?" Tenzin asked "I've heard you've been tied to your desk for weeks now filing Equalist reports." Lin responded by pulling out one such report and placing it on the dinner table.
"It just came in a few hours ago that the Equalists launched an attack on the Laogai district and raided the police warehouse. They took a few handfuls of shock gloves and a very large assortment of bombs. It's quite obvious that they're planning something big and I'd like Korra and General Iroh to assist my officers on patrol for the next few weeks."
Bumi coughed loudly as a means of getting attention. "Actually, Iroh was called back to home base not long after Amon was beaten Lin" the Commander said matter-of factly "he left me in charge though and I'd be happy to lend my troops." Lin looked directly at him then and furrowed her brows . She seemed almost surprised to see him there.
"And you are…?" Lin asked in a confused voice. Bumi gawked at her response for a moment and glared.
"Are you kidding? It's me, Bumi! You know, Tenzin's older brother, the one who dated Ursa? Aunt Toph babysat me like a million times while you were staying over!" At Lin's blank face, the Commander facepalmed. "You used to call me 'Boom-boom the doofus'?
Lin's face brightened with recongnition. "Oh, it's you. Sorry I didn't recongnise you without that stupid grin you always have on." Bumi scowled. Lin had always been hostile towards him, even when they were kids. He'd tried to be nice to her since she was dating Tenzin but all he ever got was insults and pranks, just like Kya. He supposed it was fitting since Aunt Toph always insisted she'd be a sister to him.
"Anyway, we'd be glad to assist you Chief" Korra spoke up in an effort to steer the conversation back to business "but if what you say is true, I'd better start training right away. Come on Tenzin, you too Bumi." Tenzin nodded and stood up to follow the Avatar to the courtyard. Though he was somewhat surprised, Bumi soon did the same.
Everyone else at the table was equally curious. Though Bumi was greatly loved by his immediate family, they couldn't help but wonder just what Korra needed him for. After a moment or two of silence, Lin gave into her curiosity. "This should be interesting" she said out loud, announcing her intentions as she strolled out of the room. This of course got the air bender kids excited.
"Canwegotoo Mommy?" Ikki babbled "Can we? Can we? Pretty please with moon peaches on top?" This combined with Jinora's equally pleading gaze and Meelo announcing his desire to help "Hero-lady" forced Pema to numbly nod her head. As her three eldest children excitably sped away, the Acolyte mother heard her youngest begin to wail and sighed. "Coming Rohan" she called out and made her way to the nursery, all the while grumbling "at least one of my kids is interested in me."
Out in the courtyard, everyone bore witness to Korra's air bending practice. The Avatar performed each move with grace and precision, making even Lin rather impressed. Tenzin in particular was astonished at her skill. Only one day ago, the same girl had been clumsy and unsure in her movements, relying on the Avatar State to correct her mistakes. Whatever Aang had done or said, it clearly worked.
"Excellent work Korra1" Tenzin proclaimed as his student performed the last of her memorized moves "I'm almost ready to say you've mastered air bending with that kind of skill. All you need now is to create your own move." This last part caught the Avatar by surprise.
"Oh, you didn't know?" Tenzin realized as he noticed Korra's face "it's an old tradition that an Air Nomad can only earn their arrows by first mastering the thirty-six tiers of air bending, which you've pretty much done by memorizing and now doing them, but you must also create a new air bending move as well. My father did it by inventing the Air Scooter when he was twelve and when I was sixteen I developed the Air Cycle." Tenzin demonstrated by creating the massive wheel of air he'd utilized in the fight against Hiroshi Sato. Korra watched this display with a raised eyebrow and slight annoyance over not being told sooner.
"And this applies to Avatars too? Even those that weren't born Air Nomads?"
"I'm afraid so" Tenzin said with some embareassment"I can't give you that much information on exactly what's been done before but it is essential that the Avatar learn as much as they can from the cultures they embody."
Korra sighed. Just when she thought her troubles with air bending were over, something new poped up. "Okay, I'll figure something out after we've dealt with whatever's coming. Bumi, I need your help now."
"Sounds like Korra needs a practice dummy" Lin taunted "hope your head's soft enough." Bumi shot the police chief a glare and walked over to Korra. "What can I do for ya pops? Need some of my cunning and cat-like reflaxes?
"Something like that" Korra said with a slight smile "I heard from a very reliable source that your parents taught you the martial arts for water and air bending. I was wondering if you'd be willing to teach me?"
Bumi smiled. "I do and I'd be honored Pops. I also know a bit of fire and earth if you're interested."
"Why would you need to learn the forms again Korra? You've already mastered them when it comes to water, earth, and fire bending and your air bending is almost as good now" Tenzin pointed out. Before Korra could respond, Bumi spoke up.
"I believe Korra wants to learn to bend without bending little brother" the Commander explained "those equalists rely on chi blocking to beat benders one on one and if our girl can fight without bending in a way that comfortable and familiar, she may just even the playing field. Am I right Korra?"
"That's right" the Avatar replied with a nod "I have a way to broker peace with the equalists that will require me being able to fight on their terms." Korra wasn't ready to admit the whole truth just yet, that while she did have a plan, this was also about lessening her dependence on her bending and boosting her self esteem. She would never allow Amon or anyone like him to terrify her ever again.
Tenzin raised an eyebrow at Korra's statement. "A way to broker peace that involves learning a new fighting style? That hardly sounds appropriate Korra. If we're going to ally with the Equalists, we need rational discussion and negotiation." The Air Bending master was determined not to make the same mistakes he had when dealing with Tarrlok.
"Come on bro, this is still important" Bumi argued "Korra might need some new tricks if the Equalists don't listen to reason."
"We can't get them to listen if we keep going the violence route Bumi" Tenzin objected with a glare "it's the same thing I warned Tarrlok against time after time!" Bumi frowned slightly and met Tenzin's own glare with a gentle but equally firm look.
"Look Tenzin, I understand your point, I really do but the way I heard it, you spent so much time debating with that Tarrlok guy, nothing got done and Amon took the city. In the end, all you two did was exchange harsh words and remember what Dad always told us? Harsh words never solved problems, action does."
Tenzin tried to argue further but couldn't. Whenever Bumi was serious, he was usually right. The fact that he had both quoted their father and used the glare he inherited from their mother didn't help. After further discussion and Korra's promise that her plan involved minimum violence, her new training was underway.
Bending without bending seemed easy at first, Korra having done each movement more times than she could count already, but difficulty did arise. It took a great deal of focus and concentration to do the move without bending and even when she managed that, her limbs were stiff and her attacks slow. Bumi told her not to get discouraged as his parents had encountered the same problems when he asked them to teach him, as had Zuko and Toph when he wished to further his skill. But eventually, the great masters had persevered and so would Korra.
While Korra trained for what was to come however, others were making their own preparations. The Equalist were equipping themselves for the attack in two day and Ning, the sleeper agent in league with the long lost Rumblers Triad was setting things in motion for their betrayal to his real boss, the Boulder II. Little did anyone know that other players were about to join the game as well.
The first of these new players was also a sleeper agent, an Air Acolyte named Gado. In the dead of night, he sat in his room sending a telegraph to a place thought long abandoned: the Southern Air Temple. The recipient of this telegraph was clad in the clothes of traditional Air Nomad and even had arrows but they were pitch black rather than blue. His steely gray eyes studied the message with keen interest. "So, Avatar Aang has somehow warned his successor of our plans, has he? Well, both she and these Equalists will soon learn to fear the coming of the Four Winds Triad!" So saying, the man turned and walked towards the Avatar Statue Room , more specifically the statue of Avatar Roku. Raising his right hand and clenching it into a fist, he began concentrating intently. Moments later, the statue shattered!
The other new players in the game were arriving by boat around that same time. They had come a long way to settle an old score. As their ship docked into the Republic City Harbor, they hurled the last of the crew members they had killed overboard. Some were grotestly mangled as though every bone in their bodies were snapped in two, others were severely dehydrated corpses, every last drop of fluid in their bodies depleted, and some had massive holes burned straight through their bodies.
The ones who performed these gruesome acts were about twelve in number, composed of Water Tribe, Earth Kingdom, and Fire Nation descendents. The later all had their faces concealed by cloaks. "So, this is Republic City? Much smaller than I imagined" a distinctly feminine cloaked figure mused "you are certain the Triple Threats operate her?"
The one she had spoken too, an usually pale Water Tribe man with long ragged hair, chuckled. "Of course Madame, they're the largest Triad in the territory, though their numbers have scattered since Amon eliminated their leader."
"Yes, a pity he is no longer around, I was looking forward to destroying him personally but no matter." So saying, the woman removed her hood to reveal a classic Fire nation beauty, save for the third eye on her forehead. "All that matters is taking this territory for ourselves and making Veka's Equalists regret the day they dared oppose the Dark Elements!"
AN2: Not a bad intro, eh? Longtime readers will recongnise the Dark Elements from my old rewrite of Korra episode nine but this revised version is far more interesting, I assure. Updates will be weekly if I can help it so please stay tuned and review if you can. See you soon!