A/N: First off I would like to thank limegreenwordmachine for editing this chapter. I don't think I would have had the confidence to post this story without her input. She is a wonderful beta. Second, as you well know, I do not own the world of Avatar nor do I own any of it's characters. However, any OC that is found within this story is of my own creation. That being said, I hope you enjoy the story!
The Order of the White Lotus had been a secret organization up until the final days of the Hundred Year War. During the days leading up to Fire Lord Ozai's defeat, many prominent members in the bending and nonbending world became allies and proclaimed themselves to be members of the Order of the White Lotus. The most notable members at the time were Master Pakku of the Northern Water Tribe, Iroh, former crown Prince of the Fire Nation, Master Piandao, world renowned swordsman, Master Jeong Jeong, the first man to abandon the Fire Nation military and survive, and King Bumi, ruler of the city Omashu. With their help, the city of Ba Sing Se was saved from Fire Nation control.
After the war, Avatar Aang comissioned the members of the White Lotus to find the new Avatar after his death, provide protection, and see to his or her training. When the Order is not with the Avatar, they can be found searching the world for philosophy, beauty, and truth, or training new members for the next generation.
In the years since its conception, the Order of the White Lotus has never had a female member.
The council chamber of the Order of the White Lotus was full of chatter as the members deliberated the fate of one of their future acolytes.
Karin, a girl of seventeen, stood still as a statue in the center of the chamber. Her eyes moved from one councilman to the other, wishing she could speak her mind. Her eyes locked on her father as he pointed angrily at Grand Master Kuzon.
Ever since Karin was a little girl, she had dreamed of becoming a member of the famous Order of the White Lotus. Her grandfather had been a member during the Hundred Year War, and had risen to take Pakku's seat when he had passed. Karin's father had followed in his footsteps. She was determined to do the same.
"Silence!" A voice shouted. Grand Master Kuzon slammed his gavel on a wooden platform. The room gradually grew quiet, and everyone looked down on Karin. "Karin, please step outside while we finish deliberating. We will call you back inside shortly." He nodded before averting his eyes.
Karin tried to look dignified as she returned the nod and turned to walk out of the council chamber. The doors closed loudly behind her, and she finally relaxed her posture, shaking her head.
"Not going well?" Someone asked. Karin turned to find one of her best friends seated on a bench beside the doors.
"Of course not. Those old men don't think I'm good enough." Karin replied with a sigh before sitting beside Eri. He wrapped an arm around her shoulder in support.
"Don't worry. I'm sure they're just thinking up some way for you to prove yourself. They've never kicked anyone out of an Order meeting for no reason." He ruffled her hair and laughed as she raised her hands to save herself from the assault.
"Ah, but they think they have a reason. I'm a girl, and I am much too delicate to protect the Avatar. What crock." Though her voice showed defeat, Eri could see defiance shining in Karin's blue eyes, and knew that she wouldn't let this go without a fight.
They sat for a considerable amount of time before the doors to the council chamber opened and Karin's father stepped into the light of the hallway.
"Karin, they've come to a decision." She nodded at her father. Eri gripped her hand tightly before letting her walk back into the darkened room.
She took her place in the center of the room, where the tiles formed a giant white lotus, and stared up at the council members. The eyes of a dozen men stared down at her. All but her fathers' said one thing: they did not believe that she would succeed.
"Karin," Grand Master Kuzon began. "Though I have my personal doubts about you joining our sacred order, your lineage supports the assumption that you may be able to follow in the footsteps of your father and grandfather. However, we will be giving you a task to prove yourself. I must warn you that this task will not only test your physical prowess as a waterbender, but your mental and emotional strength."
Karin fought the urge to jump up and pump her fist in the air in victory. Even if Grand Master Kuzon believed this task would break her, Karin knew that she would be victorious! Her worth would finally be proven to all the men who doubted not only her strength, but the strength of all the women who attempted to join the Order of the White Lotus.
"Your task," Kuzon continued, "is to infiltrate the equalist camp in Republic City. You are to get as close to Amon as you dare so that you may be able to pass intel on to those in the Order that are currently protecting Avatar Korra."
"But aren't all the Equalists nonbenders?" Karin could not help but ask. She could feel her heart filling up with dread and she was no longer as confident as she had been a moment before.
"Indeed. This means that while in the city, you are forbidden to bend lest you give up your true identity to the Equalists. We have heard reports from our sentries posted in the city that the leader, Amon, possibly has the ability to strip a person of their bending. Therefore, failure of this mission could not only endanger your life, but could also result in the loss of your bending."
Grand Master Kuzon looked over his steepled fingers and scrutinized Karin. She couldn't believe this was the mission they were giving her. This could be considered a suicide mission - if she failed, it was not certain that she would ever return.
Karin looked at her father, whose head was in his hands. It was quite clear that he hadn't agreed to give her this mission, but in the Order of the White Lotus majority ruled, and Karin could see that most of the other gentlemen were looking at her in triumph. They believed that she would never risk her own life and her bending abilities to prove herself. They wanted her to refuse and walk out of this council chamber, never to darken their doorstep again.
Karin's expression of bewilderment morphed into a look of defiance as she scowled at all of the men staring down at her who thought she had been defeated. She wouldn't let them do this to her. She was not going to turn away from her dreams because a group of old men thought she was too weak and fragile to protect the Avatar.
She squared her shoulders and stood up straighter. "I accept this mission."
The men looked at her with surprise and her father raised his head. His expression showed that while he believed she could complete this mission, he didn't want to put his own daughter in the hands of the Equalists.
"Very well Karin. You will leave in two weeks time for Republic City. While you are here, you will join Hiro in the training yard every day to learn the basics of chi-blocking. Hopefully, with your previous knowledge of the human anatomy, it will come easier to you than his other students. You will also be required to attend meetings with me twice a week to build your alias. I will not have you fail because of an incomplete back story. You are dismissed." Grand Master Kuzon banged the gavel once more, and the men of the White Lotus stood and retreated through the back door.
What have I gotten myself into? Karin bowed her head and took a deep breath before turning around and leaving out of the same door through which she had entered.
Thank you all for reading the first chapter of my story! I don't know about you guys, but I am absolutely loving The Legend of Korra and it is so sad that the season finale is already here. I hope that as this story progresses you can read this in an attempt to fill the gap between season 1 and season 2 of the show. Of course reviews are always welcome and if you choose to add this story to your alert list I would be positively ecstatic. Hopefully the next chapter will be out by the weekend. Thanks for stopping by!
-ClassicCrime