Avatar: The Brothers Tale
Book 0: Resurgence
Fire, Air, Water, Earth.
Long Ago, the four nations lived in harmony, but everything changed when the Fire Nation attacked. By the time the Avatar, master of all four elements overthrew the Firelord and released their grip over the world, the wounds they carved, the roads they built, the books they wrote would linger long after. A hundred and twenty years have passed since that fateful battle between Avatar Aang and Firelord Ozai, and the world has now changed beyond recognition.
By the time of Avatar Korra, the gears of change wound faster than anyone could imagine. The United Republic rose from the former colonies, the Water Tribes grew increasingly distant from each other as the South found itself putting it back together, the Earth Kingdom grew ever more into decline and the Airbenders, long seen as a perished culture, was slowly rebuilding following the Birth of Tenzin and later, his four children.
While Aang was left healing the scars the Hundred Year War left and helping in build up the new world that arose, Avatar Korra had to spend her life dealing with multitudes of new, upstart threats that sought to remake the world in their images: from the Equalist Amon to the Grand Uniter Kuvira, it had almost seemed that every last threat sought to bleed out her unyielding strength year after year, yet one way or another, even if she would fall on the first fight, she would get back up and finish it. However, her last and, debatably, her greatest challenge would arrive a full 27 years after the fall of the Earth Empire as an old and long-feared enemy presented itself once again.
While the horrors the Fire Nation wrought on the world at large were consigned to history, it's ideals and it's followers never truly died out. While it is generally accepted that the Sozist movement, named after Firelord Sozin, had started almost immediately after the coronation of Firelord Zuko, it is not known how they organised themselves or how great of a hand they played in Fire Nation government. However, the Sozists would gain measurably greater popularity following the declaration of Firelord Izumi that the Fire Nation would not assist in stopping Kuvira and the Earth Empire. This move would prove unpopular amongst the people, where concerns that the Empire would seek retribution for the Hundred Year War were both real and prevalent. The Sozists quickly exploited that fear and used it as a weapon, decrying the Firelord as weak and incapable of protecting her own people.
Despite their vitriol, the Sozists rarely acted on their bold and brash words, instead laying low and sowing instability and discontent when they could in the various nations, slowly yet surely putting the pieces for their grander play, in which they sought to rekindle the fires their namesake wrought two hundred years ago, and to crush those who extinguished them one hundred years back in one, decisive move, and they knew exactly the right time to strike.
The arrival of the Great Comet was long anticipated by all. For the first time the event would happen not only at a time of peace, but its approach and splendour laid witness and catalogued in front of hundreds of prying cameras and TV screens, yet the footage they ended up taking would only echo the past rather than look to a new present.
On that fateful day, the Sozists arrived in Republic city by force, only a day before they had slain Izumi and taken a third of the Fire Navy and Air force, some of the most advanced vehicles the world had ever seen. And with the crimson sky behind them, they sought either to take the city for themselves, or burn everything to the ground with them.
For 6 long, gruelling hours did Avatar Korra and the Republic forces battle with the fanatics. Their attacks had not only caught both off guard, but they found their fervour completely unshackled. Jet pilots would slam themselves into buildings if they ran out of missiles, cruisers ran aground just to land their soldiers. Their own soldiers would find themselves burned to ash from their own crazed, unkempt attacks, yet they kept pushing forward, their leaders constantly demanding the president's surrender.
By the time the Great Comet was gone, it was over. The United forces had won, but little was left. Half of Republic City, including Air Temple Island, was burned to the ground. Most of the Sozists fell in the battle but took thousands with them, including the entire Republic Navy, air force, half their soldiers, uncounted thousands of civilians and, worst of all, Avatar Korra. The attack all but assured she had no time to rest during the battle and every last scorch mark, every small hit they got on the Avatar stuck. By the end, her wounds along with her overuse of the Avatar state finally overcame her, and thus, the cycle continued once more.
It took 18 years for the next Avatar to present himself, by that time the world had drastically changed once again, arguably, for the worse.
Starting with the Fire Nation, the Sozist attack had killed both Firelord Izumi and the Fire Prince Iroh II, with the succession passing to his son, Azon. His rule quickly became unpopular when he began reversing the democratisation steps started by Zuko and near finalised by Izumi in an effort to stamp out Sozist cells. Despite the progress made, his draconic measures quickly drew the ire of the people both in borders and out, still shaken from the attempted coup and fearing a second Hundred Year War. It was almost trivial, as a result, for the democratically elected Fire Council to depose Azon with help from the Air Nation and the Northern Water Tribe. This signalled the death knell of autocracy in the Fire Nation with the title of Firelord, now held by Zulin, the sister of Iroh II, to be merely advisory and ceremonial in nature.
Today, Sozist groups remain as individual cells all across the Fire Nation, commonly espousing the rhetoric of relentless expansionism of Sozin in years past, yet while highly outspoken there is constant infighting among cells over which would lead the movement in what they call the "Phoenix Revolution", for as many among the Fire Nation have joked, you are not truly a leader of a Sozist cell unless you claim to be a descendant of Azula or a secret child of Zuko.
The fiery rhetoric of these Sozist cells has not only brought more followers to its side, but it has also lead to increased paranoia in and out of its borders in a unique sentiment dubbed the "Fear of Fire", such a phrase has been wholly embraced by the Sozists, claiming in one rather charged speech that "The state, in its disgusting weakness, is trying to make us scared of our identity, of who we really are."; The Fear of Fire has provoked nations from all corners to build up troops, scared by the prospect of a second coup. Now, the Fire Nation, the most technologically advanced of the many nations, lies under a three-way balance between the Sozists, the opposition government under Azon and the current government under Zulin.
Meanwhile, the return of the Air Nomads after two hundred years of absence to the world stage has fanned new storms of change. The modern Air nation has been renowned as a force of peace, most exemplified after the Sozist attack, where even after the death of Tenzin, they were quick to assist survivors, providing much needed food, shelter and medicine to the distraught survivors. Today, they have grown measurably in size since Harmonic Convergence, with Airbenders continuing to help where they may be needed most, the newly modernised Air Temples are now home to a diverse range of people, ranging from airbending monks to nonbending acolytes to asylum seekers who fled persecution from any of the other nations. The temples are ruled by an elected council, Interestingly, the Western Air Temple has a small but noteworthy population of Firebenders who learn and practice the art of bending light, using Air Nomad wisdom as their guide; in particular, the Lightbenders grew to a position of esteem during the secondary Sozist missile attack on Ba Sing Se, where their efforts helped intercept a majority of the spirit missiles and saved millions of lives.
However, their position has grown increasingly contentious on the world stage. Tensions with the Earth Federation have grown increasingly frustrated both over border disputes, with ancestral Air Nation lands being occupied by Federation provinces as well as taking in asylum seekers fleeing corporate blood contracts and triads which has resulted in many CEOs and senators labelling the Air Nation as a "refuge for thieves and murderers". A last area of concern is despite best efforts, the newest generation of Airbenders have struggled in their efforts to assist those in need due both to Federation propaganda and their inexperience in political matters, this has resulted in many abandoning their duties and turned completely nihilistic, their lives spent flying aimlessly across the skies as lone wanderers, sharing tales of fruitless hardship. Many elders and master's have struggled to manage this crisis of faith and it is hard to know how this situation may progress.
Time has only served to further divide the North and South Water Tribes in culture but bring them together in mutual decline. The Northern Water Tribe remains today as the final remaining autocracy left in the world, with leadership continuing under the rule of Chief Eska ruling as its sole ruler after the death of Desna from a Sozist assassin. Ever since the Great Comet the North has amassed a stockpile of weapons, both conventional and spirit to fortify themselves against both the Fire Nation and the Earth Federation, however, it has resulted in an economy that is nearing collapse as its isolationist policy has limited trade to seafood exports and agencies made to quell spirit attacks; It is only a matter of time before the situation boils over and many are in agreement that when all those weapons will fire, it won't be against a Sozist or a Corporate soldier, but on itself.
Inversely, the Southern Water Tribe has prospered in the years since the fall of the Earth Empire, with many of its people being the wealthiest and happiest the world over, but it has been on an increasingly unstable foundation. This wealth has been sustained solely through its oil-based economy ever since vast reserves of this liquid gold were discovered not long after the fall of Firelord Ozai, and while it has brought the Southern Water Tribe back from the brink and has made it a titan of fuel and chemical industry. Many of its greatest waterbenders today live in the Southern Water Tribe and are one of a kind, using their ability to transmute chemicals in water bubbles to devlop new and exotic materials and medicines. While these practices have yielded great results over many years, saving the lives of thousands and giving new opportunities to thousands more, the greatest innovation has come in the form of plastics: This material has served well as a cheap, easy to cast material that can be produced in bulk and, most significantly of all, cannot be bent in its entirety by benders of any element; this has resulted in mass proliferation of plastic weapons and armour for use against benders, particularly within the Earth Federation. However, over a hundred years after the rise and despite countless efforts from Chief Larron to suppress this information, its wells are running dry. And with very few efforts made even by Avatar Korra at the time, let alone the previous chiefs, to transition to more reliable and renewable industries and businesses, the Southern Water Tribes economy risks facing collapse the minute the last drop of oil comes out of the ground and with its leadership tightened under the grip of oil chiefs and corporate leaders, it shows no sign of changing course.
The United Republic of Nations has become a remarkably different beast since the days of Avatar Korra and, despite everything the world has thrown at it, has managed to hold steady to power since the Sozist attack, but at a terrible price.
When Republic City was nearly burned to the ground, it laid bare how central the Republic had become around its capital; almost immediately did the Earth Federations outer territories try to stake its claim in republic land, with one splinter Sozist cell going as far as to try and reclaim Yu Dao, historically the first colony of the Fire Nation; ultimately they only held the city for a week before General Mako reclaimed the city with a brutality never before seen either by him or his forces. The following years saw its next three presidents take aid from the Earth Federation to rebuild itself from the ashes, racking up large debts while doing so. Today, the United Republic has become less centralised; partly as a means to avoid crippling itself should another attack take place but primarily because after 21 years, Republic City has never returned to its former size, with its historic streets and neighborhoods levelled to make way for corporate offices, highways and parking lots for the innumerable Satomobiles that now cover the city head to toe. Even the Spirit Portal in its centre, previously a hotbed of tourist activity, has grown increasingly unstable following the Estrangement, resulting in occasional "spasms" that give unpredictable events ranging from dark spirits to energy beams to twisting individuals that stray too close, nowadays its people are allowed only on the outer edge, with harvesters collecting vines from the area that serves as the only functional source of spirit energy sources after Avatar Korra designated the Baiyan Grove tree and the grounds 5km out either side as a protected zone.
Yet, despite everything, the Republic has held fast and regained its prosperity, strength and political status as a bastion of freedom and progress, still resisting attempts from the Earth Federation to integrate through soft power, but with the Federations grip tightening, who knows how long it can hold out?
The Earth Federation has served as the elephant moose in the room for this document for good reason. In the years since its foundation, it has become the new superpower that has dominated the world of today, with some of its individual provinces alone holding greater economic and military strength than some nations. The first few decades saw monumental progress in its development, under the assistance of Avatar Korra, many provinces were brought back from ruin with many more becoming new bustling hubs of agriculture and trade. And with new advances in engineering many of its many provinces worked together to endeavour in immense megaprojects that brought even the walls of Ba Sing Se to shame; between the Serpent Megadam, the Crystal Spire and Greater Omashu, what would have been impossible only a few decades previously has proven almost trivial.
Yet, behind the veneer of prosperity and progress reveals a new and terrible tyranny that has befallen its people. After the collapse of the Earth Empire and during the Federation's early days, the power vacuum was quickly filled both by Republic corporations including Future Industries and Cabbage Corp, but by new and aspiring enterprises that found new places and methods to extract wealth, a prospect that Korra had previously overlooked due in both to her financial and personal connections with such corporations. By the time the Sozist attack occured, many megacorps had alrerady carved out their own minor pseudo-kingdoms out of entire provinces dotted with corporate towns that shackle it's citizens in debt, with any trace of dissidence being brainwashed away from them despite Korras massive push towards criminalising the technology a year after the Federations founding. Infamously, the Tu Zin region began expanding its borders into the Si Wong Desert, forcibly converting the sandbender tribes that remained to their culture and forcibly expelling the rest; such an incident isn't unique either, with most of the other provinces, even Zaofu, carving up pieces of the desert between each other, yet the motives behind such actions are unknown. As well as brainwashing and territorial squabbles, other provinces on the western edge have grown paranoid towards the Sozist movement ever since the missile attack on Ba Sing Se, while the worst of the attack was avoided thanks to a team of Metalbenders and Lightbenders including Suyin Beifong and her twin sons, one did make it through, destroying part of the outer ring west of Lake Laogai killing thousands; this attack rekindled the fear long thought lost with the Hundred Year War, resulting in massive arms buildup by provinces such as Zigan and Omashu. Should the Sozists seize power, it looks inevitable that war will break out if not between the Fire Nation and the Earth Federation, then at least from its western zones.
In addition, it has been no secret that many of the previously mentioned megaprojects have been built under the blood of hundreds of Earthbenders, with thousands brought into horribly lopsided contracts that resulted in them being worked nearly as animals, spending well around 80 hours a week levelling mountains and overturning fields to work the ground, under conditions so poor many died either from exhaustion, starvation, or were simply killed for "violating" the terms of their contracts, with the few that survive escaping either to friendly provinces such as Zaofu or Whaletail Island, or to other nations. This newly emerging persecution of Earthbenders in what are known as "blood contracts'' are not restricted to construction: Such contracts can hold all range of dangerous fields of work from security, mercenary, maintenance to research as test subjects; in one particularly damning report that emerged from the Hongzie corporation, Earthbenders were intentionally poisoned with quicksilver in an attempt to seek out the next Avatar; hundreds died with not even an effort made to compensate the grieving families, with one leaked letter saying "Only the Avatar is worth our interests, the others are not worth losing money over.". While unclear, some speculate that this new variety of oppression against Earthbenders has been the newest evolution of Equalism that first arose with Amon, this revived cause has grown like wildfire across the Federation even beyond mere brainwashing, with many benders, particularly Earthbenders being discriminated even beyond the blood contracts, with lines of reasoning ranging from strength-based to morality-based talking points: An example of the former being that benders should be strong enough to break the contracts whenever they want and the latter being that were they to run free, they would oppress the Federation wholesale; both arguments obviously proving fallacious yet they hold strong among the people. As to whether such discrimination was orchestrated by the megacorps or if it arose naturally remains unknown.
And with all these conditions considered, it brings a massive question mark to the next election coming in two years; as previously mentioned, the megacorps have long since dominated the Senate, lobbying the various representatives to pull their wishes, yet in all the years since its founding the actual position of President as well as a great deal of their political machinery has yet been beyond their reach, but with the disappearance of the new avatar and the growing power of some of the largest megacorps such as Hongzie, Maosha, Long Corp, Heishu Inc. and, of course, Future Industries, it has long been believed that the one or more CEOs are directly going to run for election and, while previous election cycles have seen CEOs try to run for office with no success, the prospect grows ever greater with each year of a corporate president taking office; should one of the Megacorps take control of the Earth Federation and start instituting their policies as law, there is no telling what the fate of the people and the state may be.
And yet, with everything going on, many experts, there are other people so quick to dismiss these affairs to address a greater and more catastrophic threat. Ever since the closing years of Avatar Aang many scholars had noticed a greater agitation of the many spirits present in the world, while initially observed in the Southern Water Tribe and later alleviated slightly by Korra during the Spirit crisis in 171AG, the increased destruction of natural habitats around the world to make way for agriculture and urban sprawl has resulted in what can only best be described as gradual detachment of the Spirit World from the physical world, spirits are increasingly agitated or are leaving through the spirit portals en masse, benders are being born at an ever slower number and weaker than their peers, the portals are shrinking and days have even been observed to have been going shorter at a rate of a minute a year. The effects of what has been called the Estrangement have already began to take effect as crop yields steadily fallen along with an increased frequency of earthquakes across the globe, even in areas previously never considered earthquake prone; This phenomenon has been largely overlooked however by the greater community, who seem more intent than ever to increase urban sprawl, which has been most observed in Ba Sing Se, which has doubled in size since the fall of the Earth Empire, which has also brought to question the stability of its underground aquifers, putting a water crisis on the Federation Capital as well as potential food shortages. Experts fear that unless something deep changes, the Estrangement could complete in its entirety, completely detaching the Spirit world, which would lead to a mass death of both flora and fauna as nothing grows again; bending would also be impossible in an estranged world even if anyone was likely to survive in a world plunged to eternal darkness.
And thus, 18 long years passed after Korra's death. The world fell silent over the many years as, even with the best spirit seekers and the prying eyes of both the White Lotus and the megacorps, the next Avatar was nowhere to be found; many lost hope, either thinking that Unalaq's actions had forever ended the cycle, or that the Avatar was quickly killed or captured by one such megacorp or a Sozist cell. But, in the forests of Linkou Island on the southern reachesd of the Earth Federation, a blazing inferno would introduce the world to the new Avatar.
Richu was always a troubled man even from the beginning, born among one of a pair of twin brothers as the child of a Si Wong refugee as a father and the daughter of an oil chief as a mother, his life was beset by neglect and repression as his parents were forced into low-paying jobs to make ends meet. As a result, he had lived a highly isolated life, with his only meaningful company being his brother, as even to this day and contrary to every avatar before him for half a millennia, Richu does not have an animal companion. Education, he remarked, felt alienating to his being and any kind of friendship he did strike proved fleeting, instead, he'd spend his days learning alone and communing with the remaining spirits that lived on the island, his only friend and companion was his twin brother, Rilo, who, as a much more gregarious and proactive individual, served as his only support in an island full of harsh words and harsher expectations.
Both Richus and Rilos earthbending abilities were always kept hidden as children, as even in Linkou island the Megacorps and triads were not above giving blood contracts to minors; instead, Richu ended up a proficient sandbender thanks to his father's notes and what few lessons he gave, he remarked about how he would spend his afternoons learning on the island beaches and in the depths of the sea, making flurries of sand in artistic displays only he could enjoy; his underwhelming earthbending however was made up for with a unique intelligence when it came to central planning, stealth and manipulation, being able to engineer most situations to his advantage. Rilo on the other hand acquired a unique knack for lavabending thanks both to his research on the matter and from the recent edu-tainment movers directed by Master Bolin, though, much like Richu, could only be appreciated by himself.
Richu was 18 when his nature as Avatar was revealed, in events that aren't yet fully understood, with the only eyewitnesses to the event being Richu himself and two bystanders. He remarked that, when he was restrained by two muggers during a walk home through the Nantou forests, he ended up in a fit of rage, breathing fire at the assailants and causing the greatest fire in the island ever since the Fire Nation occupation hundreds of years back. In shock, he ran home, bid a quick farewell to his family and fled the island, barely having the time to pack.
By the time Richu turned himself in to the White Lotus in an office all the way in Sen Bai, they knew that getting the Avatar up to speed would be a great challenge, he was already 2 years behind on training and his shy disposition proved very with any press conferences that were held, which only got worse as he learned more of his Avatar nature, despite boxes worth of previous notes, recordings and ornaments that Korra left behind as preparation for the next Avatar, none of them, he felt, could ever be a substitute for what was truly lost, that being the ability to reconnect with past Avatars, Richu despaired at the prospect, he was badly trained, had little company, felt hated and misunderstood by nearly everyone around him yet simultaneously expecting him to save the world and he couldn't even ask the his past lives the real questions that came to his mind, questions that none of the notes had answered.
The initial arrangement after the grand ceremony announcing Richu to the world was that his earthbending training would be carried out behind closed doors under Master Bolin, with no additional press conferences held. Despite some initial successes, the White Lotus would come under scrutiny from both within and without; the press grew livid over the lack of information about Richu's status, with many even questioning the validity of Richus state as Avatar. Within, Master Bolin openly expressed concern about the stress inflicted on Richu from the accelerated training regimen, with earthbending classes going on 9 hours a day, 7 days a week, one such leaked conversation stressing that Richus performance was visibly worsening due to overwork and burnout, instead suggesting that the Avatar take a more passive role, better utilising his talent for central planning, strategy and general knowledge to leverage his status as Avatar to inspire change and propose well thought out alternatives to the status quo rather than impose it by force.
The verdict from the White Lotus however, particularly from Master Jinora, was that the world could wait no longer for the Avatar to return balance to the world. Darkness was coming, and they needed the master of all four elements, not some loose-lipped architect to return balance to the world. Yet, as they would find out, fate is not something that can be forced on someone, and it wouldn't take long for the White Lotus to realise this.
The spark that would burn the metaphorical bridge down would happen on his meeting with Katara shortly before her death at the unimaginable age of 135, while only Richu fully knows what transpired in that room, it was certain that what the last member of Avatar Aang's group spoke to him hit hard. Only two days later, in the dead of night, Avatar Richu fled from Republic City, with no indication of where he may have gone and a single video recording left behind, outlining that, while he knew he needed to continue his training, it would not be with the White Lotus, and he would leave the world to its fate for, in his words, "Anyone who expected me to just fix the worlds issues with a snap of my fingers was a deluded fool. Learn to fix your own world issues and see hope for the world in each other, because it is clear now that there is no place for the Avatar in modern society."
The effects of the Avatars disappearance was severe and immediate, a multinational manhunt began immediately for the manhunt while many Federation senators were quick to label Richu as a false avatar, with them immediately pushing charges of fraud and arson on him should he ever return. The Sozists also labelled him as false, further pushing the narrative they sheltered the true Avatar. However the Northern Water tribe are insistent on Richu's status as Avatar while simultaneously refusing to state any further evidence. As for the megacorps, some have announced their own claims to have found the Avatar, while other more concerning documents have suggested that others have been making projects to "make their own", with little actually happening beyond paper.
Now, three years after his disappearance, the gears are turning once again. His twin brother, Rilo, has shown to have left Linkou island and is now on the move with agents of all factions, White Lotus, corporate and Sozist alike hot on his heels, with all parties all but certain he is searching for the Avatar, but to what end and for what purpose? It would appear that, in a new age of deceit, technology and chaos, a tale of two brothers is about to be played out, with its actors dictating the very fate of this world.
FOOTNOTE: This document as of now is merely a lore summary, I have no current intentions of writing this tale in full as such a project would be too grand to complete in full. Consider this a proof of concept and I hope you have enjoyed this interpretation of how things could turn out after LoK. - S
