After the training session was finished, Zia approached Hiroshi and Amon, who had been watching in silence for a while. Amon had made a promise to meet Zia in person, after all, and he was a man of his word. The former Kyoshi Warrior was dressed in a grey training uniform.
"Mr. Hiroshi," the chi-blocker greeted the Equalist leader. "And Amon. It's an honour to finally meet you in person. You and our leader seem to be getting along." She extended her arm to him.
"We are indeed, Zia," Amon responded, shaking Zia's hand briefly. He rarely moved more than he strictly needed to. "Hiroshi agreed to commit his resources to my plans."
Hiroshi nodded. He still looked distracted and faraway, but he felt better. He'd made his decision – now he simply had to see it through. A weight had been lifted from him.
"Indeed. Amon convinced me that his ideas align with the Equalists' goals, and that we can benefit from working together. We will need to discuss how to split leadership between the two of us. But that will come later."
"The troops have been talking," Zia remarked. "An official statement would ease their minds. Put an end to all the gossip."
"We will address the Equalists directly soon enough," Amon said. "I will explain everything. But for now… I believe that you expressed a wish to test your skill against mine."
"Damn right I do," Zia responded, grinning. "They say you're like no other chi-blocker. Only one way to see if it's true."
"Indeed." Amon straightened his shoulders and strode into the training hall. "Clear a space, everyone. What are your terms, Zia?"
"We fight until one of us is on the floor or yields," the instructor said, standing in the middle of the hall and assuming a stance. Amon faced her, but his stance was relaxed and casual. He simply nodded and waited for her move.
Zia circled Amon slowly, his stillness surprising her somewhat. Finally, she struck – lunging forward, she closed the distance between them and aimed a series of rapid jabs and punches at his arms and shoulders. They were not intended to hit, merely check his defences and build up momentum.
Amon's response was to back away, performing a series of small, narrow dodges and blocks. He moved out of the way of Zia's punches or intercepted them and redirected them slightly to the side. After stemming the woman's advance this way, he aimed several extremely precise jabs at her elbows, shoulders and stomach.
Zia was surprised by Amon's fighting style. The chi-blockers had trained with each other and the shock weapon-wielding Equalists, in order to avoid being unfamiliar with fighting other non-benders. But the masked man's methods were like nothing she'd seen before. It felt as though he hardly moved at all, but her attacks struck air or were deflected. His prediction of her movements bordered on precognition. His flow from one form and stance to another seemed effortless. He wasn't just a chi-blocker. What he was doing was… something else. Something more, perhaps.
However, it took more than an unfamiliar, strangely effective fighting style to get the better of Zia. The former Kyoshi Warrior threw her body to the side when Amon launched his attack, rolling out of the way of the jabs. She then got back to her feet like an uncoiling spring, aiming a sweeping kick at Amon's arms. She intended to knock them out of the way and leave him open for further attacks.
Once more, Amon reacted so quickly that it seemed he had seen the attack coming in advance. He leaned back and executed a vicious, precise jab at the leg, just below the knee. Zia staggered as numbness spread towards her leg, but she turned her fall into a spin, nimbly stepping away from Amon. She then began to circle him slowly, waiting for feeling to return to her leg.
But this time Amon chose to go on the offensive. He rushed forward, attacking Zia with a series of rapid, precise blows of his hands. However, Zia was not taken by surprise, nor was she unprepared for the assault. She somersaulted above Amon's head, launching a sweeping kick at his legs as she landed. The masked fighter stumbled back slightly as he turned to face his opponent and avoided the knock-down manoeuvre. To see Amon's momentum actually staggered and thrown off was shocking to the onlookers. Zia grinned and pressed her advantage with another sweeping kick and a series of punches to his right arm.
Her opening lasted only for a moment, however. Amon fluidly stepped out of the way of the attack and brought his hand down on Zia's hand. Numbness spread through it, and the chi-blocker hissed. She didn't back down, however, instead shifting her posture and performing a spinning kick with her right leg, followed by an uppercut with her right arm, once again pushing Amon back.
The battle went on like this. Amon was incredibly quick and seemed to predict Zia's actions with enormous alacrity. His own movements were sparse and controlled, but precise and sudden. He flowed around attacks and responded with surgically precise counters. Zia, to contrast, was aggressive and forceful. She spun and jumped around Amon, raining blows upon him. She proved a match for him, but more often than not, she was on the defensive, and eventually began to tire. In a battle of attrition, Amon would outlast her. Eventually, Zia stopped and raised her hand.
"That's enough," she said, breathing heavily. "You really are good. I've never seen anyone fight like you do. It felt like you saw my attacks before I made them."
"Nothing so outlandish, Zia," Amon said. If he was tired by the fight, he did not show it. "The human body is a complex system of intricate connections and dependencies, both material and spiritual. Someone with a deep understanding of the flow and balance of the body can predict how it will move faster than any martial artist."
"That explains your performance against those Agni Kais you fought," Zia said. "People said they'd never stood a chance. You might even be a match for Zolt," she added, touching her scar. "I almost had him, but I had no idea it was possible for a firebender to generate lightning so quickly. He nearly fried me right there."
"The art of lightning generation has certainly spread," Amon observed. "But while many firebenders can produce lightning, only a few can do so as quickly as members of the Fire Nation royal family, making it such a lethal tool. Lightning Bolt Zolt is one of them. And yet, he uses it to bully and threaten defenceless non-benders. Such is the true face of the ancestral art of the Fire Nation."
A murmur of assent went through the ranks of the chi-blockers. They certainly shared the sentiment.
"So is what you just said how you can take away bending? Will you take Zolt's bending, too? There's few people in the city who deserve it more," a young, hot-headed man said. The other chi-blockers once again nodded their agreement.
"Eventually," Amon said. "You need to understand, all of you, that once the news of my power spread, once I reveal it to everyone… there will be no turning back. It will mean war. I will not do it until I am sure we can win it."
The chi-blockers nodded, understanding.
"So now, I will depart with Hiroshi to make plans for just that. Go back to your training. You will -make full use of it before long. That I promise you. But before that…" He looked across the crowd of students, Zia and Hiroshi. "I will be giving a speech tomorrow evening. It's been a while since I addressed the Equalists this way. And I invite you all to be there. That includes you, Hiroshi."
Hiroshi stroked his beard.
"Well… I suppose I'll be able to make it there, if I'm lucky. I'll have to come up with an excuse so as to avoid suspicion… but I should be able to make it."
Hiroshi returned home, thinking about how to explain his absence. It was getting harder, he knew. He'd always had a hands-off approach to leading the Equalists, since he had a reputation to maintain, and couldn't raise suspicion. But dealing with Amon required him to leave at strange hours. He knew it wouldn't be long before people became concerned. Especially Asami.
As if the universe at large responded to his guilt over lying to his daughter, Hiroshi was greeted by an unusual sight as he drove his satomobile onto the grounds of his mansion. The courtyard was a construction side. Asami was hard at work putting together a strange, long frame out of wood, canvas and rubber. It had wings, and somewhat resembled an airbender glider in construction.
"Asami? What… what are you doing with all this?" he asked, bemused.
"Oh, hi dad!" Asami said, looking up from tying several ropes together at the base of the construction. Then she looked around with embarrassment. "Sorry about the mess. But none of the available workshops were big enough."
"Might as well use this courtyard for something," Hiroshi said, jokingly. The mansion was Yasuko's idea. She had always had more of an appreciation for luxury that he had. If it had been up to him, their home would have been smaller. He certainly didn't mind it, though. "Is that what I think t is? A flying machine?"
Asami nodded, grinning. "It is! I know it's been tried before, but could never be made to work. But two days ago I saw Councilman Tenzin give his children gliding lessons, and I just felt like I'd love to fly too."
"Well, the Mechanist did come up with gliders by the end of the War," Hiroshi pointed out.
"Oh, I know. I'm working on those principles. But those didn't really fly, not like the airbenders do. We need a non-bending means of propulsion."
"That has always been the problem," Hiroshi said, pacing around the contraption. A sleek, minimalistic shape. More reminiscent of Yasuko's designs than his. "Any engine that could conceivably lift a machine is too heavy to actually fly. How do you plan to solve it?"
"I have some ideas. As I told you, I got the idea while watching airbenders. They fly by bending the air around them. I need to do something similar. Something to move the air around the machine. If I keep working on it, I'm sure I'll come up with something."
Hiroshi smiled, broadly. "I'm sure you will. I'll look forward to seeing your progress." Asami's approach to design had been so far brilliant, but scatter-brained. She could rarely stay concentrated on a project for long. However, this time it felt different. She had a passion about her that reminded him of himself when he worked on the satomobile. "Don't worry about the courtyard. We can have it cleaned up later. I'll be leaving tomorrow afternoon, but I trust you not to make too much of a mess." And here it was. After a relaxed moment of enjoying his daughter's work, the other half of his life was back.
Asami sighed. "You're running yourself ragged, dad," she said. Fortunately, she didn't seem interested in the exact reason for his absence. "You need to take a break now and then."
"I know, Asami. I know. But the automotive market is getting more and more competitive. Cabbage Corp is flooding the market with cheap products. I need to make sure we stay ahead of them." As usual, he coated the lies with just enough truth to make them easy to swallow.
His daughter nodded glumly, then brightened up. "Well, I know just the thing to help you relax. How about we go see a pro-bending match next week? The finals are approaching and everyone is so excited."
Hiroshi faltered for a moment. He'd never been a fan of pro-bending. It felt like a mindless sort of entertainment, glorifying shallow, showy bending athletes. It was also uncomfortable to watch non-benders idolize them. But as he looked at Asami's earnest face, he found it impossible to say no to her. And she was right. They had hardly seen each other for a while now. What use would a revolution be if he couldn't enjoy spending time with his own child?
"Of course. It won't be any problem to arrange my schedule. And it'll be good for us to go out together. Good luck with your machine, darling."
The old, abandoned clubhouse now held rows upon rows of Equalists, steaded on chairs, stools and benches. They were all waiting for Amon to appear on what once served as the stage for bands that played in the establishment. Hiroshi himself was seated comfortably near the back of the room. He did not wish to draw undue attention to himself.
The murmurs and mutters audible throughout the room ceased abruptly when Amon took the stage. Hiroshi had never witnessed him speak before, but it was obvious he was at home there. Even if he did not have the power to take bending away, his speeches could galvanize people.
"Good evening, my fellow Equalists," he said, taking up the microphone. "I am glad to see so many of you here tonight. Our movement is growing, and it will soon grow beyond anything the benders could possibly hope to contain."
"I certainly appreciate that you have chosen to come here, rather than watch tonight's pro-bending match," Amon then added. Hiroshi stirred. He had not expected the masked man to talk about… sport.
"Pro-bending has certainly gained a lot of popularity in these past few years, hasn't it? It is now the most prominent sport of the United Republic, and Republic City in particular. All the other disciplines have fallen to the wayside… practiced and followed by enthusiasts. Pro-bending is a sport for the masses. And what does that tell us?"
No one could question that. But few in the crowd had any idea where Amon was going with this. Hiroshi certainly did not.
"The premier entertainment of our nation revolves around bending. Bending athletes fighting other bending athletes, and being idolized for it. But while benders can dream about joining a pro-bending team and becoming famous themselves, where does it leave us non-benders? Worshipping people that the society already puts above us?"
He paused for another moment, as if letting his listeners digest it. He paced up and down the stage.
"This way, non-benders of this city are taught to admire and cheer for something they can never be. It might not look like it, but it's an insidious way of instilling inferiority in us non-benders. We're told to cheer for pro-benders while remaining satisfied that we can never be like them. It's yet another path closed to us. If even the city's favourite sport belongs to benders and benders alone, what does that say about how society treats non-benders?"
Hiroshi was feeling very uncomfortable. He shifted in his seat and loosened his collar. Just the day before he had agreed to go with Asami to a pro-bending match. Was he, then, participating in an event that humiliated non-benders like him? He took a deep breath to calm himself down and kept listening to Amon.
"But that is simply the order of the society that we live in. The one the great Avatars built for us. The only real opposition to pro-bending comes from the conservative benders, who go on about how it's a shallow mockery of the noble bending traditions. I truly do not see how it's different from the position bending has always held in human society. A tool for the strong to keep the weak in their place. We should not stand for it any more than we stand for the triads' violence or the outright discrimination of non-benders in the army and police. It might not harm us directly, but it keeps us down all the same."
An indignant murmur went through the crowd. The Equalists were either riled up, agreeing with Amon's accusation wholeheartedly, or guilty, like Hiroshi. But none felt confident enough to challenge Amon. To do so would be to contradict the message they bought into, that benders kept them down and oppressed them. Amon simply listed another way in which they did so – just one that they had never considered before. Pro-bending was just a game… but maybe that was what made it so dangerous.
"What should we do about it, you might ask? Right now, all we can do is not support it. We should not go on pro-bending matches, buy merchandise or partake in the personality cult grown around those people. Eventually, the sport will need to be exposed for what it is and put in its place. But we cannot do it yet. A struggle for equality is a long and difficult process. Sacrifices always need to be made. Let us not lose sight of that."
Hiroshi nodded absently to no one in particular. Yes, sacrifices needed to be made. And one such sacrifice was pretending to share Asami's enthusiasm. Not only would it deflect suspicion off him, but it would make her happy. And her happiness was the most important thing in his world. Eventually, she would understand. But not yet.
The appearance of Hiroshi Sato and his daughter on a pro-bending match caused a bit of a stir. People were used to seeing Asami there, but Hiroshi had never attended them before. He smiled and waved towards cameras. Much as he disliked that particular brand of journalism, he'd had to put up with it ever since making his fortune. And after founding the Equalists, he had to put on another mask for the public.
"Mister Sato!" A particularly pushy journalist managed to get through the crowd and ask him a direct question. "You've never attended a pro-bending match before. Why the sudden change of heart, especially given your anti-bender sentiments?"
"I am here on my daughter's invitation," Hiroshi responded, smiling pleasantly at the self-important, inquisitive man. "The supposed anti-bender sentiments that the press continues to ascribe to me have nothing to do with it. Pro-bending is a sport, and I am merely here to enjoy it."
"No matter what Tarrlok says, 'non-bender' does not mean 'Equalist'," Asami said, incensed, as they walked away from the reporters.
"I swear, it's like all the press is dancing to his tune nowadays," she went on as she ascended the stairs to the viewing booth Hiroshi had reserved. "He's trying to paint all non-benders who aren't happy with how things are as Equalist sympathizers."
"Tarrlok's short-sighted pride will be his own undoing," Hiroshi remarked conciliatorily. "He's growing too bold, and it won't be long before he gets in over his head. For now, let's forget about that odious upstart and enjoy the game."
Asami smiled and nodded in agreement. As the small family sat down on their chairs, Hiroshi surveyed the pro-bending arena. He had never been inside before, but now he had a good view from the VIP booth. An elevated platform above a pool of water, surrounded by spectators. Earth discs for the earthbenders and running water for the waterbenders. Firebenders needed no props. Of course, airbenders were too few in number to participate, and only one of them was old enough. Besides, it was common knowledge that Councilman Tenzin greatly disapproved of pro-bending. He did so steadfastly hold on to the so-called traditions of bending.
Then, the teams were delivered onto the arena by lifts. On one side, the Wulong Armadillo Lions, a new team that quickly ascended through the ranks. On the other, the White Falls Wolfbats, the reigning champions. The latter team received a much more powerful applause. They were, evidently, popular. Asami did not seem to share the enthusiasm, however.
"I don't like them," she said in response to Hiroshi's quirked eyebrow. "They're great players, but… the image they cultivate puts me off. Their waterbender, Tahno, is the most arrogant bully you'll ever meet."
Hiroshi nodded, satisfied. His daughter was too smart to get fully caught up in this sham. Perhaps showing her the truth of it would not be difficult. For now, he did his best to concentrate on the game with the air of a dignified man of society. The game began and the Armadillo Lions quickly gained the advantage. It appeared as though the champions would lose this match, but they regained their momentum soon enough.
Soon, however, he began to notice an irregularity. It was subtle, but his trained engineering eye could spot such disruptions with great precision. The Wolfbats were cheating. Hiroshi had studied the rules of the game following Asami's invitation and they were breaking them. Only firebenders were allowed headshots, and yet the Wolfbat waterbender and earthbender would sometimes strike at their enemies' heads, in conjunction with their waterbenders' more legal moves, so as to make it unclear what had really happened. Likewise, both waterbenders and firebenders were forbidden from projecting blasts of water or fire for longer than a second, thus restricting them to short whips and bursts. However, the Wolfbats would prolong their attacks for a second more, forcing their opponents backwards and off-balance – perfectly setting them up for a legal attack to knock them back a zone. Hiroshi even thought he saw Tahno – whose appearance and behaviour inclined him to think Asami had been overly charitable in her description – bend water into ice under his opponents' feet from time to time, bending it back into a liquid quickly enough for it to be hard to notice.
It was, Hiroshi had to admit, skilfully done. The Wolfbats did not openly flaunt the rules, but skirted them just enough to give themselves an advantage. Nonetheless, if he could catch them red-handed, it was virtually impossible for it to have escaped the judges' notice. Which meant the judges were ignoring it. And that would mean the entire sport was a sham on a rather large scale. Which would make it even worse than Amon claimed. Did Amon know, come to think of it? Hiroshi decided to ask him at some point.
In the present, he watched the game impassively and conversed with Asami in the breaks. She appeared unaware of the Wolfbats' cheating.
"They're jerks, but they do put on a good show," she conceded as they made their way back home. "I do hope someone wins the championship from them this year or the next, though. It's dull to watch them win all the time. And it makes some people say the whole thing is set up. They might be right," she said sadly.
"What makes you say so?" Hiroshi asked cautiously as he got into the car.
"I'm pretty sure I've seen them use illegal moves," Asami said as they drove away. "But the judges either said nothing or decided in their favour. I don't like what this suggests."
"I don't really know," her rather responded, although internally, he was both glad and concerned. "It's the first match I saw, after all. If you suspect something like that, I encourage you to be careful. Don't rush into anything. Observe and try to spot the threads. There's a lot of money involved in pro-bending, and if there really is corruption, the people responsible won't take it lightly."
Asami was silent for a while.
"I know, dad. Waging a personal crusade against cheating at sports is pretty ridiculous. But it's not fair to all the people who get excited about it. What happened to this city? It's either corruption, or the Equalists." She sighed. "I'm going to get back to my flying machine tomorrow. Machines are easier to deal with."
"That they are," Hiroshi said, nodding. It was certainly true. But he no longer had the option of only caring about his machines and his family. Then again, if Amon was willing to take the reins of the Equalists… that would be one of the benefits. He could take a backseat.
Hiroshi wasn't sure what prompted him to dust off some old blueprints of his later that evening. It was Amon's talk of a revolution, perhaps. The idea had been discarded as too large-scale and destructive for the Equalists' vigilante action. But if there was to be a war… on the other hand, that was hardly the only problem with the design. Hiroshi simply could not afford to build it in secret, and he lacked a key component. Nonetheless, he decided to show it to Amon, just to see what he thought about it.
"I received your message, Hiroshi," Amon said, entering one of the secret Equalist weapon labs with the Lieutenant following closely. "It appears you wanted to present an invention of yours?"
"I'm not sure if I'd call it an invention. It's just a design. But yes," Hiroshi responded, nodding. "It's good to have you here as well, Lieutenant. This might use the expertise of a military man."
Without further introduction, Hiroshi pointed the two men to the blueprint pinned to a nearby drawing board. It showed a large machine, composed of a one-person cabin resting on heavy tank treads. The cabin was equipped with a pair of powerful arms. Notes, references and cross-sections showed that the machine had been intended to be driven by a single pilot, and that the arms were equipped with a variety of weapons. It was equipped with a powerful engine.
"That is an interesting design," Lieutenant remarked. "It's like the Fire Nation and Earth Kingdom tanks. Except it's smaller."
Hiroshi nodded. "Quite. And equipped with non-bending weapons. All in all, I think it promises to make things significantly more equal against more powerful benders."
"But it's still in design stage," Amon pointed out.
"Well, yes. There are problems. The first is with supplies. It would be very expensive to build even one of those, by any of my estimates. It might not be such a problem if I didn't have to do it in secret. But as things are, I doubt I would be able to build many of those before someone noticed that I'm spending vast sums on something."
"So it would still be possible to build some. What, then, are the other reasons?"
"There are two of them. First, I deemed it too much of an escalation for what we've been doing so far. That might no longer be an issue, given your plans. But the other, bigger reason, is the impracticality of fielding those in a city which employs an entire police force of metalbenders."
"He's right," Lieutenant said, nodding. "One of Beifong's metalbenders could open one of those like a tin can if they got close enough."
"Indeed. So far, we've avoided clashing with them. But I have a feeling that at the point we fielded such machines, it would no longer be possible."
Amon looked at the blueprints for a while, resting his hands on the board.
"You wouldn't present me with this problem if you didn't have some solutions in mind, Hiroshi," he said, matter-of-factly. "So let's hear them."
Hiroshi was pensive for a few moments. When he spoke, his voice was uncertain.
"There is one thing that could work. The Earth Queen had her engineers design a metal that is immune to metalbending. As I understand it, it admixtures the steel with other minerals to create an alloy which their bending cannot affect. It's all about impurities in the metal, you see. The process her engineers developed removes them. The resulting metal isn't significantly different from regular steel… except for being unaffected by metalbending. Of course, the cost of production is notably higher."
"Why did the Earth Queen need such a material?" Lieutenant asked with raised eyebrows. Hiroshi shrugged.
"I believe she takes it an affront that the United Republic makes such wide-spread use of the art she believes to be the heritage of the Earth Kingdom. You know how childish that woman is. But for once, her fits of temper might be useful. I have received information that the royal engineers are going to come to the Earth Kingdom embassy in a week's time. They will have the metal with them. If we could get the schematic and some samples, I should be able to reverse-engineer it."
"But you haven't done it yet," Amon pointed out.
"I've tried different ways, but the schematics and the metal itself are guarded jealously. The only way remaining is simply stealing it. And that's a complicated operation in more ways than one."
"Complicated, maybe, but not impossible," Lieutenant said. "We do have a group of skilled and determined people at our disposal. I doubt many of them will blanch at the prospect of stealing from the Earth Queen, either. Everyone knows how she treats her subjects."
"It would, however, be a diplomatic incident waiting to happen," Hiroshi pointed out. "Robbing the embassy of the Earth Queen in Republic City? She would be livid."
Lieutenant shrugged dismissively.
"That would be the Council's problem, not ours. We're anonymous and can't be brought to any sort of trial… that's presuming they were to find out we did it. So it'd be the Council who would have to deal with the situation. They could use a real job to do for once, instead of sitting there like stuffed cat owls."
"It will be dangerous, no doubt," Amon said. He had been silent for a while. "But as I said, Hiroshi… sacrifices will need to be made. And risks will need to be taken. Nothing less will do to bring our world equality. We need the best weapons we can muster, so we'll do what we need to do in order to build them."
"I will lead the team," Lieutenant said. "We need the best for this, and I have experience with such operations. I'll take three or four people with me. Not chi-blockers. If we use them, we might as well leave a note that the Equalists did it."
Hiroshi was silent for a while, his thoughts racing. He didn't expect Amon and Lieutenant to enact this plan so quickly… or did he? He wasn't sure anymore. Maybe he had been naïve. If the revolution was to happen, drastic steps would need to be taken. And, really… the technology would be better used by the Equalists than to feed the Earth Queen's ego.
"Very well. I'll leave it to your expertise, Lieutenant," he simply said. "I will be ready for when you deliver the materials and plans, to begin development as quickly as possible. It will take time nonetheless."
"We are operating on a largely unknown timetable," Amon pointed out. "But it can't be helped. We must simply adapt. If the machines can't be finished by the time the Avatar arrives here, we will adjust. Meanwhile, I will direct the ire of our followers towards the Earth Queen in preparation for the robbery. She deserves it in any case, since she's an imbecile ruling by inheritance and the Dai Li thugs. And as I told you, this revolution will happen in the hearts and minds as much as it will on the streets."