"Trust is built with consistency." – Bo Bennett

I just wanted to let you guys know that I've made rather big changes to the overall story and would appreciate it if you guys would let me know what you think of them. This notice will be taken down and replaced with the newest chapter as I've nearly completed it.

Tonraq followed the young warrior through the ruined village. More than anything, he was relieved to hear they managed to anybody who survived this horrific attack. As they weaved through the blown-up structures and corpses, the two men arrived at what had been likely a family's home.

Now, it was nothing more than shattered pieces of ice and broken furniture. The worst part was seeing the bodies of a man, a woman, and likely their oldest child lying dead on the floor of their home. They were butchered like animals. The image of the menacing creature popped into his mind. Tonraq put that aside for the time being. Hopefully, the child can shed some light on this atrocity.

"Where are they?"

"We took the girl out back. None of us thought it was right for her to see what happened to her family," The young man stated, a pained expression on his face. Then, he spoke in a low voice. "What could be so cruel as to cut down people like they're livestock? Do...Do you think the creature was alone?"

"I don't know."

Tonraq hated the uncertainty about this situation. That's why he needed to speak to the child and find out what happened to this village. For a moment, an image of a compound in a similar state to this village formed in his mind. His daughter was cut down by the creature responsible. He balled his hand into a fist.

"But we're going to find out and put an end to this threat."

The two men carefully walked around the corpses and headed through a gap in the wall, leading them to the other side of the bombed-out home. That's when Tonraq saw a girl – maybe around 12 – sitting on the ground with her head on her knees. An occasional sob could be heard coming from the girl. The two men were saddened by the sight.

However, Tonraq needed to know what happened.

"Go get a few others to help you prepare the bodies," He whispered into the man's ear. "They shouldn't be left here to freeze. I'll stay here and talk to the girl."

The man nodded, agreeing to his request. A moment later, Tonraq was alone with the child. He walked up to her and got down on one knee. Words formed in his head about how her parents and older sibling did the right thing in hiding her from the creature who attacked them. 'But will she accept that?' Most children will see the world very differently from an adults, including death.

"Hello there."

Initially, the girl ignored his greeting. She only further curled into a ball as if she was trying to hide. The man knew this wasn't going to be easy getting through to a child after a traumatic event like this.

"My name is Tonraq. What's your name?"

The child, however, stirred a little bit when she heard his name. Slowly, the girl raised her head. One of her eyes became visible to him. It was an orange-like color. However, the sadness in them angered him.

No child should ever have such a look in their eyes. 'Even if they're the Avatar.'

"...Tonraq?" She quietly asked, her voice was barely above a whisper.

He nodded, "Yes, I am."

Without saying another word, the girl threw herself and wrapped her arms around his waist. The girl buried her face into his chest and began to wail. Other than placing a hand on her shoulder, the Chief of the Southern Water Tribe didn't move as he allowed the girl to cry. While it's been years since he last did this for his daughter, the man couldn't deny he felt awful for what happened, especially to this child's family.

"I know today is a difficult day," Tonraq stated, doing his best to comfort the girl. "But I need your help in painting a picture of what unfolded here. You don't need to rush. Take your time."

The sobbing continued for a few minutes until nothing but hiccups could be heard. He felt the girl lean away from him. She looked up at his face with her bright orange eyes.

"E-Everything was normal," The girl explained, gripping his coat tightly. "But, by nightfall, I woke up to the sound of screaming. My...My father was the first to wake me up. He didn't say what was going on or why there was screaming. H-He just told me brother to protect my mother and I. Then...we heard them."

"Them?"

The little girl's eyes filled up with tears again as she said to him, "Creatures. They spoke to each other but the words and sounds they made...I've never heard anything like it. But, they...they were killing everyone they could find. Friends, family, neighbors. N-No one was spared. Not even our neighbor's newborn."

Disgust didn't begin to describe what the man felt inside. These abominations killed anything in sight, even babies. What would drive such creatures to do this?

"Did you see how many there were?"

The girl shook her head, "No."

"But there was more than one."

"Yes," She quietly muttered, tears starting to come down. "My father came back, but he was hurt. My mother tried to help him. Then, we saw it. One of those things came into our home. My brother burned away part of the wall. He told me to run. As far away as possible. A-And I did."

"You came back though."

Tears streamed down her as she choked up.

"I had to."

The girl buried her face into his chest.

He wanted to believe this was nothing more than a nightmare. A sick and twisted dream. Unfortunately, the dead creature lying on the edge of the village and the girl's story confirmed it was real. Monsters. A word Tonraq didn't use lightly, but the atrocity committed here can only be done by real monsters. This situation has taken a turn for the worse.

"Sir?"

Tonraq heard one of his men. He looked behind him and asked, "What is it?"

"A runner came with a message."

The grimace on the man's face told him everything. Another village was likely attacked recently, but he needed to hear it for himself.

"Another settlement?"

"Yes, sir."

"Is the runner still here?"

The man nodded.

"Tell him to head back," Tonraq ordered. "We need to warn the White Lotus about what's headed their way. I also need him do one more thing for me."

(X)

(Two Days Later)

Whenever she ended up in Harak's office, it meant she did something wrong or irritated him enough to earn a stern warning from the man. However, the moment she stepped inside the room, Korra knew that something was wrong. Not only was Katara already here, but even her fire-bending teacher was in the room as well. The twins came in right behind her.

Once the door closed, Harak started speaking.

"I'm going to go straight to the point; I have received a rather alarming message from Tonraq." Korra's eyes widened immediately upon hearing her father's name. "A village was attacked. Brutally. Outside of a single girl, the rest of the people were slaughtered. As for details regarding the vile individuals who committed such an atrocity, the information was...difficult to believe."

"Where's the village located?" Someone asked.

Harak folded his hands on the desk and answered, "Three days from our location. Unfortunately, I wish the bad news ended there, but Tonraq and his men were informed about another attack. This settlement is located only two days from our location." She saw him look directly at the twins. "The one we use regularly to obtain our supplies."

No one said a word as they understood perfectly what Harak was saying. Korra, on the other hand, was taken aback by the information, especially regarding the people slaughtered.

"What did my father say about the attackers?"

"During the search for survivors, your father and his men did find a body belonging to an attacker. The young girl who survived confirmed it was responsible," Harak informed her. "She also confirmed there were others as well. All of them took part in the killing. No one was spared. Man, woman, or child. The girl said it didn't matter who stood in front of them. They killed them all the same."

Everyone was either disgusted or angered by the tragedy. Korra, more than everyone here, could barely keep back her rage over the situation. The thought of so many lives snuffed didn't sit right with the new Avatar.

"So what are we going to do about it?"

"Korra!" Laya said harshly, grabbing her hand. "This is not the time!"

"People. My people are dead. Their killers are still out there. I am not staying behind these walls and letting someone else do my job. Is this not what I'm supposed to do as the Avatar? Prevent the deaths of more innocent people and bring these disgusting monsters down." She held nothing back during her tirade while glaring at Laya. "I don't care if it's dangerous. I'm going and none of you can talk me out of it."

At the moment, no one said a word. All of them remained quiet because, deep down, they knew she had every right to be angry about this entire situation. Korra was ready to walk and get ready for what was to come next, but she was stopped at the last moment by Katara.

"Korra, please wait."

"No, the longer we wait, the more people are going to die." She looked at Harak. "Tell my father I'll be joining him in a few days."

Harak shook his head, 'I'm afraid you're misunderstanding the point of this meeting, Korra. This is not to organize a response team and assist your father. No, he strictly ordered us, the White Lotus, to stay within these walls. The matter surrounding these creatures will be dealt with by him and his men. That means this business is officially an internal matter of the Southern Water Tribe. We would only hinder them by getting involved."

"You're lying."

"No, Korra, I'm not lying. Your father wants you safe, not out there fighting spirits only know what is behind these horrific attacks."

"And I don't care what my father wants you to do," She replied angrily, scowling at Harak. "I'm going whether anyone likes it or not. So don't even try to stop me."

"Do even know anything about the attackers?" Harak asked, frowning at her. "Their appearance? What they're capable of doing? There's a big difference between bravery and stupidity. You may not think so, but not being able to do so...is how they end up dying in a ditch."

The argument, unfortunately, didn't end there.

"Is that what cowards like to tell themselves when they stand on the sidelines."

Harak clenched his jaw, "I'd watch that mouth of yours."

"Or what?"

"Stop it. Both of you."

Katara cut into the tension with a firm voice. A rare sight that led to everyone focusing on the elderly woman sitting in a chair along the side of the room. Korra saw the disappointment in her eyes.

"But he…"

"But she…"

"I don't care," Katara interrupted them. "This is no way for either of you to act in this situation. Harak, you're a grown man. Not a petulant child. Everyone will be looking to you for leadership. Now starting your age. As for Korra, I expected a lot more out of you. I understand your desire to go out there and do everything you can to help. But we don't know everything about those who committed this heinous act, do we?"

Korra crossed her arms and muttered, "No."

"Then listen."

When the room became silent once more, Harak coughed into his hand before speaking.

"As I stated, Tonraq did describe the creatures. He said they easily towered over any normal man. They stood over several feet, possessed four mandibles instead of a normal mouth, and wielded weapons he'd never seen before. The sole survivor of the attack on the first village mentioned some of them using an especially unusual weapon. A sword of light."

"Light?" Laya questioned, raising a brow.

Harak let out a sigh and shook his head, "One of Tonraq's accidentally cut themselves after attempting to figure out how it functions. He no longer has an index finger on his right hand anymore."

"My goodness," Someone said, horrified.

"Other than those details about the creature, the girl did confirm there were others involved. However, we don't know their current location. All we know is they're likely moving along the coastline. That is the best we've been able to figure out," Harak explained, leaning against the chair of his desk. "I can't deny the possibility of these creatures coming across this compound. While Tonraq says he'll deal with this matter, I'm afraid he's days away from arriving should trouble find our way."

The mention of her father brought a lot of complicated feelings for Korra. On one hand, she's pissed off to find her old man who wants her away from danger despite being the Avatar. But, on the other hand, she couldn't help but feel scared to know her dad was going to be dealing with threats without her right by his side.

"Anything else?" She asked.

Harak shook his head, "That's about everything in his message. All we can do from here on out is keep our eyes open and, if those things do come around, do our best to defend this compound as well as the Avatar."

The thought of facing whatever attacked those villages brought a mixed feeling to Korra. There's a part of her who wants to face those responsible and make them pay for what they've done. She's not only the Avatar but a member of the Southern Water Tribe. If these creatures do find their way here, Korra's ready show to them what exactly is going to happen to them.

"What about our patrols?" Gohon asked, raising a hand.

"We'll continue to monitor the area surrounding the compound," Harak instructed. "Beyond keeping an eye out for threats, there isn't much we can do in the way of preparation."

"Harak, I hate to be the bearer of bad news but we've only got about a dozen White Lotus members. If you wanna count Katara, Korra, and the giant furball in her den, we're not prepared for a siege," Laya stated, not holding back on her opinion. "Unless…"

"Unless what?" Harak inquired, narrowing his eyes.

Korra saw the twins look at each other for a moment. Then, Laya looked back at their boss.

"There is an extra body lying around in the compound. One that seems to be pretty fast and strong from our only encounter with him," Laya said, the corner of her lip twitching. "If these creatures are responsible for the attack, I don't think we should limit ourselves."

"Are you crazy?!" Harak exclaimed, slamming his hand on the desk.

Gohon cut into the conversation, "Hey, she's only offering ideas, sir. A good one if you ask me."

"How in spirits name is releasing a dangerous prisoner supposed to be a good idea?"

"Dangerous?" Laya used the word mockingly. "Look, he hasn't said much since we captured him. But I can't recall him ever threatening us or leaving behind corpses. So why don't we try something rather revolutionary; let's give him a chance to prove himself. He helps us defend ourselves from these things and proves he isn't a threat. Doesn't sound like the worst idea in the world to me."

Harak seemed ready to shut down the idea completely until the other people in the room started voicing their opinions. Many of them seemed to agree with Laya, including Katara.

"It would be foolish of us to handicap ourselves in such a dire situation," The woman muttered, a hand underneath her chin. "But there's a big concern; what if he learns about the creatures and decides to run away?"

"He won't."

Korra blinked a few times, realizing what she said out loud. She looked up and saw everyone looking at her with a variety of expressions. Some raised their brows. Others seemed confused.

"How can you be so sure of that?" Harak asked her. Suspicion in voice.

"I...I just have a feeling," Korra replied, recalling the single conversation between them. The bitterness present in his voice told her a lot about him. Whatever he went through, it had to be something bad. "A gut feeling if you want me to be more specific."

Harak started laughing. Although, it was completely devoid of humor.

"A gut feeling," He said, scoffing at her words. "You want us to let out a prisoner based on a gut feeling and nothing more. We need serious ideas, people. Not absurd fantasies."

Yet again, she was being shut down. Frustration was beginning to mount for Korra. She glanced around the room to see everyone uncertain about what to do next. A few looks, however, were sent her way.

She's the Avatar.

Someone they're almost expecting to step up and resolve this situation.

"No," Korra said, finding the strength in her to confront the man. "I say we give him a chance. Would it not be hypocritical for us to not offer him the opportunity? I remember my past self giving the current Firelord a second chance to prove himself. I think Aang would be disappointed in me if I didn't try and offer the same to this individual."

"This is different."

"I don't care. Either you're on board with the idea or I'm going to go down there and free him myself."

The two people glared at each other. However, the winner was ultimately Korra.

Harak clicked his teeth and looked away, "Fine, but you'll be held responsible should anything happen to my men. I pray your gut feeling doesn't get us all killed, Avatar Korra."