I am writing this in the evening of the 25th of December, which means Merry Christmas to all my readers who celebrate. I hope you have had, are having or maybe will have a lovely day.

Responses to Reviews:

Sharpe: I do not pretend to be an expert on any religion but the Earth Kingdom one would maybe be analogous to the religions practiced in China historically, so Buddhism, Taoism or Confucianism mainly.

Zigzagdoublezee: Those novels are good, aren't they. I'm looking forward to the one about Roku, I'd like to see more of his life outside of Sozin. And Yangchen did create a golden age, I'm sure you don't that without a bit of scheming.

RonaldM40196867: I suppose it would be more likely to be a mover if they went down that route for the recap episode, where they all go to the cinema to laugh at how inaccurate it is.

As Always, Please Review!

Kuvira

The Great Uniter stalked onto the bridge. The crew fell silent for a moment, and then carried on their usual duties as the captain and Admiral Fang hurried towards her.

"How many?" Kuvira snapped.

"We don't know," Fang replied. "A lot. More than us."

"That's unfortunate," Kuvira mused. "Turn in to present a broadside. Tell the rest of the fleet to fall back. And have the gunners load their weapons."

Kuvira watched as the captain hurried away to dispatch those orders through the fleet.

"Now, establish radio contact with their flagship."

Bolin

The Taka was suddenly a hive of activity. A blaze of colour lit up the fleet as it seemed every ship in the fleet was suddenly flying signal flags. The ships in the other column were slowing down to widen the space between them, and the Taka's column had begun steering towards them to turn their two columns into one long one. The captain was just ordering the Taka to turn out of the line and into the wind, all the better for launching the flying machines, when Korra and Asami burst in, looking flushed.

"What's going on?" Korra demanded.

"It's Kuvira!" A radio operator told the room at large. "The lead ship is trying to contact us and they say they're the Great Uniter!"

Everyone rushed towards him.

"Let me speak to them," the captain commanded, taking the microphone.

"This is the United Republic ship Taka," he said. "Am I to understand that I am addressing Kuvira?"

"Great Uniter Kuvira," the voice on the radio said snootily, "but yes."

"Great," Bolin said. "Now it's gone to her head."

"This is Her Majesty's Warship Audacious," a third voice suddenly crackled over the radio. "Please state your intentions."

"Nothing that should concern you," Kuvira replied. "This is between me and the United Republic."

"The United Republic are the allies of the Fire Nation, so like it or not this already concerns us," Vice-Admiral Sora's voice retorted.

Korra grabbed the microphone.

"This is going nowhere," she announced. "This is the Avatar speaking. Now, can I please ask where you're going?"

Kuvira

Kuvira hastily covered the microphone with her hands as she looked up at Fang and Bataar, who had joined them.

"The Avatar is here?" She asked. "She's persistent, isn't she?"

Fang nodded.

"It doesn't matter," Kuvira decided. "Any news from our rangefinders yet?"

"Not quite," Fang replied. With that, Kuvira took her hand off the microphone and addressed the other two ships.

"I'm afraid that is a classified Earth Empire secret," she said. "I'm not going to tell you where we are going."

"Is it Republic City?" The Avatar asked. There was a long pause.

"...No. And I resent the implication."

"Great! Then I'm sure you won't mind turning around and sailing back the way you've come!" Korra chirped.

"And just who do you think you are to give me orders about where I can sail my ships?" Kuvira snapped, annoyed.

"Does a little thing called "The Avatar" ring any bells?" Korra replied, a hint of irritation in her tone now.

"Not at the moment," Kuvira told her. "I don't care who you are. Get out of my way."

Mako

As the Audacious picked up speed to take its place at the head of the column, Mako huddled with Hatoru, Sora and a hapless radio operator around a microphone. A collective chill ran through the bridge as they heard Kuvira's threat.

"I guess that settles it," Sora whispered in disbelief. "It's war."

"Not quite," Mako stood up. "We've got one last trick up our sleeve."

"Ah yes, your preemptive strike," Sora nodded. "The Princess told me."

Korra was talking again now, trying to talk Kuvira down, but it was obvious the Great Uniter was having none of it. Mako ran to the window and looked out to where he could see the Taka and the Washi beginning to recede into the distance.

"Princess, I have to go," he announced. "The Avatar needs me. How quickly can I get to that ship?"

"No idea," Hotaru said. "But if you want to get there in time to catch your flight, we're going to have to go now."

"Of course," Mako nodded. "Hold on, we?"

"Of course," Hotaru nodded. "I'd quite like to have a word with Kuvira myself. And I'm not going to let you do this alone."

"But what about your men?"

"My men have Sora. I've always been a more hands-on kind of warrior anyway. Seriously, just let me help you."

"Fine," Mako said. "Let's go!"

"Great!" Hotaru rushed over to him and threw a door open. "Prepare the speedboat!"

"We have a speedboat?" Mako asked as he followed her through the door.

Jinora

Are we sure this is a good idea?"

Generals and admirals crammed around the map table, pushing models around with sticks as they followed the progress of the fleet with a radio. At the head of the table, Raiko stood there with an unreadable expression. Katara, Suki, Toph and Zuko sat in one corner of the room, occasionally chipping in with advice or anecdotes.

High above them, four Airbenders crouched in the rafters.

"Of course it's a good idea! We said we wanted to help, didn't we?" Jinora hissed. "This is helping!"

"How?" Ikki demanded. "We're just eavesdropping!"

"And why can't eavesdropping be helping?" Kai demanded.

"See," Jinora put an arm around her boyfriend. "Listen to him if not to me."

Jinora was saved from having to deal with her siblings gagging when the door opened and a tall bald figure in red and yellow robes walked in. The Airbenders immediately shut up and flattened themselves against the rafters, praying to all the spirits that nobody had heard them.

"Tenzin!" Zuko called. "How are you?"

"I just came to say goodbye," Tenzin told them briskly. "I'm moving the young Airbenders out of the city."

"Including your children?"

"If I can find them," Tenzin scowled. "But they seem to have gone missing. You haven't seen them, have you?"

All assembled shook their heads.

"A shame," Tenzin nodded. "How's the war?"

"Kuvira's not listening to reason."

"Whoever could have seen that coming?" Tenzin waved an arm. "I have faith in the Avatar though. I'll be back in a few hours, don't worry. The ships won't have reached us by then!"

"How are the rest of the evacuations, do you know?"

"The train stations are packed, and so are the roads. Nobody without a bison is going anywhere fast."

"You'd better get moving then," Katara moved over to hug him. "Find my grandchildren. Keep them safe."

"I can do the first," Tenzin told her. "The second is more difficult. But I shall try. Goodbye mother, I'll be back in a few hours."

As Tenzin turned around, a figure stepped into his path.

Korra

The Avatar watched impatiently from her position in the bridge as lifts leading up from the hangars below brought up crewmen. They had large wheeled carts with them, each one of which had a pointed metal torpedo sat on it. As soon as the ramps were level with the flight deck they rushed out and began positioning the trays under their flying machines.

Kuvira was saying something now, something self-aggrandising about how she had rebuilt the earth Kingdom from scratch or something.

"Remember, keep them talking!" Asami hissed as she began slipping on flying gloves and a pilot's helmet.

"I think we're probably fine with that," Korra replied.

"What was that?" Kuvira's voice crackled over the radio.

"Nothing," Korra said quickly, and almost heard Kuvira rolling her eyes from all that distance away.

"Look, Avatar, I know what you think," she said. "Oh no, here comes the big evil dictator intent on conquest for no reason. Might I remind you that you are harbouring fugitives from my country?"

"The King would not be a fugitive if not for you!" Korra pointed out.

"Oh, but I'm not talking about the King," Kuvira said. "Or I suppose that's citizen Wu now. But what am I to make of reports that he's been allowed to gather a band of Royalists to create a regiment with them? Yet another provocation, Avatar..."

"Again, Raiko wouldn't have done that if you weren't threatening the United Republic," Korra pointed out.

"Wouldn't he?" Kuvira asked. "Your closest ally is the Fire Nation. They're a monarchy. I'm sure they aren't best pleased about any precedent I might set by getting rid of Wu. Makes them feel like they're next."

"That's not why the Fire Nation is doing this!" Korra said. "And don't pretend like you're some bringer of liberty!"

"Liberty?" Kuvira scoffed. "The people don't need liberty. People need food, water, safety, security. They need to know their place in the world and be confident that it will be defended if threatened. It is obvious that they should not be trodden upon too much, but going too far in the opposite direction is not an ideal but folly."

"And that's what you're doing?"

"It's certainly what I strive for."

"You'll not do it by carrying on sailing this way," Korra scowled. "Turn your ships around, now."

Kuvira

The Great Uniter had to cover the microphone so it would not pick up her snort of derision.

"We've already been through this, I don't take orders from you," she said. In the background she could hear the rangefinders calculating how far the enemy ships were away.

"Others said the same thing," the Avatar replied. "Know how that worked out for Firelord Ozai? Or Chin the Conqueror?"

"There's that comparison again, what is it with Chin?" Kuvira sighed. "You only have one reference."

"On the contrary, I have too many to count," Korra said. "I've read about what my predecessors have done. Almost every generation has had some King or Governor or priest or, yes, regent, who has believed themselves too powerful to have to listen to the Avatar. All of them have been wrong. What makes you any different, Great Uniter?"

"Oh, a few things," Kuvira said as she watched the rangefinders handing their data to the gunnery officers, who began working out precise targeting data. Out of the glass windscreen she could see the Colossus' mighty turrets begin to swing and point towards the enemy fleet. Catching the eye of the chief gunnery officer, she mouthed the words target the lead vessel at him. He nodded.

"Alright," she said. "You got me. I admit it. The Republic is illegitimate and I am coming to end its pathetic excuse for a government and heal the national trauma of the Hundred Years' War."

"By starting a new war?" Korra sounded outraged.

"That's one way of looking at it," Kuvira listened to the clunks of the loading mechanisms in the turrets as final adjustments were made to the aim, "but it won't be much of a war."

"What do you mean?"

"This war will be over before it begins!" Kuvira stood up and turned to the chief gunnery officer.

"Shoot!" She commanded. The man leaned over and mashed a button on a control panel.

Nothing happened for about a second, and then the entire ship shook with the most intense vibration she had ever felt. She was nearly knocked over as the sky turned purple once again and eight purple streaks launched themselves out of the turrets. A moment later, she saw a distant burst of flame emanate from the lead ship.

"Hits scored!" A shout came from somewhere above. "Target destroyed!"

The vibration subsided. Kuvira just had time to be grateful that the ship hadn't shaken itself to pieces under the force of eight simultaneous spirit cannon discharges, before the entire horizon seemed to burst into flames. Kuvira watched as the entire allied combined fleet at once opened fire on her one ship. The time for words had passed, and the Battle of the Strait had begun.