Mako arrived at the Republic City Police headquarters with Lin, walking past other officers, some friendly, others not. As he walked in, he came across Deputy Chief Saikhan, whose arm was in a cast after he crashed into the bay. The Deputy Chief scowled at Mako but he also seemed unsure of himself, perhaps having a vague memory of Mako mind-tricking him. Saikhan turned his head to Lin and handed her a piece of paper.
"So, Zhou is filing an appeal, after all," Lin said, with a mix of surprise and frustration. Lin had hated her old partner for many years and finally managed to get enough to fire him. "Does he think he'll win his appeal? He won't, and then he'll lose his pension."
"He only wants to stay on for the next two months," Saikhan said, holding himself straight. "To help get this city back on its feet after the aliens Korra and Mako led here wrecked it."
"You mean until he gets his huge pension bump," Lin said. "Also, having spoken to my niece and numerous others, your statement is inaccurate. The Hutts found their way here at least three months before Korra found her way home."
"Many others are skeptical of that," the deputy chief said, glaring at Mako. "Regardless, I understand how you feel about my brother, Lin. I'll keep him in a different station house, with my eye on him. You won't have to deal with him again, Chief." After a moment, Lin calmed down.
"Fine but he better not make an ass of himself," the chief said. At that moment, Mako strode forward and sniffed in front of Saikhan's face.
"What are you doing?" he asked.
"Checking your breath," Mako stated abrasively. "You smell fine, right now, but maybe you should remember drinking and driving is now a crime."
"I understand that now, but I am deputy chief, and you are just a detective," Saikhan bluntly stated. "I am your superior, and you should remember it."
"I wonder how long that will last," Mako said dismissively. "Maybe you'll sink to the bottom of the bay the next time you crash your car. Even if you don't, we can't have a law-breaking drunkard as one of the city's top policemen. Oh, that's right, the DMV has taken your license and you can't get it back for at least a year. Lucky for you. I guess until then you'll have to ride the bus everywhere since you aren't important enough for a chauffeur." Saikhan was barely restraining his rage at that moment, so Lin stepped in.
"Tell your brother I'll accept this, but no more than two months," the chief told her deputy, before looking at Mako with displeasure. "Detective, I need to speak to you, now." Mako followed Lin into her office as he and Saikhan glared at each other.
"Your feud with Saikhan, it isn't helping me or you," the chief told him.
"He started it," Mako reminded her. "I'm just letting him know I won't let him walk all over me."
"It looked more like you were picking a fight," Lin replied. "Saikhan, unlike his brother, has actually been a good cop, whose done his best to serve this city. Let his brother finish what's left of his career out of sight, and he's out of our hair forever, with Saikhan more willing to go along with everything."
"I guess so," Mako conceded. "Whenever I see him, though, he's the same stooge that Tarrlock used to imprison a bunch of people."
"Saikhan not the only thing I need to speak to you about," Lin said, understanding that Mako hadn't forgiven Saikhan for his actions at the time. "There are more important things." Mako nodded and prepared to explain how his and Korra's actions at the Sun Warrior preserve were justified, but Lin surprised him. "Those people you and Korra dealt with before leaving. Or rather killed before leaving. Would you care to explain that?"
"Have the Wolfbats and their groupies also accused me of something?" Mako asked, guessing what was coming next.
"I did run into Tahno at the hospital, when telling Saikhan of his brother's dismissal," Lin revealed. "He said you had tried to kill him and his friends, but when I asked him how he, his teammates, and around a dozen others had been injured by you, it was easy to see you were defending yourself when he tried to ambush you. I told him to drop the matter or he'd be charged with assaulting a police officer. I get the feeling your remarks about his parents might breed further trouble, but we'll cross that bridge when it appears. What you did before leaving for that meeting, you'll have to explain that to me."
"Alright," Mako replied, explaining what had happened. Mako related how those men were working for a would-be king, watching for when Korra headed to the meeting with the White Lotus before they struck, and mistaking Katara's departure for the Avatar's.
"So, Kuvira's handled this pretender, then?" asked Lin.
"Yes," Mako confirmed.
"Then why did you and Korra go after these people?" the chief asked. "And what crime had they committed in the borders of the United Republic of Nations?"
"They had conspired to start an insurrection, plotted the murder of Kuvira, and in the case of the White Lotus member, betrayed the Avatar by accepting bribes from her enemies to monitor her whereabouts," Mako answered calmly. "Even if they were in a different country, they could be charged given their complicity in this."
"Then the Earth Nation should request their extradition, and if granted, then they could be arrested," Lin told him. "I've yet to hear you mention a crime under URN law, in our jurisdiction."
"Stalking, as they'd been spying on Korra," Mako said, latching onto a charge he could cite.
"Oh, yes, that is a crime," Lin conceded. "But I have to wonder why you didn't come to me. I would have typed out an arrest warrant and have gone with you to arrest them."
"I had probable cause and could go there myself," Mako said. "Also, Korra is empowered to make arrests around the world."
"Yes, but you didn't arrest anyone, you killed all twenty suspects present," Lin said.
"They resisted arrest," Mako claimed. "Besides, didn't you say our cells are bursting and we should avoid putting more in?" Lin was about to say something but then groaned in frustration.
"Can't you tell when I am joking?" she asked. "But what's done is done. I don't know how it works in the Empire but here, you do your best to arrest them from now on. Also, make sure they've actually committed a crime here before you go after them."
"Got it, boss," Mako said, remembering how much easier it was to do the Imperial approach, and wondered when Lin's stubbornness at adopting Imperial methods would wear off. He then received his assignment and got ready for patrol.
As the sun rose over Zaofu, Suyin saw an Imperial shuttle fly overhead and land on a hill close by. It departed soon after its passengers Bolin and Opal got off. On account of their guests, Su decided to meet her daughter and her fiancée outside the city. Opal hugged her mother as she arrived. "So, how are you doing with the holocron?" Bolin asked.
"I think I'm close to learning Lavabending," Su said with a smile. Bolin smiled back, before noticing his soon-to-be mother-in-law seemed bothered by something. "You should change out of your uniform before coming into Zaofu."
"Uh, why?" he asked, confused by the request.
"I'll tell you later, for now, please change into your casual clothes," Su persisted. Bolin relented and Earthbent a barrier to change behind. After doing so, they continued into Zaofu, with Opal talking about her wedding next week.
"The location will soon be set up, and the flowers will be here soon," Su smiled to her daughter. She knew Opal and Bolin would be very happy together. But there was no way of putting the elephant in the room off any longer. "There are a group of refugees here, who have fled the EUA and the Empire."
"Why, we've done a lot to help everyone in the Earth Nation," a surprised Bolin said.
"Well, the Sandbenders here don't feel that way," Suyin said, surprising Opal and Bolin.
"I was busy teaching Imperials how to Earthbend when Korra and Kuvira handled them," Bolin revealed. "I thought they told you, a while ago. It's not a secret, if that's what you're wondering."
"Besides, all Dad says of them is that 'they are trouble, stay away from them, all they do is steal and murder,'" Opal said.
"So, they were raiding caravans and nearby settlements?" asked Su.
"They were always going to, so Kuvira and Baatar decided to capture them first," Opal said. "I mean, why wait for the inevitable when you can stop it entirely?"
"Your aunt and grandmother believe punishment should come after the crime," Su said. "What exactly did your brother and sister do?"
"They said that the Sandbenders would be forced to adapt to the new world, and until they learned how to fit into it, they'd be held in a place that would teach them," Bolin answered. "I don't know the details, but Kuvira's pretty sure they won't be a problem, from now on."
"Isn't this what Dad always wanted?" Opal asked confusingly. "He always said they'd continue their marauding, thieving ways until someone forced them to stop. Of course Kuvira and Baatar were going to arrest them. They have assured me that the tribes will be educated about the new world."
"Hey, Kuvira and Baatar will be here in a couple hours, so you can ask them what it entails," Bolin offered.
"I will," Suyin said, bothered she hadn't heard of this, before turning to Opal. "Your father might rethink his earlier position, given how the lead Sandbender is his brother."
"Oh," Opal answered. "What can you tell me about him?"
"Tachibana seems to be the only Sandbender your father has any affection for, especially given what he revealed of their parents," the Metalbender told her daughter. As they came into Zaofu, Bolin and Opal listened to what they Suyin had learned, both from Baatar Sr, and from Tachibana's son, Kanda.
"How are they now?" asked Opal.
"Physically, much better than they have been for a while," Suyin said. "But they are rather worried about their missing family. They are also a bit...overwhelmed by how much has changed recently, especially with people from space." As they walked into the doctor's office, Opal reflected on the situation. Growing up, she heard her mother reflect on her troubled childhood, but her father was more taciturn about his own. While Opal and her siblings often heard their mother desire to reconnect with her sister Lin, their father was downright disdainful of his own family. As such, Opal had never expected to meet her dad's side of the family.
"It's good to meet you, I am Kanda," a young Sandbender introduced himself, standing in front of two girls, one older, one younger than him. "These are my sisters, Yulduz," he gestured to the older one, "and Ashla," pointing to the younger one. Opal had remembered hearing how Sandbender women were supposed to let men introduce them, seeing it as another sign of how backward they were.
"A friend of ours became an Airbender, as well," Yulduz spoke up. "He's been using his new power to better propel his family's sand sail. His place in the tribe has been elevated, as a result."
"He should have gone to Master Tenzin, where he could learn how to properly Airbend and gain genuine appreciation," Opal said, reminded of how the Earth Queen had all but enslaved many new Airbenders who'd suffered greatly as a result.
"Well, thank you for your hospitality," a new voice said, with the others looking to him. Based on how the others reacted, this must be Tachibana the patriarch. "I never thought I'd be saying this to some Greenlanders but thank you."
"You're welcome," Suyin said, remembering how her husband told her 'Greenlander' was a derisive term for people who lived outside the desert, and that Tachibana was so used to it, that he forgot it was impolite to use. "But you shouldn't use 'Greenlander' around here."
"Yes, of course, forgive me," he said apologetically. "These stories of the fall of your queen, this new Avatar, and men from different worlds. The Obsidian Knight, as you call him, he killed Avatar Aang?"
"Yes, though his actual name is Darth Vader, and my father also died as a result of his actions," Su said. "But I learned the hard way he's too powerful to fight, and he's one of the main rulers of the Galactic Empire, so they will never punish him. All I can do is accept this, and the complications which led to his first visit here, like the rest of the world."
"You said there was a reason for why the new Avatar is so accepting of him," Kanda brought up.
"'New' implies Korra was born last year, as opposed to two decades ago, or has only started her duties last week as opposed to about three years ago," Huan snarked. "If there is one lesson you should take away from all this, it's that you need to keep up with current events."
"You sound like...someone I used to know," Tachibana said hesitantly.
"You mean me?" a voice intruded, catching Tachibana's attention. The Sandbender patriarch was initially confused, but after a moment, his eyes widened in recognition.
"Baatar?" he asked the brother he hadn't seen in decades. After the bespectacled man nodded, Tachibana looked to his family. "I need you to step out for a while. I need to speak alone with your uncle." His daughters were surprised, as Kanda hadn't told them they were housed with distant relatives. As the others stepped out of the room, Baatar wondered what he'd say to his brother after so long.
Bumi and Kya had gotten up early and had decided to study up on Coruscant. "So, when do we meet the Emperor?" Bumi jokingly asked Bossk. "Wait, don't answer, he meets us, doesn't he?"
"Yes, Palpatine decides when to meet someone, not the other way around," the Trandoshan said. After a moment, Kya asked where the closest clothing store was.
"It might be best if we dress like the people here, not a bunch of weirdos who only learned there is life outside their planet last week," Kya joked. "You need to look your best when you're testifying to a senate committee, after all." After a moment, Bossk found one suitable for their purposes. Bringing Srinivasa with them, Bumi paid attention to Bossk's instruction at operating an Airspeeder, which was more complicated than a Landspeeder. Unlike the planes that they'd ridden on their homeworld, this craft had an enclosed cabin. As they landed by the store, Bossk turned around and explained how Credit Chits worked.
"Well, it's more convenient than carrying bags of money everywhere," Kya remarked after hearing the explanation, before picking up the chits the Empire had given them for their duration here.
"Yeah," Bossk said, before pointing to a dot on the side which was gold at the moment. "It'll turn silver when it's down to half and red when you're close to zero." Bossk led them into the store, and noted how it was unlikely anyone would know who they were and try to take advantage of them. Thankfully, since they had no bank accounts, much less knew how to sign for something in Aurabesh, no one would be able to trick them into a written scam.
As they entered the building, Bossk helped his friends find their way through the store. As they went through the Near-Human section, Bossk found a head strap of sorts and offered it to Srinivasa. He looked up at the Trandoshan, and said something in Togrutan, which Bossk responded to, convincing the boy to take it. Kya looked at it and saw several notches inside.
"What's this for?" she asked the boy.
"My first hunt," Srinivasa answered. He went on to explain how the deadliest predator on the Togruta homeworld called an Akul. He said that at age fifteen, Togruta youngsters would go on a hunt for an Akul, and that they would divide the beast's teeth evenly between themselves, wearing them on these headbands.
"I hunted an Akul, once, and got to keep all the teeth," Bossk said. "As did Boba, since we use more than just local tradition for hunting. I only know of two Togruta who got to keep all the teeth from their respective hunts. And since both ladies were Jedi, they had the Force as well as spears." Looking down, Bossk noticed something. "I suppose I need a change in wardrobe, as well," the Trandoshan said. "I'll also need to get some fancy shoes, while I'm at it." The trio laughed at that and gave Bossk good luck as they looked at the clothes they'd be trying out. At that moment, a middle-aged man and his daughter, both with brown hair and brown eyes, came into the dressing stalls. Neither of them paid any attention to the Benders or their Togrutan ward. Judging by their comments and the clothes they already had on, Kya assumed they were rather wealthy as they went into the Deluxe dressing rooms.
"At last, that Trandoshan is gone," a familiar voice intruded, interrupting the trio's thoughts. Turning to the source, Bumi and Kya saw Syril Karn had come into the room. "I need to continue our conversation." At that moment, Kya stood up and ushered Srinivasa to the dressing room while Bumi turned to face Karn.
"Our conversation was concluded," Bumi stated. "I told you we couldn't help you."
"I don't know what Bossk has told you, but it's not the truth," Karn said.
"He said you were a fool who made no shortage of trouble for himself and those around him, because he refused to drop something his superiors told him to, getting his partner killed and himself fired," the Airbender said. "You then did the exact same thing, this time getting your entire department fired along with you. Now you are badgering me and my sister, pretending that being a clerk at an equipment registry makes you a detective, and had to be dragged out of our hotel by security. I'd say Bossk was right about you."
"Can one ever be too zealous in the pursuit of justice?" Karn said, twitching at the reminder of his failures.
"In the words of Toph Beifong, the first police chief of my hometown, her daughter Lin, the current police chief, and my father, the highest enforcer of law and order on our planet, yes," Bumi said.
"I can file an information request to the Office of Criminal Investigations," Karn scowled. "We can do this the easy way or the hard way."
"Then I will be forced to file a complaint against you for harassment," Bumi stood his ground. "My sister and I have more clout than you, so I can be sure you'll lose your job." Before Karn could say anything, about five people, two Weaquay, one Rodian, and two Human, came in and pointed blasters at the two.
"We don't care about you, just stay here and it'll all be fine," one of the Weaquay said. Karn was noticeably afraid at that moment, confirming for Bumi he was a small man hiding behind bluster. The United Forces officer, however, remained calm and looked for an opening. As the rich man came out of the exclusive section of the dressing room, the criminals shoved a blaster in his face and told his daughter to be quiet or they would kill him. One of them took out a needle and was heading toward the girl with it, and Bumi seized his chance.
Punching his fist foreword, Bumi sent a massive Airbending blast into the thug in front of him, sending one of the humans crashing into a dressing mirror. Charging forward, Bumi dodged a blaster shot while riding an Air Scooter. The shot was quieter than most blasters, fitting for a band of kidnappers, Bumi thought. As he slid on the ground, he blasted another thug into the ceiling, grabbing the Rodian's blaster and shooting one of the humans in the throat. The father tried to grab his daughter but was smacked down by one of the Weaquay, who was then shot in the right eye by Bumi. The last Weaquay dropped the syringe he'd been holding and grabbed the girl by her braids and pulled her close, only to be smacked aside by a Water Whip and frozen to the wall. At that moment, two more thugs charged in with their blasters drawn, but Kya shot one with the Weaquay's discarded weapon, and the second was gunned down by a returning Bossk.
"I always make sure to have a holdout," the Trandoshan said, showing the tiny weapon in his hand.
"I am Perrin Fertha," the father said to his rescuers.
"I'm Leida Mothma," the girl added. "Thank you for saving us. What's your name?"
"I am Commander Bumi, of the United Republic of Nations Navy, from the world of Elementia," the Airbender answered.
"Wait, so those people who 'Bend the Elements' are real?" Leida asked in surprise.
"Your mother would doubt that space is unbreathable if the Emperor said otherwise," Perrin told his daughter. "As if Palpatine, Vader, and the entire military establishment would invent the Battle of Maridun."
"I am his sister, Doctor Kya," the Waterbender revealed, before gesturing to Bossk. "This is our friend Hunter First Class Bossk." Noticing that Karn was lying on the ground, dumbfounded by what he'd seen, Bumi decided to elaborate more as the police arrived.
"Colonel Korra is a friend of our family," Bumi said, remembering the rank the Avatar held in the Empire.
"I remember that young auxiliary who was decorated, she and her 'Fire User' husband was who everyone remembered, alongside Hunter Bossk," Perrin said.
"Well, right now, we are on a diplomatic tour to better prepare our world for the wider galaxy," Kya said, stretching the truth, before placing her hands on Srinivasa's shoulders. "On the way, we had to rescue Srinivasa from the Acheron."
"Oh, I hope you got out okay, Srinivasa," Leida said compassionately to the Togruta, who smiled back. "There has been nothing but rumors about what happened on that ship."
"Well, that's one of the reasons we're here," Bossk said, noticing Karn and how he was paying attention. "To testify to the senate committee about what happened. In fact, we and the others we rescued are the only witnesses, so we had to come here. Besides that, my friends are ambassadors that are afforded every privilege that entails."
"Well, I have to repay you for what you've done here," Perrin said to Bumi. "The four of you are welcome to dinner, tonight, at our apartment." Deciding this was another opportunity to learn more of the Senate they'd heard about, Kya agreed to it, with Bumi quickly seeing the benefit, as well. "You are welcome as well, Hunter Bossk," Perrin added. "Though, I've never had the opportunity to host a Trandoshan guest."
"Well, I've never been invited to a senator's residence, before," Bossk said. "Still, I don't get free food offered, that often." Perrin laughed and explained that he'd send a transport to their apartment in the evening. At that point, the police asked Kya to unfreeze the Weaquay from the wall, but unfortunately, he'd managed to crunch a poison pill by that point, leaving no one to be questioned. One of the cops recognized Bossk and Karn.
"Again, Syril?" he asked in frustration.
"Oh, this is just a coincidence," Bossk claimed. "I didn't know Karn was here until now."
"Well, you better keep it that way," the officer said, staring into Karn's eyes. "I don't care who your father was, Karn, and I don't care how he died. No one does, any longer. You are no longer a cop. You are no longer a salvage yard security guard, or whatever it was you were on Morlana. You are a clerk at the Bureau of Standards, filing registries, notifying others of certificate expirations, and nothing more. You will never be anything more. The next time you harass VIPs, local or otherwise, you WILL be arrested and blacklisted from anything above a restaurant janitor. Do you understand?"
"Yes," Karn answered meekly, the fire in his eyes having gone out as he looked at the floor.
"Good, I never want to see you again," the cop said. As Karn walked out to his rather ugly-looking speeder, Kya couldn't help but feel bad for him. As they got in their own Airspeeder, Bumi asked Bossk about the people they'd saved.
"Perrin is the husband of Mon Mothma, the senator of Chandrila," the Trandoshan said, talking about how Chandrila was an idyllic, peaceful world. Naturally, the hunter despised it since there was nothing fun there, in his mind. "Mothma is one of those people known mostly for complaining about how much better everything was before the Empire."
"I get the feeling Perrin doesn't agree," Kya noted, remembering his remarks about his wife. "Or that their marriage is on the rocks, at this point."
"They were an arranged marriage, and the few times I've seen the family together on the Holonet, it looks like they are screaming inside," Bossk said. "As for Leida, I've seen her type before: the child who's gotten old enough to realize that they matter less to their parent than whatever work they do." Kya realized that Bossk was talking about himself, then.
"Well, hopefully, Mon will be a good hostess, and we can get a better idea of the senate, here," Kya said. "I've haven't been to a politician's dinner table for a while, anyway."
So, Mako has returned to work and made it clear he won't let Saikhan walk over him. One of the reasons Lin agreed to the request was as a favor to Saikhan. Of course, Tahno was dumb enough to think he could claim self-defense despite the obvious evidence. I wanted to show the fallout from Mako and Korra's actions before they left.
Opal and her siblings have been raised to distrust Sandbenders, and some Airbending classes won't get her to drop this attitude. They don't see Tachibana's family as bandits and liars but they do consider them foolish. Even Huan, the most skeptical about the Empire, is baffled at their sheer ignorance. Kuvira and Baatar will explain what they are doing, soon.
You've seen Akul teeth whenever Shaak Ti is onscreen, and on Ahsoka for TCW Seasons 1-5. Given how they are Jedi, of course they can complete this rite of passage alone. Bossk recognized a strap for the teeth be a good gift to a young Togruta. The Mothma family was featured in Andor, and Mon's husband and her trade snipes at each other all the time, while her daughter resents how little time her mom gives her. Also, a cousin of Mon's is Vel from the Aldhani heist. Mothma herself dismissed Korra and Mako being decorated partly because she wanted to think that Bending was just propaganda to make the Empire look stronger than it is, and because she doesn't like Imperial celebrations.
They will encounter Karn again, by chance, and seeing his downward spiral will lead Kya to reaching out to him. That officer's comments while lecturing Syril hint at his background and why he's this way.