Chapter Text
The Legend of Korra belongs to Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko.
“Now, I am become death, the destroyer of worlds.”
--the Bhagavad-Gita
Once, the United Kingdom was ruled by a man called Reiko. He was the rightful king of the province, his father was ruler before him and his grandfather before that, it was in his bloodline. He had a council of advisers whose occupants were decided by the vote of the people which is why the land was originally called the United Republic of Kingdoms. It was a place of peace and democracy unlike the other four nations.
King Reiko was dethroned by a greedy, power hungry, man whose only goal was to obtain revenge for the death of his wife. This man is now the sovereign of the empire. His name is Hiroshi Sato.
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Sitting on his throne, the lord of the kingdom that they dwelled, surveyed the woman before him. She wore the hides’ and skins’ of the ferocious animals that roamed, not this land but, the wilds of the south. Her tan skin made her stand out among the rest of the men and women in the palace, the whole kingdom for that matter. Her short, chestnut, hair had a single braid on the right side of her head, tied at the end with a thin leather strip. She looked absolutely terrifying as it was but above her head, one could see the leather bound hilt of a powerful claymore; the rest was covered by the navy blue cloak that flowed down her back. Next to her stood a wolf. A large, white, wolf.
Lord Sato sighed. He knew who this outsider was. She held the title of the Avatar, the mightiest bender known to man. This woman standing before him could wipe out his entire kingdom in the blink of an eye, yet here she was, asking him for sanctuary in his land. Lord Sato was known for his hatred of benders. One had taken his beloved from him, many moons ago, and he held the strongest of grudges towards all of that kind. The Avatar had traveled to the United Kingdom to aid in the fight against the rebel forces known as the Equalists. Little did she know, Lord Sato was the one supplying the nonbenders with their weapons and armor. Besides Amon, the infamous leader of the rebels, Sato was in charge of this operation. He wanted to rid the world of benders, once and for all.
Korra, the Avatar, was aware of Lord Sato’s dislike for benders but she never would have thought he would go to such extremes as to starting a war; which is why she was surprised when he declined her help.
Why wouldn’t he accept my offer to rid his kingdom of these ‘Equalists?’ Korra thought. A war, one that was centered in his kingdom, would tear the province apart.
Of course Korra is not obligated to respect the word of nobility, especially not that of some fat, bastard, lord. If she desires to put an end to this silly rebellion, then she will. She was only being polite as to asking Lord Sato for “permission.” She needn't of that tripe; she was the Avatar, master of the four elements.
Korra narrowed her eyes as she took a step towards the lord, her wolf following suit. The palace was silent and her voice echoed off the walls as she spoke. “You will allow me a place of residence during my temporary stay and I will be aiding the United forces in this battle. Do I make myself clear?” Lord Sato nodded vigorously. Korra was in his personal space now. “ You do not deny me anything,” she whispered. Sato had a look of fear in his eyes that quickly passed as his gaze hardened. He as well did not like being told what to do though in this case, he had no say in the matter.
“You are to give the Avatar whatever she requests,” he ordered. “Show her to the accommodations.” His servants rushed to the Avatar’s side and directed her to her given chambers. He continued to glare at the corridor the young Avatar had exited through, long after she had left.
Upon entering the room, Korra took in the lavish furniture and exquisite paintings. One in particular caught her interest; it was of a tree. A tree with a solid trunk and leaves that were...flowers? Small, pink, flowers. There were little number of trees where she came from and the ones she had seen had stiff, green, foliage; never pink petals such as the tree in the painting. “Interesting..” she murmured.
Korra began to unpack the few items she had brought along which mostly consisted of tunics and trousers; her armor already clad on her person. She and her mother had worked long and hard on creating the planopy of leather and fur she wore. It was all worth the labor for it’s protection had saved her many of times. Korra removed the hard, leather cuirass from her upper body and the cuisse from her lower, only leaving on the cloak on her back along with her forearm bracers, greaves, and boots. She exited her chambers; she had a kingdom to explore.
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Korra made her way outside with her animal companion, Naga, at her side. The guards didn’t give her a second glance as she strolled through the front gates of the palace, if anything, they moved further away from her. She was used to this, of course, being the Avatar and all. People feared her. They avoided her because the presence of the Avatar brought them discomfort. One might think the populace would feel especially safe when in the company of the person who has saved the world a countless number of times. But no. They did not. The only thing Korra knew for certain was that she had a job to do, people she needed to protect, and a world she had to put to balance. Nothing else mattered.
She continued her peregrination until she reached the market district where she slowed down to observe the different people. Korra could easily tell the amount of wealth each individual had based on their attire; some wore fine silks while most wore simple linen. As to be expected, many of the merchants had set up booths with a display of various foods and other everyday items, all in a range of price and quality. There were unusual trinkets spread among the stalls and intricate art in forms of jewelry, canvas, and cloth. Korra had explored further into the market district and found herself at the blacksmith forge which was being tended to by the ferrier. She noticed a tavern nearby with a canopy set up. The tables and stools were currently occupied by a noisy bunch of drunk men. She watched in animosity as they boasted about their strength in past brawls and the woman they had fucked. It was disgusting really, how they just chatted about these woman as if they were merchandise; some of them most likely were bought, but all the same, they were still people. This is what the once, strong and noble United Republic has been brought to, Korra thought grimly.
She was about to alter direction and return to the palace when she was stopped by a feminine voice calling out,
“They’re awful, aren’t they?”
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Her long, black, tresses were tied back by a thin strip of leather, stray hairs clung to her sweat soaked forehead and neck. Her pale green eyes were dry from the swelter of the fire and her breathing was heavy from her hard labor but all the while, the heat of the forge drove her and the ringing of metal pounding onto metal was music to her ears. Whenever her father had important matters to occupy his time, she would slip away from the throttle of the palace; escaping to the edge of the market district. She would wear the day hammering steel and scrawling ideas on parchment. The smithy allowed her access to the forge whenever she desired for a break now and then suited him just fine.
A figure caught her eye and pulled her from her focus. A woman stood not far from her along with a…wolf. She followed stranger’s line of sight and found she was watching the drunken mules at the tavern with a disgusted expression on her face.
“They’re awful, aren’t they?” She called as the other woman turned to leave.
Blue met green when their eyes met and she was unable to will herself to look away from the strong gaze of the tribal woman. Wait… She knew this was.
“You speak of those men?” The Avatar asked, gesturing at the tavern. The blacksmith nodded in confirmation. Korra hummed and moved over to the workbench where she was at standstill. “I am Avatar Korra,” she announced in greeting. Her protected, still at her side, caused the black haired girl uneasiness.
“I know who you are,” she replied.
Korra raised her eyebrow to this. “Well you know my name but unfortunately I am unaware of yours.”
A pause. “I am Asami.”
The Avatar bowed with a flourish. “A pleasure to meet your acquaintance, m’Lady.” She frowned. “Now what is a pretty lass such as yourself doing here, working at a blacksmith forge?”
This caused Asami to frown herself. Of all the people-- “What is so wrong about me working at the forge? Do you think that you are the only woman who can lift more than a broom?” She nearly shouted at the Avatar who did not take the outburst kindly.
“That is not at all what I said.”
“It is what you implied.”
“Why do you take this so personally?”
“Because I am not some helpless girl whose only meant to bear a child and sit about to be protected from the world! I may be a lady but I can hold my own.”
“I am the Avatar. I can do whatever I please with no one to stop me. You, on the other hand, are not the Avatar. You are controlled by men that say a woman’s place is with the children, not at a blacksmith’s forge.” Korra stepped closer and lowered her voice. “You, Asami, are either very brave or an idiot to raise your voice at me.”
“I consider myself to be quite intelligent, actually.” Asami seemed to be collected but on the inside she was a squealing piglet.
“You claim to be brave?” The Avatar questioned with a raised eyebrow.
“Well I am still talking to you, am I not?”
“Indeed you are, Asami.” A smiled played at her lips as she backed away from the girl. She turned, clicking her tongue so the wolf would follow her, and headed back into the market district, but not before glancing back at Asami to leave a wink in her wake.
Asami stared at the spot the Avatar stood long after she had left. She winked. She fucking winked. The Avatar, said to be a bloodthirsty savage, winked. Asami was fairly certain that savages are not supposed to wink.
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“Asami! Where have you been?”
“I was out, Father,” she replied with a sigh.
“You were careful?”
“I always am.”
“Good. I only ask because I love you.”
“I love you too, Father,” she paused, choosing her next words carefully as to not upset her father. She knew his standing on benders. “Were you aware of the Avatar’s presence in the kingdom?”
“Yes…” Hiroshi began slowly. “She arrived this morning and threatened me into allowing her to stay in the palace.”
“Did she say why she was here?”
“Just to show off her bending and cause trouble,” he snarled. “Why must she stick her nose into everyone’s business?! I do not want that freak on my land and if I do not obey her every word, she will burn this province to ash!”
Asami sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose, annoyed at her father’s rambling. “Father, I know how you feel about benders, but we are soon to be at war with these rebels and the General has not replied to any of your messages. We need all the help we can get before the Equalists overrun everything.”
It was not yet the time to tell his daughter about his involvement with the misunderstood renegades which caused explaining himself to be difficult.
“Asami, this world is complicated and you have yet to understand how to live in it. It will all make sense eventually.”
Maybe if you did not always treat me as if I were a child, I would know how the world really is by now, Asami thought bitterly. “It will all make sense eventually.” What is he up to?
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