Path towards Harmony [AU Legend of Korra Quest]

Solarstream

Alchemic Anarchist
Pronouns
he/him
Korra, the Avatar (Scenario)

Your name is Korra and you are the Avatar. “Master” of all four elements, resident of Republic City, and the protector of the Artificial Spirit Portal... although if you’re being honest, you have no desire to actually do that last thing. None at all. Not after they’ve kept you cooped up here for so long. The White Lotus only let you start visiting Republic City last year! And even then, only because your parents intervened on your behalf by getting you enrolled in a public school!

Yeah, yeah, yeah, you think all that stuff about “maintaining the balance of the world” and “keeping the spirits and humanity in harmony” is important and all... but come on! You’ve been trapped on this island your whole life! You want to get out and see the world! And there’s no better place to start with than Republic City and its’ twin sister, Phoenix City. Ever since you started visiting the two of them last year on your own, you’ve gotten involved in...

(Choose three.)
[][Hobby] ...pro-bending... (connection with Mako and Bolin)
[][Hobby] ...duels in Republic City... (connection with Kuvira)
[][Hobby] ...stargazing... (connection with the universities)
[][Hobby] ...science... (connection with the Experimental Station and Asami)
[][Hobby] ...cultural activities... (connection with the Water Unionists)
[][Hobby] ... gardening... (connection with the ex-Equalists)
[][Hobby] ... duels in Phoenix City... (connection with ???)
[][Hobby] ...the local militia... (connection with Lin Beifong)
[][Hobby] ...sculpting... (connection with Suyin Beifong)
[][Hobby] (write-in; subject to QM approval)


...and even with all that, you’re still able to keep up with your bending skills. Ever since Tenzin somehow managed to get the basics of Air-bending through to you, you’ve been practicing it non-stop until you were at least passable at that skill. With that complete, you have...

(Choose one.)
[][Bending] ...attempted to make yourself well-rounded in all four elements...
[][Bending] ...focused more on Water-bending...
[][Bending] ... focused more on Air-bending...
[][Bending] ... focused more on Fire-bending...
[][Bending] ... focused more on Earth-bending...
[][Bending] ...focused more on pure martial arts and weapons...


...and it shows in your abilities. That said, you are taking this part seriously and are planning to keep getting better at your bending skills. Besides, the better you get, the more like the White Lotus people are to keep off your case and let you do what you want once you finish school next year. And then you’ll be totally free!

Well, you will still have to come around and check on the portal every now and then... but that’s not a big deal. Not as long as you get to do it on your terms. But the locals have everything under control so far, so it’s not like they need you for anything... which gives you plenty of changes to find adventure keep an eye on things nearby yourself. And right now, you’re investigating the following:

(Choose one.)
[][Rumor] Apparently fighting between duelists is spilling out into the city. Go keep the peace.
[][Rumor] Another mysterious murder has occurred, this time in Uptown. Help them investigate.
[][Rumor] Tenzin and some other Air Nomads have returned to Air Temple Island... but why?
[][Rumor] Your uncle Unalaq is visiting the city personally... you want to know the reason for it.
[][Rumor] An odd, powerful spirit has made its presence felt in Republic City, but is it friend or foe?
 

Solarstream

Alchemic Anarchist
Pronouns
he/him
Mechanics

Hello everyone! First of all, this is a sequel to Path of Equality. You do not have to read that quest to understand what’s going here, but it will help with getting the full picture. There were a few major changes to canon, the most important of which here being the fact that the Equalists were active a decade early and were left-wing revolutionaries. The actions taken in that quest led to most of the changes seen here, such as Korra already being near Republic City.

Mechanically speaking, the quest is fairly light and primarily narrative-based. There will be dice (d100) rolls on occasion, used for investigations and such to see how well you do. The DCs are as follows, based on the die + bonuses (the die always applies first unless otherwise stated):

1-5: crit fail, static bonuses don’t apply
6-19: failure, bonuses may or may not apply
20-49: bare success
50-74: good success
75-94: great success
95+: crit success, get an additional roll if solely from a dice (crit chains allowed)

Combat will also be a major part of the quest, but that – along with combat skills and bending – will be handled narratively. The quest takes place during Year 171 AG, starting in August with the beginning of school and ending in December with the Harmonic Convergence and either your victory or defeat. Good luck!
 

Solarstream

Alchemic Anarchist
Pronouns
he/him
The World

NrCKeUx.png


The Year is 171 AG, and here is the current state of the world:​

The Harmonic Republic: Founded in the Year 156 AG after revolution and war within the former United Republic of Nations, the Harmonic Republic is currently in a prolonged period of peacetime and economic expansion. The Northern Territories, once ruled by a series of noble families, are firmly under the control of the old peasantry and a nascent proletariat after their victory in the Second Lord’s War in Year 168 AG. Said families have either integrated into the new system or fled to the Southern Earth Republic. The Harmonic Republic is currently the most powerful country economically due to the strong and forward-thinking nature of its labor movement, which also shares political control of the country with the peasantry. The industrial activity that used to be concentrated within the twin cities of Republic City and Phoenix City has now spread out to other locales like Yu Dao and Taku, and along with internal improvements like rail lines and public education. Political organization occurs in councils – there are two national councils (People’s Council and Province’s Council), and each village / city has its own.

-Republic City: Founded in the Year 102 AG as Cranefish Town, and consolidated into Republic City in Year 110 AG, the city grew rapidly due to heavy investment and became prominent on the world-stage. What was once the shining jewel of the United Republic of Nations shines ever brighter as the political and economic center of the Harmonic Republic, having been the birth place of the revolutionary movement. Multiple groups involved in the revolution – such as the Equalists, the Water Unionists, the Longshoreman’s Association, the Huisun Women’s League, and the General Federation of Trade Unions – found their start here. Has councils for each borough for historical reasons. Spirit Portal Island is nearby and the artificial spirit portal itself is managed by Republic City residents and the locals to prevent misuse.

-Phoenix City: Founded in the Year 102 AG as Phoenix Village, it was absorbed into Republic City for decades and only became independent again after seceding in Year 155 AG during the revolution. Managed in secret by former Fire Nationals – including the exiled ex-Princess Azula – and the Agni Kai Triad, it has maintained its own distinct culture that’s more like the Fire Nation than like former Earth Kingdom Territory. Azula, under a false identity, ruled as the District President / City Mayor from 119 AG to 159 AG, when she was ousted during a second wave of revolutionary activity. She has since retreated from the public eye, and the city is now run by its own council and by its workers.

North Coast Autonomous Zone: A tribe with mixed Water / Earth heritage that was once connected with the Northern Water Tribe, but was cut off from them due to the Hundred Year War. They survived the conflict by hiding out in the marginal land on the northern edge of the earth continent where they still reside to this day. Split off from the Earth Kingdom in Year 156 AG and was subsequently granted autonomy in a treaty with the Harmonic Republic with the aid of the Equalists and Water Unionists. As such, they are now aligned with the Harmonic Republic and are resisting attempts by the North to sway them politically or culturally.

The Northern Earth Republic: Founded in Year 156 AG from the collapse of the Earth Kingdom. After a failed attempt to reconquer the former United Republic of Nations, the Dai Li usurped control of the throne from Queen Hou-Ting, only for them to lose a civil war that erupted after the Red Lotus sacked the inner rings of Ba Sing Se and killed the queen. That war was concluded via a treaty signed between the Earth Army and a coalition of people’s militias, with the Harmonic Republic assisting. Now, the country is run by a series of councils – one for each province and one for the whole country. The country has been steadily developing the regions outside Ba Sing Se and rebuilding the old city in a pro-social manner. Currently at war with the Southern Earth Republic.
-Si Wong Desert: Re-annexed in Year 157 AG after a military defeat against the Earth Army. The current war between the North and South started here after Southern forces invaded on a pretext of supporting an independence movement.

The Southern Earth Republic: Founded in Year 158 AG from the collapse of the Earth Kingdom. The political center of this country is Tu Zin, which is the financial and industrial center was well due to its redevelopment after the Hundred Year War. That city-state successful defeated all the kingdoms in the south – including Gaoling and Omashu – and managed to repel the Earth Army. As such, those noble titles have been stripped of political power, though not of land or other holdings (with the exception of Omashu). Has a council only at the national level, and combines it with a Chief Executive position. Much of the development has been focused on profit, and thus much effort has been spent on suppressing both left and right uprisings. Currently at war with the Northern Earth Republic.
-Foggy Swamp: Home to the now officially-recognized Foggy Swamp Tribe. Mostly ignored by the national government, and so has to turn to the Water Unionists and the other Water Tribes to aid in defence against land seizures.

Gaipan: Liberated in Year 157 AG from the control of Omashu, shortly before that kingdom was absorbed into the Southern Earth Republic. Currently allied with the Harmonic Republic and the Northern Earth Republic.

Honghai: Liberated in Year 157 AG from the control of Omashu, shortly before that kingdom was absorbed into the Southern Earth Republic. Currently allied with the Harmonic Republic and the Northern Earth Republic.

Triple Island Alliance: Declared its independence in Year 157 AG after repelling invasions from what is now the Southern Earth Republic. Currently allied with the Harmonic Republic and the Southern Water Tribe.

The Northern Water Tribe: Ancient polity currently headed by Unalaq, having inherited the position from his father. With the conclusion of the Hundred Year War, the Chiefs focused on developing their people materially using a combination of state-sponsored business and promoting entrepreneurship. A relaxation of social mores occurred at the same time, extending all the way to who learns what Water-bending style. This has mostly continued under Unalaq, though he has put a new emphasis on maintaining spiritual traditions due to the discovery of the spirit portals at the North and South Poles. He has also used this as an excuse to try and gain more control over the Southern Water Tribe, leading to rising tensions between the two groups.

The Southern Water Tribe: Ancient polity currently headed by Kya, having been appointed by the Council of Elders after the previous Chief, Tonraq, had to depart for Spirit Portal Island. With the conclusion of the Hundred Year War, the tribe was heavily depopulated and so invited those of the North to come and help rebuild. They did so in large numbers, and by and large assimilated into the South. The North’s occasional attempts to use this influence to bring the South back under their control have been a point of tension, which are high lately due to Unalaq using his spiritual reforms – which have prevented attacks from hostile spirits – to also undermine the authority of the Council of Elders and the Chief.

The Air Nomads: Recently revived polity headed by Tenzin, having returned to a migratory status between the various temples. With the conclusion of the Hundred Year War, Aang and the Air Acolytes put forth vigorous effort into reviving the old customs, and his son Tenzin has done much the same. Formerly based on Air Temple Island near Republic City, the building of the Artificial Spirit Portal and re-introduction of Air-bending has allowed for a return to the nomadic ways. This has also led to a split between the majority pro-Tenzin faction and several smaller anti-Tenzin factions, who have each gone their own way.

The Fire Nation: Ancient polity currently headed by Izumi, having inherited the position from Fire Lord Zuko, her father. With the conclusion of the Hundred Year War, Zuko went to great effort to clamp down on pro-imperialist sentiment through a mix of propaganda, reforms, and internationalism, backed by both true pacifists and those who primarily care about money. Since then, he has created a national council to contain heads of noble families and prominent citizens to assist him in ruling. Izumi has maintained this council and expanded it somewhat, including a few representatives from the commoners – a controversial move.
 
Last edited:

MagnificentLilyWitch

Active member
Pronouns
She/Her
I'd really like to see how the water tribe plotline goes when it doesn't get hijacked half way through in favour of kaiju battles and beam struggles.


[X][Hobby] ...science... (connection with the Experimental Station and Asami)
[X][Hobby] ...cultural activities... (connection with the Water Unionists)
[X][Hobby] ... gardening... (connection with the ex-Equalists)

[X][Bending] ...attempted to make yourself well-rounded in all four elements...

[X][Rumor] Your uncle Unalaq is visiting the city personally... you want to know the reason for it.
 

Solarstream

Alchemic Anarchist
Pronouns
he/him
here's the winning vote:
[X][Hobby] ... duels in Phoenix City... (connection with ???)
[X][Hobby] ...science... (connection with the Experimental Station and Asami)
[X][Hobby] ... gardening... (connection with the ex-Equalists)
[X][Bending] ...attempted to make yourself well-rounded in all four elements...

[X][Rumor] An odd, powerful spirit has made its presence felt in Republic City, but is it friend or foe?
 

Solarstream

Alchemic Anarchist
Pronouns
he/him
Winning vote:
[X][Hobby] ... duels in Phoenix City... (connection with ???)
[X][Hobby] ...science... (connection with the Experimental Station and Asami)
[X][Hobby] ... gardening... (connection with the ex-Equalists)
[X][Bending] ...attempted to make yourself well-rounded in all four elements...
[X][Rumor] An odd, powerful spirit has made its presence felt in Republic City, but is it friend or foe?

Korra’s Explorations! (Month 8, part 1)

Naturally, when you started exploring Republic City late last year, the first places you went to were the Experimental Station and the many gardens in the city. After all, according to what your parents told you as you were growing up, those researchers and their Equalist partners were the reason you grew up on Spirit Portal Island in the first place. The least they could do is teach you a few things... and to be fair, some former Equalists did occasionally visit the island to check up on things.

As such, you first stopped by the main Experimental Station building, which is based in the Dragon Flats area. It was pretty easy to find, since it’s the only building that has a Lightning Tower coming out of it in the area. The rest of the building was a fairly short brick structure, being only two floors tall, but made up for that by taking up multiple city blocks worth of space. When you entered for the first time, you noticed that the “second floor” was taken out to make more vertical space.

“Good morning!” you said as you entered.

No one immediately responded, as they were all in the middle of something, so you stood around near the entrance and looked around. You’d walked into a small kitchen-like area, and the work area – with both half-completed machines, tools scattered around everywhere, and desks filled with papers – was in view. Eventually, a girl who later introduced herself as Asami noticed you and bid you to enter, probably thinking you were a tourist who wanted a tour. It was only when you mentioned that you were the Avatar that all of the researchers stopped what they were doing and paid attention to you.

As it turned out, they had just as many questions for you as you did for them – you were one of the few people who grew up next to their Artificial Spirit Portal after all!

As you talked to them and told them about your life on the island, you learned about their work – they were at the forefront of scientific and engineering research in the town, responsible not only for the Artificial Spirit Portal and the Lightning Towers, but also for improved airplanes, the first televisions, and many other things. Pretty much all of them were non-benders, which was typical of people who lived in the Dragon Flats. You didn’t understand too much of the concepts behind everything, but you did understand working with tools, so you occasionally helped out on the floor, which they appreciated.

At the same time, you started hanging out in some of the many urban gardens in Republic City. It was mainly a ploy to spend time with the former Equalists, but you did actually try to learn about gardening... and you actually succeeded since a lot of it was stuff you saw villagers back on the island do as well. Caring for the plants and tending to the soil. The gardens were everywhere, with one in basically every borough of the city, so it was also an easy way to make friends with the locals. That said, most of the people who showed up were either young kids or adults.

While you were around, a few of the former Equalists took an interest in what your plans for yourself were. ...to be honest you hadn’t though very far ahead outside of just not being cooped up on the island forever. But that was fine by them. You were still “developing into yourself”... whatever that meant. Whenever you needed help with something, you could reach out to them at any time. Naturally, you first asked for them to show you some of the bending techniques their group had mastered, but they said that you should “develop your own style” instead... whatever that meant.

Feh! You decided to just try again later...

But speaking of bending... you also wanted some practical exercises... some combat. While pro-bending was interesting in concept, you had no teammates to consider, and so you headed for the duelist’s circuit. Particularly, you went for the one in Phoenix City, since you otherwise wouldn’t be spending much time there at all.

Phoenix City – being originally a Fire-bender enclave – naturally only allows Fire-bending styles in their duels. When you arrived at the local arena, which is by the seashore, they at first thought you might be just another spectator. You then showed off your Fire-bending ability, much to their shock, and explained that you were the Avatar and were interested in signing up. After they explained the rules – Fire-bending only, no kill-shots, hitting the crowd or getting ringed out means an instant loss, battles are timed, and so on – they let you sign up... after making you head back to the island to get your parents’ permission since you were still a minor for now.

Not long into watching and participating in the matches, you notice that a few duelists also take advantage of lightning generation and redirection... and you want to learn it. One day when you trying to make something happen, flailing around in the girl’s locker room, you got interrupted by someone entering – a woman with a red and brown mask, colors split diagonally, that showed only her piercing golden eyes.

“You’re one of the Four Flames, right?”

“That’s right. You want to learn lightning generation?”

You gasped. “You’re gonna teach me!?”

“Not so fast... you have to beat the four of us in the ring. Then I’ll teach you. See you later, Avatar Korra.”

Each of the three of them was undefeated that season, and only rarely took losses – mostly from each other. Naturally, you took that challenge.

...unfortunately, you hadn’t actually beaten them yet, but you’d manage it soon!

In fact, you’d heard about the powerful spirit some time into joining the circuit, and you sought them out since you were looking for strong opponents to test yourself against. And much to your surprise, you found that the spirit was looking for you as well! The two of you met one day while you and Asami were departing from the Experimental Station to head to the race track – you’d drop her off and then go search for the spirit.

Instead, it found you.

“Are you the one they call Avatar Korra?” it asked.

It was a massive hulking being, probably twice your height, wearing only a loincloth. Its’ skin was snow white, except for the two prominent black horns jutting out of its forehead. It carried in one hand a massive iron club, which you assumed was its’ main weapon.

You moved in front of Asami. “Sure am. What’s it to you?”

“I got a bone to pick with you! Well, not you you, one of your ancestors... whatever, you get the idea.”

It raised up the club over its head and swung it down at you and Asami. You quickly grabbed her and leapt to the side, barely dodging the blow. At the sound of the noise, most of the crowd in the street scattered, though a few people did instead draw closer. You recognized a few of them as Experimental Station researchers... good, you could leave Asami with them.

“Hey, get over here! I thought you liked fighting... or are you just a coward?”

Excuse you!? I’ll show you who’s a coward!”

“Korra, wait!” Asami exclaimed. But you ignored her.

You let out a wrathful roar, breathing out a little fire, and charged at the now on-guard spirit.

(VERSUS THE LIGHT ONI)
(How do you approach the fight?)
[] You need to get better at Fire-bending anyway, so stick with that. Heavy offense.
[] It’s big, so it’s probably slow, right? Use Air-bending to weave your way around it.
[] The Earth will help you deal with that club... and then with the spirit itself.
[] Lure the spirit to a place with more Water, and show it what you can really do!
[] (write-in for more details)


QM Note: You’re fighting on a normal city street, and it’s a pretty decent march over to the nearby river.
 

MagnificentLilyWitch

Active member
Pronouns
She/Her
[X] (write-in) Use a mixture of Earth and Air bending to dodge and immobilise the spirits club before it can cause to much damage. Follow up with a punishing barrage of Fire bending to subdue it.
 

Solarstream

Alchemic Anarchist
Pronouns
he/him
Winning vote:
[X] The Earth will help you deal with that club... and then with the spirit itself.

Korra vs the Light Oni! (Month 8, part 2)

First things first... get this spirit away from the crowd. Then you can cut loose!

As you charge at the spirit, it swings its club at you once again. You dodge quickly to the side, and watch at the club sinks into the asphalt. With a swift set of motions, you beckon the Earth beneath the club to cave in, and then fold itself around the weapon.

“Hah! Take that!” you exclaim.

“Grrrr.... this is nothing!” replies the light oni. It pulls with all of its might... and manages to yank the thing out of the ground. Alright, you’re gonna need to try that again...

Thankfully, it’s now off-balance, so you move the Earth so that the spirit trips and falls backwards, crushing a few newspaper racks. You can see copies of Worker’s Weekly, Republic City Times, and The Daily Dragon scatter in the wind. The spirit ignores them and quickly rights itself, getting back on its legs.

“Why you! I’m gonna knock your head clean off!” it yells, enraged, charging at you mightily like an elephant-rhino.

You grin.

Good... as long as it stays focused on you, that’s good.

Out of the corner of your eye, you notice Asami dash into a phonebooth, surrounded by Experimental Station members. They must be calling in the local militia. You’ll just have to finish this before they can get here!

You bend the Earth to form a few short barriers, keeping the crowd back and preventing any stray cars, buses, or Earth Trains from getting in the way. As you do this, the light oni gets closer... and closer... so close that it prepares to swing its’s club once more!

This time when you dodge, you go up instead of down, giving yourself a boost from the Earth itself. You then take the opportunity to kick the spirit right in its face! You feel pleased with yourself for getting in a clean hit...

...for all of a few seconds, until you realize that the light oni was totally unfazed. It then used its free hand to punch you with its massive fist, and you barely manage to put your arms up in defense.

“Gah!”

You get sent flying, bouncing on the asphalt a few times. But the light oni takes its sweet time getting over to you, so you’re back up by the time it attacks again. This time, you block the club using Earth-bending, attacking with pillars of Earth. You knock the club up and out of the spirit’s hands, and then hit it clean in the face by kicking a boulder at it. That proves to be more effective... but it still gets back up in only a few moments. Great! This is going nowhere fast...

Rather than bothering with the club again, the light oni just charges directly at you. You create a few Earthen barriers to get in its way, but it just barrels through them. When it reaches you, you focus on keeping yourself a short distance away, relying on your Earth-bending ability to contend with its might. Unfortunately, the light oni sees through your plan, and eventually pulls out something you weren’t expecting based on how it was fighting before: a heavy kick, right to your gut.

“Ugh!”

Your vision is swimming. The spirit speaks to you at you start pulling your woozy self up from the ground.

“Hah! Is that all the Avatar can do? How your ancestor defeated Raava is a mystery to me... no matter. I’m taking you with me!”

Not happening!

You flip the Earth over, sending the light oni some distance away from you. It lands with a heavy thud, crashing into a lamppost. It seems to be actually hurt now, taking a bit more time to get up... but it gets up just the same. What to do...

Suddenly, you hear loud whistles. The militia!

The light oni turns around to face where a sudden loud noise came from.

“Huh? Who is tha-?”

The light oni’s question is interrupted as it takes a cannonball to the chest. That knocks it down for good... though it’s somehow still conscious. What would it take to knock this spirit out?

One of the militia members, a young woman in uniform, approaches the two of you. Two others follow her, and the two of them standby as she interrogates the spirit. “Spirit, identify yourself. Why were you attacking this young lady?”

The spirit rights itself, but remains seated. “That young lady is the Avatar.”

“I’m aware. Answer the question.”

“Simple. We need her to let Raava out.”

“And you couldn’t have asked her to free this ‘Raava’ spirit because...?”

“Where’s the fun in that? I wanted a fight!”

The woman rolls her eyes. “Look, if you want to fight, either take it to the arena or out of the city. Don’t do this again, got it?”

“Fine, fine... not!”

The light oni swings at the woman... who easily dodges, and grabs onto the spirit with both of her gloved hands. She then electrocutes the spirit, which actually knocks it out.

“Those are Electro-gauntlets, right?” you ask.

“Yep! They’re an improved model, much lighter... they almost look like normal gloves. But enough about that, how are you doing? You look like you’ve seen better days. How about we go to the hospital and get you looked at?”

You see Asami in the distance, talking with the other militia members as they come near.

(What should Korra do?)
[] Agree to go to the nearby hospital, where you’ll be joined by Asami and have a few visitors.
[] Say that you’re fine and go with Asami to the races, and try to take your mind off of things.
[] Heal the spirit and ask it a few questions... Who is Raava and how do you factor into this?
[] Healing the spirit is too dangerous, but you do want to ask around and learn more about it.
[] (write-in)


QM Note: Korra will come back later to help fix the damage, so no need to vote for that.
 

Solarstream

Alchemic Anarchist
Pronouns
he/him
Winning vote:
[X] Heal the spirit and ask it a few questions... Who is Raava and how do you factor into this?

Korra learns about Raava and Vaatu (Month 8, part 3)

“Actually, if it’s okay with you, I’d like to heal the spirit and ask it a few questions,” you say.

The militia woman gives you a curious look. “Are you sure about that?”

You nod. “Don’t worry, I won’t let things get out of hand again.”

Instead of saying anything, she glances back between you and the spirit... and eventually shrugs. “Suit yourself. Come back and get us when you’re ready to help us clean up the damage, okay?”

“Okay!”

She rejoins the rest of the militia, who get to work re-routing traffic, re-assuring onlookers that everything is fine, and explaining the situation to a few reporters who had just walked up. Asami ignores all of that and comes to you, as you proceed to whip up an Air current to pick up the light oni and take it down to the river. She asks you what you plan on doing with the spirit as you both walk down to the river between Dragon Flats and Uptown, and you explain your plan: you’re gonna ask it a few questions, and as long as it agrees not to cause problems for anyone else, you won’t make it leave. Republic City is supposed to be a place where spirits and humans can co-exist peacefully, after all.

Asami gives you a curious look.

“What?” you ask.

“...you’re being very responsible,” she notes.

“What? Is that unlike me?”

“Yes.”

“Gee, thanks for the vote of confidence, Asami.”

That gets a laugh out of her, and you roll your eyes.

Eventually, you reach a part of town that was completely unaffected by your battle. It’s the middle of the day in the middle of the week, so most of the adults are at work somewhere. Most spirits inhabit particular dwellings or locations, so you see very few of them as well. But since school hasn’t resumed yet, there’s lots of kids and teens out and about – most walking and biking around; some on skates, in cars, on Earth Trains, and in buses; and a few even riding ostrich-horses! While most of them ignore you, some give your entourage curious looks, and you wave away those who approach with something about ‘official Avatar business’.

After a while, the three of you make it to the river, and you lower the light oni into the shallows. It’s a fairly simple matter to apply Healing to a spirit... you just do the same thing you would for a human, apply water and push your energy through it to stimulate theirs. Why your uncle insists in giving it a separate name is beyond you... you’re not actually bending the spirit in any meaningful way. Whatever.

As you gently roll the Water over the light oni, you notice it start to stir and groan. You’re not the best at Healing, but you’re decent enough, and it’s clear that your effort is paying off as the light oni wakes up. Asami stays behind you, taking a defensive stance.

“Urgh... what hit me?”

You don’t answer, continuing your work. The light oni looks over to you and then at itself.

“Huh. You’re healing me?”

You nod.

“...Thanks? I suppose you want me to talk?” it asks.

“Yep,” you say as you finish up. “Two things. One – who is Raava? Two – how do I factor into this?”

“How can you now know who Raava is!?” the light oni asks, sitting up. “What, did one of your ancestors hit their head or something? Tell me, does the name Vaatu mean anything to you? What about Avatar Wan? Or the Four Spirit Sages?”

You think it over... hmmm... these sound like names from some of those old legends you heard growing up, which is what you tell the spirit. Sounds like you might want to talk to your uncle and to your ex-Equalist allies...

“Well, they’re not just from a legend, they’re all real! Raava, my boss, is the Great Spirit of Order and Light. Accursed Vaatu, meanwhile, is the Great Spirit of Chaos and Darkness. As the Twin Great Spirits of Balance, they governed the Spirit World for countless eons, waging endless and magnificent war against each other! ...well, at least until the humans and some neutral spirits got tired of it all and sealed them both up. Spoilsports...”

The light oni sighed with a mix of disappointment and annoyance, and then continued.

“Avatar Wan, the first Avatar, sealed them both up with the assistance of the Four Spirit Sages, one for each of the classical elements. Vaatu was locked away in the Tree of Time and Raava was locked away in the Pillar of Power. And with them gone, it fell to the Avatar to keep the balance... which then resulted in the human and spirit worlds being separated, but that’s beside the point.”

“That sounds kind of important to me,” you say. “Our two worlds are more connected now than they’ve ever been.”

“True. They were separated because the fighting didn’t stop once Raava and Vaatu were removed from play. Humans could now get involved in the battle, and fought both spirits and each other. Though, you know, this could all be solved by you freeing Raava and letting her bring order to the world...”

You share a look with Asami. She’s not buying it either, so you feel more reassured.

“...I don’t know, I’m not convinced,” you say.

“Good,” a new voice declares, “because you should free Vaatu instead. Frankly, there’s too much order as it is, and the last thing we need is Raava’s imposition.”

The three of you turn to see a small black cat walking up to the three of you. Unlike normal cats, it has two tails. “Good afternoon, Avatar Korra,” it says in a formal and smooth tone, bowing to you.

Before you can say anything, the light oni makes a motion as if reaching for its club... only to realize it’s not there, decide not to both with it, and just growl menacingly at the cat. The cat, unsurprisingly, hisses back.

“Both of you, stand down,” you order.

Much to your surprise, they both comply... probably because they think they can convince you. Sure enough, the light oni suggests that as the Avatar, you should have the power to release Raava now, and the dark cat says that the same should be true for Vaatu. The two spirits have been regaining their power all this time, and are poised to break out on their own when the next Harmonic Convergence comes. When Asami asks why the Harmonic Converge, an alignment between the planets, matters here, the spirits say that they’ll become even more powerful around that time... or maybe just their bosses will. It’s been a long time, so they don’t really remember which is the case.

“Regardless, you should free Raava,” says the light oni.

“No, she should free Vaatu!” retorts the black cat spirit.

“I’m not freeing anyone!” you exclaim. “Look, I need some time to think this over. Besides, if they’ll free themselves anyway, you don’t need me, right?”

Both of them then point out that what they really want is you, the Avatar, as an ally... and after making them promise not to attack each other and to remain peaceful as long as they’re in the city, you promise to give them an answer later. The two of them then walk away, leaving in opposite directions. The two of you then start heading back to the Experimental Station.

“...Korra, you can’t really be thinking about freeing such powerful spirits,” Asami says. “It’s too dangerous!”

“I know, I know... I have to be responsible, even though it’s unlike me or something...”

Asami chuckles. “Ah, that’s good to hear.”

“Though I do wonder if I can talk them out of whatever they were planning... if they’re willing to cooperate, I wouldn’t have a problem letting them out.”

“Hmmm... I suppose so. But do you really think they’d do it?”

“Only one way to find out...”

(Is Korra inclined towards one of the two great spirits?)
[][Spirit] Raava, the Great Spirit of Order and Light
[][Spirit] Vaatu, the Great Spirit of Chaos and Darkness
[][Spirit] Balanced between them
[][Spirit] Opposed to both of them


(What does Korra do next?)
[][Event] Relax, and go watch one of Asami’s races
[][Event] Go watch one of the Four Flames in a duel
[][Event] Talk to your uncle and ex-Equalists about Raava and Vaatu
[][Event] Head to the library and see what you can learn on your own
[][Event] (write-in; subject to QM veto)
 

Solarstream

Alchemic Anarchist
Pronouns
he/him
Winning vote:
[X][Spirit] Balanced between them
[X][Event] Talk to your uncle and ex-Equalists about Raava and Vaatu

Korra and an Expedition (Month 8, part 4)

After seeing Asami off, you decide that you’ll need to talk to more people about this. So, you decide to start with your uncle Unalaq. He’s a very spiritually-inclined man, and as the Chief of the Northern Water Tribe, he’s improved the relationship of his people with the local spirits. Maybe he’s learned something from them about Raava and Vaatu? You head over to Uptown, looking for the Embassy to the Northern Water Tribe, to see if he’s thre. It’s not a hard building to find... after all, it is a mansion made of solid ice.

When you open the airs, a chilly yet refreshing breeze blows over you. It’s a nice respite from the heat.

“Hello!” you call out. There’s someone at a desk who looks up when you announce yourself.

“Can I help you, Miss...?”

“Korra.”

“...oh! You’re the Chief’s niece. I guess you’re here to see him?”

“That’s right. Is he here?”

“Yes. Hold on, let me go get him for you...”

You take a seat in an icy lounge chair while the woman goes off down a corridor. Not too long later, she returns with your uncle in tow, and then goes back to her own business.

“Korra? Is something the matter?” he asks, walking up to you and talking a nearby seat.

“What, I can’t just want to visit my uncle? Maybe say hi to him?” you ask.

He glares at you, annoyed. “Please don’t waste my time. I’m in the middle of something.”

You sigh. “That’s what you always say... alright, alright. So, I ran into this light spirit today, and...”

You explain the situation up to this point as you understand it. His annoyance goes away, replaced with curiosity and something like concern. “Well, as the Avatar, it is your decision to make. What do you think?”

“I don’t know, that’s why I came here to talk to you!” you reply. “I mean, I guess I could free them both, but who knows what would happen...”

“I understand your concern. I do agree that freeing them both would be for the best. Times have changed, and they’re perhaps not the threat they used to be.”

“You think? That light oni was pretty powerful...”

“Yes, but you were fighting it by yourself. What are they supposed to do against a modern army, especially one supported by the spirits in opposition to both of them?” Unalaq asks.

“I... guess you have a point... though I’ll have to tell the whole world about this. That way we’ll be ready.”

“I don’t see the point in getting the people riled up. Just tell those in positions of power like myself... and I suppose those Equalists rascals as well, since you were probably going to that anyway.”

“They’re not rascals!” you exclaim.

He shrugs. “In any case, did they happen to tell you were the two of them were sealed?”

You shake your head.

“I see. Well then, I have some good news. I’ve already located Vaatu.”

“Huh!?”

“The Tree of Time is inside a Spirit Portal at the North Pole. I’ve since blocked access.”

“...there’s a Spirit Portal at the North Pole?”

Unalaq nods.

“Does that mean there’s one at the South Pole too?” you ask.

“That’s my assumption. Though no one’s been able to navigate the Everstorm and locate it. The last expedition was two years ago, funded by that Verrick guy, but the whole party was lost and is assumed dead. There hasn’t been another attempt since.”

“...I want to give it a shot,” you decide.

“It’ll be dangerous. More dangerous than fighting, you know,” Unalaq points out.

“I don’t care! ...well, okay, I do care a little, but I think it’s worth it. Besides, I won’t go alone.”

“I’m fine with it, but I’m not the one whose permission you need.”

Ah right... how on earth are you going to convince your parents to let you go? Hmmm... well, you can worry about that later, since you’ll need people to travel with.

So, later on and over the next couple of days, you bring up the matter of freeing Raava and Vaatu with some of the ex-Equalists who hang out around Spirit Portal Island. They’re a mixed bunch of benders and non-benders, and they have benders of all types. The original Water-benders, Fire-benders, and Earth-benders are the most common, but you do occasionally see Air-benders, new Lightning-benders, and new Metal-benders as well. Those last three are a rare bunch, only being around due to the influence of the Artificial Spirit Portal. When you bring up the matter of concern with them, their primary concern is for the people and spirits who will be affected when the two Great Spirits inevitably go on a rampage. That’s not something you have a good answer for just yet... maybe if you understood the two of them better, you could keep them from doing that?

In response, they remind you of the Four Pillars of Harmony – self-actualization, community development, material security, and spiritual connection – and to think about how releasing Raava and Vaatu would affect all of those things. Ugh! You wanted answers, not more questions! But they tell you that you’re the one who will have to answer those questions, since you’re the Avatar. However, they’ll also support whatever decision you make.

The key, however, is that you have to be the one that makes it.

(What does Korra do next?)
[][Event] Relax, and go watch one of Asami’s races
[][Event] Relax, and spend time gardening with the Equalists
[][Event] Go watch one of the Four Flames in a duel
[][Event] Talk to your parents about all of this
[][Event] Ask local spirits what they think about Raava and Vaatu
[][Event] (write-in; subject to QM veto)
 

Solarstream

Alchemic Anarchist
Pronouns
he/him
Winning vote:
[X][Event] Relax, and go watch one of Asami’s races

Korra, Asami, and Moving Wheels (Month 8, part 5)

However, you don’t need to make that decision right now, so you decide not to. Instead, you decide to do other stuff and take your mind off the whole matter. After all, you do still have a good while before you have to make a decision. It’s the middle of the month, so the Harmonic Convergence is... a little over four months from now? Plenty of time to figure things out.

So, for the moment, you decide to relax, and think of other matters.

One of them is school, which will start in about two weeks. The school you’re going to is...

[][School] ...located in Dragon Flats, and is the same one Asami goes to.
[][School] ...located in Uptown, and highly resembles a monastery.
[][School] ...located in Downtown, and is the oldest school in the city.
[][School] ...located in Mo Ce Coast, and is a Water Unionist-run school.


You got thoroughly average marks and thus managed to avoid getting any homework over the break, meaning you don’t have to worry about that. Though hopefully being at school won’t start interfering with your newfound duties as the Avatar... well, you’ll make it work somehow. You review a bit of what you studied last year – some mathematics, some history, some calligraphy, and so on – just to make sure that some of it sticks. You also spend a good amount of time meditating each day, having a new found appreciation for incorporating it into your exercise routine.

You also practice your Fire-bending forms, as you have a match coming up with one of the Four Flames.

But first, you have a race to attend.

Asami – with help from you and others on occasion – had been working on a new sports car, and was eager to test it out in the Future Industries All-Electric Endurance Race. She went on and on while working on the car about how this race was a test of both the car itself and of the battery design, how the race brought out lots of racers from across the continent and even from the Fire Islands, and how her modified design was going to absolutely come on top this time! You didn’t get the full details regarding car and battery design, but you also listened to Asami every time she talked out loud about them, rather than tuning her out.

On the day of the race, you arrived not too long before the race itself began, able to get in for free due to your status as a student. There was a large grandstand on one side of the tracks, currently filling up with people, various stands to get food and drink, and some games and other small amusements. On the other side of the tracks was the open countryside that existed to the north of Dragon Flats. The track itself stretched off into the distance, heading off towards some nearby villages, and eventually circling back towards Greater Republic City and then returning to Dragon Flats. You got a Cherry-Berry Lemonade and headed up into the seats, where you found some other members of the Experimental Station and Asami’s mom clustered together near the front. Yasuko Sato waves you over and you join their group.

Since it’s not possible to see the entire race from any one location, both radio and TV equipment are set up to allow for maximum coverage of the entire track. The announcer’s booming voice comes on soon enough, introducing all the racers as they drive on to the racetrack and take their starting positions. Asami is starting near the middle of the pack. She looks over to your group and waves. You all cheer for her and you wish her good luck!

And with a loud crack of cannon fire, the race begins and all of the racers zoom off into the distance! It’ll be several hours before any of them come back, but you all stay peeled to the announcements and to whatever manages to be broadcast.

Not long into the race, you decide you need a snack, and offer to get stuff for the rest of the group. On the way to one of the food stands, you notice that you’re being followed.

“Is something the matter?” you ask, turning to face the two spirits. They’re both humanoid, though only a few feet tall. One is light-aligned and the other dark-aligned by their color scheme.

“Yes!” they both exclaim.

“Tell this fool that you’re going to free Raava!” one says.

“Nonsense! She’s definitely going to free Vaatu!” the other replies.

You sigh. “I still haven’t made a decision. If that’s all, then leave me be and don’t cause any problems for anyone else here.”

“What!?” exclaims the light spirit. “Come on, just think about how orderly this whole racing affair is! You really want Vaatu to come around and mess that up?”

“The only one who would mess this up would be Raava! She’d find the inherent chaos in an everyone-for-themselves race unacceptable and never allow it!” counters the other one.

“...these are sounding like arguments to keep both of them sealed, if I’m being honest,” you note.

When they look at you in shock, you elaborate that you’re not freeing one without freeing the other, and that you’d really like if both of them could live together. After all, the real world – both the one for humans and for spirits – has both order and chaos. So, you know, maybe they can work together? When both spirits deny that such a thing is possible and that they’ll end up fighting each other because they must, you respond by saying you’ll just defeat both of them first to stop that from happening.

“No way!” exclaims one. “You can’t be serious!”

“You would really try to fight both of them!?” asks the other.

“I will if you give me no other choice,” you say. You don’t say that you’d probably choose to fight them even if you had other choices, since that’s neither here nor there. “Now drop the matter or I’ll personally throw you out.”

And it seems that their interest in racing is strong enough that this works, and they drop the matter, leaving you be. You finally get the snacks and return to the stands, your group engaging in idle chatter between paying attention to the announcements.

Eventually, a car finally comes into view... then one more, and another... and in the front is Asami! She takes the victory this time, with another Future Industries car in second, and a racer sponsored by a company based in Ba Sing Se taking third. And the night is spent in a sweet celebration!

(A few days later, Korra had her match with one of the Four Flames. How should she fight?)
[][Duel] Go all in on offense. (1.5x)
[][Duel] Be heavily defensive.
[][Duel] Be flexible and evasive.
[][Duel] (write-in for a more detailed approach)
 

MagnificentLilyWitch

Active member
Pronouns
She/Her
[X][Duel] Go all in on offense. (1.5x)

While I'm generally all for practicing out side your comfort zone this match is at least somewhat important so it would be better to stick with what we are comfortable with. Besides this could also lull the future opponates into a false sense of security if they think they have our measure.

Also sorry I've not been here to vote. Nyanarchy got lost in my tabs. I'll ask the admin about adding push notifications.
 

Solarstream

Alchemic Anarchist
Pronouns
he/him
Winning vote:
[X][School] ...located in Dragon Flats, and is the same one Asami goes to.
[X][Duel] Go all in on offense. (1.5x)

Korra vs The Komodo Rhino! (Month 8, part 6)

The morning of your match with one of the Four Flames, you practically threw yourself out of bed, afraid you might have overslept. But no, you had a few hours to go still, so you took it slow while getting ready for the day. You and your parents live in a small home, like most of the other people on Spirit Portal Island, but yours is by the shore – far from the few villages and close to the Artificial Spirit Portal. When you exit, you can see that there’s already a bunch of fishermen out, your dad among them. You go for a morning swim, and by the time you return home, your mom is awake and the two of you eat breakfast together.

You take a Water Unionist Ferry from Spirit Portal Island over to Downtown, and then take a second one from there to Phoenix City. It’s only a short walk from there to the arena... where you notice that members of the Phoenix City militia and a few detectives are in the lobby of the building. When you ask them what’s going on, however, they just reassure you that they’re not here to interfere with the match. They were just asked to investigate something on behalf of the workers. You’re not fully convinced, but you decide to try again later since you do need to focus on the match.

When the time comes, you’re out in the ring against one of the Four Flames – a masked man who goes by ‘The Komodo Rhino’ in the ring. Out of the four of them, he’s definitely the tallest and the most muscular, so the name fits... he’s even appreciably taller than you! He fights similarly to you, going all in on heavy offensive pressure, so it’s just a matter of whether or not you can overpower him. While the announcer is introducing the two of you, you notice Asami in the stands and wave to her.

The masked man glances over to her too. “Friend of yours?”

You both get into fighting stances. “What, you don’t have any?”

He chuckles. “Harsh. But no. The audience is my friend.”

Sure enough, the crowd goes wild for him, and you only get a modest reaction. Well, so what!? You’ll just show him what’s what right here and now!

And with the announcer’s cry of “AGNI KAI!”, you immediately burst into motion, punching out streams of fire while rushing in between them. Your opponent, however, is unfazed. He backs up, giving you some space. And as you rush into that space, he breathes fire out at you!

You dodge to the side, but he follows you, and you end up having to flip over it to avoid an early ring-out. You counter with your own fire-breath and the two of you clash... but he’s over-powering, and you know it. If you stay like this... but, this is an opportunity! You use your own fire-breath as a shield and push through his flames, getting closer and closer...

But it looks like you both had the same idea, as he suddenly cuts off his fire-breath and is right in front of you! Shocked, you do the same, and barely block a fire punch with one of your own. And this point, it’s a close-range brawl with both of you constantly clashing blows, countering and countering, with bare evasion... at least until your opponent makes a pillar of flames erupt from the ground, forcing you to back up.

The advantage swings back to him, as he’s able to keep you on the defensive. While he occasionally drops the advantage, it’s never for long enough for you to turn things around decisively in your favor. You do, however, prevent him from getting any decisive blows, so you make it all the way to time. At that point, however, the audience rules in favor of the masked man. You roar and breathe out flames in frustration, but there’s nothing you can really do at this point.

You grudgingly walk over to him and shake his hand. “Good match.”

“Good match,” he says in response as the two of you leave the ring. “Who were your Fire-bending instructors, Avatar Korra? I can’t imagine there’s a lot of them on that island.”

“Some White Lotus people,” you reply, not wanting to give him names. “Why do you ask?”

“You use your flames more as a tool than as an extension of yourself.”

“...what does that mean, exactly?”

“Next time, try to Fire-bend the same way you would Water-bend or Air-bend,” he says instead of answering your question. “You’re the Avatar, so that should be easy for you. You might have been able to beat me today if you were simply stronger or faster, but against the rest of my team? You’d still have no chance. Anyway, have a good day.”

He then walks off into the company of the rest of his squad.

You sigh. Oh man... looks like you have some more work to do. You find a seat somewhere and think about what he could mean by that.

Some time later, Asami finds you and tells you that you did great. You don’t really agree with her, but you thank her for the compliment. The two of you then decide to wander around Phoenix City for a bit, to take your mind of this loss. Before you exit, you run into one of those detectives again, and you ask him if something happened.

“Hm? Yeah, but probably nothing you can help us with. We found a body in one of the storage rooms. It was some old guy who used to work here. Real gruesome scene too, the body was totally drained of blood.”

“What!?” exclaim both you and Asami in shock.

“Yep. We’ve been getting a few cases like this every year. And the target pretty much always turns out to have been involved in the Agni Kai Triad.”

“I see... but that doesn’t make it right to do this,” is Asami’s reply.

You agree with her, and ask if you’re sure there’s nothing you can do to help as the Avatar.

“As the Avatar, huh...? Well, maybe some spirit saw something. You could ask around, I guess. But really, kids like you shouldn’t get involved in this stuff.”

“Wha-!? I’m not a kid! I’ll be 18 in two months!”

“Cool, I don’t care. Anyway, I’ve got to go. Later!” he says after being waved away by some militia types. You stomp off in a huff and Asami follows you.

(What do the two of you do now?)
[] Go see if the local spirits know anything
[] Talk to the local people instead
[] Ignore this and hang out with Asami
[] (write-in)


QM Note: This loss was scripted, by the way.
 

MagnificentLilyWitch

Active member
Pronouns
She/Her
Well I'm glad I don't need to feel bad for pickign the wrong option XD

Murder most foul seems worth cancelling a date for. I guess we might as well lean on the unique status of the Avatar as well.

[X] Go see if the local spirits know anything
 

Solarstream

Alchemic Anarchist
Pronouns
he/him
Winning vote:
[X] Go see if the local spirits know anything

Korra and Asami’s Investigation Attempt (Month 8, part 7)

“I can’t believe that guy!” you grumble as you and Asami walk around aimlessly down the Phoenix City shoreline. “The nerve of him! Treating me like I’m a child!”

You turn to Asami, gaze intent and intense. “Well, I’m gonna show him what’s what! I’m gonna solve this case! You in?”

“Sure, I’d love to help,” she replies, smiling warmly. At least you have someone around here that you can count on...

“What are we going to do now?” she asks.

“Simple! We’re gonna go around and talk to all the spirits in town until we get something! There’s not as many here as there are in Republic City, so it shouldn’t take that long... probably.”

Asami chuckles. “Lead the way, Detective Korra~.”

“Alright! Follow me, Lady Asami!”

...unfortunately, your enthusiasm fades away pretty quickly as you start talking to the spirits, and it becomes clear that most of them know absolutely nothing. It’s probably why that guy told you to do this... looks like he wins this time, but you’ll show him!

Similar to Republic City, most spirits inhabit particular places. It looks like whoever is committing these murders is aware of this, and plans around them. All that a few of them can tell you is that occasionally an obscured figure can be seen, stalking the city late at night, occasionally dripping blood. However, not only can their face not be seen, but they have taken care to not let any trace of skin or hair be exposed. A few free roaming spirits can do a little better and tell you that this specter was spotted leaving the city on foot, suggesting that they’re not a local. But at this point, it’s not even clear if a human or a spirit is the culprit.

With a sigh, you’re forced to give up for now. If you want to find this guy, you’re going to need a way to track him down...

The good news is that it’s Fire Lily season, so at least there’s lots of pretty flowers to look at while you mope. The two of you take a Fire Lift to get yourselves up to the top of the city, and make your way to Phoenix Castle, where the biggest garden is located. And while you’re there...

“My goodness! Is that my dear lady Korra? A pleasure to see you!”

...the two of you run into Biyong Keum, a girl in your year from school. She’s in a casual robe with tones of green and gold, and is walking around with a yellow fan.

“Hey Biyong! Good to see you!” you reply cheerfully.

“...Asami.”

“...Biyong.”

That said, the two of them are still pretty cold to each other. Well, that’s not so surprising, you think. Apparently, their dads used to be business rivals or something? You don’t have the full details, since you haven’t asked. Biyong treats Asami like her rival and Asami reciprocates the treatment, although both of them are friendly to you.

“I suppose you’re here to see the Fire Lilies?” Biyong asks. “This year’s bloom is excellent. The Castlekeepers have outdone themselves.”

“That’s right,” Asami says before you can. “So, if you don’t mind, we’ll be going now. Come on, Korra.”

She then walks off. You wave a goodbye to Biyong, who reciprocates before departing, and then make your way over to Asami’s side.

“Hello there~. Mind if I join you?” you ask, teasingly.

She rolls her eyes. “I suppose you may.”

“The honor is mine, my dear lady Asami.”

...

Both of you then burst out laughing, and with Asami in a better mood, you spend a wonderful afternoon up on the Phoenix Castle grounds.

(What does Korra do next?)
[][Event] Relax, and spend time gardening with the Equalists
[][Event] Relax, and hang out at the Experimental Station
[][Event] Go watch one of the Four Flames in a duel
[][Event] Talk to your parents about all of this
[][Event] Ask local spirits what they think about Raava and Vaatu
[][Event] Go talk to Amon, a highly spiritual man who lives in Uptown
[][Event] (write-in; subject to QM veto)



QM Note: Probably two more events before we get to the start of school
 

Solarstream

Alchemic Anarchist
Pronouns
he/him
Winning vote:
[X][Event] Go talk to Amon, a highly spiritual man who lives in Uptown

Korra and Amon, Spirits and Blood (Month 8, part 8)

A few days later, you decide to go talk to Amon. You’ve heard about him from the ex-Equalists – apparently, he’s a highly spiritual man, having been found by them in the mountains surrounded by spirits, some of which have joined him here in Republic City. Maybe he can give you some advice regarding the matter with Raava and Vaatu or with the mysterious murders?

There was only one way to find out.

As such, you made your way to his clinic. It’s based in his small home, located in Uptown, set within the boundaries of Equalist Park. As you approach, you see a woman leaving the area as well as many of the vividly-colored spirit sheep-goats wandering around. One of them walks up to you and asks you what the Avatar might want with Amon, at which point you explain that you want to talk to him and ask his opinion on some issues you’re dealing with. It then looks at you in a way that makes you feel like it’s looking through you, but then lets you continue.

When you enter, you see that Amon is in what passes for his kitchen, preparing a fragrant herbal tea. He’s a very skinny man, which you can plainly see despite his long and tanned sheep-goat-skin robes.

He turns to you, face hidden by a white mask covered with blue and red crescent moons. “May I help you, Miss...?”

“Just call me Korra.”

“Ah, you must be the Avatar then. It’s a pleasure to meet you. Have you come for my services?”

“No, I wanted to ask your advice.”

“That’s also one of my services. Come sit. The tea will be prepared soon.”

You do so, making yourself wait while he prepares cups for the two of you. The tea kettle sits in the center of a small table where the two of you sit opposed from each other. You take a sip... and it’s a highly spiced tea that warms you up. He removes the bottom part of his mask to drink, giving you the first glimpse of his skin, which is just as dark as yours.

“So, you’re from the Water Tribe?” you ask, casually.

“Correct. I left the North long ago to wander the wilderness, which is where your Equalist friends found me. Since then, I’ve been living here. But I believe you wanted to ask me something?”

“Yes, well...”

You go into the matter with Raava and Vaatu, in all the detail that you can. The man listens intently, leaning in and occasionally asking you to repeat things to make sure he understands them.

“I see... so in the end, they will escape no matter what? Thus, the question is whether you should let them stay out or try to seal them again once more?”

“Yeah, basically. Any ideas?”

“Hmmm... I’m afraid not.”

You sigh in annoyance. “Ughhhh... great.”

“Apologies. I normally deal with more human-scale matters.”

“Well, on that note, maybe you can help me with something else?”

You then talk about the body that was found in the Phoenix City Arena, as well as your attempt at investigating the matter.

“I see... yes, I can help you more with this one. I was once under investigation as a suspect.”

“Huh? You? But why?”

“Simple. I’m a Blood-bender.”

You give him a confused look. “What does that mean?”

“It means exactly what it sounds like. As such, since all the bodies are found as bloody messes, I was the first one to be investigated as a culprit. But then multiple murders happened while I was being interrogated, so it became clear that it wasn’t me.”

“Okay, but I’m still hung up on that Blood-bender thing.”

He sighs. “Fine, I suppose I can demonstrate. Now then, hold still.”

“Huh? Why do you need me to-?”

Your sentence then cuts off as your mouth is forced shut and you’re forced to stand up... and then you start floating into the air! You start to panic, your arms waving about, reflexively Air-bending to try and regain some control, leading to you flying across the room. The control then stops suddenly and you crash into a wall, leaving a big indent.

That whole time, Amon had been sitting in his chair, sipping his tea, making no obvious movements.

You pick yourself up. “What was that!? Was that blood-bending!?” you shout.

“Indeed. And my abilities allow me do it without moving, so I call it psychic blood-bending. You can now understand why I was viewed as a suspect.”

“No wonder! That’s so freaky!” Something then clicks in your mind. “Wait, do people come here to have you do that to them on purpose?”

“It has medical applications.”

“Sure, if you say so... well, is there anyone else who can do that?”

“Well, there’s Katara of the Southern Water Tribe, but it can’t be her for reasons that I hope are obvious. There’s also my brother, Tarrlok, but he’s been dead for years. He was murdered by remnants of the Agni Kai Triad, so he would even have a motive had he survived the attack.”

“And you’re sure he’s dead?”

Amon nods. “I gave him a proper burial out at sea myself. He’s at the bottom of Yue Bay.”

“Right. Well, maybe his vengeful spirit is doing this or something. I don’t know, can that even happen?”

Amon shrugs. “Perhaps. I certainly think this could be the case. But I lack evidence. This assailant is quite careful to avoid being seen.”

You think it over. “Alright... I guess the first thing to do would be to make sure his body is still down there? How about I check up on him later?”

“Sounds like a plan to me. Let me know when you’re about to do it. Anything else?”

“No, that’s all. Thanks for the tea, by the way."

“No problem. Have a good day, Korra.”

“Same to you, Amon,” is what you say as you leave. You decide to head over to one of the many lakes in the park to go for a swim and think things over. This situation has certainly become quite bizarre! In the end, you decide that you’re still going to solve this case and stop the murders, vengeful spirit or no.

“Excuse me, are you perhaps Lady Korra?”

After you’re done, three older people dressed in formal attire like those that the upper class in Phoenix City would wear approach you. Well, the former upper class, anyway.

“Yeah, what’s up?”

One of them, a man, speaks up. “We’ve heard that you’ve started investigating those awful murders that have been plaguing our fair city. We were wondering if you’ve found anything out.”

(How does Korra respond?)
[] “Not much, but I’m going keep looking into it.”
[] “Looks like it might be a vengeful spirit.”
[] “What, do you think you might be next?”
[] “I was hoping you could tell me something...”
[] (write-in, subject to QM approval)
 

Solarstream

Alchemic Anarchist
Pronouns
he/him
Winning vote:
[X] “Unfortunately I can’t comment on an active investigation.”

Korra and Tarrlok, Blood and Death (Month 8, part 9)

You’re not sure whether or not you should tell them anything, so in the end you decide not to.

“Unfortunately, I can’t comment on an active investigation. Don’t worry though, once I figure out what’s going on, I’ll make sure to let everyone know,” you say, which is close enough to the truth that you think he’ll buy it.

That man narrows his eyes and steps closer towards you. “Really? Are you sure you can’t say anything?”

“Absolutely. Now then, is that all?”

“Yami, we really shouldn’t antagonize her,” says the other man. “She’s...”

“I don’t care who she is, Yega!” says Yami. “I want answers!”

He then summons orange fireballs into his hands. “Listen up, Lady Korra, you’re gonna start talking from here on, got it?”

You give him an incredulous look. He... he does realize that not only is the sun setting, but that there’s a literal lake right behind you, right? You laugh him off and tell him again that you won’t be able to tell him about things until later... but he responds by making a threatening motion, so you respond first and give him a free bath via Water-bending. And for good measure, you douse the third member of the group – a woman – and stick your tongue out at her since she was giving you an evil glare.

“...apologies,” says Yega, with a sigh. “I told Yami and Heiai to wait, but they got short with me...”

“Uh huh,” you reply. “And why might that be? Maybe they know something and would like to talk?” you ask to the three of them.

“Hmph! If I knew anything, I wouldn’t have to come find you!” Yami retorts.

“Oh? But there’s plenty that you do know, Yami...”

Wha-!? Who is that!?

The four of you look around for the source of the voice, and you eventually get the bright idea to look up, which is where you see him. A man standing on a tree branch, completely cloaked in darkness, surrounded by a menacing aura. He wears all black. Even his mask is a solid black, with no obvious ways for him to be able to see anything. Did he not need to?

The man comes down from the trees, slowly and casually walking up to the four of you.

“...and now it’s your time to die. But first, I’d like you to answer some questions.”

“I don’t think so!” yells Yami, who immediately makes a motion to attack.

He never gets to make the attack however, as he’s frozen in place. Not only that, he’s slowly floating off the ground... that’s it then!

“Ah ha! You’re a blood-bender!” you exclaim, pointing dramatically at who you’re pretty sure is Tarrlok.

“Oh? You know about that?” he asks. “I wonder who told you... the old woman or my brother?”

Your eyes widen briefly, before you get into a fighting stance. “So then, you are Tarrlok! Look, I understand that you want revenge for what happened to you, but you have to stop this!”

“Hmm... no, I don’t think I will,” says the masked Tarrlok. “And frankly, you can’t stop me, either.”

He punctuates his statement by doing the same thing Amon did you, freezing you in place and making you float in the air, and he does the same to Heiai and Yega for good measure. That said, the feeling is different. Amon was more neutral, and Tarrlok is more filled with malice. Maybe a dark spirit got to him? Regardless, he’s also locked your arms in place, so it’ll be harder to bend your way out of this... but not impossible.

“Now then, Yami, do you know why I’m here?” Tarrlok asks, getting closer and closer.

“I don’t know who killed you!” he yells, terrified. “Please let me go! I’m begging you!”

“Hmmm? But you didn’t let the pleas and cries of all the people you killed stop you, Yami. After all, you were an assassin for the Agni Kai Triad in your youth. That’s how you got your fortune. And you’ve never stopped, have you?”

“Wha-what do you mean? The AKT was disbanded years ago! We’ve all moved on!”

“Really? So then, the name ‘Order of the Golden Phoenix’ means nothing to you?”

Yami’s eyes somehow widen even more in fright than they were already, while his two companions give him confused looks and ask what’s going on. You, however, stay focused, and ask Tarrlok if those people are the ones he’s really after, to which he says yes. He’s suspected that the AKT had no plans to truly surrender power after their defeat about a decade ago, and had been investigating them in an attempt to regain goodwill and prestige. He was killed during the investigation a few years ago, and suggests that you talk to people like Lin Beifong if you want more details.

“Ah, but I’m getting distracted. Talk, Yami!”

“I don’t know anything! I don’t know anything!”

“Hmmm... perhaps I need to apply some pressure. I’ll start with your friends.”

Aaaaaand that’s your cue!

“I don’t think so!” you shout, breathing out a harsh gust of air at Tarrlok. He barely dodges that one, but you follow it up with several more to keep him on evasion. If you can just get him to drop his focus...!

Unfortunately, he sees through your plan, states that you know enough now, gets in close, and knocks you out with a heavy blow to the back of your head.

.

.

.

You wake up, suddenly, in a bed, with a massive headache. Looking around, you realize that you’re in a hospital, it’s the middle of the night, and that Asami and Biyong are here, though asleep. They’re even leaning on each other! You wish you could take a picture of this sight.

You also notice that you’re in a new set of clothes... or rather, a hospital gown. Your clothes are folded on a table and look and smell like they’ve been recently cleaned. You shudder as you remember what happened, and think about what must have occurred after you were knocked out.

You briefly consider waking up Asami and Biyong, but think better of it, and decided to go back to sleep, hoping the pain will be gone later.

When you wake up again, the sun is out and you feel much better. Asami is gone, but Biyong is up making tea.

“Good morning~,” you say while stretching yourself.

“Ah!” Biyong then turns to you. “Lady Korra! You’re awake! The tea will be ready shortly. Shall I get a nurse?”

“Please do.”

Not long later, the room gets crowded. Not only does Biyong return with a nurse, but Asami returns and may others drop by – your parents, Amon, several former Equalists, and members of the Community Police of both Republic City and Phoenix city, including Sheriff Lin Beifong herself. The nurse confirms that you’re okay but insists that you take it easy for the next couple days before departing. You then explain to everyone in the room what you saw yesterday, with Amon adding to the parts that involved your meeting with him right beforehand. Everyone’s expressions are a mix of confusion and horror, though both your dad and Lin approve of you trying to stop Tarrlok yourself.

“Though I’m now wondering how exactly he managed to fake his death,” Lin wonders. “That was a real body you buried, right Amon?”

“Absolutely,” he says. “It had to have been him.”

Lin sighs in annoyance. “Great, more headaches... well, I have some bad news for you Korra. Despite your attempts, Yami, Yega, and Heiai are all dead. Though only Yami had his blood drained, for some reason.”

You grimace. Maybe if you could go into the Avatar State... maybe that could have let you save them?

“Boss Lin, do we know anything about this ‘Order of the Golden Phoenix’?” asks one of the community police officers.

Lin shakes her head. “It sounds like more conspiracy nonsense, which was Tarrlok’s specialty.”

“On the other hand, Yami seemed to think it was a real group,” points out of one the ex-Equalists.

“True... we’ll look into it. It’ll be nice to finally put an end to this.”

With that matter settled, most of the crowd departed, with Lin telling you not to get involved in this until after you fully recover and with Amon offering to teach you what he knows about blood-bending in the hopes that you’ll find a way to defend yourself. Asami and Biyong, however, accompanied you and your parents back home, and the five of you spent the rest of the day together, relaxing beneath the sun and in the ocean.

Unfortunately, these days are going to come to an end soon, as school looms closer and closer. Still, you have time for one or two more things, you think.

(Choose one two.)
[][Event] Relax, and spend time gardening with the Equalists
[][Event] Relax, and hang out at the Experimental Station
[][Event] Go watch one of the Four Flames in a duel, and try to talk to them
[][Event] Talk to your parents about all of this Korra will do this one on her own now.
[][Event] Ask local spirits what they think about Raava and Vaatu
[][Event] Try to find the families of Yami, Yega, and Heiai
[][Event] Visit Air Temple Island and see if they can help you at all
[][Event] (write-in; subject to QM veto)



QM Note: Next update will be the last one for Month 8.
 

Solarstream

Alchemic Anarchist
Pronouns
he/him
Winning vote:
[X][Event] Try to find the families of Yami, Yega, and Heiai
[X][Event] Visit Air Temple Island and see if they can help you at all

Korra, Family, and Learning (Month 8, part 10)

You decide to spend the last few days before school starts doing more investigating. You’re still mad over the fact that Tarrlok got one over on you. Well, you’ll show him! You’ll track down the ‘Order of the Golden Phoenix’ first and take them down yourself! You made a note to talk to Lin Beifong later (and also to see if Amon can help you deal with blood-bending at all...) but first, you want to see if the families of those murdered might know anything. You have no other leads, after all.

You go to Phoenix City on your own this time. Some of the locals give you curious looks, but they otherwise ignore you unless you go up and talk to them... which is pretty easy for you, since you have a natural conversation starter.

“Hey, do you know how I can get in touch with the families of Yami, Yega, or Heiai?”

After a bit of searching, you run into someone who knows more and directs you to the right place.

Generally speaking, the higher up in elevation you are in Phoenix City, the wealthier the inhabitants of the homes are – though the disparity is not as strong as it once was and counterexamples are more and more prevalent. You end up in front of a fairly large estate, with its immediate neighbors notably having been turned into duplexes, and arrive just as members of the Phoenix City community police exit.

“Hm? Are you lost, miss?” asks the young man at the gate.

“No. You’re the son of Yami and Heiai, right? I’m Avatar Korra.”

His eyes widen. “Oh!”

“Yes. I’m sorry about what happened to your parents. May I come in? I’m doing my own private investigation.”

“Hmmm... well, I suppose so. I can just warm up the tea.”

Not long later, the two of you, along with his wife and a few of his siblings, are all in a fancy, if sparse, parlor. You describe what happened that day to them, putting particular emphasis on Yami’s involvement in the Agni Kai Triad and the ‘Order of the Golden Phoenix’. While none of them know anything about the second group, they do admit his involvement in that triad for many years. It was what allowed him to afford the lifestyle that led to them owning this house, and he literally fought people in order to prevent it from being expropriated. While he did manage to keep the house, he and Heiai lost all of their other sources of wealth such as partial ownership of factories and businesses, and they’re been bitter about it.

“Bitter enough to consider plotting revenge?” you ask.

The family members look at each other.

“Well, he did talk about it every once in a while...”

“But all he did was talk!”

“True, and he never gave us any specifics.”

“We always thought it was the grumbling of an old, defeated man.”

“Sorry, we can’t give you much more than that...”

You shrug. “Hey, it’s okay. Actually, can you tell me how he got involved in that triad in the first place?”

They agree to that, and tell you about how Yami immigrated from the Fire Nation to what was then the Phoenix District, worked in odd jobs and itinerant work for a while, and was then recruited into the triad. By the end of the story, the tea is cold, and you decide that it’s time to head out. You wave them all goodbye and the man who led you in leads you out.

“Stay out of this,” he whispers into your ear.

“Wha-!?”

You grab him.

“Tell me what you-!”

He shushes you.

“Be quiet. We don’t know who could be listening in.”

“...what do you know?” you grudgingly whisper, also letting him go.

“Enough. Listen – these people are out for blood. They won’t spare you just because you’re the Avatar if you get in their way. The world still needs you.”

“What kind of Avatar am I if I can’t deal with a problem like this right in my own home?”

The man glances around, making sure that no one’s watching, and then briefly flashes the gold ring he’s been wearing at you. It has a phoenix emblem on it. He then hides the emblem from view again.

“Look for people with this.”

He raises his voice back to normal.

“Have a good day, Avatar Korra.”

“Same to you, Tirin.”

You then leave, excited that you have another clue. One step closer to solving the mystery!

[][Mystery] Keep working on your own.
[][Mystery] Ask Asami and Biyong to help.
[][Mystery] Ask the ex-Equalists to help.


You later stop by the house of Yega’s family, but they don’t have anything to tell you. That man managed to avoid involvement in the AKT, and so has the rest of his family. But you’re satisfied with what you have so far, so it’s no big deal. Besides, you have other matters you can attend to.

Such as, for example, preparing for your return to the Dragon Flats School for Young Ladies. You’d been putting off turning in your forms for electives and extracurriculars for a while, you spend a few minutes doing that... at least, that was the plan. It turns into a few hours of discussion with you and your parents since there’s a lot of options. In the end, you decide on the following:

Korra can take two electives each year. She has already taken:
History of Republic City and Phoenix City I - +5 to investigations of Republic City / Phoenix City history
Self-study w/ Asami - +10 to rolls involving Asami in any capacity

She can take:
History of Republic City and Phoenix City II – adds another +5 to investigations of Republic City / Phoenix City history
Urban Gardening - +5 to all rolls involving the Equalists
Engineering I - +5 to all rolls involving the Experimental Station
Music - +10 to all rolls involving Biyong in any capacity
Public Speaking - +5 to all rolls where Korra attempts to convince someone of something
Research I - +5 to all investigation rolls
International Relations I - +5 to investigations of other countries in general
History of the Water Tribes - +5 to investigations of the Water Tribes
History of the Fire Nation - +5 to investigations of the Fire Nation
History of the Air Nomads - +5 to investigations of the Air Nomads
History of the Earth Continent - +5 to investigations of the Earth Republics, Gaipan, Honghai, etc.
Art – bonus of +20 to be applied once a month, as chosen by vote
Self-study - +5 to all rolls involving a specific area of your choice (write-in details; subject to QM approval)
(write-in) – Have other ideas? Suggest them, and I’ll apply an appropriate bonus!

[][Elective I] ???
[][Elective II] ???


(These do not give extra bonuses. Choose only one.)
[][Extracurricular] Continue not being in a club
[][Extracurricular] Join the Gardening Club (requires Urban Gardening)
[][Extracurricular] Join the Research Club (requires Research I)
[][Extracurricular] Practice your instrument (requires Music)
[][Extracurricular] Work on your art (requires Art)


And with that dealt with, you decided to head over to Air Temple Island. While most of the Air Nomads have returned to their nomadic lifestyle, and are thus elsewhere, some have settled down on the island permanently – mostly non-benders, but there a few Air-benders remaining. When you arrive, you’re greeted warmly by the monks, and invited to eat with them. As you do, you discuss the issues troubling you with them, and they respond as such:

Raava and Vaatu – As pacifists, they will focus on defending civilians should the worst come to pass and those ancient spirits go on a rampage. While they don’t give an answer as to whether or not you should let the duo remain free, they suggest that you visit Wan Shi Tong in the spirit world. The owl is old and knows much, after all.

Dueling – As pacifists, they think the whole matter is undignified and don’t give you any advice, pointing you in the direction of the ex-Equalists instead.

Tarrlok and the Order – As pacifists, they have already offered help in apprehending Tarrlok, though the man is too elusive and remains uncaught. They suggest that perhaps spirit projection would be useful in finding him, though admittedly their attempts to use it have failed. You ask if they’re willing to teach it to you, and they accept the offer.

(Note that this takes one month to complete if you choose to do it.)
[][SP] Start now.
[][SP] Put it off.
[][SP] No thanks.


QM Note: News and Rumors next week, followed by the first part of Month 9.
 

Solarstream

Alchemic Anarchist
Pronouns
he/him
News and Rumors (Month 8 Sidestory)

The Truth of the Light and Dark Spirits – The people of Republic City have, over the past few years, gotten used to the presence of more and more “light” or “dark” spirits appearing and occasionally getting into conflict with each other. There has been plenty of speculation as to why this has been the case, but there’s no finally been a breakthrough. According to reports from Dragon Flats, these spirits are in the service of Raava and Vaatu, two spirits who were sealed away by the first Avatar and will re-emerge at the next Harmonic Convergence. This information was confirmed after a conversation with Avatar Korra, who has had several first-hand experiences with these spirits.

Spirit Clashes at the South Pole – Occasional skirmishes between humans and spirits still occur at the South Pole, despite the reforms forced upon them by the North Pole. It was reported this month that a light spirit apparently possessed a polar bear dog and went on a rampage, destroying a small village and killing several men before it could be defeated. This was followed up by a retaliatory expedition by an “Anti-Spirit League”, but it is not clear what, if anything, happened as a result of that. Unalaq’s spiritual minister to the South Pole, Rivris, has of course condemned the league and directed the Southern Water Tribe, headed by Chief Kya, to make conciliatory moves towards the local light spirits.

Identity of the Bloody Killer! – In a shocking news report, it was revealed by Lin Beifong that she now has a lead in investigating the gruesome murders of citizens in Phoenix City, thanks to the assistance of Avatar Korra. Korra ran into the killer while on an investigation, and discovered his identity. The specter claims to be Tarrlok, one of the ex-Councilmembers. He apparently was convinced that the Agni Kai Triad, defeated decisively a decade ago, was secretly organizing a counter-revolution... and he was subsequently killed during said investigation. He has since returned from his watery grave and seeks revenge! While it is still not clear how he has accomplished any of his feats, having a motive has led some members of the Phoenix City Council to suggest that former AKT members should be given extra security, while others have suggested that they be temporarily moved to the countryside. The matter is likely to be resolved at their meeting next month. Lin Beifong, however, is convinced that this is just a false conspiracy. Korra did not provide further comment, citing the need to keep certain matters secret.

National Council Meetings – The People’s Council and the Province’s Council will be having their third meeting of the year in Republic City and Senlin, respectively. The People’s Council is likely to discuss matters including the need for continued improvements in education in the countryside and the supposed counterrevolutionary conspiracy. The Province’s Council is likely to discuss matters including the Harvest Festivals to be held throughout the country next month and the eco-spiritual renovation of various factories.

Fire Lilies in Bloom – This year’s bloom is Fire Lilies is rumored to be one of the most beautiful in years. The Keepers of Phoenix Castle have worked together with the Phoenix City Public Garden, the School of Botany at Phoenix City University, several ex-Equalists, and many others to improve the quality of the flowers. Make sure to see them before the snow starts to fall!

Celebration and Tragedy! – This year’s celebration of the end of the Ba Sing Se Civil War was cut short due to news of disaster in the Second Si Wong War. Traditionally, all military activity is ceased during the time, and the South agrees to keep to a ceasefire during the week-long event. This time, however, the South broke the agreement and made rapid advances across the desert, which will now need to be turned back. It is estimated that the South went from ~25% control to ~60% control before the North was able to send forces back to the desert. While this would normally be an unpopular move, the brazenness of the South’s offensive has meant that dissent is generally not spoken of in public.

There’s Something in the Air... – The Air Nomads, as well as their sedentary supporters and various splinter groups, had their own annual celebration of the restoration of Air-bending, which occurred fifteen years ago. As such, many of their peacekeepers were not present in Si Wong during the worst of the fighting. Additionally, several Air Nomads were detained in the Southern Earth Republic while tracking down Zaheer. The bandit was spotted near the Spirit Wastes but escaped in the confusion as Southern police went after the Air Nomads instead, thinking they were the bigger threat. Why Zaheer left the Spirit World and what he could be after now are still mysteries.

QM Note: Apologies, but you’re getting this today and the next proper update next week.
 
Last edited:
Top