孩子



Beifong Estate, Present Day.

The hoots of a hidden owl-hawk roosting amid the trees outside of the vaulted windows echoed into the dark study. Suyin stood hunched over her desk for a few moments after pacing back and forth for the past couple of minutes.

She looked up and around the room, her eyes stopped at her shelf, each row weighed down and cluttered with all sorts of objects.

For a moment her sight lingered on the photo of the old junk she traveled on after falling in with a pirate crew for a few years that eluded the United Forces at every turn, and even got enough attention for a 'visit' from Avatar Aang himself at one point. Suyin winced inside as she remembered the lecturing he gave her before going back to Republic City.

In the darkness she overlooked the normally vibrant necklace of carved emerald cubes from the Cave of Two Lovers, and the small but richly painted bongo drums she carried with her from her brief time in the Foggy Swamp, gifted to her by a old wise man of the swamp tribes.

On the shelf below sat a expertly carved oni mask from the Fire Nation, painted in brilliant swirls of blue and red. Another photograph stood next to it, and it took Suyin a few moments to spot where she was in the massive crowd of circus performers.

Suyin sighed and moved back to her desk, her own thoughts continuing to clash with her. She stared at the photo of her and her husband, and then the other of her family, before looking down at one of the drawers. She hesitated before pulling it open, moving her hand inside before finding it.

She pulled out another framed photograph, slowly turning it over to stare.

Her hand trembled as she held the old photograph of herself and Kuvira. Her eyes brimmed as she remembered how long ago that picture was taken. Rich black hair and no wrinkles to speak of. The girl she had managed to wrestle onto her lap had a wide grin with a missing tooth that only seemed to enhance it.

Suyin closed her eyes, the first genuine smile she had in a while began to form as the warm spring day came to mind, clear as glass. She almost could hear her own voice in her ears.

"It's simple. Just like this."

They sat on a simple bench in the garden. She smiled down at the little girl, who stared with wide eyes at the spiky ball of metal that floated lazily above Suyin's palm. "But it's made of metal. How are you doing that? That's really cool!"

Suyin chuckled as she made the metal ball spin around on its ends, getting a delighted giggle from Kuvira. "My mother taught me. And now I'm going to teach you."

The little girl froze and stopped laughing with a gasp, looking up at her in wonder. "Really?!"

"Yep." Suyin got to her feet and bent down to hoist Kuvira so she could stand on the bench next to her. Suyin placed the metal ball in her hand. "Just give it a try. As best you can!"

The little girl frowned. "But... I don't know how... and the others say I'm not a very good metalbender..."

Suyin shrugged and wagged her finger. "My mother taught me that all elements in this world work together to form one whole. Metal is just earth that has been purified and refined." The woman leaned in with a wink. "You'll find it easier than you think to metalbend. I believe in you."

The grin reappeared on Kuvira, and she gave a confident nod. "Hmph! Okay!"

"Now... picture what you want to create in your mind, and let the metal work towards what you want."

The little girl took a deep breath, and furrowed her eyebrows. The ball didn't move from her palm, and she almost cracked a eye open to look at it before trying even harder to keep them closed. Slowly, after a few seconds, the ball began to lift from her palm into the air, the morning sun catching on the silvery surface.

"I'm doing it!"

Suyin grinned down at Kuvira as she stuck out her tongue and furrowed her brow, deep in concentration as she wiggled her fingers at first, before slowly tracing flowing circles with them. Depressions in the smooth surface appeared and disappeared, before long the sphere flattened into a ovaloid. Kuvira grunted and splayed her fingers, and the outer edges peeled away from one another, becoming petals.

Suyin was taken aback when Kuvira floated the metal lotus flower in front of her, awed at the intricate shape.

"I made it! I made a flower!"

The little grinned up at her as Suyin laughed and wrapped her in a hug. "Well done, Kuvira! You picked that up quickly!"

Suyin stood up and held out her hand for Kuvira to hop down to the ground. "Let's go find Baatar Jnr, he'll love to see the flower you made!"

Su hung her head and placed the photo face down on the desk with a hoarse gasp amid the dense silence, the darkened office replacing the bright garden.

"I wish it didn't have to be like this." Su muttered.

She turned away from her desk, her eyes set on the door back out into the hallway as Wing and Wei both poked their heads in with clear frowns, dressed entirely in black like she was. "Everything cool, mom?"

She joined them out in the hallway, hanging her head for a moment before giving her answer her sons. "I'm ready. Let's end this."

Suyin's eyes glistened as they took on a hard edge. She pulled the black hood over her head and pulled up her facemask. She gave a resolute nod to her sons and followed them out into the night.

Zaofu Training Grounds, 3 Years ago.

Zui bounced on the balls of her feet, and cupped a hand around her mouth to call across to the two boys. "You ready to take us on?"

Wei narrowed his eyes at Wing. "Why do you bring doom upon our sacred brotherhood? We never win!" he hissed out of the side of his mouth.

Wing waved a dismissive hand at his twin, only for it to falter as he watched Zui launch into a series of warm ups, rolling her bare shoulders and muscled arms. He slumped forwards for a moment before shaking his head and seeing the dirty look from his brother. He shrugged and continued to watch the two young women with a dopey grin, dressed only in their training tanktops and loose baggy pants. "Winning isn't everything, Wei..."

Wei screwed his eyes shut with a long groan at his twin, opening them and calling across to Kuvira and Zui. "You two are the best of the best in the city! We're toast!"

Kuvira sighed and shook her head as she craned her neck forward, holding up the end of her hair and slipping a small metal ring on to contain it while Zui called across to the two twins. "Remember that game of powerdisc last week?"

"...Yeah?"

Zui winked at Kuvira and gave her answer to Wei with a big grin. "Payback!"

Wing winced and rubbed the back of his head as he looked at Wei. "At least, you're not stuck training with Bolin..."

Kuvira rolled her eyes. "This isn't going to last long..." she muttered, as Zui shifted her foot forward, resting it slightly on a metal plate resting in the dirt near their bare feet. Her eyes fell on another plate under Wei and Wing.

She shot a quick look at Kuvira, who responded by stomping her foot, floating the plate in the air between them. She sent it spinning it forwards with a graceful swipe of her arm, prompting shouts of alarm from Wei and Wing at the other end of the square.

"That's too easy!" Wei grinned as he swiped his leg, knocking the plate aside into the garden wall with a thick thud. "Got anything else?"

Zui exchanged a look with Kuvira, who took the opportunity to lift up three metal plates from the dirt and throw them in quick succession at Wing. Just as the trio of spinning plates were easily halted by the twins, Zui had stomped her foot down again. A rumble rushed through the dirt before it stilled.

The twins prepared to retaliate when a corner of metal glinting in the sun shifted in the dirt beneath their feet. Their eyes widened at the same time, and their yelps filled the air as a metal plate lifted into the air underneath them, carrying them upwards. Kuvira windmilled her arms and flipped the plate over in a instant, dropping them into the air as Zui ran forwards with a grin, lifting up the smaller plates from before and sending them careening into the twins.

Wei and Wing were thrown to the dirt in a crumpled heap. Their groans filled the garden's air.

Zui exhaled a breath and danced backwards towards Kuvira with a triumphant fist pump. "That's how its done, boys!"

The twins clinged to each for support as they rose, faces paled and bruise. He glared at Wing as his twin slid through his grasp onto the ground again.

"C'mon you idiot!" Wei dragged Wing behind him onto the stone bricks lining the sparring square, grumbling under his breath the entire way down the garden path towards the estate.

Kuvira chuckled as she moved towards the sitting benches on the side of the field, grabbing one of the neatly folded towels and draping it over her shoulders. She closed her eyes in bliss at the damp fabric.

"Ah... I do love these early morning workouts." Zei said with a smirk as she grabbed the cloth from Kuvira's shoulders, tipping her neck forward with a sigh as she rubbed the sweat from her shoulders.

Kuvira led the way up a series of stone steps winding away from the field and curling around to stop at the base of a cupola that stood in the garden. The two women made their way up the steps into the interior, with Zui flicking her finger at a nearby radio that sat on the railing.

"President Raiko has just announced the construction of a statue in Republic City's world famous parklands, dedicated to Avatar Korra, who everyone sorely misses from our daily lives!"

Zui dropped onto one of the metal benches and Kuvira joined her. She took a sip from her water bottle and handed it to Zui. She took a long swig, some spilling down her chin and onto the wooden boards as she wiped her mouth. She glanced at the radio, and back at Kuvira."So, was Su speaking the truth about the Avatar?"

Kuvira clasped her hands and nodded. "Su took out the metal poison from the Avatar's body, but from what I hear... she's crippled because of what those Red Lotus terrorists did to her."

She fell quiet as her thoughts turned elsewhere, remembering what Baatar confided in her the night before.

Zui noticed the heavy frown on her. "So what's the problem? Everything's fine here."

Kuvira didn't answer immediately. A few seconds passed before she sighed and shook her head. "Aren't you concerned about what's going on in rest of the Earth Kingdom? Those bandits on the road and those refugees are commonplace now. Every day, they prey on the weak because the Grand Army has completely splintered. Some of the bandits actually are Earth Kingdom soldiers."

Zui grimaced, but shrugged. "Our job is to guard Zaofu, Ku'. And we make it the safest city in the world. We can't police the entire continent by ourselves." A grin appeared. "Although sometimes I wish we could-"

"Kuvira."

She paused and turned from Zui, surprise briefly showing at the sight of the heavily built water tribe man standing at the top of the steps to the garden cupola. She caught a brief glimpse of Zui's eyes glazing over before turning her attention to the new arrival. Kuvira straightened her posture. "Chief Tonraq? It's a surprise to see you here in Zaofu."

Tonraq moved into the cover of the cupola, giving a nod to Zui. "I was just on my way to inform Suyin that some of my healers will be staying here in Zaofu to assist your men in their patrols. I hear it's getting very ugly out there."

Zui shrugged with a grin. "Don't worry, we're up for anything, uh, Chief."

He bowed his head. "No need to tell me. My ships will also be patrolling the naval approaches on the coastlines to dissuade any bandits from attacking fishing villages in those states. I understand that Suyin declined the offer from Raiko and Tenzin to take charge of the situation?"

Kuvira briefly looked down before giving a tight nod. "...That she did. I'm confident in her leadership, though." She glanced at Zui and then back to Tonraq, hoping her voice was as firm as it sounded to her. "If you don't mind me asking, how is your daughter faring in her recovery?"

Tonraq's eyes fell. "Slowly. But I'm positive she'll recover someday."

"Does that mean she'll be able to assist us in restoring order to the Earth Kingdom?" The words tumbled out with a hint of desperation Kuvira couldn't do enough to hide.

Tonraq paused, before shaking his head. "I don't know. She can barely find the will to walk most days. I'm afraid she might be staying home for a long time." His frown deepened before he loosed a grunt and dipped his head to the two of them. "In any case, Suyin is waiting for me. Goodbye."

Kuvira bowed her head. "I wish your daughter well in her recovery."

A small smile appeared as he nodded, grateful for her words. Tonraq turned around and left the sheltered Cupola, moving down the steps and onto the garden path.

Kuvira sighed and shook her head as Zui tilted her head, watching Tonraq's rear as he left the training field with a dopey grin. "...Those water tribe men..."

"I wish you'd think of something else for once, Zui."

Kuvira noticed Zhu Li come into the garden, giving a brief nod to Tonraq just as he disappeared behind the wall. The small woman marched up the steps and came to a stop before them. "Captain."

Zui leaned towards Kuvira. "You're really popular this morning." She grinned at Zhu Li. "What's up, Zhu Li?"

Kuvira ignored her and folded her arms. "Zhu Li? What is it?"

The no-nonsense woman answered immediately. "Varrick wishes to see you."

"What crazy thing is it this time?"

"See for yourself."

Varrick's Penthouse, Business District.

The elevator doors opened with a cheery ding and Zhu Li led the way out into a large room, the floor of the back half covered completely in rows of workbenches and lab stations. Various hodge podges of machinery littered the entire space, but it was the humanoid giant standing in the middle of the empty floor between the elevator and the rest of the workshop that caught Kuvira's attention.

In between the machine's cylindrical legs, Kuvira spotted Varrick as he laid on a roller-board, his tongue stuck out as he fiddled with a panel on the back of the contraption. He glanced down at them and grinned, pushing the roller-board out from under the machine and springing to his feet.

"Kuvira! You're just in time to see this new thingamajig!" Zhu Li came over and stood off to the side. He jerked his thumb back at his creation. "Do the thing, Zhu Li!"

She bowed her head and moved towards the machine, pulling a lever located on its waist. The frontal plates of its armored chest released spurts of steam as they slid open, revealing a seat shoved into a thick nest of valves, drive shafts and levers. Without a word she pushed her glasses up on her nose and clambered in.

Varrick cleared his throat and threw out his arms with a grin. "Presenting my Varri-Suits! Giving you and your brave guards the strength of twenty rabid moose-lions! Check them out!"

Kuvira placed a hand on her hip, looking up and down the humanoid machine with interest. Zhu Li's neutral face was visible behind a series of circular portholes on the dome that was it's 'head', as she tested its arms or legs, flexing them with surprising dexterity.

Still, she tilted her head and frowned. "That looks like a Mecha-Tank with legs."

To her amazement, Varrick just nodded, rubbing the tip of his moustached with a self-satisfied smirk. "I borrowed the blueprints from Future Industries shortly before being thrown in the slammer by Raiko, and put them to better use! You can use these babies for all kinds of jobs!" He cupped his hand. "Zhu Li! Juggle a few boxes or something!"

Kuvira could just hear a metallic groan coming from within the giant suit as Zhu Li guided it over to a stack of black boxes near a workbench. The Mecha Suit's hyraulics whined as its legs squatted and Zhu Li opened its hands to grab hold of the top boxes.

Slowly the Mecha Suit straightened, and threw up one of the metal boxes, catching it in the other hand while tossing another. Inside the suit, Zhu Li sighed.

Varrick folded his arms with a bark of laughter. "Isn't it something?"

"Hmm. How do they perform in a fight?"

Varrick snapped his fingers with a wink. "Glad you asked!" He moved over to the microphone on the workbench and brought it up to his mouth. "Zhu Li! Break out the flamethrowers! And the lightning gun!"

On the mecha's right arm, Kuvira raised a eyebrow in interest as a pair of small burners popped out into view, small blue flames lighting the end of their nozzles.

Kuvira raised her eyebrow. "Do you actually know how any of this works?"

"What's there to explain?! It works, doesn't it?"

"Sir!"

"Hmm?" Varrick turned from Kuvira to see the mecha suit's arm flailing, spraying a never ending stream of flame around it. He scowled and waved his arm at Zhu Li. "Stop wasting the fuel, Zhu Li! That's all we have for the prototype! I gotta import that stuff from the Fire Nation, you know!"

"Something's wrong with the hydraulics! I can't control it!" Kuvira took a step forward when the Mecha Suit's arm swung towards her and Varrick, directing a great plume of flame at them. The out-of-control mech lurched forwards as Zhu Li's voice rang out from inside. "Look out!"

Kuvira took a knee and swiped her arm forwards and up, ripping up a section of the metal flooring as she pulled Varrick down behind it, taking cover with him as the massive plume met the smooth grey metal, hissing and roiling against it before it began to reach around the edges. Kuvira gritted her teeth as she spotted a fire safety box mounted on the wall nearby.

She took aim, taking less than a second to launch a wire that lashed through the glass and wrapped around the lever, pulling down. Overhead the sprinkles hissed as they released a heavy torrent of water drops, relentlessly beating down on the flames and giving Kuvira enough time to hold her hand to rip a fire extinguisher out of its bracket on the wall and pull it to her waiting grasp.

The flame hissed as she dropped the fire extinguisher in Varrick's lap, rushing around them towards the malfunctioning suit as Zhu Li fought to steer it away from any of the lab equipment.

Kuvira ran forwards, keeping low as she approached the lurching machine, hearing banging noises from within its chest plating as Zhu Li pounded on the inside. Just as Kuvira made for Zhu Li, the barrel mounted on the Mecha Tank's left wrist began to crackle and roil as a blue glow filled its innards. She grunted and rolled to the side as a arc of electricity lashed out in a thick stream, leaving a trail of scorch marks and flames on the metal. The stream traced a erratic arc as Kuvira launched a wire from her waist at the suit's waist, launching herself forwards while a blade of metal extended from her bracer.

She grunted as her blade sunk deep into the chest armor of the machine, slicing a section of the outer shell off and revealing the inside of the machine. Kuvira shoved her hand through as she kept hold of the suit, and made curled it into a fist. She wrenched her arm backwards and peeled open the entire chest, revealing Zhu Li's perturbed features.

Kuvira grabbed her and pushed off of the machine just as Varrick shouted with glee somewhere inside the workshop. "Ha! Found the plug!"

The mecha suit's flamethrower finally ceased spewing flames, and its discharger gun powered down as it stumbled to a clumsy halt, slumping forwards with a final whine. Varrick ran around its side, holding onto the end of a massive cord.

"Good thing this hunk of junk needs a tether for power!" Varrick shrugged and dropped the massive electrical cable.

Kuvira lifted Zhu Li onto her feet. The woman brushed a loose hair back into her fringe and loosed a grateful breath, giving a grateful nod to Kuvira before looking at Varrick. "...Still need to work out some kinks, sir."

Varrick waved his hand dismissively. "Just another addition to the list of progress! Grab a broom and sweep up this hunk of junk! We gotta start building the next one! It'll be better than ever!"

Zhu Li slumped forwards and nodded. "...Yes sir."

Kuvira turned on her heel, rubbing her chin as she entertained the idea the machine represented. "...I'll keep it in mind."

The Unconscious Badgermole.

Kuvira had her cheek propped up by her hand as she sat on the high stool, slowly twirling her index finger to turn the small metal umbrella poking out of the bubbly green liquid in her glass.

"You saved his life at Laghima's Peak, right? When we were fighting that freaky forehead giant?"

She frowned at Zui before giving a nod. "Yeah." Kuvira sighed. "I can't imagine what it must be like for him with his daughter crippled."

Next to her, Zui set down her mug, settling low over it as she sipped at it with a delicate pace. Her eyes flicked to Kuvira whilst snippets of conversation echoed in the bar around them.

"I listened to the finals with the Fire Ferrets and the Wolfbats. The Avatar was absolutely wrecking the other team until they started cheating. And until the Equalists showed up."

"Huh."

"And after she unmasked that Amon guy, then a couple months later takes on her own uncle as the two Water Tribes fight each other. And then he turns into a giant monster and tries to wreck Republic City, but she still manages to beat him. " Zui blinked twice. "All of that in just a year. She's really something."

"She really was." Kuvira watched as Zui downed the last of her drink and pulled a frown, and started flicking the edge of the empty bottle. "It's hard to believe she did so much in such a short amount of time."

Zui stopped flicking the bottle and drummed her fingertips on the counter with a amused smirk, supporting her head with her other hand.

Kuvira raised a eyebrow. "What?"

Zui smiled and shrugged. "She actually reminds me of you, Ku."

"...I think you've had too much."

A grin slowly grew on Zui. She shrugged with a giggle. "You sure?" she asked with a hint of slur.

"I'm sure."

"Really?"

"Yes."

"...Okay."

Zui swayed a little in the stool as she glanced over her shoulder. She poked Kuvira in the side. "Hey. Look who's here."

Kuvira looked over at the door to the bar to see Baatar Jnr standing there, looking around nervously before making his way over to the bar and talking to the bartender. "Excuse me. Could I get a glass of lychee juice?"

The well-dressed bartender raised a eyebrow. "Of course, sir. Although that is from the children's menu. Are you certain?"

Baatar Jnr nodded quickly. "Just do it."

Zui stood up from the stool and stretched with a grateful groan. She patted Kuvira on the shoulder with a wink. "See you at the barracks."

Kuvira frowned as she watched her leave, before turning her attention back to Baatar as he drummed his fingers on the counter, keeping his eyes to himself. He flinched as a massive uproar of laughter filled the air of the room.

"Strange to see you down here at this hour."

He rubbed the back of his neck. "I know. Usually I'm too busy working with father to come down to this place."

She got up from the stool and seated herself next to his. Kuvira folded her arms and tilted her head."...And you don't drink." She glanced at the bartender as he came back around, setting down a tall fluted glass of bright green liquid.

Baatar picked up the glass and took a small sip."I drink lychee juice. It's good for the mind."

"Lychee juice isn't a drink. I can get a umbrella for it, if you want."

He colored in the cheeks and glanced to the side as she stood up, looking across the room at a pair of open doors leading to a balcony. She patted him on the back and gestured. "Wanna take this outside?"

"...Alright."

She led the way from the counter, her boots clicking on the scratched and nicked floor. She headed through the doors of the bar outside, coming to a stop at the metal railing that girded the balcony.

Kuvira kept silent as she looked out over the balcony, while next to her Baatar Jnr rubbed the back of his neck as his eyes darted around. He glanced up at her for several seconds before finding a topic to talk about.

"So... Your patrols are getting longer by the week."

She gave him a quick glance. "There's more and more trouble brewing out there."

"You can't keep this up forever."

Kuvira shrugged. "I can certainly try."

"What if you didn't have to?"

"Excuse me?"

"What I meant was..." Baatar Jnr turned to her with a serious look. "-if you could bring back order to the Earth Kingdom yourself, would you do it?"

She squared her shoulders. "I follow Suyin. She knows what's best for Zaofu."

Baatar narrowed his eyes and chuckled once. "Does she? Sometimes I think mother lets her protectiveness get too out of hand."

Kuvira raised a eyebrow, taken aback at the bitter note in his usually meek speech. "Baatar..."

"Look at what we have here! Because of my father's work and my mother's ideals, we are the safest city in the entire world. We have a train system that allows for efficient transportation across the entire valley in a handful of minutes! We grow enough food to support ourselves five times over. We have the most advanced technology in the entire world. We are peaceful, due in no small part to the security you and your men provide, Kuvira. Wouldn't spreading that to the rest of the Earth Kingdom be a positive thing?"

Kuvira hung her head and sighed. She grimaced, taking a while before she could even answer. "You know what your mother's stance on the issue is. Not even President Raiko and Master Tenzin could convince her." Kuvira looked to the side. "I tried to make her reconsider, but it's not my place to override her wishes."

Baatar Jnr shook his head. "I disagree with her. Mother and father don't agree with my proposal to help the other nearby states rebuild themselves, either. We are the safest and largest state in the Kingdom, and I think it is only right that we should help everyone out, even if we have to take charge. But mother thinks we'd be no better than the Earth Queen. The Earth Queen." Baatar Jnr lowered his gaze with a sigh of despair. "My family is so closed off from the world. No one can come close to ruining the Earth Kingdom like the Earth Queen did."

She watched the young man sag down and rest his chin on the balcony railing. Kuvira glanced away from him, running her gaze over the hazy skyline of the district, soon she looked past the buildings, past the people, past the peaceful stilness, until her eyes settle on the ever constant shell that completely enclosed them all, dwarfing anything else in any of Zaofu's districts.

Once upon a time she loved the safety that came from the domes and serving Suyin. But now it just gave her a feeling of suffocation. "... I agree with you. Zaofu needs to do something more."

Command Train of the Great Reuniter, present day.

Kuvira clasped her hands behind her back as she came to the smooth metal door, stopping in front of the two helmeted soldiers guarding its flanks. She glanced at either of them. And behind their dark green visors, they may have flinched a little.

They snapped off salutes and opened the carriage door for her. She nodded at them and walked through without a word into the bare metal room and stopped before its sole occupant.

She looked down at Suyin, who was chained to the floor. Her arms bound together in front of her by a massive iron shell that immobilized her hands, and her feet were chained together with a shining platinum brace.

Behind her the two guards moved into the room as escort, but she gave them a sharp look. "Give us the room."

"Ma'am." They stood to immediately and snapped off salutes before leaving through the door, going back to their posts just outside.

Suyin lifted her chin and glared up at Kuvira. "Where's Wei and Wing? What have you done with them?!"

Kuvira regarded her with a cold stare.

Suyin gritted her teeth, rising to her knees only to be jerked down by the restraints with a grunt. "Answer me!"

"They're safe and secure in another carriage. Platinum restraints, just like yours."

In the silence that followed Kuvira tilted her head. "So. Was it a kidnapping? Or a assassination?"

Suyin narrowed her eyes as she stared at the floor plating. "Either way you would be removed from power. And this nightmare would end."

Kuvira frowned. "Why do you believe what I'm doing is monstrous? You raised me to cherish freedom and choice. I've liberated countless towns and given people the ability to choose their futures, without fear and without any pressure. When you failed to act and take charge, the responsibility and the burden fell to me. This-" Kuvira's gaze hardened. "All of this, is because you took the wrong choice."

"You've just imposed another form of control over them! You're just like the Earth Queen!"

She shook her head and crouched down in front of Suyin. "No. I'm effective at restoring order. And I listen to what the people want. I give them a better future through safety and prosperity. I've unified our nation for the first time in history."

Suyin thrust her face close to Kuvira's with a growl. "I taught you better than this! This isn't how things are done in Zaofu!"

Kuvira didn't bat a eye as she rose to her feet. She held her head high. "You taught me a lot of things. But you held me as a prisoner. You held everyone in Zaofu prisoner. Even your own family."

Suyin narrowed her eyes. "My family is what I value most in this world!" She looked aside as angry tears brimmed in her eyes. "You used to be part of that! Then you stole my own son!"

Kuvira's massive metal pauldrons rose up as she shrugged, her face a blank. "Baatar and I broke away from your shadow of our own choice. And tomorrow we're going to free the rest of Zaofu from the same tyranny. Your tyranny."

Suyin glowered, but didn't reply.

"You valued a society with no secrets, and Aiwei took advantage of that to betray you." Kuvira's eyes hardened. "And it seems I managed to keep a few secrets after all."

Kuvira turned her back on Suyin, moving back through the open door, leaving the older woman to hang her head, and begin to sob in silence.

孩子