Video; UN: Korra - Call of the Republic

[avatar_state]

[She has set herself up in a square, in the busiest part of Trench she can find. She's got the camera set up to view the fountain she's standing on. No water runs through it, though that won't be the case for long. It's just something old, something decayed - ignored. She is wearing a formal dress, and anybody who knows her will know that means she's on a mission.]

['Formal' Korra doesn't appear often - and it's only on occasions that she feels absolutely warrants it. The fact that she puts up a banner behind her says all the more - in this case a blue background with a curious symbol on it. Her friends will recognize that one, too.]

[She has her staff with her, too. It had started as driftwood she'd found when she first arrived in Trench, and further honed, shaping it with each of the elements in turn before coating it with metal-bending. She can make the metal change, of course, reshaping what's there as she needs. The only thing that doesn't change is a symbol around the middle, made in copper - highly purified metals cannot be manipulated by benders - with a symbol of the Southern Water Tribe.]

[In short, she has a plan, a mission, and is ready to make a statement. And she stands there, until a crowd gathers. When she speaks, it's without adornment, but with all the depths of her sincerity, the core of strength that she's held onto so long.]

I want to tell you all about a dream. A dream of a better place. My world, it was one of nations - nations that fought, and warred, and conflicted for time untold. But then, at the end of a great war, my predecessor, the great Avatar Aang, helped create a new dream to replace what had been. He created the Republic.

[She hoists the banner.]

This is its symbol! It stands for a world in which nobody holds power over anyone else! Where things for the city are done by the people you want to be there! A serious government, of serious people - there to try and do good for all!

It's not perfect, but that's the thing - it always tries. It's about trying to be better, about having laws and changing them if they are no longer fair, or to grant equality to those who haven't been given it before.

Here we are all ruled! Ruled by the Pthumerians! Ruled by blood magic! We are made to suffer, for their unguessable gain! To be hurt, transformed, killed! To see our loved ones killed, taken from us! I ask you: is this fair? Is it not sadistic?

Should it not be opposed?

I call for the formation of a Republic of Trench! A fair society, to protect all of us, equally. Those of us with power should - must! - use their power to defend those who cannot do so themselves! To stand against any who would impose their will, their changes, on you! Even the pretend gods. I've seen the fall of gods before. I have pulled one down with my own hands! I got there with help, with the aid of those who were part of that Republic.

[There is a pause, and she raises her staff, the end of it reforming into a spear, half again doubling its length.]

I dedicate my strength to your defence! To the defeat of the Pthumerians and whatever allies they may have! Together, we can make a better tomorrow! We can make a Republic for us, for those who come after! It may take years, it may take generations - but if we all work together, no power in the universe can stand against us forever!

[A voice calls out from the audience, mocking, asking at what ambitious price her efforts will come.]

I swear here and now, not to do any more than help. I do not want, nor will I seek, a position of power over anyone. I will lead only so much as I am asked - and when the Republic comes, if I live to see it, I will not hold a position of authority within it.

[That quiets the heckler, and causes a bit more of a stir. Avatars like Korra radiate sincerity - because they don't know any other way to be. They don't know who else they could possibly be.]

A world of laws, a world of hope - a world in which we can live without pain. That is what I wish to help you build. I'll answer any questions you might have. And as a first step, before I leave? This fountain will flow again, you have my word on that.

My name is Korra! I am the Avatar, my calling - my very life - is to push back against chaos and pain and destruction. Call on me, anytime, for your defence! I will answer.

Long live the Republic!

[A number join in the call, repeating many times as there is applause in her audience. Others, of course, turn away - especially among the pleasure-seekers. Which she expected - people barely alive, in her view, living in a terrible twilight without purpose. She seats herself on the edge of the fountain as people come forward to ask her questions. Some basic, some detailed. Questions about laws, how to bring disparate peoples together. She answers what she knows, admits what she does not. Finally, when they are all done, she turns to the fountain, picking up a bucket of water which she sloshes into it. She takes a deep breath, centering herself, and the moves, body shifting from side to side, hands moving in a gentle circle. The water swirls, spiralling up to speed, and then she brings her arms down, the water gushing down into the drains, spearing deep into long-clogged pipes and dislodging the detritus that has long stopped it. There is a slight rumble, a bit of a rattle, and then water begins to flow. A bit dirty at first, as sediment and time is displaced - but the water flows again.]

[She leaves the banner, picking up the viewing stone, taking a deep breath. That's that, really.]

Comments

Video; un: lothrat

[ezra_of_lothal]

[Oh boy. This is sure...something.

He listens. He listens and watches all of it.]

I. Um. Made a broadcast sort of like this once, back home. Long story short, it's part of what lead to the Alliance to Restore the Republic. The Rebellion.

And yet.

Not sure about this call to action. You're not talking about overthrowing a government of mortal beings. You're talking about changing the balance of reality itself, here.

If we stop the suns from setting because we want more light, the other side of the world is left in darkness.

[avatar_state]

Done it before, can do it again.

[And goodness knows she had, too.]

I've torn down a god before. Truth of things is, the world keeps on turning. And the suffering has to end. To accept an endless cycle of this is wrong.

It has to be tried.

[ezra_of_lothal]

Korra. I'm all for...lessening harm. Making changes that will help. We should have those discussions.

But. Ok. I feel like you're...maybe conflating some issues here? Like, 'ruled by blood magic'. What do you mean by that? Any of us can learn some of it.

[avatar_state]

[It seems pretty straightforward to her.]

There's power here that's inflicted on others. It's not universally held, certainly not to the same degree. Countering that, pushing back it's influence - that's a definite good.

This is me opening the discussion. A Republic is the right start. We can discuss from there, when people have guaranteed legal rights and protections, and a representative government.

Video: UN - Runeseeker

[onerthes]

Ah... Korra Korra...

[The way that she responded was a mixture of three emotions: Light exasperation, affection and a little trepidation. Of course, if Korra remembered all the problems Wu had encountered back in the nightmare and the incident with the General and Professor, it might not be too surprising if there was a hint of concern. Still, she smiled.]

A good speech. You might have some fortune with the people of Trench. I don't know that they're opposed to some kind of representational government. So, this may get the traction you hope for in the end.

But I will note that I don't know that the Pthumerians rule over us so much as they wield power over the planet itself. Their actions aren't so much that of rulers and more that of extremely powerful individuals influencing our lives.

Still, I definitely appreciate the desire for them to be a bit more ... out of our hair. Just know you're probably making no friends with the Disciples.

[That last? She didn't sound the least bit concerned as she said it. She didn't hide her distaste for the profession.]

[avatar_state]

[She shrugged a little, especially at the last.]

I used to make enemies just for existing. I've had enemies lurking for me from the day I first arrived in public as the Avatar - why should now be different?

[As for the rest, well.]

If they have a hand in this endless cycle of suffering, then that has to be changed. Even if what happens here isn't somehow to their gain - they could change it, but don't. So it's them that needs to be changed.

I should have been trying since the moment I turned up here.

[onerthes]

True. [She sighed and smiled.] though it doesn't hurt to know who they are rather than be too surprised by it after all.

Oh, I'm not surprised that you'd want to change the Pthumerians' natures or how they interact with this world. I'm as surprised as I imagine you are that it took a while, though I suppose there was the hope that it would be different here. And it is... It's not as bad as it was in the nightmare, but it's still not good.

Have you tried to interact with any of them yet? I've been told Bauphomette at least communicates, though most are so very alien. I don't even know if they'll notice what we're doing here that much.

[avatar_state]

[She shakes her head.]

My mistake was not participating in their system. I didn't use my strength to try to make things better. I thought it was better, and I was...very wrong.

Frankly, I'd rather just treat them as illegitimate despots.

Video; un: darkness

[survivalthroughhate]

[Maul's golden eyes are flat and his voice full of cynicism as he responds.]

Pretty words. I've seen many people say such pretty words before. I've trusted not a single one of them to make things better instead of worse.

[Getting raised by a master politician who meant to change the galaxy for the worse would do that to a person.]

[avatar_state]

[She shrugs. What can she even say to that?]

Then why not help? Make sure it turns out for the better. You'd be a decent check on me, a good insurance. And that way you'd come to see that I mean what I say. This is what an Avatar does.

[survivalthroughhate]

I don't help.

[Maul says flatly.]

I look out for myself to make sure I survive when everything inevitably comes crashing down.

[avatar_state]

But...that's so empty.

[Said with, of all things, a bit of pity.]

To go through life, knowing you've built nothing, left nothing behind?

[Audio][UN: <Undefined>]

[subject_013]

[A throaty but soft-spoken baritone voice speaks.]

Fair words, but have you stopped to consider what you're going up against? You're not standing up to mere flesh and blood when you're out there waving your little flag. You're raising the fist to the very forces of nature in this world, the very gods who turn the tides and the wheel of the sky and seasons. Remove the Pthumerians and you can bid farewell to the means by which we Sleepers arrive here, or how we are able to return to the sea and be reborn into our familiar forms. Even the Blood magic which allows us to heal and treat ourselves would likely vanish.

Before one draws the line in the sand, be certain you understand what lies on the other side of that line, dear heart. Your call to action reminds me of someone who sought to make himself the god of his world. Are you ready to shoulder the responsibility of the forces of nature in this world? Can you call the dead from the depths or turn the moon in the heavens?

[avatar_state]

[The tone strikes her as one step off from including a 'little lady', and that's the sort of voice she'd always like to punch directly in the throat. So she's not precisely in the best of moods when she answers, especially given the lecture.]

Assuming they're actually gods? Wouldn't be the first time I've done it. And if breaking the cycle bring peace here, that's a price worth paying.

I'll shoulder what I have to, when the time comes. Though I'm more than willing to bet the universe will keep turning, with or without the Pthumerians.

[subject_013]

The universe might go on, but would this world be one worth living in? Or would the magic in it depart, leaving us with a hard-scrabble world devoid of wonders? Peace at any price, is that what you desire? Say that others prefer not to pay that price. Would you force their hand and lay heavy burdens on their necks? You'd become something as terrible, if not worse than all the Pthumerians combined. They follow their natures, without insisting on the right or the wrong of it. They *are*.

It's been my experience, but those who set themselves up as the heroes and champions of a world risk becoming the villains in the story.

[avatar_state]

[Irritably]

Last time, it got better. It turned out the dark one was preventing the magic from flowing - and it created a new, better balance between the two worlds that constitute my home.

You know, you've got a lot of rhetorical questions in there, a lot of assumptions.

For ten thousand years, the Avatars of my world have remained the guardians of peace, justice, and balance. None have betrayed that sacred duty. I will not be the first in all that time to do so.

And if the Pthumerians have not learned right and wrong, perhaps it's time they were taught. In any event, I'm not going to keep sitting idly by in a place that institutionalizes suffering.

voice; un: JustD

[distant_one]

'The Avatar' is clearly an important title where you're from, but it doesn't tell me anything.

What does that mean?

[avatar_state]

The Avatar has been...a partnership, between the forces of light in my world and a human who has control over the four elements, is the short explanation - a cycle of reincarnation that has been going on for ten thousand years.

We work to bring balance, to push back chaos and the darkness - to defend those that are in need, or vulnerable. To fight against evil.

I'm just the last in a very long line.

[distant_one]

Water, earth, fire, and air?

[D wants to make sure they're on the same page about the Big Four]

Video; UN: Bolin!

[pabugotmoves]

... Um.. Korra.

[Normally he would back a call to arms, any call to arms, very few questions asked. But this sounds really...wildly... a lot.]

I mean I could be wrong but I don't think the patrons here are ruling anyone. I think they just kinda.. are? Does that make sense?

[avatar_state]

[Which does cause her a wince of disappointment. She'd hoped she could count on Bolin from the start. The sort of hero a hero needed.]

Before, the suffering was brought at the hands of a Pthumerian - and here, where they pretend to be gods, there is still suffering. Why wouldn't they be gaining from how this place operates? Like how Vaatu fed from evil and upheaval.

I mean, think about it - this place constantly throws about so much pain - they do nothing to intervene. I call that deeply suspicious at the very least.

[pabugotmoves]

Right.. right, no you do have a point. That is a good point. But they also do good. And a lot of times they do good for us specifically. Madame Generosity spent all winter hanging out with us and gave us all those fancy clothes and had parties when it was dark and sad.. and the Moss King made all that food grow when nothing should have been growing. And Mariana? I'm pretty sure she's the one that brings us back to life when we die.

un: imyarek, text, several days after the broadcast.

[unsheathedfromreality]

[Someone got pointed to this broadcast long after it happened, so whether or not his brief comment will get through remains to be seen.]

You are beating a living, breathing world into a frame small enough to fit your understanding.

No one deserves a leader such as you.

[avatar_state]

[Oh look, hate mail. Well, she'd expected that, hadn't she?]

The Rule of Law isn't a beating. Nor do I wish to lead, and will reject such a role if offered.

I'll help achieve the ideal, but that's it. Thanks for your contribution to the dialogue.

[The last of course a bit of sarcasm, obviously.]

[unsheathedfromreality]

All mortal Law is imposed through violence. The more so by those who do not understand the Law that already runs through the world.

But you misunderstand me: This is not your world. What reason do you have to believe you understand it well enough to fix it, you who does not even know what the Pthumerians are?