THREE YEARS AGO
A picturesque garden sat atop rolling green hills in the Southern Earth Kingdom. There were no guards around, not when Kai and her father, General Fong, were visiting the Beifong Estate. Kai and Toph always took advantage of the moments when they could truly be alone. They were the only friends each other was allowed.
Kai and Toph stood hidden between tall hedges in the garden labyrinth. No shoes, like always. The tips of their fingers touching just enough for Toph to understand the basics.
"Now, part your legs like this." Kai kicked Toph's bare feet further apart, guiding her into a more stable stance by pushing down on her shoulders gently, "Good! That's perfect form, Toph. Remember what I told you? You have to feel the strength of the earth within you. You are the soil beneath your feet."
Kai unfolded Toph's small, child sized fingers and continued, "Take a deep breath and —"
Without further instruction Toph shifted her palm upward and the ground beneath it uprooted in time. She could feel it, it sent a supersonic flash of blue vision through her toes and to her mind's eye. She could see. She could see!
Toph's stance broke as the corners of her mouth turned up into a smile, "I did it! I actually did it!"
Kai hugged her tight, far too tight for any other nine year old. But not Toph, Kai knew that she was strong. She'd known from the moment they'd met just years ago, when her training had just become more grueling
Her training. That was why Kai and her father were there. Though the Beifong's weren't of political standpoint, they were the most influential family in the Southern Earth Kingdom. With influence came money, money that General Fong desperately needed for his secret project. Toph's family provided that much needed income, they figured it was for the greater good of all their people.
Kai pulled away from Toph with a proud grin on her face, though she couldn't tell, "You could see, couldn't you?!"
The small girl nodded excitedly with the hint of tears in her blue-grey eyes.
"I knew there was a way! After I ran into those badgermoles, I knew we could figure it out!" The two girls collapsed onto the ground, embracing the cool grass. Kai had been secretly training Toph for months behind her parents' backs. And while Toph had learned quickly how to move small rocks, this was the first big progress she'd made.
Toph could still feel the small vibrations. As if now that she'd experienced it, it was there to stay. Her new sight was a permanent part of her.
"I think you'll do better with rock. A real solid surface, like the kind at the bottom of the hills. The vibrations will be stronger down there."
The smile faded from Toph's face, "Yeah, like that'll ever happen.. you know they don't let me leave these walls."
Kai shrugged, "It's better to ask for forgiveness than permission, y'know?"
Toph repeated the same move over and over again until she'd mastered it. Little guidance was needed from Kai, not now that Toph could see for herself what she was doing. Tall mounds of dirt and rock erected from the grounds beside them as they giggled out of excitement. Kai was just about to challenge the girl, toss a pebble at her to see if she would know it was coming when Toph's expression changed dramatically.
"Someone is coming, I can see -- er, feel them." Kai sucked in her breath and shifted all the mounds back into the earth, they stomped on the grass atop them with hopes that the guards wouldn't notice.
Two tall men approached them in full military wardrobe, hands held professionally behind their backs as they looked down at the two little girls. One of which they knew was perfectly capable of killing them where they stood, if she so chose.
The one on the left spoke, "General Fong requests your presence."
Nothing more, nothing less. All of the soldiers under her father had been trained not to interact with the girl. Say as little as possible, don't look her in the eyes for too long, don't show disrespect but also not fear. And for god's sake, don't touch her. She cast a disappointed look at Toph, they were always sad when their training sessions came to an end. But Toph nodded her off, knowing that she held a greater purpose than training a blind little girl that was probably doomed from the start.
Kai followed the guards back up to the house. She admired their uniforms, wondering if she'd ever be allowed to dress like a true Earth Kingdom soldier. They led her through the doors to the dimly lit chamber. Hues of green and beige, she'd never liked those colors very much. In the center of the room was a square table, low to the ground with one person sitting on each side. General Fong, Lao Beifong, Grand Secretary Long Feng, and Poppy Beifong, in that order. Long Feng chose not to speak of the war within the walls of Ba Sing Se, but she'd never met him inside those constraints. And here -- here, he wanted to know what her father had spent the past fourteen years working so hard on.
The guards closed the double doors behind her and she stood with her head bowed, like she'd been trained.
"At ease, girl." Her father's voice boomed. Though he was deafeningly loud, she could hear the happiness in his voice. This allowed her to relax a tad, as her father never sounded anything but on edge.
She stood in front of them as they sipped their tea, resuming their conversation as if she wasn't even there. It wouldn't have been so bad had the conversation not been about her.
"She's been training for nearly fourteen years. If we're going to use her, it needs to happen soon. The Fire Nation is advancing, you saw what they did to the Southern Water Tribe just two years ago. We should have deployed her then!" Feng grew frustrated. He didn't want his city of nirvana compromised, not in any way at all.
"Yes, my family and I need to know what our fortune is funding. We haven't even seen this girl perform."
Perform, like she was a dancing bear in the circus and these were paying patrons. She cocked an eyebrow at them but quickly reeled in her attitude. Kai was by no means cocky, but she knew the strength of her power. And she knew that if these people witnessed an ounce of it, they'd be in awe.
"Of course, of course! Grand Secretary Feng, you have been nothing but supportive of this mission for over a decade -- since before Kai even came to be. Mr. and Mrs. Beifong, the two of you deserve to know what your gold is going toward." Her father, who had never really been a father to her at all, turned his attention toward her for the first time, "Kai, demonstrate."
She huffed at the order and looked around the room, knowing that by "demonstrate" he also meant "but don't tear this place apart". A stone staircase caught her eye. She didn't know where it led, it didn't matter. Her hand lifted from behind her back and nimble fingers rested face down in front of her. They moved quickly one after the other, like she was playing a piano. And in someways, she was. Each step moved down and back up with the motion of each digit, so quickly that it looked as if that's what they were made to do.
Poppy squealed with delight, she loved a good show. Lao nodded approvingly. But Feng.. he sat down his teacup and crossed his arms, glaring at her with an unamused scowl on his face.
"Cute. But can she fight? Serenading the Fire Lord isn't going to help us in the slightest."
"Of course she can!" General Fong snapped, clearing his throat immediately after, "She is the best fighter this kingdom has ever seen. I've made sure of it, your honor."
"She is a child, not even of marrying age. I highly doubt she is skilled enough to --" Feng abruptly stopped speaking, feeling his hat wisp right off if his head and watching it land over top his teacup.
All eyes moved toward Kai, they watched the small rock bullets hover menacingly above her fingertips. It was a move even her father had never seen before.
"I am. There's not a single soldier you could send on this mission and expect them to come out alive." A smile tugged at the corners of her lips as Earth King's right hand man picked up his hat, inspecting the tiny bullet-sized hole right in the center of the earth emblem, "But if you'd like to continue this war, if you'd like to sacrifice the lives of a thousand more men -- be my guest."
Her father's cheeks blushed bright red with embarrassment. He thought of all the ways he would punish her later, in the confines of her bunker where no one could hear her wail. But those sadistic thoughts faded into the deepest crevices of his mind as Long Feng shifted his gaze up at the general and nodded with approval.
"Fantastic. She leaves at dawn."
Kai's cocky smile dropped down as her lips parted, her eyes growing wider with surprise, "Wait, dawn?"
Her father ignored her, "Thank you, Grand Secretarian. And thank you, Mr. and Mrs. Beifong. You will not be disappointed."
He stood up before Kai could properly object, grabbing her by the bicep and pulling her out of the estate along with him. Toph watched from the hedges as her only friend loaded into the cab of an ostrich-horse drawn carriage.
**************
Kai sat at one end of a long dinner table opposite her father. The army was celebrating. On either side of them sat soldiers, tall and strong. Most were drunk and biting into turkey legs like medieval knights that'd just come home from war. They were laughing, shoving, and stuffing their faces full while Kai stared down the table at her father. Her plate hadn't been touched, she couldn't bare to eat.
She'd known this day would come but had no idea it would be this soon. What would they do? Pack her an overnight bag and map and send her on her way? Escort her there via golden chariot? All she'd been trained to do was fight, nothing more.
Fong clanked a metal fork against his golden chalice, requesting the attention of everyone in the room, "Men.. tomorrow marks the beginning of the end for the Fire Kingdom. It has been a long time coming, but it is far overdue."
The soldiers cheered, banging their fists and steins against the wooden table before quieting down once again.
"I know what people say behind my back, that my methods are unconventional.. but I also know that it is only fair to give credit where credit is due. And all of this, our impending victory, it is all thanks to our secret weapon. My daughter, Kai." He raised his cup and the cheering and banging and migraine inducing praise resumed.
"Kai, please -- stand, give a few words."
This was the first time that her father had given her the permission to speak freely and suddenly her mouth felt so dry. She pushed her chair back as the crowd waited, hearing it screech against the floor as she stood slowly.
"I... I, um.." What was she to say? Most of these men hadn't even known she existed until now. And while they were ecstatic, she was feeling so small. Not just because of their presence, but because of the literal weight of the world that had suddenly been dropped onto her shoulders.
"Tomorrow I will... I will--" She choked on her words until finally only the wrong ones spilled out, "Not go."
The cheering resumed for only a second, until everyone realized what she'd actually said. And when they did, she'd never heard a room so quiet. Her father's eyes filled with anger, embarrassment. He stood from his chair opposite her, "What was that, girl?"
"I can't." Her lip quivered as she spoke fast, "I'm not ready, I just need more time! Maybe by the end of summer, or just--"
"Stop this nonsense!" Fong spat, "You've had plenty of time, your whole pathetic life. You're going, that's final. Now, you can either agree to that statement or you can be sent out tonight."
Kai didn't know what to say, she's always known that her father wasn't fond of her.. but she'd thought that was a part of her training. To not encourage attachment to anyone or anything.
"Tongue tied now, are you? I think I know what the issue here is."
Fong pushed his chair back and it broke into a pile of wooden shards against the stone wall. He marched toward her, pumping his fist into the air, "How about a late night duel, men?!"
They cheered and mimicked his actions, bending their wooden chairs out from under them and against the walls. Kai's father grabbed her from her spot at the end of the table, tripping her over her seat in the process. She lost her footing but he didn't care, he was consumed by the madness of an embarrassed ego and dragged her through the banquet hall doors into the courtyard.
They were surrounded by sand colored mountains, no grass grew here. The soldiers followed the two of them outside, drunk and ready to watch the show. General Fong tossed Kai to the ground, backing up from her and taking a fighter's stance.
"On your feet, girl! It's time to prove yourself, show your worth!"
Tears began to sting her eyes as she looked up from the ground at this man. A rock the size of his fist came flying toward her and she blocked it easily.
"Stop, dad!" She hurried to wipe the tears from her face.
"You will refer to me as 'General'!" He yelled while bringing the earth below her up ten feet into the air and then abruptly back down, knocking the breath out of her lungs.
His strikes were relentless, but Kai didn't strike back. She blocked the boulders and shots that he threw at her with ease but couldn't bring herself to hurt the man that gave her life. General Fong grew angrier as the duel went on and his soldiers began to lose faith in his advertised "perfect assassin".
"Fight back, you coward! You were not trained to back down, you were not raised to surrender!" He screamed, the veins in his neck and temples throbbing. His thick, rough hands shook as he bended a boulder from across the courtyard, shifting it directly toward her.
Kai'd had enough. She stopped the boulder in its track, directing it up into the air a hundred feet and dropping it from directly above the general's head. His soldiers gasped, holding their breath as they waited for Fong to take his last. But it never came -- Fong realized that he was still alive a few moments later and peeked open his clenched shut eyes. Just above him hovered the boulder, she'd stopped it just shy of crushing him.
Kai tossed the boulder aside and pleaded to her father with her eyes, speaking firmly, "I. am. a. child."
Fong clasped his hands behind his back, he knew this match was over, "You were bred, born and trained from birth to fulfill this mission, my child. If you aren't confident in your abilities by now, you never will be."
It was a lie, Kai knew it was a lie. But to him, it was the truth.
"And if you aren't willing to fulfill your destiny, you have no place in my presence or the presence of such capable warriors."
"Dad, please--"
"Men," Fong stood his ground and extended one hand, a stone half the size of a baseball hovering above it, "Ready your stones."
Kai turned to run and felt the first rock hit her spine, knocking her to the ground. And then the second making contact with her shoulder blade. She could sense them coming, and she probably could've stopped them. But she'd never felt so defeated in her entire life. The stones pounded her flesh and fresh blood soaked her dark clothing.
When the soldiers were done having their barbaric fun, they retreated back into the banquet hall. Kai could hear their partying for quite some time. She considered going back in there and showing them the true meaning of karma, but she couldn't move. Her body was rejecting any command to move that her mind sent it. And after hours of bleeding onto the courtyard ground, General Fong, her father, stood just above her head.
He dropped a satchel at her side, "There's some bread, don't eat it all in one day."
She thought he was simply going to walk away, that would've been the honorable thing to do. But to her father, Kai no longer deserved honor. She'd deserted all honor when she waisted fourteen years of people's time and his perfect planning. But no, he stopped halfway down her body and kicked her in the back. Breaking open one of the uglier wounds that had just began to clot. She could feel the warm blood rushing down her side again.
"Now, get out. Don't come back."
Fong left her on the ground and after some time, Kai managed to pull herself to her feet. She drug her heavy body out of the valley, away from the only home she'd ever know.