tushanshu | Video // 003

[He's still acting like his usual self, for now - very confident, turning up the charm.]

I'm still accepting more nominations for council, and as far as a public forum goes I think we should have one sometime within the week.

[He pauses, and his expression becomes more serious.]

But, I'm afraid I have some more dire news to break right now.

There is a man here who calls himself Nanuq, and he says he's a healer from Republic City. This is a lie. He is from my home world, and went under the name Amon there. He was a wanted criminal, leader of a terrorist organization, and he is very dangerous.

If you don't want to trust me on this matter, there are others from my world who will probably testify to what a threat he is. I'm not suggesting that anyone attack him, but use caution when dealing with him and know that he's been presenting a false identity, and this is not the first time he's done so.

[Tarrlok looks downward for a few seconds, hesitant about what he's going to say next.]

His real name is Noatak. He is my brother. I wasn't aware of this until very recently. For that reason, I ask that you please bring issues concerning him to my attention, if at all possible, and I will deal with it.

I'm not saying you can't use self-defense, but...if it is something that doesn't require immediate attention, please let me know.

Thank you.

Threaded | Top-Level Comments Only

He saved my life!

[SCREW YOU BUDDY.]

Can you tell me more about him? What he looks like, special skills, etc?

I'm not saying he's never done anything good, but he has been lying about his identity, and he was a major threat.

Regardless of what he's done, he's been lying to everyone, and I thought you should know.

He didn't lie to me.

[He actually told her his real name, mostly because seeing a flying blond woman kind of broke him.]

Has he told you he's a bloodbender?

Has he told you he can use it to somehow take other people's bending away and was planning on doing so to the entire world?

Huh?

[So eloquent.]

[He's hesitant to give too much away to an anonymous source, but some stuff should probably be public information.]

He is water tribe, like I am. A bit shorter, with short hair. He's a waterbender, which means he can control water. He's also a bloodbender, which means...well, I'm sure you can work that out.

He had an entire revolution behind him at home, and is alone here, so the danger is not as great. But it would be best to be careful.

He's a bloodbender. He can control someone's blood and bend them to his will.

[Well, better be honest seeing as Korra and Asami both know.]

I am a bloodbender as well. It is a forbidden skill, and something forced upon us, not something we learned by choice. I've used it in moments of crisis before - but I despise it, and would rather be able to forget how to do it at all.

I told you about waterbending, right? Bloodbending is a subset of that. There are also firebenders, airbenders, and earthbenders. Noatak has the ability to remove someone's ability to bend, permanently, and he can bloodbend without even needing to move, so restraining him is useless. I don't know if his bending removal would work on powers from other worlds; I don't have that skill and don't know how he does it.

[Healbending didn't work properly on her because lol half Atlantean and also mutant, but that's not to say Amon wouldn't be able to figure it out in time.]

Why would he want to do that?

Because of the way our father treated us, he thinks bending is a source of evil. Initially his followers took part in mere protests, but recently he's shown his ability to remove bending, and was found to have been amassing an arsenal of weaponry for an all-out attack on Republic City.

I don't believe that he is a bad person, but he has been put through so much that his vision of the world is just...distorted, now. He was lying completely to his followers back home as well, and I'm sure he thought that he was in the right despite everything.

I would like to trust him more than anyone, but I don't think that's possible anymore. I don't want anyone hurting him without just cause but I couldn't keep his identity secret.

[SHE HATES THIS MORAL AMBIGUITY CRAP WHY CAN'T EVERYONE JUST BE GOOD]

What reason would he have to hurt anyone here, though?

[... oh. Yue is shocked, though admittedly she's not sure why. The few times she spoke to Nanuq - no, Noatak - he seemed like a kind enough person. It's difficult to believe that he was a criminal, but really, she barely knew a thing about him. That doesn't make it any less of a surprise, though.]

I see. Thank you for informing us, Tarrlok.

I don't know, but he's been lying already, and there is at least one bender here other than me, and she is the Avatar. It would devastate our world if he took her bending away.

The Avatar?

[Nobody tells Nita anything!]

You're welcome. Have you had any contact with him, yet?

The Avatar has the ability to bend all four elements, and is also the only one able to communicate directly with the Spirit World. They are supposed to keep peace and balance in the world.

What?

[The word is half-hissed and man oh boy this lady does not sound pleased. The same man who--

But he'd healed her. Just after the storm. She can still remember the way the water felt on her face and how readily she'd accepted his story about being a healer from Republic City.

Well, if he saw bending as a disease, he'd hardly lied, had he? She'd just fallen for it. A moment's vulnerability and she'd fallen for it again. Just like she had with her father... and even Mako, although he at least hadn't actually meant her any malice.

Her expression is hard and her hands - out of view of the camera - are fists, fingernails biting little half-moon shapes across her palms.

After a moment, she breathes.

No.

Amon is a liar. A poison. She's not going to let him change who or how she is. This isn't going to make her any less inclined to trust strangers.

But it sure makes her angry. What had he wanted from her? Why had he even bothered to heal her? There had to be something in it for him.]

Where is he, Councillor?

That's a lot to put on one person. What about everyone else?

[Recent events in Nita's canon have driven home the fact that some situations are just piles of dry branches waiting for a spark to fall on them.]

I've spoken to him several times, yes. Though he seemed kind enough whenever we were together... I have to admit, this news is surprising.

He was at my suite the other day, where he confessed his identity. I told him I was going to do this so he's probably laying low right now.

The Avatar always has allies, and there are other authorities as well. It is a lot of responsibility, though. But that's how it is.

That wasn't my--

[She stops herself, makes a very visible attempt at controlling her anger.]

What sort of threat do you believe he poses at the moment?

I don't know.

He knows that this is the only chance he's getting from me, so that might deter him. But it's better to be safe.

"That's how it is?" What a cop-out. You can't just...stick someone with the fate of the world!

[This totally isn't about Korra, in case it wasn't obvious.]

I can't exactly give other people access to all four elements and the Spirit World, no matter how difficult it is for the Avatar.

She's not "stuck" with it. She's a...representative of sorts, between our world and the Spirits. She has access to the knowledge of hundreds of past lives. Either way, there's nothing I can do about it. But it's important that Noatak is not allowed to take her bending.

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