Title: "The Black Lotus"

Author: ayziks

Editor: divsalley

Idea co-creator: terrik_zion

Rating/Reason: M – scenes extreme bending resulting in death, sexual assault on an OC, violence and combat, nudity

Summary: In the first few months of the aftermath of Amon's defeat and revelations of his fraud upon Republic City and his own followers, the City seems calm due to a number of reforms. An ultra-violent fringe group, previously repressed by the iron will of Amon, is now free to promote its own, more radical agenda against the Republic bender leadership and the Avatar. This story deals with the moral dilemma of using deadly, forbidden bending techniques to thwart a very dangerous threat to the City by this extremist element of Equalists.

Author's Notes: This is my first M because of its heavy violence. This story resulted from a fascinating discussion with terrik_zion of The Korra Connection Forum and other members there about extreme bending moves that are far more deadly than anything shown on either series and the consequences of using them against others.

...

Chapter 1: Unwelcome Guests

It was relatively calm in the United Republic of Nations, especially in Republic City itself, in the days following the Equalist insurrection. The City was rebuilding after the battle, with plenty of construction jobs funded with foreign aid from the other Nations.

Amon had been revealed as a fraud and as a hypocrite – literally the blood bending water bender son of Yakone - who once terrorized the City himself through his crime empire. Amon's discredit as the son of the arch-criminal Yakone and his mysterious disappearance and rumored death, resulted the near-instant dissolution of the Equalist movement in disgust and sense of betrayal by its members.

But rather than cause more dissention and hopelessness for the disenfranchised non-benders, the Council acted quickly to give the City a new sense of trust. The Council voted unanimously, immediately post-insurrection, to have a non-bending Council member. The new Councilman's swift election – a former Equalist besides - further comforted the non-bending citizenry that lessons had been learned and the people had been heard.

The Arena was under reconstruction, and the citizens looked forward to Pro Bending restarting after considerable reforms. There were very serious discussions to add non-benders to the tournament teams, or even create non-bending sports competitions.

The confiscated advanced technology weapons made by Future Industries for the Equalists were being redesigned for peaceful purposes and commerce, especially the aeroplanes, which were being created to carry passengers and cargo swiftly across the continents. The City's biggest employer was now run efficiently by the daughter of Hiroshi Sato, who was personable and a great businesswoman as well as beautiful.

Hiroshi himself was quickly tried and convicted, and was incarcerated for life at the Fire Nation's maximum security prison - Boiling Rock - a fitting punishment. The only mercy his daughter showed to him was to appeal to the Council to commute his original death sentence. As final proof of Asami's disavowal of her father's actions – and his attempted murder of her - she chartered the airship from the City to transport him there without a goodbye.

But above all, the City felt much safer with 'their Avatar Korra' restored. Every day she restored many people who had lost their bending – and for most their livelihood - due to Amon. Some chose not to be restored, for fear of them misusing the power, or that bending was too much of a burden for them to carry any more.

Additionally, she had a handsome love interest, the former Pro Bending star Mako, which was endearing to the citizens. The paparazzi were generally kind to them, but the newspapers had at least one 'Makorra sighting' photograph every day. Photos of them kissing discretely were always the most popular, and they did that a lot. This young couple was different from Aang and Katara, because they had a strong sexual energy between them, teased each other mercilessly, and held a bit of irreverence for authority and traditions that the modern population found refreshing.

But that peace and calm didn't last long.

…

The Councilwoman representing the fire benders was celebrating her retirement in the park with family and friends. The White Lotus guards assigned to her protection were watching discretely from a distant for any harm.

The Councilwoman, having been abducted and debent during the Equalist Insurrection, made a decision that she no longer could serve, even with the threat of the Equalists gone. It had been too damaging emotionally. She just wanted to be home with her ailing husband and look after her grandchildren.

As her husband raised a toast in her honor and all the sake glasses were tipped, a commotion started in the woods surrounding them. The White Lotus guards were attacked with Equalist taser gloves. They dropped where they stood, and were stabbed and fell. They would not get up again.

The celebration partygoers screamed, and an Equalist approached her and her husband and the party on all sides. There was nowhere to go.

"Greetings Councilwoman. It appears we meet again."

"I remember you. You were the pest exterminator who captured me. She slapped him. How dare you interrupt my farewell party."

He rubbed his jaw as he said ominously, "Oh, we had every intention of making this a farewell party."

The Councilwoman heard the threat in the Equalist leader's voice, "I can't do any more harm to you. I am leaving public service. Because of you. And neither can any of these people."

The Equalist continued to intimidate her, "Oh, but you already did do the damage. And they are finished because they all call you friend or relative. Not one of you can walk away from here today. You and your colleagues and the Avatar were responsible for our beloved leaders' deaths. And now you will pay. And so will they."

"Do your worst to me, but save the children, I beg you," she stiffened.

"Glad to oblige your request," he said coldly.

He clasped either side of her head with two gloves and tased her to death. Her elderly husband tried to strike back, but another Equalist stabbed him with twin swords. The guests ran screaming from the scene, but were cut down by bolos, but not the kind that Equalists had used before. They were special versions called slasher bolos. The wires between the bolo balls were nearly invisible, and glinted in the sun with obvious sharp metallic edges. As the weapons wrapped around necks, legs, and midsections of the people they ensnared, the wires sliced cleanly through each victim. They literally fell apart as they ran. The scene was terrible.

In seconds, fifty people lay dead on the ground. But because of the grisly nature of the bolos, they were unrecognizable.

The Equalists disappeared into the woods, leaving the carnage behind.

…

In a brand new office, the recently-elected Councilman representing non-benders and other non-aligned people in the United Republic of Nations was writing a speech. The phone rang.

"Hello?" He greeted.

"Hello, Ping Deng. Enjoying your new 'legal' status now?" growled a familiar voice.

"You! How dare you call me here, and use that tone. You know this is all for the best," defended Ping Deng.

"You are just a powerless token for the benders on the Council, and a traitor, as well as a coward," accused the voice.

"There must be a different way. A violent overthrow of the government is something I never signed up for. That is not what the movement was about," Ping Deng reminded the caller.

"You naïve idiot. That's what it was always about. You can't leave the movement. It leaves you. In the gutter," uttered the man on the phone.

"Don't threaten me. I am not your kind of Equalist. I don't think I ever was," admitted the new Councilman.

"You may think you represent the non-benders and the 'little guys' of the city, but you better think again. You are only a tool and a puppet to the real powers," said the voice insultingly.

"My election was overwhelming. I represent the people," stated Ping Deng emphatically.

The voice dismissed the Councilman's claim, "But you don't represent us. We have the say in where this is going. Not you, and not the people."

"People don't even know any of you still exist. I thought you were gone myself," chided Ping Deng.

The mysterious caller warned ominously, "Oh believe me, after today people will know we still exist. Today my followers started the final resolution to the 'problem of the benders' on the Council and the Avatar. Everyone who was associated with the death of Amon and the Lieutenant will themselves die. And their families."

Ping Deng was alarmed and asked, "How can you be that cruel? This is madness to attack the Councilmen and the Avatar, and especially their families. No one knows if Amon is really dead, and I certainly couldn't believe the Avatar and her allies would do such a thing. Amon himself killed the Lieutenant. Mako and Korra told us so. Korra and her friends all know there would be consequences if they had killed them."

The voice ignored the Councilman's explanation, "Exactly. How do we not know they are lying to protect their skins? They will know the consequences of what they did, until all of them are gone. Don't you dare say a word to the others, or you will be on our list too. Don't try to find us, and don't think you are ever safe. We will find you if you betray us again. Understood?"

"I understand," he hung up the phone, and he shivered. It was ironic how much a motivational factor fear was. The trouble was - it worked.

The phone rang again. It was the Council Page. There was terrible news. The Council would meet in a half hour.

…

The Council met anxiously. Outside the Council Chambers, the complex was ringed by White Lotus Guards, Lin, and the restored Metal Bending Police SWAT squad, all with shields, and with a fully armed contingent from Iroh's forces – the best fighters in the entire Republic. Korra herself helped guard the Council inside the Chambers, but listened closely as she watched for any sign of trouble. She was a different person as the fully-realized Avatar, and was able to draw upon the power of the thousands of her forebears to defeat any intruders.

"Surely no one will try something here," she hoped more than thought.

It was unnerving to all – the City felt like the armed camp of only three months prior at the height of the insurrection. The damage to the Council gallery wrought by the fight between Korra and Tarrlok was not yet fully repaired, adding to the reminders that all was still not well.

The Council Page could barely get through reading the grim news. They were surprised at the degree of grisly violence directed against the elderly Councilwoman and her innocent family. This was not the same Equalist threat.

"They are terrorists, not Equalists. They sliced people to pieces for spirits' sake. They must be condemned and brought to justice," emphasized the Southern Water Tribe Councilman.

"What are we going to do?" worried the Earth Kingdom Councilman.

The non-bending Councilman Ping Deng risked all by saying, "We must take every step to protect ourselves. We have to assume none of us are safe; this is some kind of personal vendetta against us."

Suspicions arose toward the former Equalist spokesman from the new Northern Water Tribesman, "Your election was supposed to keep this kind of thing from happening!"

Ping Deng was insulted, "How dare you accuse me of having anything to do with today's events? I left those people behind. The movement itself is dissolved. We all thought it was gone completely. These are outlaws!"

Tenzin calmed the others, "There will be no incrimination here. Ping Deng's record of peacemaking within the Equalists is well known. He lived and taught the precepts they lied about having. And was never part of their combat machine."

The anger quelled.

Tenzin continued, "It appears that some elements of Equalists remain. The radical elements - those with hate on their minds, not equality."

The Earth Kingdom Councilman pounded the table, "Double the guards. Bring in the Grand Masters of the White Lotus to protect us and especially our families - not the new recruits. They can't protect anything."

Tenzin winced at that statement. His father and mother would be outraged.

The Council voted to never travel anywhere unguarded, and that each Council member's residence should be at all times under watch and with a huge protective contingent, and whenever they were gathered at the Council. They adjourned.

In the hours that followed, the Council chambers and homes became 24/7 fortresses, to the great sadness of Tenzin, Korra, and their colleagues. Combat aeroplanes patrolled the skies with airships full of counter-terrorism forces, armed against a new kind of Equalist foe not yet known, but clearly more deadly and uncaring of life than any enemy they had ever faced.