Northern Water Tribe - Chapter 1 - The Infiltrator Spy [ Open to Anyone ]

Kaito couldn’t help but stare at the moon as he made his way through town. No matter how tired the day had left him, just seeing the moon would always invigorate him. The streets were surprisingly vacant with the occasional passerby. The silence it provided made the night that more relaxing. Kaito would barely have free time due to his helping his father but when he did he would remember to enjoy it while it lasted. Lucky for him this was the last task his father asked of him for the day. All he had asked was Kaito pick up some charts for him, so he’d able to plan out his next trip.

A smile crossed his face as he his destination came into view. The water tribe headquarters was truly a place to see with its massive size and fine design. Making his way towards the entrance his eyes caught another visitor to the icy palace. It appeared to be an older tribesman he didn’t recognize. It seemed to Kaito though that this stranger was deep in thought over some dilemma. Thinking about it, he realized his father could wait a bit longer for his charts while he assisted someone else. “Hi there,” he spoke up to gain his attention, “I’m Kaito.” “If you don’t mind me asking what brings you out here tonight?”

Kashikoi came up with a plan as he finally placed his folded hands to his side being done. He looked up and saw a water bender a few feet away from him. Kashikoi stood up and looked into the mans eyes with a calm face finally speaking up.

"Well since i'm done with selling my tea, I just came out here to rest and think about how beautiful this place is. I use to live here when I was a child, but I left this place and traveled the world. I finally came back and just did my tea business.

The two fire nation soldiers coming from a path way side by side wearing the water tribe's guard uniform coming up to Kashikoi and Kaito.

Disguised Water Tribe Guard 1: "You two shouldn't be out here at this time of the night, we just got report that an intruder not from our tribe has been spotted out here."

Disguised Water Tribe Guard 2: "Hey you're that tea salesman, My son and daughter enjoyed your tea this afternoon."

Kashikoi placed his hands together and made a small bow in gratitude of the man's compliment towards him.

Disguised Water Tribe Guard 1:"Well we are off, just make sure you guys stay on alert."

Both of the fire nation soldiers disguised as water tribe guards take there leave off of the spot heading towards the Head Quarters base being arms length from each other. Kashikoi walking off to the opposite direction of the Head Quarters, walking down a path.

"Again."


Silvery eyes clashed with stormy blues firmly, devoid of emotion. Nakkoa swallowed dryly and cut her eyes away from familiar wrinkles hardened by the years of being a war veteran. She slid her feet apart and cocked her arm backward, pivoting on her heel to slash at the air. A trio of shimmering water arcs ripped through the howling winds, precisely clipping a pillar of compact snow and ice in three quarters.

"Again."

Nakkoa nodded curtly and bent her knees, eyes twinkling and lips pursed. With a flick of her wrists, swirls of water slithered up from the large earthenware pots and hovered above. She moved her arms into counter-clockwise circles, thinning and expanding the tentacles at will. Punching outward, one of the tentacles snaked through the air and smacked against another pillar with a hiss!. The whip recoiled and Nakkoa turned, snapping the other in tandem and turning them from liquid to solid in a matter of seconds. When the ice blades collided, the pillars shattered on contact and the princess launched a spinning kick. Her wrists bent themselves in an awkward angle, summoning blobs of water from the vessels. They morphed into daggers, targeting random pillar fragments while the rest lined up another in a straight peg-line.

The only sound was her heavy breathing and muffled claps.
Her audience nodded with approval.
The princess wiped her forehead and smirked.

"Well done Princess." Master Chitsa smiled, a gesture rare in itself. He stepped up to formally clasp Nakkoa's left elbow and forearm with a bow that refused to meet her eyes. She did the same. "My apologies, I mean admiral now. Keen, precise eye and powerful exertion as always my dear Nakkoa." The aging master wrinkled his brows in amusement and clasped his hands together. "Why you still have me shadowing you, I don't know."

The admiral's youthful smile mirrored his own, "Because you're my grandfather, and I like having you and Gramp Hakano within my reach so I can bug you."

Master Chitsa quirked his lips in a shadow of a smile, too busy bending the sparring hall back into shape. "I appreciate the flattery, granddaughter. But I believe it is time for you to be on your way.....and bug those stacks of paperwork accumulating in your office." His grey eyes twinkled in amusement and Nakkoa made a face.

Sigh. "Fine."



Nakkoa burst through a set of doors and scowled, her cat-like eyes searching every detail in darkness. Her shadow loomed over the tundra ahead of her as three of her special task guards filed out of the house behind her. A breeze whipped past and her waist length hair tangled in the chilled air. Taking a band, Nakkoa tied her hair into a phoenix ponytail. A mass of sleek black fur and ivory fangs padded down the steps next to her and stood at attention. His bushy tail thumping heavily against in the snow.

A little clung to the doorway and looked at them, wide-eyed. "Did we do somethin' bad Ad.....ad-mur......Princess?"

"Yes." Her tone was warm. "Never accept tea from strangers ever again Tarnok." She coveted the small case into her tight sleeve and looked at him, a signal for him to close the door. The admiral cut her eyes to the winding streets of North City and moved to inspect the can of tea. She'd planned on visiting a few of her tribesmen, she and her entourage. As usual they'd gone in and eaten, and when tea came around of course Nakkoa was all over it. But when the smell of spice and jasmine hit her nose, it went downhill from there.

"Admiral Nakkoa," Ahanu's voice was clipped in the wind, "That is...."
She beat him to the punch. "Spiced Chai." Her fingers clenched around the tin can, creating indentions with each word. "And do you know where Spiced Chai is grown? The Fire Nation."

Sargeant Yakuna eyed the can of tea leaves and furrowed her brows. The Fire Nation? That didn't make much sense.
Nakkoa was bulldozing a path through the city, without stopping. "We do not import goods from other nations unless it has gone through customs. There was no advanced notification in the trades department. And that means we have a little fire rat scurrying around."

Her eyes narrowed to slits. "We're going to find the snake that slithered in. Mikka, you, Ahanu and Yakuna will flank the outer edges of the city. Investigate every detail, overlook nothing. Question everything." Nakkoa twirled one of her hunter's daggers and snapped her eyes at her four legged companion.

"Kaira." The massive wolf-lion's ears twitched and he bounded up to her, his eyes level with hers. Nakkoa procured a set of steel talons from his satchel and slipped them on. They chinked! sharply against dead winter silence. Flitting her sharp gaze to her task guards, the promise didn't need to be said.

"We're going to smoke this bastard from the inside out."

Kaito watched as the man stood up to greet him. He listened as the man explained his presence at the headquarters tonight. What really caught his interest was discovering he had been a traveler like himself. As he was about to ask him more about his travels, he was interrupted by the presence of two water tribe guards. Out on patrol no doubt, as they greeted the two of them. Kaito was surprised to hear from them that an intruder had made their way into the capital. He found it a bit strange the guards seemed so calm about the matter but didn’t question it as they had their orders.

“Thank you for the info I do hope you’re able to secure him quickly,” he replied as the guards left. He began to wonder just who the intruder might be and thought they must have nerves of steel or a death wish. So deep in thought Kaito missed as the elder man bowed to the guards and walked off. “Wait up,” he called out running after him, “after hearing that I can’t just leave you alone.” Kaito hoped he had not offended him but with a criminal on the loose he considered it his civil duty to ensure the elderly mans safety. “I can’t believe someone had the gall to infiltrate the water tribe,” he said the anger evident in his voice "regardless I’m sure he’ll be brought to justice.” “So tell where you’ve traveled in the world,” he said hoping to bring the subject to a less dreary vibe, “I just happen to be a traveler myself.”

Kashikoi continued his walk as he overlooked his shoulder seeing the man wanting to tag along with him. Kashikoi said this in a calm matter, "I'm a water bender I have mastered water bending, I can protect myself from this intruder. As for my travels i don't like to discuss that at all... I must be going now, my kids must be worried sick about me." Kashikoi continued his walking placing his hands inside his deep pockets grabbing a poison knife with each hand. Still having his hands in his pocket, no bulge would appear or any noise being heard from his grab. Kashikoi said this while continuing his walk. "Thank you for your concerns"

Kano stood at the ramparts of the outer wall, looking out across the seemingly boundless sea with a smile on his face, Captain Klargith beside him. Immediately below them, the Seawolf sat at its dock, the bright moon shining off its silver skin. There was a chill that had Kano in his coat that night, but it was refreshing to a Northerner as cold went and the night was a fine cloudless one.

"You remember that Seshgal?" Kano mused, laughing. They'd been talking about the war for almost an hour now. Or to be more precise, they were talking about old comrades, lost one way or other and remembering them fondly... "Remember how he used to whistle nursery rhymes whenever Kark was applying an expansion? Every time Kark tagged him in the middle of a note, his voice'd shoot up so shrill he sounded like a newborn."

"Yes! Of course, Kark wasn't exactly gentle with that tattoo needle." Captain Klargith chuckled, shaking his head with a smile as the memory returned to him. Every member of the Seawolf's crew who had served aboard her throughout the entire war had the same tattoo on their right arm. From hand to shoulder, it stretched, and a rather ruthless tattooist named Kark was the man behind it all. Everyone in that group remembered that pain. "That boy was something else." Klargith continued. "Used to talk my head off about his pet penguin. I don't mind admitting that there were more than a few times I'd stand on the bridge, him at the helm, and wish on my life that he'd shut that mouth for just a few short moments."

He and Kano laughed together. Klargith was the closest comrade Kano had from the war. He had been a trusted right hand, captain of his flagship. He was even something of a godfather at times, his wisdom guiding Kano in those moments where nothing else could.

"I miss them all." Kano said quietly as he stood there, looking down at that silver submarine, so much larger than any other at the docks. It had been at once their comrade and for many, a tomb. It was a duality even Kano had trouble defining his feelings in regards to...

"Well." Klargith said. "All that is in the past. We fought that war so that there would be no more killing. Seshgal and the others... they paid the price. We must honor their memory by ensuring that price is never paid again..."

"Right you are." Kano nodded slowly, utter determination etched into his features.

"THIS WAY!"

Kano and Klargith looked around. Far below where they stood atop the wall of the upper city, guards were surging through the streets, sweeping everywhere, apparently in search of something. Kano was just about to call out to one of the nearer guards when a powerful voice barked at him.

"YOU THERE!" it said, making him look around. The voice belonged to the leader of a small group of guards approaching him quickly. "Declare yourse-- WHAT!?"

The leader had looked around at one of his subordinates angrily, the subordinate having been tugging at his sleeve rather vigorously for the full space of the second or so which had separated the two sentences the leader had uttered. When he snapped at the subordinate for an explanation, the subordinate leaned in and whispered in his ear. When they stood apart once more, the leader squinted at Kano carefully.

"It is Chief Kanoei, boy." Captain Klargith said, peering around Kano at the group of guards. The lieutenant who was leading the group looked as though he wanted to kick himself.

"M-my apologies, Chief Kanoei." he said, inclining his head respectfully. Kano raised a hand to dismiss the apology.

"Not necessary, Lieutenant." Kano said, shaking his head slightly. "But I would like an explanation. Who or what has the city guard frenzied at this time of night?"

"Admiral Nakkoa, sir." the lieutenant said without delay.

"And what is my cousin getting herself into this time?"

"She suspects the presence of a Fire Nation spy within the city, Chief." the lieutenant explained. "She has the entire guard searching for them."

"Impossible." Captain Klargith said with a shallow voice as he and Kano exchanged a glance. "Shula would never violate the treaty in such a way!"

"No she would not." Kano said flatly, his voice demonstrating his utter certainty to that point. "Captain. Bounce a message to FNHQ, Caldera. Get General Zhou on the line and find out if he has anyone in the North. I want answers if there are any. I need to talk to my cousin, find out why she thinks there's a spy here."

"I'll find an operator and see to it immediately."

"You three are coming with me." Kano looked back around at the guardsmen.

Nakkoa crunched through compacted street snow in complete silence. The only sounds were her crisp breathing and the irate swishing of Kaira's massively bushy tail. Her search had gone on for a good half an hour, turning up with more of those so-called dry leaves that did nothing but confirm her suspicion. With observation came more questions. 'Man or woman? Really? What did he look like? Water tribe? No? Thank you. Tall, short, average? Old or young? I'm taking this into evidence; Kaira, scent.'


The trails intertwined and over-lapped, leading her farther into the city than she'd expected. "As much time as it took I'm not surprised the little rat managed to scuttle in this far." Nakkoa continued on past several shops and housing districts, her feral companion maintaining his rigid gait along side her. Her fingers traced over one of the cans idly while she mused, her features growing darker.

Twit twit! Twit twit twit!

She twirled on her heels and returned the sound instantaneously. Seconds later, a pair of guards 'materialized' out of a snowed alley and bounded up to her. "Admiral." There movements were synchronized as always.

Nakkoa wasted no time. "Status report."

One of them, a young man with a scar over his eye, nodded and rose from his kowtow. "We've coasted over more than half of the city's outer limits. There's been no reports through our ranks of anything out of the ordinary yet. But...."

She clicked her razor claws together and turned to him sharply. "Talk to me." The subordinates stiffened.

"We may have spotted something out of the ordinary. I've spoken with Private Kenna, she says she's run in with some guards down by the city square. She greeted them, but it took them a while to answer her in return. Nor did they do the proper handshake....?"

"Where are they now?"

"Um..."

Her glare could have frozen Agni a thousand over. "You will go back to that square, and you will detain them. That is an order." She pointed with one of her razor claws and pressed her lips into thin lines. Hurriedly, the subordinates bowed and diverged back toward the city square. Turning, Nakkoa looked over at currently growling beast.

He sniffed the air thrice and his ears twitched before he growled again. The admiral's eyes traveled from Kaira and into the far distance. Blinking, Nakkoa watched and saw a pair head in through the distance. One wore an odd shaped non la, tea hat, and the other was a tribesmen.

She smiled with all 42 of her ivory teeth. "Got you, you little bastard."

“Just great,” if he could Kaito would have smacked himself in the face. Thinking he had managed to offend him after all and on top of that asking about his travels likely stirred some memories from the sea that he’d like to forget. It wasn’t that Kaito didn’t think he couldn’t handle himself, being a water bending master he could likely handle this intruder on his own. The reasoning behind his insistence was he found the stranger to be a interesting character. Being both a master bender and traveler must have brought him wisdom that would surprise most people.

Kaito knew he was probably starting to serve as an annoyance with him but this was the chance of a lifetime for him. “Well if you’re sure it looks like there’s not much I can do to change your mind,” he replied to him. “But if you don’t mind me asking where do you live,” he added “I’d love to come by sometime and try this tea of yours the guard mentioned earlier umm.” It then dawned on him that he hadn’t even learned his name. “Now that I think about it I don’t think I learned your name either.”

Kashikoi stopped walking as he made a semi turn to face the man that asked about his name and the place that he lived at. Kashikoi inhaled air into his lungs and finally talked. "My name is Teco, I am not a master water bender. I just said that to impress you that's all. My tea is called, Spiced Chai. It's grown in the fire nation which you should know. However, I am just a tea salesmen who comes by every week to sell different types of tea from different areas. You may not have seen me around here, that's because I come here with different types of tea clothing. I am assigned different areas to sell different kinds of tea. I was born in the water tribe, my parents both were killed by fire nation soldiers. You can say that I use to live here as a child. Being one of the few only non water bender in this area. I was surprised that my parents didn't exile me from this place or the others exile me. However I was a master at weaponry, which was popular back in my days. I only wished that I made my parents proud and that they could call me there son who is a master at water bending. That's why I was sitting at that bench just thinking to myself. As for the intruder that sneaked into this territory, I have no idea who the intruder is. But I do have a photo of who it could be, for I have seen this person to often in my travels." Kashikoi reached into his clothing and pulled out a photo in which had the photo of a fire nation admiral which has a mask on in the photo. Kashikoi projected his voice and started to speak clearly in who this man was. "His name is Kashikoi, He is a traitor to the fire nation. I have heard rumors that his fire bending is better then most benders out there. Also I have heard other rumors that he is a chi blocker. The information where I got this from was in a local fire nation bar. The bartender told me about him, saying that his ways of being leader of a small army will stir up war again. Which is what we all don't want." Kashikoi looked into the distance and saw the man that he was talking about, wearing a mask and the fire nation admiral uniform. Kashikoi pointed his finger at the palace opened window seeing the man holding onto the ledge of the building. Kashikoi looked at the bender next to him and said. "Who knew that he would show up here out of all places. Lets take him down" The fire nation soldier posing as me gets into a small crouch position and jumps off the palace window landing on the ice covered floors. He gets into a fighting stance waiting for them.