"Hurry up. I don't want to anger Chin's spirit again by being near the enemy island.
"Yes. He definitely didn't like us sailing towards the enemy and thought we were deserters. And after what you did... I really hope the fishing continues to go smoothly.
The speech of the five men was tinged with fear and prejudice, and the influence of the surrounding world made itself felt - a wild fear of spirits that the entire village of Chin had probably only heard about but had never seen; a still blind belief that Chin was somehow related to Unagi, protecting the entire village, but for some reason attacking their ships; even the ongoing aggression towards Kioshi was the result of one simple fact, such as upbringing and the choice of one's hero, so to speak — but it was difficult to condemn them for that. There were no schools in the village, as in most places in this world; the legacy was built on the truly great achievements of one man, and the dislike, or rather the lack of faith in the Avatar, was now most relevant. It was even surprising, because they had finished their work anyway and dropped us off in a part of the island where we didn't attract attention.
The fishermen did not say goodbye to me. Looking at me with some apprehension and peering even more anxiously into the forest behind me, they tried to leave as quickly as possible. In the eyes of these people, I could see an unspoken question: what the hell am I doing here? Did Unagi attack because of me? How could I defeat a sea dragon on my own? The more they wondered, the more tense their faces became. In the end, if I had been luckier, they might even have started telling legends about me, proclaiming me the second Chin, who was actually going to Kioshi to defeat them... but they just quickly sailed away and hoped they would never meet Unagi again. And I, despite their attitude, calmly waved goodbye to them, watching them sail away for a while to make sure no one tried to eat them.
"Fyur," Afka rolled her eyes. For a second, I even thought I had stopped understanding her, but it was a sincere snort, reflecting the full picture of her thoughts about these uneducated natives. "Their level of development is jumping on branches and picking bananas.
"Hmm... interesting, did the people of this world evolve from monkeys, or is it all down to spirits? The thought came to me out of the blue, and Afka immediately stroked her chin "importantly" with her tail and looked at me like a stuffy lecturer.
"Hmph, that's exactly the same as wondering which came first, the chicken or the egg. Not only humans study the basis of the world, but spirits as well, some of whom once donated their works to the library, claiming that everything in existence was created by the spirits Vatu and Rava. Their clash gave rise to matter, magic and life; everything you see was created by the great spirits. Therefore, it doesn't matter where humans came from, the original source of everything was spirits!" she finished on the proudest note possible, raising her nose as if she had just praised herself.
"So all your knowledge is based on books... but even Wang Shintong came into the world after humans descended from the Turtle Dragons, so how could he know?" Disappointed that there was no spirit around me who could see what was happening with my own eyes, I still had slight doubts. Maybe it was because of their attachment to material things, or because of the endless battles, but Vatu and Rava didn't look like they could create a world. Then the Avatar would have been more like a real God than a very powerful, but still human, magician. And why would they need it if they seemed to live peacefully in the spirit world? And what about Tui and La, the greatest spirits of our time, the Ocean and the Moon, who settled in ordinary, completely defenceless fish? Of course, the ways of spirits are inscrutable, but to spend your whole life following the same path, knowing that even a pathetic mortal who lives twenty thousand years less than you can kill you... Either I'm missing something, or they didn't want this of their own free will.
"Great beings do not take helpless forms because they have a good life."
Anubis' unexpected words briefly threw him off balance. He immediately reminded him of his dog form, whimpering sadly and sitting in the rain. How was that different from the spirits at the North Pole? So they had a fight with someone and lost a significant amount of their power for such a long time? Looking at Afka, I could say for the most part that spirits are mostly peaceful and do not fight among themselves. Only if they are not dark ones — those ones immediately try to kill someone or convert them to their dark side. It's terrifying... even gods encounter fish that are bigger than them, and some of these great spirits even come to our world to have fun.
This is further proof that it is not worth relying on a single Avatar to solve all problems. After all, he only comes to solve a problem after the first victims appear. Considering my level of luck, I not only need to learn Chin's techniques and Kioshi's fighting moves, but also grab everything I can. Otherwise, the Fire Lord will be the least of my problems.
As soon as I remembered why I had come to the island in the first place, a weary sigh escaped my lips. Adjusting the strap of my bag, I turned towards the forest and, passing through it, stopped behind one of the trees, looking at the place teeming with life... Yes, it so happened that the Kioshi did not live in isolation; under their wing was an entire settlement that they carefully protected. The houses in this place were made of wood and straw, and overall, it looked like a normal village life. The locals wore mostly blue cloaks and all had blue headbands, as if they were marked. These people were carefully guarded, but the question remained as to how they reproduced, because after more than a hundred years of isolation, they must have all become sisters, mothers, sudden fathers or neighbours of their father's sister, who was actually your long-lost brother!
Jokes aside, their system is peculiar: only girls join the local soldiers, which is the first problem for me, because I'm not Avatar, so I can't use my status to persuade anyone. The men live in the settlement itself, where they send women who are unable to fight, young women with injuries, and raise girls, but when the latter grow up... they are expected to repay their debt to the motherland, and the draft arrives - not only have they achieved equality with men, but they have also taken away their opportunity to serve, how awful. But the main thing is that these beasts are sent to the village they guard, where they look for prey and get pregnant. Poor men, how they are brazenly exploited there — maybe they can get citizenship?
"Hmm, they don't look like degenerate freaks, there are even some very attractive people, from a human point of view. Maybe they take someone from outside just to... continue the family line?
"Well, well," Afka said meaningfully.
"Just kidding... although who knows, I need to open my love chakra," I rubbed my chin, dozens of options for how to start a conversation running through my head. Kioshi's story was steeped in legends of protecting the weak and fulfilling the Avatar's duty, but she was best known for her fierce protection of law and order. Ironically, considering that her heirs had completely forgotten about the world and were spinning around one small village.
It's almost infuriating. Was the world really so static before the Avatar arrived, just watching everything happen? They should have at least spoken up about their cowardice... or was it the ideas that Kyoshi preached?
"Choose:
1 - Speak up (You have valid complaints that have not been heard by the local people for decades. Your oratory skills should be enough to tell them about the level of global tension and become an equal member of Kioshi. Relations with Kioshi Island will change to - Obedience. You will focus on the Kioshi fighting style)
2 - Dagoth the Conqueror (You took Master Pai's request too literally. Capture the island by force, subjugate the territories and unite it with the village of China. Use earth magic to create fortresses. It will become even more difficult for the Fire Clan to conquer the local lands. Relations will change to - Subordinates. You are focusing on Chin's strategic experience)
3 - Implement the "Kyoshi" plan (The strategy you have developed has many points of support that need to be systematically built up for a great result. You will achieve "friendly" relations, and the static inhabitants of the island will accept your worldview and become executors of the Lotus. Use Chin's experience to make good use of the Kioshi warriors on the world stage. You will evenly develop Chin's strategic experience and the Kioshi fighting style.
I would say that I didn't even need to choose Anubis, I might have even ignored him, as before... but he brought me down to earth. My thirst to learn Kioshi's style blinded me, I forgot about my own plan, and was already seriously considering telling them everything! Not because my emotions got the better of me, but because it seemed like the best option. And then, unexpectedly, the option of conquest appeared... Afka won't approve, but she won't take it too seriously, and I don't see any point in looking exclusively to her opinion. And if I don't choose the third option, I'll have to rework all my plans.
"Thank you. Perhaps it is willpower that will give me complete concentration and awareness of the whole situation, so that I lose my head less," I nodded to an imaginary God, and calmly and without worry, I stepped forward. I approached the settlement and stopped in front of the gate, allowing the people to see me. The reaction grew. The first settlers who saw me froze and cautiously began to call their relatives. Soon the whole village was looking at me with a fair amount of tension, shuddering as soon as my stern gaze fell on someone. A moment later, someone ran to Kioshi's warriors.
And then, trying to move as inconspicuously as possible, the local law enforcement began to emerge from behind the houses, appearing behind me and completely surrounding me. Knowing the area well, they took advantage of this to appear as if from nowhere, taking up battle positions with their fans, this time real ones, made of steel. My sixth sense instantly assessed all their poses, memorising every detail, while my eyes darted around the figures... The pretty ladies were dressed in slightly less pretty, baggy clothes and black armour. Their faces, in turn, were painted with frightening makeup designed to terrify criminals.
But since it couldn't hide their pretty faces, it didn't work. Yes, I couldn't bring myself to say that the local girls were the product of incest.
"Who are you?" one of them shouted, while the others hurried to get closer. Only one appeared behind me, raising her fan with the blunt end and preparing to strike my neck like...
"Greetings to the preachers of Guru Laghima's teachings," I bowed respectfully, letting the blow pass over my head. At that moment, everyone froze. The girls behind me looked embarrassed at my muscular figure, while the others made a groaning sound, not knowing what to do. After all, I had stumped them with my knowledge of history and the fact that Kioshi's thirst for order and control had been inspired by the works of a single philosopher. "I am a historian, philosopher, and earth mage — Dagoth. May I speak with you?"
Like an unexpected storm, the girls fluttered their eyelashes and, like true preachers of their faith, shifted the responsibility onto another person. Their leader.
"You don't really look like a philosopher," said the girl who stepped in front of me, looking at my body towering over the young girls and mockingly covering half of her face with a fan.
"The world is bigger than you think. The stoicism preached by Laghima — self-control and acceptance of one's fate — is not the only way of life. I would say that there are people for whom it is deadly dangerous," I smiled, glad that they knew the origins and where the current way of life came from. After all, one of the principles that Laghima followed, and therefore Kioshi, was wisdom," I emphasise something in between the works of Laghima and Shoken. I hope you've heard of the latter?
The Lotus Order was unable to form its views on the world correctly and spread them in such a way as to finally begin to influence the world. The reason for this was simply a lack of knowledge about who Guru Shoken was. I may not be a guru, but I am confident that I can finally convince them to form the principles of the White Order and recruit the first people.
***
You can read the full story at:
patreon.com/posts/avatar-139933426