[center][b]He Who is Uquo[/b]
[i]the Introduction of a Leader[/i][/center]

[hider=Prior to Uquo]"Didn't need it, but it has a good purpose." She was sitting up again with her legs crossed and pulled close to her. "Oh, thank you." Tanvi collected her food and ate while he explained a little more. "As I said before," she started after drinking some of her water. "This place is amazing. And it's quite large. How long has this been up?" She watched Fei happily snag the bread and sit next to Krane as she ate. This was definitely not what she expected. "Here I thought you all met in abandoned towns or caves. This, this has a lot of work and history put into it. Are there any more new recruits? Or was I the only one for this...sector?" If there were more cities, that meant they had to be in all four nations, all designed a different way. "Will we be going to visit these other cities?" It would give her the perfect opportunity in her travels. 

Krane chuckled at her curiosity. He hadn't seen her perk up since he first met her. He was beginning to think she resented him, but she didn't ditch him before. She seemed, before, like hope to him, but now he saw the childlike curiosity he expected. She looked so young, not like he wasn't, but just not someone you would expect to see in The Rising. Granted, one might not consider Krane to look like a killer, nor Azula or a maniac or Ty Lee capable of taking down all three of them, if they didn't pay attention. It really dawned on him how different things were from how they appeared.

"I don't know and I don't know. We recruit once a month, and in that month, I can be given a dozen different missions. I never know where I'm going, who I'm going with, who I'm fighting... I don't even know what will happen with you," he explained. Up until now, he was her only real gateway to the Rising. Her only source of answers. He wasn't for sure if she considered the fact he might not always be around. They only spent three days together, but he was guessing she hadn't had consistent company since she left the circus. Hell, neither had he.

She frowned a little when he couldn't give her the answers she needed. It was short lived and went away with the sigh she gave. Tanvi set the now empty bowl to the side and held the bread in her palm. She whistled lightly and Fei, already finished eating, scurried over. Tanvi tossed the bread up in the air, only for Fei to jump and catch it. "Oh?" She didn't know what to think about the possibility of meeting dozens of new people every day. It sounded like it would drain her of her energy. It was as if she didn't join a circus and was forced to actually work.
 She was almost sure she was going to stick around with Krane for the time being. "Well, I guess we can only wait for time to tell." 

Krane yawned lightly, already bored, and only made more so by her notion of waiting. He explained to her, "A lot of this job is just waiting... being at the right place at the right time to do just one then, then getting out alive." He sighed as he explained. One might think the life of a rebel, especially a rebel that often stood alongside the rebel leader himself, Uquo,would be more interesting, but the fact was, it wasn't. All of his work had to be done in secrecy and his free time could either be spent training, or drinking like a few others. 

His yawn was contagious and Tanvi ended up yawning as well. It wasn't out of boredom though- well maybe it was, she wasn't quite sure. "Well, if there is nothing to do but to wait, why not give me a better tour of this place?" Even though she suggested such, she would have been happy laying around and possibly going to sleep. After all, wouldn't they need their rest for some big meeting with the leader? Tanvi pushed her brown hair to one side and leaned back, getting even more so comfortable in the seat.
 
 Krane shook his head. He saw her stretching out and took it as a notion to do the same. These boothes were comfortable, sure, but he wasn't for sure just how proper she was raised to be. In any case, he explained himself, "I can't show you anything else. You aren't really in yet... I just thought you'd be worth showing the guy who makes the real decision. Besides, the trip back here is so boring alone." The last half of his explanation was the sarcastic, semi-flirtation she had most likely gotten used to over the course of the trip. He used it like a little pin prick to annoy her, since she didn't seem to reciprocate it.

"How troublesome." Tanvi commented before glancing over at him. "Would you happen to know what my initiation would be?" She did note that she was an 'honorable mention' for the leader and had a small amount of pride for it. Not enough to make her mention it again though. Once more, as she had gotten accustomed to, Krane teased or said something that just wasn't...common in a sense. It was odd, whatever he was doing. And it only annoyed her because she didn't understand what he was trying to accomplish. 

Krane let out a long groan as he slouched over the seat. It was almost feline how he had his back curled backwards and was stretching. After what could best be described as a long, aggressive yawn, Krane flexed back into a more normal position and scoffed slightly. Not really a condescending scoff, but more along the lines of a half-laugh that didn't quite merit a chuckle. "If he likes you and you get in, he'll ask you what you want to do. Chances are, that's what you'll do. Since there wasn't a sign-up sheet for meeting the most attractive women in the four nations, I decided to volunteer for the more dangerous jobs. Tho... this might be the closest I've been," he explained, again trailing off in one of his half-hearted additions.

She thought about what she could do. There was always the dangerous missions...but that required a lot more than she was probably willing to give. Krane proved that when he killed the police force. "Hmm, maybe an assistant or an infiltrat-" She realized how dangerous that would be if she tried to be a spy and then got caught by the police, or worse, the army. Not once did she think of what her father would say or how he'd react to her being in the Rising. He was pretty lenient, lettIng her do most things that she wanted, but this was probably a little extreme for him. "Hopefully my father doesn't get in the way...He's just a soldier doing what he knows how...I don't think he even likes the morals of the Pheonix King." She was rambling gently, staring up at the ceiling.

Tanvi coughed awkwardly towards his accusations of her being 'attractive' and simply looked off to the side as if that would prevent some sort of blush that formed. Well, if that was the case, then it worked. Once more, she ignored hIs lItle flirtatious commemts. Fei became her little deus ex machina at the time, deciding to pounce on Krane's lap and get comfortable. The ferret had come to like the boy since their little travel through to Omashu. 

Krane gently stroked the fine hair on the ferrets back, allowing the warm little creature to take refuge in his lap. Tanvi was entirely unlike Ty Lee in the sense that Ty Lee worked the energy she could make with her body, knowing full well what she was capable of. Tanvi most likely spent her youth in the shadow of Ty Lee, so she had no idea how to react to anything. "I'm sure I'm the disgrace of my family. The Elba line has assisted the Fire Lord since Iroh before Ozai, kept as advisors when Ozai took crown and we gained even more duties when Zuko was named Crown Prince. Now I'm a fugitive. A liabiity that made Azula turn on Lu Ten," he told her, as if reciting verse from his life. He had thought about this a lot. He was a prodigy in a sense, great friends with Azula and trained with the royal cousins. He had a prosperous life ahead of him and tossed it all away.

Tanvi's eyes closed as she listened to Krane speak of his life. "A disgrace? That might be. But you're doing something for a good cause. It's better to disgrace your family and save nations, rather than honor them and go against what you believe in." She opened her eyes when he spoke of being a fugitive again. "If Azula was willing to risk herself for your sake, you couldn't have been a liability. You were a friend." Tanvi's eyes closed once more and she shrugged. "Friends help each other when they need it. Not because they have to, but because they want to." She didn't mean to sound sentimental or knowledgeable about the situation, Tanvi was only expressing what her thoughts were on the matter. "And if you think about it," she added, "If this- once this is all over, you and everyone here would have achieved something far greater than anyone could imagine." 

Krane only yawned again at hearing her. Everything she said was something that he had heard from a dozen others in a dozen different ways a hundred times over. People were odd like that. They think you need consolance. No amount of words could ever take away the feeling Krane had. The regret he had for leaving behind his life. The questions of what if? They could try, but it would never amount to much. Most of the time, Krane just had to ignore it and move on. People. They often have the best of intentions. 

"Remember what I said at the swamp?" Krane asked. He let his neck roll over slightly so that he could look at Tanvi as he explained, "You talk a lot." Krane scratched underneath Fei's chin, letting the little ferret take ease in his lap. "Its the curse of all pretty girls, y'know. No one ever wants to offend you, so they never tell you. It's human nature. We learn it in the palace. If we make a single gesture that communication is unwanted, it makes people less likely to visit - and that's bad for a palace image. If you get offended, most people think you'll never want to talk to them again, and for most men there are few worse things than never getting to talk to a pretty girl again," Krane told her. He went into a pretty thorough explanation as well. It was as if this was something he had contemplated over time.

With her eyes still closed, Tanvi smirked a little. It appeared he didn't want her two cents on the matter. That was fine with her. She didn't have to say anything, in fact, he had probably heard different variations to what she said constantly. His insult, as she took it, didn't hurt her in the slightest. "The only reason I'm talking now," Tanvi paused and yawned. "Is because I didn't want to seem rude and fall asleep." She didn't mind the honesty of what he said, even if it was a little rude. But he was right, people would get offended if they just blatantly told others to stop talking. Once more, she ignored the compliment he had given since she wasn't sure how to respond to it. "Don't worry, I'm not going to stop showing up because you'd rather have your peace. It's not like I have many places to go anyhow." 

Krane chuckled at her. She seemed so focused on reassuring him or saying the right thing. Even if she was relaxing physically, he was sure she was still somewhat on edge. It made sense to be, too. She was in the middle of the underworld, surrounded by fugitives and rebels. "Don't avoid it," Krane told her, "you're only sticking around 'cause the ferret likes me."

The comment made her open her eyes. She turned to see Fei happily sprawled against his lap and being petted. Tanvi rolled her eyes and smiled. "Ah, yeah sure. I wouldn't want to leave her behind. Guess I'm stuck here thanks to her. Thanks a lot Fei." She recieved a squeak in response before Fei returned her attention back to Krane.

Krane just laughed at her before rolling back into his sprawled out position. "Could be hours before he shows up. All we're ever told is what day to show up. You mght be stuck here for a while," he explained to her. Of course, he didn't stop petting Fei. At this point, the tired little ferret was likely considering a nap, and so was Krane.

The more he spoke of how long it would take, the sleepier Tanvi got. Fei was already drifting to sleep. She rested her head against the back of the chair she was sitting on, pulling her knees up to her chest. Instead of speaking, she hummed a response to let him know that she heard. There was little for them to do to occupy their time as Krane said. And she was comfortable enough to know that he wouldn't try and kill her in her sleep. If he did, well, she was a light sleeper so slight movements would be heard.

As much as Krane wanted to, he wasn't exactly allowed to nap. He was responsible for Tanvi as she was in the underground city, thus he had to watch over her until she was approved or sent elsewhere. This didn't mean she couldn't nap. Or Fei. Just not him. He would have to silently, if she was sleeping, wait it out until Uquo came. This wasn't the worst fate he had been given in his time in the Rising, but it was still a dull one.

Fei had fell asleep, and soon enough Tanvi was asleep as well. It was no bed, but the chair was pretty comfortable. And being curled up was no problem for her. All the moving about was pretty tiresome, but she had the endurance to do all that travelling. Without being disturbed, Tanvi slept soundly. And after at least thirty minutes, maybe longer since she wasn't keeping track, she woke up with a yawn and a stretch. Her head turned to where Krane had been, noticing that he was just sitting there. She was about to question it, but she merely sat up. Fei on the other hand stayed asleep. "Well. I feel refreshed."[/hider]

[indent]"You missed Uquo," Krane replied.[/indent]

The words may have echoed a bit. Maybe it wasn't a real echo, but more akin to one were the listener wonders if what they heard was right. In this case, it was. A mere twenty minutes into her nap, Uquo had visited the rec center. His assessment was both quick and thorough; a quick look and conversation with most new recruits led to a majority of them being accepted. Few were not. Those few would be destined, or more accurately fated in the most unfortunate way, to be dealt with before even leaving the Underground City. It was secret that must be kept, and those visiting all risked their lives. If not for being considered a traitor to the Phoenix Kingdom, than to the traitors whom demanded absolute loyalty. It was a odd and somewhat contradictory, but a necessity all the same.

[center][i]...Just a few minutes earlier...[/i][/center]

Uquo walked into the rec center. Although he didn't have the appearance or intimidating stature one might expect from a Waterbending master and elite solider from the Northern Water Tribe, he all the same demanded respect merely by walking in. His garb, at least while in the Underground City, was a thinner variant of the traditional Waterbending wardrobe, complete with wolftooth earrings and a white-skinned mantle. As a matter of fact, this type of garb would immediately draw attention and make a bold statement literally [b]anywhere[/b] else in for hundreds of miles. Aside from the Northern and Southern Water Tribe, such attire would be a taboo; and, that was the reason Uquo wore it. Everything Uquo did had a purpose, and wearing symbolic clothing to deliver a powerful message was definitely one of them. Anywhere else, this would have drawn immediate attention. He wore it to remind everyone that this wasn't [i]anywhere else.[/i]

Uquo had only brief conversations with any single recruit there or their respective recruiter. Even Krane was only given a quick wave. Tanvi wasn't even awoken; she was approved with a quick nod, and left in her tentative sleep by a silent slip of a paper given to Krane by Uquo. Everyone else was essentially rounded up after their introductions for a quick explanation of their goal. It was simple. There were more new recruits this month than ever; normally, recruits were attained via political methods from Uquo, not single-handed recruitment such as this. For the next month, instead of being given immediate approval, the new recruits would shadow their respective recruiters, being analyzed, since Uquo quickly decided he didn't have time to do it himself, and learning more about the Rising. Or, if they were not 'accepted', making sure what they learned was put to a permanent rest.

There was an atmosphere created when Uquo entered. He couldn't have been there longer than twenty minutes, twenty-five, tops. There was no uproar. His presence was actually quite light. Yet, at the same time, one knew to listen. When he spoke, there was a sincerity in his voice. Even though he was mostly dismissive and seemingly rushed, Uquo never sounded nor seemed the least disrespectful. Even to the youth, whom always demand attention, he seemed so busy and blurry that just a greeting from him was enough to sate their thirst for attention. To those that demanded respect, such as the Airbending Masters in the room, it was easily read that Uquo was not disgracing them with his rush, but methodically realizing that he didn't have the ability to assess all of them, and thus designed a new system on the spot.

To some, he asked more. He asked them to stay for a coronation ceremony, the lighting of the autumn blaze, which burned a darker red with purple hues. In the Underground City, the fire essentially lit everything, thus its light and its hue set the mood. As summer was ending, it was time for the brighter fire to be quelled and the new fire to be set ablaze. Those Uquo asked to stay for this ceremony were those he wished to speak to in more depth. Others were not obligated to, but were just as welcome. It was one of the few actual festivities within the Underground City; most activity was, quite factually, pure work. A rebellion was not the setting for frivolity and festivity, but Uquo did attempt to keep the morale of his people up. There were similar festivities being held in the other headquarters of the Rising, so this concept of morale and culture was perpetuated within the entire Rising. One could say Uquo had created a culture of rebellion.