As the two of them walked inside of the palace they were greeted by a wide hallway. There were four massive pillars that stretched to the ceiling, two on the right and two on the left. The pillars had intricate designs. He could see images of the sea, icebergs, animals and various water nation warriors imbedded in the pillars.
In the middle of the hall there lay a massive rug made from fur. The rug also had similar murals that depicted the water nation. There were four doors to the side of the hallway, leading to different parts of the castle.
Finally, ahead of him, at the very end of the hallway there were stairs leading up to a small platform. On top of the platform sat three people. Princess Yue, her father Northern Water Tribe Chief Arnook and Master Pakku.
Looking up at the two of them Kain tried to remember what he knew from the show.
Chief Arnook was a black haired man with tan skin and blue eyes. He was the current Chief of the northern water tribe and a formidable fighter and leader. He was the de-facto leader of the water nation considering that the southern tribe had practically been completely demolished.
Master Pakku was the old waterbending master and the current strongest waterbender. He was a harsh teacher and abided by the northern water tribe tradition that only male waterbenders should be fighters. He refused to teach any female students to waterbend, which was why his fiancé Kanna had left him. He retained this belief until he met Katara, who convinced him that both males and females were qualified to be waterbenders.
Finally, Princess Yue was a white haired girl, with the same tan skin and blue eyes as her father. Unlike the other two, she looked visibly younger than she was in the show.
Princess Yue had been touched by the moon spirit Tui as a newborn, which had saved her life. In the fire nation invasion of northern tribe she had sacrificed herself to revive Tui and return the moon to the world so that every waterbender could be able to waterbend again.
Kain wondered if he could prevent her sacrifice this time or if she was destined to turn into the moon spirit.
He and Maroq continued walking towards the platform until the Chief's voice called out, "Stop."
Both of them stopped in place as Arnook continued speaking, "Is the child standing next to you the visitor you found in the ice?"
Maroq nodded adamantly, "Yes Chief Arnook, this kid is Kain Owen, a waterbender. He has lost all of his memories due to unknown circumstances. He wishes to stay in the northern water tribe until all of his memories have returned."
Kain was astonished at Maroq's skills, 'I haven't even told him what I wanted to do and yet he has already decided everything. What a... caring man.'
Arnook responded, with slight suspicion in his tone, "Are you sure this boy is speaking the truth Maroq?"
Maroq nodded, "Yes Chief, I believe the kid is speaking the truth. I have my full faith in him."
Arnook hesitated, before nodding, "As one of my most trusted commanders I am willing to believe the child on your behalf. However, he is still a foreigner and he must prove himself before he earns the trust of our tribe. You know what he must do."
Upon hearing those words Maroq sighed in relief before smiling, "Yes Chief, I shall obey your commands."
Meanwhile, Kain was watching all of these things going on. He assumed that things had gone well, just looking at Maroq's expression. He was actually quite surprised that the Chief held so much trust in Maroq.
'He must be well respected amongst all members of the tribe. I wonder what the Chief wanted me to do to prove that I was trustworthy. Perhaps a trial of combat? No, no the water tribes are not that uncivilized. Maybe fighting for the nation? Yes, that seems much more likely.'
He thought further, his brows furrowing a bit, 'Would I be put on the frontlines? Or as a guard to protect the tribe? The frontlines would obviously be far more dangerous.' he closed his eyes, 'It doesn't matter. it's not like I can decide which part of the battlefield I were to go to. I should instead try learning waterbending as quick as possible. It would be an invaluable tool to help take down firebenders.
Maroq put a hand on his shoulder and walked Kain out of the castle. As soon as they got out Maroq began laughing heartily. Seeing Kain's confused look he commented, "You've just been given the lightest punishment possible. All you'd have to do is stay on the frontlines for a year. You're very lucky. It seems that the Chief was in a good mood that day."
"But isn't fighting on the frontlines for a year a harsh punishment?"
"No, the fire nation has barely attacked us the past few years. I believe they've relocated most of their forces to attack the Earth Nation instead. You won't be in much trouble especially considering you're only serving for a year."
When Kain heard that he suddenly got a bad feeling, 'I thought the fire nation was super aggressive to all nations during the war, including the northern water tribe. So why has the fire nation's attacks stopped happening as often? Perhaps the fire nation had been biding their time, waiting for just until Sozin's comet arrived, so that they could defeat the remainders of the water nation, leaving only the earth nation, which would be annihilated when the comet finally dawned?
Whatever the reason was, he didn't like the fire nation's sudden silence in relation to the war. Seeing Kain's worried expression, Maroq mistook it for fear, as he said, "Don't worry about it kid. You likely won't even be involved in a single battle. The fire nation is far more focused on the earth nation then us."
"Anyhow, I'd suggest you practice waterbending just in case of a surprise fire nation attack."
Kain's face lit up. This was what he had been waiting for this entire time. Now that he had the chance to practice waterbending, he could finally gain some power for himself.
He replied to Maroq, "Well who's going to train me? Your waterbender friend Tarrik?
Moraq looked a bit dumbfounded before he turned red again, "Ah I forgot to tell you, I'm a waterbender..."