r/respectthreads • u/LambentEnigma • 4h ago
literature Respect Tayagum and Akuudan (Chronicles of the Avatar: Yangchen Novels)
Spoilers to follow.
Tayagum and Akuudan
Tayagum and Akuudan are a pair of married Water Tribe men. While serving as agents of Chief Oyaluk, they became involved in a diplomatic incident and were imprisoned by the Earth King. Avatar Yangchen negotiated their release, and thereafter they became two of Yangchen’s most trusted companions. They run an inn in the city of Jonduri that doubles as a base for the Avatar.
Hover over a feat to see which book and chapter it comes from.
Tayagum
“There’s a big difference between holding a prisoner and getting them to talk. You taught the Avatar that lesson pretty good, and the two of us, well, we’ve known it for a long time. Did a stint in King Feishan’s worst cells, and the interrogations we went through? The story alone would turn your hair white.”
Tayagum is a Waterbender and an experienced sailor. He has a surly personality and is devoted to the Avatar but suspicious of anyone else.
Waterbending
- Moves a boat through water, first by himself then with Kavik’s help, then pushes hard to slow the boat down
- Diverts Kavik’s water whip
- Takes water that Kalyaan is bending and adds to its speed, punching a hole in a wooden ceiling
- Pulls water out of rawhide to quickly dry it
- Melts and freezes water into patterns, making a delicate crystalline net
- [Limitation] Says he’s not a good enough Waterbender to land a boat on a dangerous shoal
Physical Feats
- Withstands torture without giving up information
- Jumps onto Akuudan’s back
- Reacts to Kalyaan’s waterbending faster than anyone Kavik has seen besides Yangchen
Miscellaneous
- Uses a boat’s ropes to hang Kavik by the neck
- Is thought to know some basic field healing
- Is an experienced sailor and can read tides
Akuudan
“We don’t follow her out of a deal. Nor because she’s the bridge between humans and spirits. We follow her because she’s a person who will help others without question.”
Akuudan is Tayagum’s husband and the cousin of Water Tribe Chief Oyaluk. He was born with only one arm. He is friendlier than Tayagum but very protective of the Avatar.
Waterbending
- Makes an arm out of water, and withdraws it into a container hidden on his person
- Makes an ice shield on his shoulder, rams Kalyaan into a wall with it, and melts it into water surrounding Kalyaan
Physical Feats
- Is described as a giant, and his arm is bigger around than some people’s legs, with a fist the size of a brick
- Lifts Jujinta by his collar
- Withstands torture without giving up information
- Vaults over a counter with “surprising agility”
- Reacts to Kalyaan’s waterbending faster than anyone Kavik has seen besides Yangchen
Miscellaneous
Joint Feats
- Kavik supposes that they are some of the best close-in fighters of the entire Water Tribe
- They have a set of rawhide bindings that they wrap around a person with waterbending, tightening when they are dried out
- Along with Jujinta, they infiltrated a boat, which involved impersonating crew, picking locks, and starting a fire while making it look like an accident
- They kept the fact that Akuudan is a Waterbender a secret from their teammate Kavik while he lived with them