Fandom Legend of Korra - After the War (jaydude x Necroknight)

[jaydude]

NecroKnight

It was the time between evening and night, and Xiao leant on the railing of one of the balconies at her family estate, looking over the city she called home. A lot had changed in the three years since Earth Queen Hou Ting's assassination at the hands of the Red Lotus. And with the fall of the Earth Empire, much more was bound to change over the next couple of weeks. Not just here, but in the whole of the Earth Kingdom.

Xiao remembered joining up with the predecessor to the Earth Empire, that band of brave men and women who had sought to impose order and enlightenment on a chaotic and ignorant land, led by the former captain of the Zaofu guard, Kuvira. Xiao had joined up as a medic, and for much of the next three years, served alongside this band as they carried out their mission.

She hadn't been alone, the young woman thought to herself, as she looked down fondly at the golden ring on her left hand. Li - her handmaiden and bodyguard, then her lover and war comrade, and finally her wife - had been alongside her all that time. They'd been each others' lights in the dark during the difficult times. Had they not had each other, they might have lost their ways and followed Kuvira into villainy.

Following Kuvira's defeat at the hands of the Avatar, the formal disbanding of the Earth Empire, and Prince Wu's decision to dissolve the Earth Kingdom monarchy, the state of Qutong - along with all the other states and provinces in the nation - had been allowed to freely elect their governors. Xiao's father - the incumbent - had won the election in Qutong; the fact that he had once been appointed to the position by the Earth Queen didn't change the fact that he had successfully guided the state through many troubles and hardships during his tenure as governor. He had the wisdom and the experience to rule, and now he would be able to do so without being shackled by the tax demands of a corrupt queen, or the labour demands of a paranoid despot.

But Xiao knew that, even after everything that had happened, things weren't going to magically become perfect. They never did when there was a power vacuum to fill.

 

[NecroKnight]

jaydude

Xiao would soon hear the footsteps of her wife coming. Namely it was easy to detect, since Li' step had a rather hard clanging sound to it. Namely, after the war ended and the entire Earth Kingdom had been in essence dissolved - Li had taken a more suitable job, due to her position and experience in Kuvira' Army.

Namely she was the new leader of Qutong' Guard Army. With the dissolution of most of the Earth Kingdom, it also meant that the armies which had been once bound to the central government were gone. The various mini, large and city-states now had to form their own armies to defend their lands and trade routes.

Commander Li, as she was now known - was posted to that positon by Xiao' father. Namely, since she was both somebody, that Xiao' father could trust - and an experienced leader, back in Kuvira' army. While Li had mostly dealt with leading medical' teams and professionals - she had learned her fair share of combat, fighting and preparing soldiers for defence or offense.

As it was, from what stocks of arms, weapons and armor that had been left in Qutong, once Kuvira' army surrendered - Li had taken what remained and used it to build up the QGA. Qutong' model was a simple yet efficient one - the army, was small yet highly trained, equipped and paid well. Like many other states - wielding a large army wouldn't do much good, since technology had negated that gap alot. As such, Qutong was slowly a rising power in the region, it was situated in.

While Prince Wu' ideal of self-rulership was a great idea in practice - it sadly came on the heels of two miscalculations. The regions and states that made up the Earth Kingdom, were in essence - in a bad state, after the Earth Queen' death and Kuvira' march to order. As such, many states were in shambles - having initially relied on Kuvira' support and now that was gone with her imprisonment. Plus, most regions had no idea of democratic rulership - having had rulers appointed by the Earth Queen. Some regions even lacking the literacy to understand the basic ideals of democracy.

Qutong had two major advantages that some other states lacked - it had a decent ruler, whom had a decent treasury secured near the end of Kuvira' reign; which helped fund reconstruction faster than most places. Secondly, it had a competent and loyal military commander, to defend its region. Several former Earth Kingdom regions however, didn't have such luxury and were slowly showing signs of instability. It was everywhere, and slowly the fire to ignite it was getting closer and closer.

"Sup'...Xiao. What you watching?" asked Li, her face unaffected by the coming crisis. As currently she just looked like her usual self - in-uniform, smiling and smelling of iron. As she went over and hugged Xiao.

 

[jaydude]

NecroKnight
Xiao smiled at the sound of that voice, and turned around to return Li's hug. After their time in Kuvira's army, it was nice that they could express their love for one another more openly. Unlike her wife, Xiao currently wore no uniform. Instead her attire consisted of a simple ankle-length dress made out of fine green silk, and a pair of black slippers.

"Just thinking about how much everything's changed in the past three years." Xiao replied as they broke apart, and her gaze turned to some of the new additions in the city. A railway line ran through the settlement, connecting Qutong to the rest of the nation and Republic City. A thick and tall stone wall now surrounded the city. And three biplanes that doubled as scout planes and bombers lay at rest at a small airfield near the outskirts at the city. With those last two additions, and Li's work with the army, Qutong was not going to be ravaged by bandits again, Xiao thought to herself.

Xiao herself had also changed in that time. No longer was she just some rich man's teenage daughter who was content to spend her days idle. Now she'd taken to volunteering at the hospital that had been set up within the city, keeping the orthopedics skills she'd developed in Kuvira's army fresh in her mind. And medicine wasn't her only focus right now. With the changes that were taking place within the Earth Kingdom, and inspired by the fact that Li had been put in charge of the state military, Xiao had started studying politics. In some way or form, she wanted to help guide her state - and indeed her nation - through what were sure to be troubled times.

 

[NecroKnight]

jaydude

"It's bound to change more in the coming years," sighed Li, she wanted to protect Xiao as usual - but she had grown into a proud woman on her own at that. So there wasn't much in the way of hiding the truth from Xiao.

"Compared to Qutong, not many other regions are being as successful as ours," she spoke. While they had the opportunity of people - whom were willing to spend their experience and time rebuilding their region. Most others had to deal with, namely returning veterans - whom couldn't be supported and resorting to banditry.

It was a common problem - since namely, Kuvira recruited from everywhere. But some places, were less fortunate then others. When they were allowed to return to their homes - it was a surprise, likely for them to find out that their home couldn't offer them much in return.

"There are....some talks, that have been discussed between me and your father. We are thinking of expanding Qutong..." she stated. "Not, in an expansionist way. There have been many small states that are bordering on the edge of collapse, suffering from security problems. Or plainly...having no ruler at all."

It would soon start happening - as the larger states would start absorbing the smaller ones. Without the central authority of an Earth Monarch - nothing could be much done to stop it. Since there were so many of them created, how could the Avatar - inexperienced as she was in-general and especially in politics - be able to mediate between the many regions.

 

[jaydude]

NecroKnight

"I know. My father talked about the subject with me as well." Xiao said, once Li had mentioned the plans. "I probably wouldn't use the word 'expanding', but I agree, some states are going to need help when it comes to running themselves and...protecting themselves. Though I have to wonder, do we even have enough people for that? We've got ourselves to worry about as well."

She looked at the wall that surrounded the city. Alone, it would be a mere inconvenience for a group of earthbenders. To truly work as a fortification, it needed people manning it. And to Xiao, while Qutong's army was skilled, and had bombers and mechasuits in its arsenal, it wasn't large enough to protect multiple states in its current form.

Li made a very good point, she knew that much. As well as a number of unscrupulous states, there were also the bandits to worry about. Kuvira had killed off the worst of them, but after her capture, the vast majority of those she had conscripted into her armies and labour gangs had thrown off the Earth Empire's yoke and gone back to their old ways, raiding and pillaging in the absence of a military force capable of stopping them. And what about the rest of Kuvira's armed forces? Somehow, Xiao doubted they'd take Kuvira's surrender lying down.

 

[NecroKnight]

jaydude

"Your father agrees with the situation...it isn't as much taking over, as merely providing resources to stabilize their province, help train and supply their men...and yes, in an occasion...have them submit authority to Qutong," stated Li - it was almost in a way, the way of how the first Earth Kingdom had been formed.

Slowly and surely absorbing the people and resources of the region and using those to build up more and more and repeating. In a way, it was the same policy what Kuvira had practiced - but it would be a less brutal and hostile force. Although, for now...there was no telling - how any future expansions or counter-expansions would be handled.

"For now though...it's been simply talks about making sure our neighbouring regions don't descend into anarchy again," stated Li, leaning forward to kiss Xiao on her lips. "Something, that is more along the lines of your battlefield..."

 

[jaydude]

NecroKnight
(You want to control Xiao's father?)

Xiao returned Li's kiss with a small smile that reflected her uncertainty. The idea of having other states submitting their authority to Qutong, even temporarily, didn't sit well with her, and the fact that her father had apparently advocated the idea made her feel a bit uncomfortable.

"I'd like to think that, barring bandits and other problems, the other states will be able to manage just fine, as long as they've got competent leaders who serve the people, rather than themselves." Xiao said, her smile disappearing as she turned back to the city and rested one hand on the balcony railing. The vast majority of times Kuvira had annexed a province in the past, she'd allowed the original governor to rule, in exchange for them pledging allegiance to her and not making trouble.

 

[NecroKnight]

jaydude
(I guess so)

"That may have been the case, in the old Earth Kingdom..." sighed Li. "Back then, some regions were delegated to being farmlands, some produced ore and some were ports and trade-hubs. I mean, if for some reason if you were - your entire existence had lived off farming for potatoes...weird as it may sound..."

"How would you then suddenly - defend or maintain your stabilty. When most of your income, trade and soldiers came from the central government. Then suddenly it's gone? How can you suddenly shift away from your agricultural society into a more industrial one? It's almost impossible..." she spoke, namely on how nobody liked to speak about it. But the Earth Kingdom' own industrial progress had come at the cost of many impoverished people and in some cases bloodshed as well.

The Earth Queen, despotic as she was - had been the only one, who didn't much costs in the way of achieving the dominance of her nation - and had done that at the cost of many lives.

"....now we have about half of such regions, ready to fall into chaos or anarchy..." she sighed. "I think, sooner or later...somebody will rise and try to re-establish the Earth Kingdom...under some other name, rule or leadership. Give or take, a few years. It has happened throughout our history."

 

[jaydude]

NecroKnight

(I just assumed, based on your previous post that you wanted to control him)

Xiao didn't reply right away, silently conceding that Li's argument was sound. Even if the various states in the Earth Kingdom had once been able to govern themselves without interference from Ba Sing Se, many of them had still been dependent on a central government that no longer existed. At best, it would take them a long time to adjust.

"You've got a point there. But regarding trade, surely some of the states can just make new deals with each other. Besides, we made it through alright, didn't we?" Xiao said, looking down at the prosperous and secure city her family ruled. "So did Zaofu, and other places like it. So we know it can be done." Silence, as Xiao composed her thoughts, before turning back to Li.

"I don't know if this new system of government in the Earth Kingdom is the best idea, but whether or not it is, we can't have another tyrant coming to power in the Earth Kingdom."

 

[NecroKnight]

jaydude
(Nah, is just throwing words around. Not planning to use him for a while)

"Such people don't come to power unassisted. You have to remember, this - no ruler rules alone. I mean, your father has me, you - his Council of Advisors - who help manage taxation and trade, industry and reconstruction," explained Li.

"I mean...look how Kuvira came to power? Was she somesort of evil maniac, who kicked bunny-puppies?" she asked. "Of course not, she came to power in a time of chaos and anarchy. That is how they usually start - they promise security, prosperity, wealth and progress. To a man who has nothing, it's like a golden egg found to save him from misfortune..."

"I hate to say it...but I learned one thing. Freedom is useless - if your homeless, starving and without protection..." sighed Li, looking at Xiao, giving her one more kiss onto her cheek. "It's best, that it be us - whom will atleast try to develop the lands. Instead of some warlord, who has a big mouth and tells them to follow him and burn down the rich provinces for the spoils..."

 

[jaydude]

NecroKnight

Xiao nodded at Li's words, now looking slightly weary as she rested her hand on the balcony. She did let out a chuckle at the mention of bunny-puppies though.

"I think I've had enough politics for one night. Would you like to head back inside?" She asked her wife, looking at her with a smile. Right now, she just wanted to settle down on a couch and read a good book, take a long, warm bath, and then get some sleep. Tomorrow would no doubt be a busy day.

 

[NecroKnight]

jaydude

"Yes please....that would be lovely," spoke Li - as despite her hard-headed attitude, she also tired out, sooner or later. As her shoulders slumped down, and her body soon showed the true signs of her age. Namely, she had seen and done alot - she was tired of fighting. But nevertheless, her will remained strong - even if her body slowed down.

As the two of them soon headed back towards their house - Li already being eager to share a bath with Li.

---

(Could one of them have gotten pregnant? Either Li or Xiao - and maybe have a daughter =P?)

 

[jaydude]

NecroKnight

(Thanks, but I'd rather not go that route. Don't worry though, I've got plans for their kids that will come to fruition in the immediate future.)

The rest of the evening passed in a haze of pleasurable activities for Xiao and Li. They bathed together, washing each others' hair and exchanging a few passionate kisses in the hot water, before finally heading to the bedroom - and double bed - they both shared.

The couple had started making love to each other about over a year ago, in stolen moments of time back when they were members of Kuvira's army. After they left and returned to Qutong, there had been many more opportunities for them to do so, owing to an increase in their free time, and the fact that all of Xiao's family had been accepting of the relationship. And only three days earlier, the pair had come back from a week long honeymoon on Ember Island, a good part of which they had spent on the large double bed in their room, unaware of anything but each other. In all that time, nothing had ever felt repetitive or boring, and making love to Li was still one of Xiao's favourite activities.

Thus the next morning, Xiao woke under the covers of the bed to the feel of Li's body pressing up against her from behind, with the older woman's arms wrapped around her.

 

[NecroKnight]

jaydude

Li was still in a deep slumber, her face being content and happy. Knowing that with Xiao by her side, Li had nothing to fear. It was the truth - the woman had done several amazing things when they had been in Kuvira' army.

Defending them against counter-attacks from behind lines, while they saved the lives of various soldiers. All the while, helping to dictate the correct medical procedures...all while doing that alone, against five armed bandits. She had rescued, several wounded from straight off the battlefield. As long as Xiao lived, Li was in essence invincible - the formely trained assassin turned bodyguard and lover of her charge, was such a woman.

If Xiao wished - it might be a good time to go and visit her father - since by the look on her face, Li wasn't going to be awakened for another two hours.

 

[jaydude]

NecroKnight

Based on the light breathing coming from just behind her, Xiao deduced that Li was still asleep. Looking around as much as she could without disturbing her, Xiao saw a bright beam of sunlight shining through a tiny gap in the closed curtains. Outside, she could just about hear the servants going about their morning duties.

Slowly and quietly, lest she disturb the older woman, Xiao slid out of Li's arms and got out of bed. Slipping on a dressing gown, she pulled the curtains open, making sure not to shine any light on Li's face, and looked down at her wife with a smile. Li was always so beautiful when she was asleep, and it was a pity that Xiao would have to wake her up now.

Crawling back onto the bed, Xiao planted a soft kiss on Li's lips. "Come on, sleepyhead. Breakfast is going to be served soon." She whispered after doing so, a smile on her face.

 

[NecroKnight]

jaydude

"Mhmm...don't wanna....sleep is nice and better," she mewled in reply - slightly twisting in Xiao' hands but she eventually cracked open an eye. Looking at Li with a warm smile, as she got into a sitting position and also kissed Li in reply.

"Morning yourself, pretty lady..." replied Li, stretching herself out and feeling a slight uncomfort in her neck. Nothing a morning walk wouldn't fix later on.

"Okay, okay. I am up...what is for breakfast?" she asked, yawning.

 

[jaydude]

NecroKnight
(Don't worry. I'll only refer to Xiao's family members by name in this post.)

"I'm afraid I've got no idea." Xiao said to Li's question about breakfast, kneeling in front of her and grinning at her reluctance to wake up. They got dressed and did each other's hair, before making their way to the dining room of the estate.

As she ate her breakfast, Xiao looked around at the rest of her family, all of them sat near the head of the table. Her father, Huang Dongmei, had been paralyzed from the waist down while fighting to protect his state and city from bandits, but he hadn't let the fact that he was permanently confined to a wheelchair affect his personality, and it certainly hadn't affected his ability to run the state.

Her mother, Diao, had long since recovered from her own ordeals at the hands of the bandits, and had now dedicated herself to managing her household, whilst also finding time to advise and console her husband as he worked. Right now she was currently feeding Han and Hua, the two youngest members of the Dongmei family. They were the twin brother and sister Xiao's parents had had together after Xiao and Li joined Kuvira's army.

Looking at the two toddlers, Xiao remembered with a hint of guilt how Li - who was currently sat next to her - also wanted kids of her own, and how in the past, she'd tried not to spend too much time on the subject whenever Li bought it up. It wasn't that she was averse to being a mother herself, but she just wasn't sure how to go about becoming one.

While she had - without Li's knowledge - paid a visit to the orphanage to inquire about adoption, she'd found that she couldn't hope to to pick out a child; they all deserved a new home and family as much as each other. As to having kids the old-fashioned way, Xiao was very reluctant to have a man impregnate her, or allow such a thing to happen to Li.

Her thoughts were interrupted when one of the servants burst into the dining room, with reports that a large group of refugees had arrived at the city gates, many of them with injuries. Her father asked what could have driven them to Qutong, but the servant replied that he had no idea.

"I'm going to go and help them." Xiao said as she stood up, before turning to Li. "You going to come with me?"

"I'm coming as well." Her father said, wheeling himself around the table, while Xiao's mother came to follow him, telling other servants to take the toddlers - who were getting excited and confused by all the commotion - up to their room.

 

[NecroKnight]

jaydude

"I shall go and rally the troops," replied Li - as she soon pulled on her armor and uniform - before quickly making her way to the main barracks of the Qutong' Forces. Despite them being refugees - they needed to first find out what had happened to them and then make sure, the refugees filed and were processed in an orderly fashion.

They didn't suddenly an outbreak of illness or disease to start spreading due to mis-carelessness. Nevertheless, Commander Li wasn't a cruel woman - if it was simple aid, then they could likely provide.

As she soon arrived at tha gates of Qutong - alongside the same time that Xiao had pushed her father there on his wheelchair.

"Okay then. Shall we go and see, what is the commotion?" asked Li, as she gave orders for her troops to make sure to protect Huang and Xiao in the case of trouble. Furthermore, no refugee would be allowed inside until Li gave the order for it. They needed to know, what happened and have a decent response for it.

 

[jaydude]

NecroKnight

"Why hasn't she let them in yet?" Xiao asked her father as they approached the gates of the city and saw no sign of the refugees.

"She's probably afraid that they're either diseased, or they're just bandits posing as refugees." was his reply. "I know it seems harsh. Ordinarily I'd let them in without any questions asked, but Li's warned me that right now, we can't be too careful about security. Don't worry. If they mean no harm, I'm certain she'll try and help them."

They soon joined up with Li, who asked the pair if they wanted to check out the situation with her. "Yes, we should." Xiao replied, shortly before one of the soldiers from the wall came over to Li and saluted her.

"Commander, there's about twelve people out there." he reported. "As far as I can tell from the top of the wall, they're not armed or diseased in any way. Also...six of them are children. One of them's only a baby."

He hesitated slightly before speaking again. "What are your orders, commander?"

 

[NecroKnight]

jaydude

"Get a tent from our barracks and some foldable beds out....get them set in comfortably and make sure nobody makes a run for it, into the city just yet. We need to process them, make sure they are healthy and ask them what had happened to make them come over to our city. Understand?" replied Li in reply to the soldier.

"Make sure to tell them to file in an orderly fashion, we'll provide them with the basic food, clothing and medical attention if need be," she then added. Knowing if that was offered, then they'd likely act in a more orderly fashion.

"Also get the guards on standby down near the gates - last thing we need is a runner, before we can process them all," she spoke.

 

[jaydude]

NecroKnight

"I'll talk to them." Xiao said once Li had given her orders, before heading for the city gates, closely followed by two of the soldiers. The gates, two huge slabs of platinum, were opened just enough to allow the trio to pass through, and closed immediately afterwards.

As the soldier from the wall had said, six of the refugees were adult men and women, and the other six were children aged between about twelve and - in the case of the baby - a few months. Two families, plus a few others who had joined them on their travels, Xiao judged, based on their positions relative to each other. With a look of pity, she saw that three of the adults and one of the children had bandages and crude splints on one limb. All of their clothes and faces were ragged and dirty from long travel, and they all looked unnerved, no doubt because of the suspicious looks the soldiers stood on top of the walls were giving them.

"What's the meaning of this?! Do we look like bandits to you?!" One of the men yelled indignantly.

"Please, we don't want any trouble! We just want to able to get food and treat our wounded!" A woman exclaimed, evidently fearful that they were going to get turned away.

"Calm down." Xiao said, holding her hands out in front of her in a gesture of peace, "We're willing to help you, but we need to check that none of you have anything contagious first. If you let us do that, we'll provide you with food and clothing, and treat your injuries."

Her tone helped put the refugees at ease, and they submitted to the checks. None of them were diseased, although four of them had injuries that needed medical treatment, and none of them were armed, although there was a chance that some of them were benders. Nevertheless, Xiao signalled to the soldiers of the wall, telling them that all seemed well, and to get Li to let them into the city.

"I should warn you, the commander's going to want to know what drove you here." Xiao said to the refugees in the most sympathetic tone she could manage.

 

[NecroKnight]

jaydude

Soon enough, the gates were opened - enough for the refugees to go in a single file. Namely they were being directed to a makeshift tent, that had been set up and some beds already. Foldable beds at that, so they can rest after their extended journey.

Commander Li, in her rather menacing armor looked rather indimitating - albeit, that was just for show. Namely to indicate to them, that Qutong didn't want any problems or issues. "My name is Commander Li and I will be your host for your stay here. This is not you being treated as bandits or criminals - is just a procedure we have developed.

As Li soon showed, indicating for the wounded to file and lay on one side of the tent - the simply tired and exhausted on the other. So they could kno whom to treat - in addition, the medical ones had been layed out in a wider rhythm. So they could operate inside the tent also if need be.

"A few nurses will come, to check up your injuries and a doctor as well. As they do that, please answer their questions. Your name, place of birth, do you have any long medical issues you might have. This is a standard procedure, so we know who you are and we can get you settled in," spoke Li - soon letting them file forward.

Letting the various people lie down and get comfortable before she asked her next quesion. "Now...if the leader or anybody amongst you people can tell me, what drove you to come to Qutong - that would be most appreciated..."

 

[jaydude]

NecroKnight

The man who'd been belligerent with Xiao outside the gates was sitting down on one of the beds at the "exhausted" side of the tent, now looking much calmer, and slightly regretful of his earlier words. He looked up at Li and Xiao as the commander asked her question.

"Our village was ransacked by bandits three days ago, after they couldn't find enough supplies in it for them to take. We're the only ones who didn't get killed or captured, and we've been on the road since. As for why we came here, it's like my wife said," he indicated the woman with the baby, "we needed supplies, and someone to treat our injured. This was the first place we came across."

"What's the name of your village, and where is it?" Xiao asked, wanting to verify his story.

"Guiwei. It's to the east of here." The man replied. Xiao had never heard of it before, but it wasn't one of the villages in Qutong's territory.

 

[NecroKnight]

jaydude

"That is rather strange," spoke Li in reply. As she instead had memorized all of the surrounding area within miles - namely, what Xiao didn't much know. That besides having their armies be well-trained and prepared - Commander Li also marked and had documented a good area of the borde regions of Qutong.

Namely it was part of several contingency plans - the basic of which, if Qutong was to be attack, what kind of villages, towns or cities - would in essence be the most worthwhile to hide or resupply at. Knowing such details would Qutong not to be caught off-guard, incase some large army was massing at their doorstep.

"...Why didn't you go your ruling 'state' of Xiinjii?" asked Li, namely the region bordering Qutong. "I mean, it has the responsibility of defending and representing your village. Or at the bare least, provide soldiers to defend its region. How can badits operate so freely in their region?"

 

[jaydude]

NecroKnight

The man shook his head, his expression glum. "There's just too many bandits for them to deal with. It's just one big gang that's plaguing us, but they've got more people than our state has soldiers. The most we can do is keep them out of our state capital."

At that moment, another soldier, this one from the radio room of the barracks, came running over towards the group.

"Commander, Governor, Xiao." he said, nodding to each of person as he addressed them. "We just received an emergency message from our eastern outpost. A huge gang of bandits just passed by, and they're headed straight for this city! They estimate they'll be at the walls in half an hour, at the most."

"How many?" Xiao heard her father ask.

"They don't have an exact number, but...they outnumber our soldiers at least two to one." the soldier replied.

"Numbers alone don't win a battle." Xiao said firmly, having noticed many of the people around them looking nervous at the soldier's words, and sensing that something needed to be done to save morale. "We have walls, and we have better trained troops. And now, we have time to prepare."

"Xiao is right. As long as we all keep our heads, we can withstand this attack." the governor said, before wheeling himself around to face Li. "What are your orders, Commander?"