North and South Part Two

North and South Part 2 is the second installment of the North and South trilogy. It was released in comic book stores on January 25, 2017, and is scheduled for release in mass market retailers on February 7, 2017.

Overview
''After attempting to kidnap Katara and Sokka, Southerner Gilak leaves a haunting note for Hakoda: "Soon you will see the truth, chieftain". The vow leaves everyone on edge–including Katara, who remains wary of the two tribes' integration. As Northerner Malina announces a partnership with the company owned by Toph Beifong's father, her own brother comes forward to defame her. Have Katara's worst fears been confirmed?''

Synopsis
The morning after Katara and Sokka's return to the town, Hakoda and three of his officers investigate the Fire Nation shipwreck themselves, searching for Gilak and his group of dissidents. They find the wreck and the caverns beneath it abandoned but discover that Gilak has left a message for them to find, which reads, "Soon you will see the truth, chieftain."

Malina and Maliq meet Katara and Sokka outside their factory, the former two intending to give the latter two a tour of the facility. As Maliq goes into an explanation of their mission and reason for coming to the Southern Water Tribe, Katara and Sokka tune him out, discussing between themselves the implications of Hakoda and Malina's budding romance. Sokka, while somewhat off-put by the image of his father kissing Malina the previous night, maintains that Hakoda should be able to choose what he wants, while Katara holds strongly against it, unwilling to entertain even the thought of Malina becoming their stepmother. Maliq, finishing his speech, asks them to share any inquiries they might have and is distressed to realize they have not heard a word he has said. Malina summarizes his speech into a single thought for them: They have found oil underneath the thick ice and are planning to extract it. She cites it as the foremost path to "lifting up the South", a phrase to which Katara takes offense.

Maliq passionately explains that the sheer amount of oil under the ice will usher in a new age of machinery in the world, allowing machines to become a part of people's everyday lives. He responds to Katara's skepticism by saying that, as a bender, she has no way of knowing the advantages benders hold over nonbenders, and that the use of machines can, at last, bring equality among them. Sokka joins in the conversation, leading to an exchange about the machines used at the Earthen Fire Refinery, which in turns leads to the revelation that Malina and Maliq are business partners with Earthen Fire Industries. Malina tells them that the company is sending a representative to help them and, pointing at a coat-clad, shoe-wearing Toph walking toward them, identifies her as the person in question. After Sokka and Katara greet her excitedly, Toph speaks with Malina and Maliq, telling them that she looks forward to working with them. Malina and Maliq tell Katara and Sokka that they are having a festival in town that evening and insist that they come as guests of honor. Upon learning that there will be food at the festival, Sokka wholeheartedly agrees to go, to the displeasure of Katara.

The festival takes place that night in the town square. Wandering around, Katara, Sokka, and Toph find a high-striker booth. When Sokka excitedly mentions it to Toph, referring to it as "the poundy-poundy game", Toph resolves to beat it, and the two leave Katara behind. She is approached by Pakku, who introduces two young waterbending students of his to her, Siku and Sura. However, they deny that they are waterbenders and run off a short ways, where, believing themselves to be out of Pakku's sight, they waterbend openly. Watching them, Pakku tells Katara that he found the girls in a village far removed from the sea and wonders whey they want to keep their abilities to themselves, considering they are very talented for their age.

Outside the walls of the town, Hakoda and his forces have set up a blockade to defend the festival from Gilak's forces. In the distance, Gilak observes the perimeter through binoculars. Remarking that Hakoda's actions are utterly predictable, he rallies his troops around a large metal drill and tells them to prepare for action. Meanwhile, Katara, seeking out her father, talks with him about Malina and expresses her doubts and deep-rooted distrust of her. Hakoda assures her that he has not been blinded by his emotions since, as she has discovered for herself, "the right kind of love ... doesn't blind you. It actually helps you see." At that moment, Katara looks up and sees Appa descending toward them and, excited, runs to meet Aang.

They embrace, and Katara asks if he was able to calm the spirits in the Fire Nation, to which Aang replies that it was Azula, not spirits, who was creating chaos. He assures her that everything is all right, as the Kyoshi Warriors are assisting Zuko, and greets Hakoda with a bow, which Hakoda returns. Aang asks about the blockade set up around them, and Hakoda tells him, without specifics, that he has the situation under control and suggests that the two visit the festival. As they walk away, Katara asks Aang if Hakoda has always been kind to him. When Aang answers "yes", Katara responds that she should be kind to Hakoda in turn.

They soon find Sokka and Toph, who has collected a large number of stuffed animal prizes from the game booths. After a short time, Katara spots Malina in the crowd and calls out to her to wait. She thanks her for inviting her and Sokka to the festival. As she tells Katara to think nothing of it, Malina notices Aang, who is using airbending to win a game at a nearby booth, and is shocked to realize that the boy is the Avatar. Katara offers to introduce her to him, and she wholeheartedly accepts, but at that moment, Maliq finds them and informs his sister that it is time for them to make an announcement to the crowd. Katara promises to introduce her after the speech. While Toph and Sokka go on playing booth games, Aang quickly notices the faces of the crowd turned toward the central stage and realizes that someone is about to speak.

Malina begins by introducing herself and Maliq to the crowd, and tells them that the Southern Reconstruction Project will elevate the South to the level of the other nations of the world by utilizing its natural resources. As she continues, introducing Toph and their partnership with Earthen Fire to the crowd, Toph senses an object rising toward them through the ice beneath her feet; the shoes she has been wearing have muffled her seismic sense, keeping her from sensing it any sooner. When Malina asks Toph to say a few words to the crowd, the earthbender screams at them to flee for safety; seconds later, as the crowd scatters, Gilak's drill bursts from the snow. A number of his soldiers emerge from within it, while Gilak and Thod, the latter of which holds Maliq's briefcase, stand atop the steel machine, all of them glaring at Malina and Maliq.