Kuvira Beifong

Kuvira was a metal mage and political and military leader of the Earth Realm and Earthly Empire from 171 to 174. Before coming to power, she was a student of Suiyin Beifong and became a prominent member of the Metal Clan, a captain of the guards in Zaofu, and a member of the city's dance troupe. Following the outbreak of anarchy in the Earth Kingdom following the assassination of Earth Queen Hou-Tin, Kuvira left the Metal Clan and earned the trust of world leaders by stabilizing the situation in Ba Sing Se, after which she was appointed interim leader of the country. For the next three years, she and her army united the disparate parts of the kingdom, earning her the title of "Great Unifier". In an effort to restore order, General Kuvira offered to protect the country's states from bandits in exchange for their loyalty. During the coronation of Prince Wu, Kuvira abdicated the power of the Earth King and abolished the Earth Kingdom, proclaiming an "Earth Empire" under her leadership.

Kuvira was born into a family from the Kingdom of Earth, and over time, her parents began to consider her a difficult child. Her father believed that she was disobedient, undisciplined and unrepentant of her misdeeds. One day, Kuvira ran away from home after her parents took her toys and locked her in a room as punishment for breaking a vase. Kuvira denied her guilt and used earth magic to break through the wall and escape. When Kuvira was eight years old, after nearly killing her mother in a fit of rage, her parents decided to give her up for adoption by Suyin Beifong in the hope that the master of metal magic would be able to bring the girl to reason. Kuvira's father left her at the gate of Zaofa with a bag of belongings and told her that it was all for her own good, and then left. Suyin warmly welcomed Kuvira and promised the girl that she would be safe in Zaofu, although the fact that her parents abandoned her so easily would haunt Kuvira for the rest of her life. One day, Kuvira burst into Opal's room and told her to get out, because now it was her turn to play with the dollhouse. Opal refused, and told Kuvira to clean herself. Kuvira decided that if she couldn't play with the house, then Opal couldn't either, and crushed the metal house with her magic. When Opal called her mother, Suyin asked why Kuvira had broken the house, but she replied that she did not know. Suyin told her that if she couldn't control her impulses, she would harm one of the family members and asked if she understood. Kuvira ran out of the room, and Opal asked if Suyin was going to punish her. Suyin told Opal not to be angry with her sister, because she had been through a lot. Opal angrily retorted that Kuvira was not her sister, but a stray dog that no one wanted, not even her real parents. As an adult, Kuvira described herself as a "wild, arrogant girl" in her youth.

Suyin developed Kuvira's talents and eventually came to treat her like a daughter, though Kuvira felt that she was never treated the same way as Suiyin's biological children. As a child, she was heavily influenced by Suiyin's progressive ideology of modernization and self-realization. Kuvira, an intelligent and natural leader, quickly rose through the ranks of Zaofu's security team and eventually became the captain of the city guard. She was also a member of the Suyin Dance Company.

In 171 AD, Kuvira and other members of the Suyin Beifong dance troupe were rehearsing a number for an upcoming concert. The rehearsal ended with the appearance of Avatar Korra and her friends. A few days later, Kuvira, along with the Suyin family and the Avatar team, went up to the roof to say goodbye to Opal, who was flying from Zaofu to study air magic at the Northern Air Temple. After the air mage's airship left the city, Kuvira radioed the other guards to begin preparing for Zaof's evening guard. Later that night, Kuvira attacked Zahir and his group after they managed to infiltrate the city to kidnap Korra. She helped the other members of the Metal Clan lock up the criminals in a makeshift metal prison, and then ordered them to surrender and return the Avatar. After the group managed to escape, Kuvira and the other guards searched the city, but to no avail: they found no trace of the four mages. Kuvira was interrogated by Aiwei along with the rest of the city's guards in an attempt to identify Zahir's accomplice. When Aiwei's involvement in the attempted kidnapping of Korra's Avatar became known, Lin Beifong ordered Kuvira to search the city for the clairvoyant and find out where the tunnel under his house led. In the end, she came to a dead end where there was no trace of Ivei. Kuvira traveled along with the Avatar team, their allies, and several other members of the Metal Clan to the Northern Air Temple to try and free the air mages who were being held captive by the Red Lotus. In response to Zahir's demand to meet Korra alone at Lagima's Peak, Kuvira, along with Suyin, Lin, Tonrak, and the other metal mages, traveled to the base of the peak and began climbing the mountain on metal cables to be ready to help Korra if needed. After Mako warned Lin that they had been tricked, the group hurried to the top, though as soon as Kuvira appeared, she was blown off the summit by one of P'Li's burning beams.

Using her cables, she managed to escape and joined the other metal mages at the top of the cliff, where they attempted to subdue P'Li. In the midst of the battle, Kuvira used her cables to rescue Tonrak after Zahir used air magic to throw the water mage off the mountain. After the fight, the group gathered at the foot of the mountain, where Kuvira tended to Tonrak's wounds. While bandaging the tribe's chieftain's hand, Kuvira called herself by her first name after the water mage thanked her for her help and addressed her by rank. She wanted to accompany Suiyin and the Avatar team members in a series of caves near the temple to rescue the missing air mages, but Suyin ordered her to stay with the injured, much to the girl's dismay. A few weeks after the Red Lotus Rebellion, Kuvira attended a meeting between President Raiko, Tenzin, and Suyin, where they hoped that the latter would accept their offer to reunite the Earth Kingdom. When Suyin refused, Kuvira urged the matriarch to reconsider the decision, believing it was their chance to share Zaofu's progressive ideas with the rest of the country. Though Matriarch Zaofu had explained that they would be seen as conquerors and would only be met with weapons, Kuvira reasoned that wars were already underway and that by entering them, they would have the opportunity to make a difference. Suyin flatly refused, which led to a rift between the two women. Kuvira secretly made arrangements with Baatar Jr. on how to get out of the city and stabilize the situation in Ba Sing Se. She convinced Varric, most of the city's security forces, and several of the townspeople's wealthiest to go with her. As they prepared the airships for departure, Suyin was confronted by her protégé, who boldly stated that they were leaving Zaofa to restore order to the Earth Kingdom. Kuvira, who had been threatened with expulsion from the city if she did not stay, did not flinch and declared that she would return when she wanted.

They went to Ba Sing Se and managed to stabilize the situation in the capital, which earned the trust of world leaders, who appointed Kuvira as the interim leader of the country. She held the titles of interim president of the Earth Kingdom and general of the army. In an effort to unite the kingdom, it amassed a massive army and used advanced technology, including satomobiles, railways, upgraded airships, mecha suits, and other tanks, to form one of the first mechanized infantry units in history. Kuvira's mechanical suits were more than a worthy opponent for any of the warlords who opposed her. On the high-speed maglev train, Kuvira traveled to the states captured by bandits and made deals with their leaders, offering protection, supplies, and technology in exchange for their loyalty. Kuvira became an increasingly authoritarian ruler. After she stabilized the situation in the capital, she often used forced labor of citizens for military needs and construction projects, and sent dissenters to re-education camps, as well as citizens who were not native inhabitants of the Earth Kingdom. At some point, she began a romantic relationship with Baatar Jr., to whom she eventually became engaged.

By 174 C.E., Kuvira had united ninety percent of the states of Earth's Kingdom. When Varric ordered Zhu Li to treat everyone to holiday tea, Kuvira refused, vowing that she would only celebrate after her mission was fully completed. This displeased Varric, Zhu Li, Bolin, and Baatar Jr. She ordered her men to abstain from drinking. When the train suddenly stopped, she demanded an explanation and was informed that the tracks were blocked by a pile of stones left behind by the bandits. Despite the fact that troops were sent to resolve the situation, Kuvira ordered them to retreat, as she wanted to deal with it herself. She got off the train and climbed to the roof, from where she watched the bandits descend from the cliffs on either side of her car. Kuvira easily dodged or deflected rocks flying at her, and when opponents came within striking distance, she responded by firing metal strips at them that blocked their eyes and hindered their movements. After dealing with all the attackers and tying them to the train tracks, Kuvira removed the metal strips from their eyes and turned to the earth mages, scolding them for wreaking havoc where she was trying to restore order. When one of the female thugs began to apologize, Kuvira silenced her by momentarily covering her mouth with a metal plate to prevent her from interrupting her. When one of the bandits begged for mercy, she ordered them to stop humiliating themselves and offered to reform and become useful members of Earthrealm, promising to give them a new purpose in life in exchange for their loyalty. If they refused, she threatened to leave them lying on the rails, and the captives, to her great delight, swore allegiance to her and joined her army.

Upon arriving in the capital of Yi, Kuvira was delighted to see Opal and Bolin reunited, and noted that they were her favorite couple. After Opal yelled at Baatar Jr. for betraying their mother, Kuvira urged the airmage to forget what had happened three years ago, and reminded him that she and her army had only come here to help the state rebuild. She acknowledged that rumors of her taking over cities could cast her in a negative light, but assured Opal that her goal was to ensure a better future for the people of Earth Kingdom by creating the conditions for citizens to achieve greatness on their own. Announcing that she and Baatar Jr. were engaged, she asked Opal to forgive and forget about the disagreements that had arisen between her and the Beifong family three years earlier. However, their conversation was cut short when Governor Yi asked Kuvira what she was doing here. In response, she asked for a personal audience with this person. Left alone in her car, Kuvira asked the governor if he had time to consider her offer, which she found very generous. When the governor objected that this was too generous, she reminded him that there were more bandits than his subjects, and that their resources exceeded those of his state, so it was only a matter of time before Yi was defeated. By signing the agreement, she will save the lives of Yi's people and keep the governor's position under her control. However, she was again denied and accused of only wanting access to the ore reserves in Yi. This prompted Kuvira to chastise the governor for his pride, which would not help protect Yi from bandits and feed the people. Despite her best efforts, the governor did not give in, and Kuvira ordered her troops to advance. When asked what happened, Kuvira said she had been unable to reach an agreement with the governor. As she was about to get back on the train, Kai asked if they were going to stay and help.

Kuvira handed him the contract and told him that she and her army would remain at the state border for the day, and if he could convince the governor to sign the document, she would provide all necessary assistance to Yi. Kuvira returned to the state capital after the governor agreed and signed the contract, and immediately dispatched soldiers and upgraded mecha suits, as well as food rations. She stated that Yee was under the full protection of her army, and then appealed to the governor and forced him to swear allegiance to her if he wanted to keep his post. The day before Prince Wu's coronation as the fifty-fourth Earth monarch, Kuvira arrived in Republic City with her army. Accompanied by a select group of officers, she headed to the Four Elements Hotel in Republic City, where she was greeted by fans who wanted an autograph. As the children walked away with the signed papers, Wu approached Kuvira and complimented her appearance. She did not pay attention to his flirtations and declined the offer to talk to the hotel administration so that she could be provided with a better room, informing the prince that she had already booked the presidential suite. And only when the prince laughingly declared that he himself was staying in this room, she turned to him and said with a smile that she would force him to move. When Wu became upset at the prospect of staying in the Junior Suite, Kuvira remarked that she always got what she wanted. The next day, Kuvira sat next to world leaders at Wu's coronation as king. The new king called her over and presented her with the Kyoshi Medal of Freedom for her efforts to restore stability to the country. She was allowed to give a speech and said that growing up in Zaofu with Suyin Beifong, she realized that the idea of a hereditary monarchy was outdated, and technology and innovation should be the driving force of the country's development.

Blaming the rule of unsuitable monarchs for the Earth Kingdom's turmoil, she said it had taken her three years to stabilize the country and would not allow chaos to reign again. She abdicated Wu's authority and dissolved the Earth Kingdom, proclaiming herself the ruler of what she now called the "Earth Empire," intending to bring a new era of prosperity to her people. After warning world leaders not to cross her path, she emphasized her words by tearing off and breaking the medal given to her. In response to her words, the audience gave her a standing ovation. Back at the president's quarters, Kuvira noticed that Bolin was worried about something and approached him. When she learned that he was worried about her ambushing world leaders, she asked him to support her, because he believed in the work they had done. She added that she needed him more than ever, because world leaders would try to force them to accept the rule of Wu, who would not serve the people. She assured him that her threat to crush her opponents was just tough rhetoric designed to make it clear to everyone that she should not be deceived, because conflict was the last thing she wanted. She asked him to help her make history, and he reaffirmed his dedication to her cause. When Suyin entered the room, stating that she and Kuvira needed to talk, the warlord asked Bolin to leave. She criticized Matriarch Zaofu for being passive about the aftermath of Queen Hou-Ting's death. When Suiyin tried to justify herself by saying that she simply did not want to seize power as Kuvira did, and that it would be better for the common good if she resigned, Kuvira rejected the statement, pointing out that she was the one who ensured stability and equality and that they would not accept the rule of Wu, whom she called "the dictator chosen by world leaders." Upon learning that she herself had become dictator because of what she had done to the cities that refused to submit to her, Kuvira warned Suyin that Zaofu would suffer the same fate.

As Kuvira and her army were leaving Republic City by train, she saw Varric start experimenting with a piece of spirit vine and told him that developing this new technology was his number one priority. [8] She mobilized her army and marched to Zaofa to conquer the last territory not under her control. While her army had already reached the gates of Zaofu and set up camp, Kuvira was still on her way on her magnetic levitation train. On the way, she warned Baatar Jr. not to rush things, stating that by the same time the next day, Suyin would have signed a treaty to hand over Zaofu to their control, as she knew that taking over the metal city would not be as easy as he thought. When her fiancé said that he was ready to take the city by force, she again tried to dissuade him, stressing the importance of a diplomatic solution, because everyone was looking at them. She wanted to entrust this task to Bolin because Suyin trusted him, and hoped that the matriarch would listen to him. As the train shook, Kuvira and Baatar Jr. quickly descended to the last cart where Varric was experimenting with spirit vines and asked if they had been attacked. The inventor calmed them down, saying that they were simply "entangled in spiritual vines" and that they had nothing to worry about since he would stop the project. She ordered him to continue, asking if he understood what they could achieve with such power, even though that was why he wanted to stop the experiment. As he began to talk about his conscience awakening, Kuvira informed him that she was the voice in his head that was telling him to continue. When Varric refused again, she bent his metal shoulder pads and threw him out of the train, threatening to throw him onto the tracks.

After Varric quickly reconsidered his attitude towards the project, she dragged him back into the van and roughly threw him onto the metal floor. Defiantly stepping over him, she returned to her van to her fiancé, leaving the inventor under the supervision of the military. Back in her van, Kuvira called out to Bolin and told him that they had chosen him as a member of their inner circle. She explained that Suiying's grudge against her and Baatar Jr. would prevent the matriarch from joining their cause and truly reuniting the Earth Empire. Therefore, she hoped that Bolin would be able to convince Suyin. When asked why the army was standing at the gates of Zaofu, Kuvira replied that it was just a show of force, while Bolin had come to bring peace. Upon arriving in Zaofa, Kuvira and Bolin, accompanied by Baatar Jr., went to the room where the rest of the Beifong family was waiting for them. Suyin stated that she would not give up Zaofa despite the presence of the military, and Kuvira tried to convince the matriarch that the troops were only needed to show what she and Baatar Jr. had achieved. However, the tension rose when Kuvira dismissed Suyin's suggestion with a dry laugh that she had brainwashed Baator Jr. and angrily retorted that she had simply given him freedom and that he had already achieved more with her than he could have done if he had stayed in Zaofu. Bolin tried to defuse the situation, but was ignored, and Suyin ordered Kuvira to leave, as Zaofu would never accept her as a leader. Not at a loss, she gave the matriarch an ultimatum: within a day she had to peacefully join the empire, otherwise she would be captured by force.

Back at the military camp, Kuvira, when asked if she really intended to invade Zaofa, told Bolin that it was only natural for them to find "other ways" to force people to submit if they refused to cooperate. She did not specify what these methods were, saying that it did not matter, and only stated that the citizens of the annexed states were her loyal subjects, whom she could order as she saw fit. Being part of their inner circle, she made it clear that there are a few harsh truths that he just needs to accept without too many questions. Upon hearing Bolin's suggestion to simply leave Zaofa, as it would mean that the Earth Empire had already united, Kuvira became angry, accused him of loving Opal more than her, and threatened to send him to a resettlement camp. Even though he had reaffirmed his devotion to her, Kuvira continued to have doubts. Later, while Kuvira was talking to two of her sergeants, she was approached by her fiancé and Korra. Kuvira greeted the Avatar warmly, saying that she was honored to meet her again and that she was glad that Korra had recovered from the ordeal she had suffered because of Zahir. However, when Korra made it clear that she had come to ask the army commander to back down, Kuvira stated that they both knew she would not do so. When she was told that she could not claim Zaofa without resistance from the Avatar, she calmly stated that her task was to unite the Earth Realm, and she did not understand why Zaof, the last bastion of resistance, should be treated differently from any other state. She understood that Korra was doing Swinin a favor, but she was opposed to being thwarted in her quest to reunite the nation. She noted that while Korra was gone, the world was descending into chaos, and she had to make some tough decisions to get him back on track.

As Korra could understand what it was like for people to go crazy over a decision, Kuvira asked the Avatar to try and convince Swinh to give up the city. To facilitate negotiations, she declared a temporary truce that would last until Korra informed her of Suyin's decision. In the late afternoon, Bolin, Zhu Li, and Varric appeared before Kuvira in her private tent after being caught defecting from the army. She ordered them all to be sent on the first train: Bolin and Zhu Li to a re-education camp for the most recalcitrant and Varric to military surveillance to continue his experiments with spiritual energy. When Zhu Li begged for mercy, swearing allegiance and loyalty to the army commander, Kuvira reconsidered her attitude towards her assistant and gave her another chance, pointing out to the two men that they could learn a lot from this woman.

That night, Kuvira sensed that Suiying would try to attack her and ordered Zhu Li to sleep in her bed. Her suspicions were confirmed when Matriarch Zaofu and her twin sons Wei and Wing entered her tent and captured Zhu Li. As the walls of her chambers collapsed, revealing to the intruders that they had fallen into a trap, Kuvira chastised Suyin for her cowardice, noting that in her opinion, Matriarch Zaofu had always been afraid of something: afraid to take responsibility and lead the Earth Realm, afraid to join her when she became leader, and afraid to fight her in a fair fight. She ordered her men to arrest the intruders, and then, using Zaofu's intercom system, announced to the entire city that Suiyin, Wei, and Wing had been arrested. As a gesture of mercy, she stated that she would not take revenge on the civilians of Zaofu if the remaining representatives of the city met her at dawn and offered complete and unconditional surrender. At dawn, Kuvira stood in front of her army, ready for battle. She was approached by Korra, Opal, and Jinora, who represented Zaofa. When Opal ordered her to free her family, Kuvira stated that she would make sure nothing happened to the Beifong clan if Suyin complied, but the matriarch quickly made it clear that she had no intention of doing so. Asked if there was a way to resolve the brewing conflict, she reiterated that she had already put forward her own conditions, which she considered reasonable. When Opal inquired about Bolin's whereabouts, Kuvira made it clear to the airmage that she fully supported her actions. Tired of talking, she ordered Zaofa to be turned in, but when Korra objected, Kuvira chastised the Avatar for interfering in the internal affairs of the Earth Empire and allowing personal feelings to influence her decisions. She stated that Zaofu had accumulated wealth and technology for too long and could no longer govern himself, and explained that she planned to distribute the city's resources fairly among the rest of the empire.

Upon hearing that Korra had left her no choice, Kuvira turned to her army and stated that she would never ask them to do anything she wasn't willing to do herself. So she challenged Korra to a one-on-one duel over Zaofu's fate: if Korra won, she would leave Zaofa to her, and if she defeated Kuvir, the Avatar would not interfere in the affairs of the Earth Empire. When Korra accepted the challenge, Kuvira said that she could use all the elements she had, as well as the Avatar's state, and teased the girl by stating that according to her information, the Avatar was a little "rusty". Even though Korra attacked her furiously, unleashing elemental blows on her, Kuvira maintained the upper hand thanks to her agility, rapid alternation of metal and earth attacks, and swift counterattacks. After Kuvira knocked Korra several times and threw her aside, Korra entered the Avatar state and delivered two swift and powerful blows of air magic. The stunned warlord looked up and saw the Avatar riding the airflow and lifting a large boulder into the air to crush her. However, Korra fell out of her Avatar state when she was visited by another hallucination in which Kuvira's face was replaced by her own with glowing eyes, allowing Kuvira to grab Korra's wrists with two metal strips and lift her into the air. Throwing her to the ground and knocking her unconscious, Kuvira encased Korra in an earthly shell and bent six metal strips into sharp razors, with which she intended to finish off the Avatar. But before she could do so, Opal and Jinora threw her back. Two soldiers helped Kuvira to his feet, and she ordered her army to attack, as the intervention of the air mages had broken their agreement. The soldiers were unable to reach the women due to the violent vortex, but forced them to flee Zaofu to Pepper, after which Kuvira declared that Zaofu belonged to her and officially reunited the Earth Empire.

Traumatized by her parents' abandonment as a child, Kuvira was obsessed with a fierce desire to protect the citizens of Earthrealm and guide them to achieve national unity through military force. Suyin Beifong describes her as a complex person, and her desire to bring about an era of solidarity and universal well-being was fueled by Suiyin's progressive ideology, which she was imbued with from early childhood. During her time in Zaofu, Kuvira was generally a caring and kind person, loyal and obedient. She meekly followed the orders of her former superiors, even when she wanted to act outside her authority as head of the city's security service. However, as the anarchy instigated by the Red Lotus gained momentum, Kuvira became increasingly at odds with Suyin. Her desire to strengthen the security and prosperity of the Earth Realm led her to break with the Metal Clan, calling Suiyin's refusal to do so cowardice. Leading the campaign to restore order to the Earth Kingdom, she behaved complacently and hostilely towards those who disagreed with or criticized her motives. She threatened to leave a group of bandits to die on the train tracks if they did not agree to serve her, and also threatened Varric when he refused to continue experimenting with the spirit vine. Moreover, Kuvira did not hesitate to leave the capital of Yi without providing assistance to its impoverished residents when the governor of the state refused to accept her extortionate terms, while chastizing him for putting his pride above the needs of the citizens. Kuvira was very persuasive and could force the rulers of states to swear allegiance to her, but she also knew how to intimidate those who refused to comply with her demands.

Kuvira eventually came to the conclusion that inheriting power in Earthrealm by right of descent was a relic of the past and decided she was best suited to governing the country herself. Her desire to reunite Earthrealm became her primary goal, and she was willing to do whatever she deemed necessary to achieve her vision, including forcing citizens into slave labor, sending dissidents and non-Earthreals to reeducation camps, and experimenting with weapons of mass destruction, such as spirit rod technology. Kuvira's confidence in her own abilities and skills reached such a level that she challenged Korra to a duel to prevent a full-scale battle and possibly save the lives of her soldiers by demonstrating her personal bravery and devotion to her army. Although usually calm and serious, she could become heated, agitated, and hostile when provoked or threatened. Despite this, Kuvira also showed a softer side in her personal life: she urged Opal to reconcile with her family and gently allayed Bolin's concerns about her intentions. She was welcoming to her allies and admirers, and forgiving of those who were loyal to her. Furthermore, due to the more tolerant environment in which she grew up in Zaofu, Kuvira was not prejudiced against non-heterosexual relationships, which were historically common in much of the Earth Kingdom, despite the highly chauvinistic ideology of her regime. However, Kuvira was willing to sacrifice anyone to achieve her goals, as evidenced by the occasion when she decided to blow up the factory where her ex-fiancé was being held in order to take the opportunity to eliminate Avatar Korra. However, she believed that all her actions were ultimately aimed at improving the lives of the citizens of the Earth Kingdom, and therefore was willing to sacrifice individuals and even entire groups, but not at the cost of the well-being of the majority.

Kuvira was a master of earth magic, and could manipulate large amounts of earth and stones for her own purposes. Her skill was recognized by experienced earth mages such as Suyin, and others who had already seen her in action, such as Opal. Kuvira was a master of metal magic, and could move with relative ease on different surfaces and climb steep mountain slopes with the help of metal cables. She also possessed considerable physical strength, being able to grab Tonrak with a cable and support its weight. Thanks to her incredible accuracy and agility, Kuvira was able to immobilize several dozen opponents at the same time by covering their eyes and tying their limbs with metal strips, which allowed her to effortlessly throw them in different directions. It could easily make a whole arsenal of weapons from a small amount of metal, such as knives, swords, and whips. Kuvira was also able to sense when someone near her was using metal magic. Kuvira was an intelligent and natural leader, which was evident during her time as a captain of the guard in Zaofu and in her achievements as the "Great Unifier". She was a charismatic and effective orator who inspired great respect among her followers. In addition, she knew how to conduct persuasive negotiations and skillfully intimidated statesmen, forcing them to swear allegiance to her and her cause. Using these abilities, Kuvira was able to subjugate all the states of Earthrealm, earning her notoriety in Earthrealm. Kuvira was also known for her excellent memory: she was able to describe Dr. Shen's brainwashing device to Baatar Jr. in such detail that he was able to create a copy of it from her description. As a former member of the Suyin Dance Company, Kuvira was able to maintain her balance and posture while swinging on a metal cable, and her agility allowed her to deftly dodge attacks in battle. In addition, Kuvira's acrobatic skills have allowed her to develop a dynamic fighting style that involves a quick change of attack and defense.

Kuvira is a woman of strong build, muscular, and tall (180 cm). She has a square, strong face with defined cheekbones and jawline. She has expressive green eyes with a beautiful slant. She has a mole under her right eye. Her hair is long and black, pulled back into a bun to keep it out of the way during battle. She wears a green Earth Kingdom military uniform and combat boots.

At Zaofa, Kuvira ordered the townspeople to kneel before her. In exchange, she promised that she would give them back their freedom and be fair to them as citizens of the Earth Empire. If they refuse to swear allegiance to her, she will throw them in jail as traitors, and present prisoners Suyin, Wei, and Wing as evidence to show that she is not just threatening. After Baatar and Huan were the only ones who refused to recognize her, she retired to the Beifong family's private garden, where she played with the meteorite while Baatar Jr. reported to her that Varric and Bolin had died in an explosion that destroyed the Spirit Vine technology. However, the groom assured her that he would be able to recreate the technology if he had an assistant, and she entrusted this task to Zhu Li. She also ordered Baator Jr. to begin dismantling the domes that protected Zaofa in order to create a huge mechanical Colossus suit that could carry her cannon of spiritual energy, and put Bolin and Varric on the wanted list, despite her fiancé's assurances that they were dead. Later, Kuvira sent her air fleet to the Misty Marsh. On the way to the banyan grove, Baatar Jr. informed her that there was even more spiritual energy in the roots of this tree than in the vines obtained in Republic City. Therefore, she ordered her troop of mechanoids to collect all the roots they could find. A few weeks later, Kuvira went to one of her factories near Zaofu to check on the energy cannon. When Baatar Jr. reported that there were some problems, she turned to Zhu Li and asked her assistant what she thought was the problem, since she had been working on the project from the beginning. Zhu Li replied that it was normal for such a complex mechanism, and Kuvira was convinced that the woman was indeed doing her best to troubleshoot. Satisfied with Zhu Li's answer, she ordered all the soldiers and factory workers to attend the cannon demonstration the next day.

The next day, Kuvira congratulated the assembled group on their accomplishments and declared the spirit energy cannon to be proof that the Earth Empire was the most powerful nation in the world. To the soldiers' cheers, she ordered Baator the Younger to fire the cannon. When the machine malfunctioned again and Baator the Younger remarked that the missing timing pin could cause it to explode, Kuvira turned to Zhu Li and asked what she knew about it. Unable to believe her assistant's ignorance, she ripped the missing pin from Zhu Li's uniform. Kuvira angrily scolded Zhu Li for betraying her, despite having been given a chance to redeem herself. Zhu Li called Kuvira a monster, and Kuvira sentenced her to imprisonment in a tower in the abandoned city the cannon was aimed at, where she would be the spirit weapon's first victim. When the alarm went off moments later in the factory, Kuvira immediately realized it was the Beifong family, who were being held in the prison. She ordered several soldiers to rush to the prison and told Baator Jr. to continue working on the cannon, as she wanted the target city destroyed. When it fired, she was angered to see the beam's trajectory distorted by the Beifong family, who used earthbending to momentarily throw the cannon off balance. Kuvira narrowly avoided a rock Suyin hurled at her head, rolling to the side. The two metalbenders began firing small metal strips at each other, alternating offensive and defensive maneuvers. Kuvira was caught off guard when Suyin aimed one of the cannon's metal containers at her, but she managed to toss it over the edge. Seeking revenge, Kuvira wove the metal strips on her left bicep into a sword-like form and lunged at her former mentor, who barely managed to dodge. When Suyin intercepted one of her blows, Kuvira was ejected from the cannon.

However, she managed to hold on by bending the tip of her blade into a hook and, vaulting over the railing, launched herself at Suyin, knocking her to the ground. Curving her sword into a whip, Kuvira grabbed Suyin by the left wrist and slammed her into the cannon barrel, then pushed her off the vehicle. Kuvira watched as her soldiers overpowered Lin, Suyin, Wei, and Wing, but was shocked when her forces were defeated by a single attack from Toph, who accused her of casting aspersions on the metalbenders. Kuvira watched as the Beifong family, Bolin, and Zhu Li escaped on the Juicy. After successfully testing the energy cannon, Kuvira ordered it attached to the Colossus's right arm for easier transport. She returned to Zaofu, where she addressed her soldiers and thanked them for their hard work over the past three years. However, she noted that their quest to truly reunite the Earth Empire was not yet complete, as they needed to reclaim the United Republic of Nations, which they believed Avatar Aang and Firelord Zuko had stolen from the Earth Empire after the Hundred Year War. After finishing her speech, she stepped aside with Baatar Jr., where she thanked him for his support, noting that without his help, she would never have achieved her goals, and expressed her hope that they would marry after they defeated Republic City. Kuvira had originally planned to attack Republic City in two weeks, but began the invasion a week early after realizing that Zhu Li, aware of their plans, had warned the United Republic. She personally piloted a massive mech suit with an energy cannon and used it to destroy a United Republic military outpost and prevent the troops there from revealing their position. Just a few hours from Republic City, Kuvira received a message from one of her technicians about the appearance of a flying bison and, realizing it was Team Avatar, immediately opened fire on them.

After missing twice, she allowed the team to return to Republic City, confident that even without the element of surprise, they would not be stopped. Arriving at Republic City, Kuvira ignored President Raiko's demand that she retreat with her army, declaring that he was in no position to order her around. To emphasize her point, she unleashed the power of her energy cannon, sinking the Combined Forces' warships in seconds. Then, turning the weapon on the Combined Forces' ground forces, she gave Raiko three seconds to surrender, threatening to destroy his army if he did not. As she surrendered the city, Kuvira ordered him to hand over his army and the Avatar to her, and to inform Baatar Jr. of her location so that he could negotiate the Earth Empire's terms with him. When Kuvira contacted her fiancé to check on him, Raiko informed her that Baatar Jr. had failed to show up on Air Temple Island. Moments later, Baatar Jr. himself called her and informed her that he had been captured. She was relieved that he was safe, but upon learning that Avatar Korra was with him, she ordered one of her technicians to trace the radio signal to its source. Baatar Jr. begged her to stop conquering the United Republic of Nations, because if she continued, Korra would not let him go and they would be separated forever. When her technician located Baatar Jr. and Korra, Kuvira agreed with her fiancé that Republic City wasn't worth sacrificing their lives together, and she told Baatar Jr. that she loved him. Mustering up her courage, she aimed at the Future Industries factory where he and Korra were located and blew it up with her spirit energy cannon.

Kuvira then led her army into the city, ordering her soldiers to round up any civilians they could find. When several airbenders approached her massive suit, she fired her energy cannon at them and attempted to drive them off, but was unable to prevent them from reaching her car and pelting her windows with paintballs, obscuring her vision. She was therefore caught off guard when Bolin used lavabending to submerge the Colossus's left leg slightly. Wei and Wing bound his legs with metal cables, while Korra and the other airbenders attacked his car with air blasts, attempting to knock it off balance. After wiping the glass, she returned fire at Korra, who ducked, and the beam destroyed several city buildings. Despite the suit tilting backward, Kuvira managed to regain control and level it out, allowing her to take a precise shot at the airbenders. She failed to kill anyone, but she forced the defenders to retreat and continued to take the city. Noticing that two of her mech squads had suddenly malfunctioned, Kuvira inquired about the cause, and was told they had been exposed to an electromagnetic pulse, but the massive robot's power core was undamaged. She ordered one of her technicians to locate the source of the pulse, believing it would lead them to Varrick, and signaled the third and fourth mech squads to advance and continue clearing the city, capturing anyone they encountered. When informed that the source of the electromagnetic pulse was the Future Industries Tower, Kuvira directed the Colossus toward the building, but her path was blocked by Korra, Mako, Bolin, Lin, Suyin, Wei, and Wing. She immediately fired at the Avatar, but missed and received several large chunks of earth in return. As she fired again, she was caught off guard by an aerial attack from Tenzin, Jinora, Ikki, Meelo, Bumi, Dou, Kai, and another female airbender.

They unleashed a tornado on her, knocking her off her feet and sending her hurtling into the ground. Regaining her balance in the suit, Kuvira was taken aback by the sight of Milo breathing on the windows, but quickly recovered and attempted to crush him. As he flew away, she fired her energy cannon at him, and although he managed to dodge the beam, she nearly knocked Tenzin and Jinora off their feet. Continuing to advance toward Future Industries Tower, she gasped in horror as Bolin, Lin, and Suyin brought the building's upper floors down on her suit. Despite her best efforts, she was unable to stop it and was buried under the rubble. However, Kuvira managed to reassemble her machine, much to the surprise of her defenders. When Wei and Wing attempted to crush her with another building, she repelled their attack, severing the metal cables with an energy beam, sending them plummeting. Before reaching the Fighter Industries Tower, Kuvira noticed two mech-like Hummingbird suits approaching and immediately opened fire on them. After missing, she noticed one of the suits land on the back of her vehicle and immediately attempted to crush it, narrowly missing. When the second suit landed on her vehicle's right hip, she attacked again, but again failed to destroy it. Despite being unable to shake off the small hummingbird suits, Kuvira prevented them from landing and causing damage, constantly attacking them. However, her efforts were thwarted by Korra, who froze the Colossus using water from a nearby canal. Kuvira, now only using her right arm, managed to shoot off a wing from Varrick and Zhu Li's suit, but soon discovered that her own limb was also frozen. Noticing that Asami and Hiroshi Sato's mecha suit had landed on her machine's thigh and was beginning to weld itself shut, she yelled to her technicians to increase the suit's power so she could free herself.

Kuvira eventually managed to break through the ice and crush the small suit, killing Hiroshi in the process, but she was too late to stop him from blowing a hole in her platinum armor. When Korra, Bolin, Mako, Suyin, and Lin rushed to the breach, she attempted to crush them as well, but Korra again repelled her attack with waterbending, and Kuvira was unable to prevent them from entering her machine. Freeing her arm, Kuvira quickly destroyed the remaining ice on the Colossus and ordered her technicians to enter lockdown mode and locate the Avatar and everyone with her. When she was told that the energy cannon's loading mechanism was malfunctioning, Kuvira corrected the technician, claiming it wasn't a malfunction, but rather someone's machinations, as she felt someone bending the metal inside her arm. She tried to flex her limb to shake the people inside, but, having lost contact, she decided to simply rip the arm off and discard it, along with the useless cannon. Kuvira was surprised when Korra blew open the hatch to the cockpit and, with a powerful gust of wind, knocked down the two soldiers who were with her. When the Avatar attacked her with a fiery blast, she managed to dodge and counter with a jet of liquid metal, but Korra was able to deflect it and redirect it back, knocking her off her feet, solidifying the liquid at the last moment. After several exchanges of blows, with both women alternating offense and defense, their duel was interrupted when the massive suit exploded from the inside, sending the upper portion they were fighting in crashing into the building, where it fell several stories. With Korra's support, Kuvira was pulled from the suit's cockpit and laid on the ground. When Korra sternly told her it was over and that she needed to withdraw her army and surrender to President Raiko, Kuvira hurled a rock at the Avatar, knocking her down. By the time Korra regained her feet, Kuvira had already disappeared into the Spirit Lands. Staggering, she heard Korra calling her name and telling her to surrender, but in response, she merely muttered under her breath that she would never do that.

She eventually found the spirit energy cannon abandoned in the forest and, holding it aloft with vines, called out to Korra, telling her that if she truly wanted to end this, she should come find it. As Korra broke through the undergrowth and found herself directly in front of the weapon's barrel, Kuvira fired at her. She was surprised to find that the weapon was interacting with the energy of the surrounding vines, and it soon spiraled out of control, leaving Kuvira clinging to life. Unable to manually deactivate the weapon, she was thrown aside. Kuvira watched helplessly as the energy beam threatened to kill her, but to her surprise, Korra rushed in front of her, shielding her. A massive energy beam spread around them and exploded. Coming to, Kuvira found herself in Korra's arms and pushed her away to stand. Looking around, she asked Korra what had happened and if they were still alive, to which Korra replied that the cannon's energy had opened a new portal to the Spirit World and hurled them there. Confused, she demanded to know why Korra had risked her life to save her, after everything she had done to her. But when the Avatar explained that she saw much of herself in her, Kuvira dismissed the resemblance. Kuvira reflected on how things hadn't gone according to plan, noting that none of this would have happened if Korra and her allies had simply surrendered. When Korra countered that it was her own fault for interfering with the spirit vines and acting like a dictator, Kuvira snapped, claiming she was simply trying to help her people, as Suyin had turned her back on them and the Avatar was absent. She reproached Korra for not being able to understand her, because the Avatar is adored by millions of people, while she was abandoned by her own parents, as if she meant nothing to them, and stated that she must make sure that the same does not happen to her people, because they need someone to guide them.

However, Kuvira softened when Korra sympathized with her desire to create a place where she and her people would never again be vulnerable. She admitted that she understood what it was like to live in fear, as she herself would have done anything to regain control after being poisoned by Zaheer. Korra helped Kuvira escape the Spirit World, where they immediately encountered Team Avatar and a squad of robotic mechs. When an Earth Empire sergeant demanded that Kuvira surrender, she ordered her soldiers to retreat and surrendered herself, acknowledging that the Avatar had saved her life and possessed power she could only dream of. Resigned to whatever punishment the world deemed fair, she allowed Lin to cuff her. Kuvira apologized to Suyin for all the suffering she had caused her and her family, then allowed the Beifong sisters to lead her away.

The action takes place before the capture of Zaofu, but after the sorra of Suyin and Kuvira