Kyama Genyuan Huichen

Former Earth Queen

Life

Kyama Genyuan, later known as Kyama Huichen, was born to Okoh Genyuan, a descendent of the Huichen clan whom abandoned the Sand Tribes and changed her name to begin a new life. Kyama is the product of that new life, with her being unaware of her ancestry until Chieftess Sai-Lun revealed it to her. Kyama is the niece of Sai-Lun Huichen, thus making her the cousin of Ayato Huichen and Belan Huichen. She was the wife of Earth King Taron, who made Kyama his successor after he left the kingdom. Kyama served a long reign, revitalizing the kingdom and bringing a new age of prosperity. She crowned her cousin Belan Huichen her successor in 310 AG and then left to search for her husband and travel the world.

Biography

I don’t know much about my family history. Sometimes that bothers me - I mean...What kind of monarch am I if I have no royal blood?

I come from humble beginnings. I lived with my mother and father in the Northern Earth Kingdom. My mother, Okoh Genyuan, was always working hard. She was popular amongst the lower ring - apparently when she moved to Ba Sing Se with my father, Tavrek Varoq, she was revered for her beauty. They’re not wrong. My mother is a beauty, aged 50 currently and still looks 30 with her thick, black hair and deep, earthy brown eyes. Although, you can see the toll work had on her. My father was kind. A tall man with a deep voice and blue eyes - the trademark of the Water Tribe. I’m not sure how my parents met. Even after all these years my mother doesn’t like to talk about Tavrek since he passed away.

When I was nine my father contracted an illness. Due to our low income my mother had to choose between medication for him and raising me. Sometimes I wonder if she holds me at fault for his death. We lived on a farm and for the first seven years of my life I had happy memories. Sunny days and little responsibilities. After my father died my mother struggled to maintain a stable enough income for us to keep our land. As fate would have it, Tavrek’s brother, my uncle, Hiryuu Varoq also needed some help.

He moved over to Ba Sing Se with his son Aron, less than a year old. Hiryuu’s wife had died through childbirth and it was the perfect opportunity for my mother and him to attempt to heal and earn enough to live. While Aron grew up I started to take responsibility around the house. I would help with the farming, go to sell the produce, and I also got so into embroidering and wood carving that I started to make hair pins, ornaments, and embroidered cloths to sell.

In my spare time I would go and sit in the fields of Ba Sing Se, watching the sun rise and wishing that I could venture beyond the walls. As far as I knew, I would grow up supporting my mother and stay in the Earth Kingdom. Whenever I asked her about her parents she would never reply. I always wondered where she got those brown eyes from, though. I had inherited my fathers blue eyes, albeit I did not inherit his water bending. From my mother, I inherited her thick black hair and most of her features. I remember that when I was younger my father would always joke that no one would know I was his daughter if I didn’t have his blue eyes.

One day, when I was fourteen years old I was attacked on the way home from selling my crafts. Is it weird to say that I felt pity for the criminal? They too were just trying to make enough to survive living in the slums considered ‘scum’ in Ba Sing Se. Although, I wasn’t a fan of his method - which was- I guess, robbing 14 year old me.

I resisted, times were hard and I also had to make money to support seven year old Aron. It was then he resorted to force and threatened to stab me. He cut my right eye quite badly, and I barely managed to get away by throwing dirt in his eyes and running as fast as I could back home through the fields and forests. Blood swam in my vision.

I would’ve gone blind in my right eye had my uncle not been able to heal. Although, the damage was quite bad and I still had to wear bandages afterwards and was left with a nasty scar. Fortunately for me, the scar faded immensely over the years.

Yet, every time I looked into the mirror I was reminded of how easily I would’ve died.

How weak I was.

That's how my passion for fighting and earth bending started.
I always knew I could earthbend, though I was never really any good. The most I could do was send a pebble flying a little further than normal, or raising up a little mound. I was able to apply for the military when I was 18, so that gave me four years to train as much as I could and make up for lost time.
The time passed quickly, my schedule was something like this: Wake up, tend to crops, weed, harvest, cook breakfast for Aron, go to the market, sell at the market, walk home, help mother make dinner, leave the house and train until the sun sets, go home, sleep.
However, when I was 17 my usual schedule changed. I was out training in a clearing in the farm when a girl collapsed.
I rushed over straight away, both wary and worried. The girl had light skin and white hair - a stark contrast to the usual dark hair earth kingdom citizens have. There, collapsed amongst the tomato plants, leaves framing her face, she looked quite ethereal.
I rushed to get my family and upon seeing the girl’s injuries, my mother approved of her staying until she was recovered. I tended to the girl, who told me her name was Nozumi. Together we shared a close relationship. She was from the Fire Nation. She told me stories of the Fire Nation capital, of life beyond the BSS walls. In turn, I told her about my life. I showed her my carvings and I practiced with her. I dreaded the day she had to leave, as the nights we spent together under the stars by the campfire light were both magical and painfully limited.
After she left I trained for the remainder of my seventeenth year. When I was 18 I applied to the military and got accepted. It was there I met Earth King Taron - my future husband. At first, he was just a tutor to me, helping me with my training. I was only a private, yet he was so gracious enough to offer me private lessons… It was then that he and I began our relationship.
What was our relationship like up to our marriage? I will not discuss that with you. But, just like Nozumi, the time I spent with Taron was magical and also.... Unbeknownst to me... painfully limited.
I married Taron so quickly I did not even have time to rank up from Private, despite being able to best corporals. I was then given the title Earth Queen. It was such a grandeur title for someone who had lived their entire life struggling to live in even the lower ring of Ba Sing Se. It felt silly - like I was playing pretend. The media knew it too. Leading up to my wedding the news report at Kinoko Island read, “Earth King marries commoner.”
Despite that, my wedding was a grand success. There were many people from all nations and I felt absolutely blessed to marry Taron. At the ceremony, I also saw Nozumi again. My wedding was when I was able to connect again with her and start another friendship. This time, as Earth Queen Kyama and General Nozumi.
While I loved my husband, the title Earth Queen was a formality. In reality, I held no power and I was just his concubine. It was frustrating for me. The time I had spent training was wasted now - I couldn’t join the military anymore. So, I continued training when Taron was out. Otherwise, I spent my time embroidering and visited my mother, who was able to retire once I got married. Hiryuu and Aron, who I considered to be my brother, also moved away to the WT once I got married and he was 11ffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffff.
When I was 23, my husband informed me of a journey he had to take, alone. After just 3 years of marriage, Taron left the next day and exiled himself. His last action was making me the full monarch of the Earth Kingdom. I was confused, yet I expected him to be back soon. At the start of my reign I was faced with a global issue: the URN Civil War. I did not trust Rias. I used the opportunity to establish myself as more than a ‘young helpless queen’ and culled the rebels with support from my WT and FN allies. As time passed it became increasingly apparent that my husband would not return any time soon.
It’s an odd feeling - to be Queen yet not have your husband or a child. I’m left with the empty palace. Sometimes I even stuff the other side of my bed with pillows to pretend he is there....
Anyways!
As it became increasingly apparent that my husband would not return soon, I decided to work quickly as Queen. I aimed to turn the Earth Kingdom away from being a militant nation. Despite having the strongest military, I focused on community and established a government, foreign ministry, clergy alongside my first Grand Secretariat, and engineering dept.
After establishing this, my second Grand Secretariat, Kioko, helped out immensely. Her and I first met when I was first married to the King. He introduced me to her, a friend of his friend, Ullaq.
We got along very well, she was the sole diplomat in the Earth Kingdom. However, due to the stagnant nature of the government she left the Earth Kingdom. As I became the monarch I urged her to rejoin and aid me as Grand Secretariat. I also appointed Hong as the general to the Earth Kingdom in Tornak’s absence.
My time is not without turmoil. My rule started with conflict, so I guess it was only expected. Looking through the governing of the Earth Kingdom I felt the Swamp’s governing was biased against Earth Kingdom citizens and made several attempts to contact them. My efforts were null, so I built a fort. Perhaps a bit rash of me, but oh well. It’s Earth Kingdom land anyways...
I wonder if all of these conflicts were simply waiting for a new monarch.
Currently, the Si Wong Tribes are planning to rebel against the monarchy and some unnamed group plans to abolish the class divide. Yes, let's not engage peacefully with the Queen and instead pin the mistakes of past monarchs on her.
I’m not really amused by that idea. I guess that brings me to the current standpoint in my story.
From now on forward, I promise all of you listening to my story one thing: I will do whatever it takes to protect my kingdom.
On a different note, I hope I can act as a beacon in troubled times. My second name, Genyuan, means source, or root. I hope I may honor it by acting as a root to anchor the Earth Kingdom.
I hope that one day, those reading my story are inspired by it just as I am inspired by Avatar Yangcheng, Kyoshi and Toph for their strong wills and ambitions.

Political Figure:

Earth Queen
Reign: 3XX-310 AG
Predecessor: Earth King Taron

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