Lin Beifong

Lin Beifong is the Chief of Police of the Republic City Police Department, the daughter of Toph Beifong and Kanto, and the older maternal half sister of Suyin Beifong. Although her mother taught Avatar Korra's previous incarnation how to earthbend, Lin displayed no affection toward her when they first met. However, Lin's feelings toward the young Avatar changed when Amon and his Equalists made their public appearance and openly challenged the benders of the world. Lin is brave, loyal, and willing to sacrifice herself in order to do what she believes is right.
== History ==
=== Early life ===
Born to Toph Beifong and Kanto two decades after the Hundred Year War, Lin inherited the earthbending prowess of her mother and eventually mastered the art and two of its sub-skills, metalbending and seismic sense. Due to Toph's childhood being one of constant restriction, she gave Lin and her half-sister, Suyin, much more freedom, though she did not divulge to them their respective fathers' identities, an issue that would bother Lin for much of her life. Toph's carefree parenting eventually led Lin and Suyin to competing for her attention. Lin later followed in her mother's footsteps and joined the Metalbending Police Force as soon as she was old enough to do so.Avatar Legends: The Roleplaying Game. Republic City, Version 1.0, 2023, p. 150.
While still a trainee at the police academy,DiMartino, Michael Dante; Konietzko, Bryan & Mattila, Katie (December 2, 2014). "Old Wounds" commentary. Book Three: Change Blu-ray. Lin came home one day in 138 AG,The Legend of Korra—The Art of the Animated Series, Book Three: Change, page 86. to notice Suyin skipping school and hanging out with her suspicious friends. Upon confronting her about it, she was harshly told by Suyin that it was none of her business. Lin stopped her from leaving and told her she was ruining her life, prompting her half-sister to retort by saying that she at least had a life before leaving behind a fuming Lin.
Sometime in 142 AG, Lin, now a high-ranking police officer, intercepted a getaway car from a robbery. The suspects proved to be Suyin's friends, who were members of the Terra Triad. She was surprised to learn that Suyin was the getaway driver. Lin expressed her anger over her sister's involvement with the Terra Triad. Although Suyin insisted that she only drove the getaway car as a favor, Lin remained unconvinced and threatened her as she began to walk away from the scene. After Suyin dismissed her, Lin tried to apprehend her by snagging her wrist with a cable. While trying to stop Suyin running away, her line was cut by her exasperated sibling, resulting in it snapping back and scarring Lin's face. The two sisters were later brought in front of their mother at her police office, where both were reprimanded. Lin refused to accept the blame because Suyin was running around with criminals. At her mother's request, Lin turned over the arrest report, but watched in shock as Toph tore it, believing the incident could not be covered up. The young officer was angered, especially at the reasoning that Toph, being chief, could not have a daughter in jail, taking it as a sign that her sister could do what she wanted. Lin saw this event as the reason why Toph retired from the police force a year later; Toph supposedly being guilt-ridden of her actions and thus refusing to forgive her half-sister for not taking responsibility. This belief influenced Lin to refuse talking to Suyin, even after Suyin and Toph reconciled with each other many years later. In 154 AG, Lin and Toph ceased communicating with each other and never spoke again until twenty years later. While Suyin later founded the Metal Clan, Lin rose through the ranks of the police force to eventually become Republic City's Chief of Police.
As her mother was friends with Avatar Aang, Lin and Tenzin had known each other since childhood and according to Tenzin, she got along "famously" with his father. Earlier in her life, she dated Tenzin, but the two eventually drifted apart, as they had different goals in life, and the relationship ended after Pema confessed her love for the airbender. Angered, Lin wreaked havoc on Air Temple Island and unsuccessfully attempted to throw Pema in jail.
In 158 AG, following the first kidnapping attempt of Avatar Korra, Lin collaborated with the Order of the White Lotus in interrogating the Avatar's would-be captors, led by Zaheer. However, none of them divulged information regarding their motives.
=== 170 AG ===
==== Meeting Avatar Korra ====
When Korra arrived in Republic City, she was subsequently arrested and brought before Chief Lin Beifong at the city jail on charges of destruction of private and city property after a skirmish with three Triple Threat Triad gangsters. The two had a conversation in which Lin explained that she held no favoritism toward the young Avatar despite the fact that her mother and Aang were friends. When Tenzin arrived, Lin begrudgingly agreed to drop the charges against Korra, though made it clear that she wanted the Avatar "out of [her] city". The next day, the Chief attended a press conference during which Korra made her first public appearance as the Avatar in Republic City. At that time, the new Avatar was also asked if she would be working with Chief Beifong, a question to which she did not reply.
Lin later encountered Korra again at a party hosted by Councilman Tarrlok, where she remained unimpressed with the Avatar, stating that Korra had done absolutely nothing to deserve the city's praise.
==== The Championship Finals ====
Several nights before the pro-bending championship match, Amon hijacked the radio broadcast and threatened that if the game was not canceled, the Equalists would unleash an attack on the arena.
Shortly after this announcement, the United Republic Council was in favor of closing the arena for the sake of public safety, despite Korra, Bolin, and Mako's pleading. Lin, however, entered City Hall and, albeit reluctantly, agreed with Korra and demanded that the Council show some backbone. In exchange for keeping the arena open, the Chief agreed to provide heavy security for the event and take full responsibility for anything that would transpire. This agreement convinced Tarrlok and the rest of the Council to leave the arena open. Tenzin encountered Lin later and offered to provide her protection during the event, but she demanded that she not be babysat, insisting she could take care of herself. Korra approached Lin and expressed her gratitude to Lin for agreeing with her in the Council meeting, however, she ignored the Avatar's thanks.
Lin proceeded to establish tight security for the event, and finally agreed to bury an old hatchet and work together with Tenzin. Her officers continued checking and rechecking the arena for any signs of anything suspicious, and eventually decided it was clear.
Lin later met up with Tenzin and the two watched the match together. As Tenzin became enraged about the Wolfbats' blatant disregard of the rules, Lin became amused, claiming that she did not think he would know the rules of pro-bending. The two exchanged some conversation during the match as the Wolfbats won a controversial victory, mostly after Korra won her tie-breaker match with Tahno. Lin became somewhat impressed, remarking that she could not believe that the sweet-tempered Aang was reincarnated into Korra, whom she described to be "tough as nails". Tenzin commented that Korra reminded him of Lin at that age and that he believed they would get along if she would give her a chance. Lin frowned at this but refrained from commenting.
Despite Lin's maximum security, the Equalists formulated a plan and her preparations were rendered useless. Due to the fact that the metalbending cops' armor was impervious to an attack by chi-blocking, the Equalists had developed other means of entering and attacking the arena. After the match, the Equalists furtively attacked Tenzin and Lin with electrified gloves, rendering them unconscious.
Amon appeared at the center of arena and made a speech about the Equalist movement; he subsequently attempted to leave through the pro-bending arena's ceiling. Korra attempted to pursue them and used waterbending to give herself a boost to the ceiling. However, she came up short, and Lin used one of her metal cables to successfully boost Korra up to the ceiling.
Lin soon joined the Avatar on the roof and attempted to fight the Lieutenant and other Equalists. The metalbender was stunned again by the Lieutenant, but managed to recover and continued to fight alongside the young Avatar. Lin attached herself onto the Equalist blimp, and was close to capturing Amon, however, at exactly the same moment, Korra fell through the Pro-bending Arena's glass ceiling. The chief was left making the hard decision between possibly capturing Amon, or saving Korra's life, and in a selfless act Lin chose the latter. Korra thanked the metalbender for saving her life. Tenzin, Lin, and the Avatar discussed that Amon had gotten the better of them on that night, and Tenzin declared that this was the beginning of a war.
==== Investigating the Sato factory ====
After the Equalist attack, Lin received notoriety from the public for failing to capture Amon. Councilman Tarrlok even proposed in a press conference that she be replaced as the Chief of Police. Lin began conducting numerous investigations with Tenzin, interrogating the witnesses of the incident in the arena. She later received intelligence that Cabbage Corp had manufactured the Equalist weaponry, so the Metalbending Police Force proceeded to shut down the company and arrest the owner.
When Lin and Tenzin were alerted by Korra of a possible connection between Hiroshi Sato and the Equalists, the metalbender at first doubted its veracity but agreed with Tenzin that he would have both the means and the motive, since his wife had been murdered years prior by a firebender. The Chief and the airbender went to the Sato estate to question him further. The businessman excused his guilt, claiming it was all a simple misunderstanding; he also welcomed Lin's officers to search his factories. However, Lin and her men were not able to find any substantial evidence to incriminate Sato.
As the investigation came to an end, a worker in the factory slipped Korra a note telling her to meet him underneath the Silk Road Bridge. Korra, Lin, and Tenzin met the worker, who explained that Sato was an Equalist and that he had indeed manufactured the weapons used during the arena attack. The worker also revealed that Sato was preparing to launch a new, more powerful weapon, which he was making in a secret factory underneath his mansion.
Lin, Korra, and Tenzin, escorted by some metalbending officers, conducted a second search of the Sato estate, and discovered a massive factory with Equalist propaganda and several weapons, including new, massive robot-like machines, mecha tanks. However, they soon realized they had been lured into a trap as Hiroshi Sato sealed the factory off, and began to fight Lin, Korra, Tenzin, and the officers with the new machines. While the group was able to fend off Sato, he and the Equalists eventually overpowered the benders and rendered them unconscious. Hiroshi ordered his men to bind everyone and bring them to Amon.
Meanwhile, Mako and Bolin entered the factory and attempted to carry Korra, Tenzin, and Lin to the surface; however, Hiroshi soon discovered them and prepared to attack the brothers. They were saved by the appearance of Asami, who had also made her way to the factory. After a brief conversation with her father, Asami used an electrified glove to knock out Hiroshi and the Lieutenant, giving time for everyone, herself included, to escape via airship. However, they were forced to leave Lin's officers behind as they could not carry them, and the Equalists had already begun to load them into the trucks.
While on the airship heading back to the city, Lin, still in pain from the attack, told Tenzin that she feared for the fate of her men and, since she had failed twice as police chief, was planning to turn in her resignation in the morning. Tenzin told her to not give up the fight, but the metalbender stated she was resigning so that she could find her men and take down Amon her way: outside of the law.
Lin officially presented her resignation as chief the next morning and turned her position over to Saikhan.
==== Searching for Avatar Korra ====
While Lin was in the hospital recovering from her injuries, Saikhan had taken over as the Chief of Police, with Tarrlok developing an increased influence over the new chief. In this time, Tarrlok unjustly arrested a crowd of nonbenders, as well as Mako, Bolin, and Asami.
Some days later, Lin awoke to a radio broadcast announcing that Korra had been kidnapped by the Equalists. She went to the prison and quickly freed Asami, Mako, and Bolin. Tenzin soon joined the group, and they went to search for Korra and Lin's captured men. Uncovering a network of tunnels under the city, the four, including Tenzin, discovered and infiltrated the Equalist hideout. Lin also found the officers who she was forced to abandon underneath Hiroshi Sato's mansion; however, once she discovered that Amon had already taken their bending away, she expressed regret and apologized for arriving too late. Several minutes later, a chi-blocker they had captured told them under duress that the Equalists had never kidnapped Korra and that Tarrlok had been lying. With the help of Lin's earthbending and metalbending, they escaped from their pursuers via tram, the group making its way out of the underground tunnels to the surface. From there, they traveled toward City Hall to confront Tarrlok.
Once they arrived, the group challenged Tarrlok's story of what had happened the previous night, telling him they knew he was lying and had Korra. His assistant revealed that he was a bloodbender, and he had, in fact, kidnapped the Avatar. Lin and Tenzin readied themselves for combat, but Tarrlok knocked the entire group unconscious by bloodbending them. After they woke up, they resumed their search for Korra.
Later, when Lin and the others heard Naga howl, they traveled to the source of the sound and found the polar bear dog with Korra on her back. Lin attempted to find out from Korra where Tarrlok was, but Mako pushed her aside, demanding that they all gave Korra some space.
==== Defending Air Temple Island ====
After Tenzin arrived, Lin stayed with his family and before the airbender had to leave for an important Council meeting, he asked Lin to look after his wife and children, to which she agreed. Pema arrived shortly afterward and handed her Meelo, stating that he needed a wash, much to Lin's displeasure. After Tenzin left to meet with the other council members, sounds of explosions made it clear that Republic City was under attack, prompting Lin to order the family to go inside. When the Equalists arrived on the island, she tried to defend herself, but was electrified. Jinora, Ikki, and Meelo came to her rescue and defeated the group of attackers in a small battle with surprising ease. As more airships were heading toward the island, Tenzin decided to take his family to a safer location away from Republic City.
Lin knew the family would need protection and accompanied them, taking it upon herself to protect the last airbenders in existence. As she and Tenzin's family fled, two Equalist airships pursued them. After tearing up the net launched by one of the airships, Lin made the difficult decision to attack the aircraft, telling Tenzin not to turn back, no matter what happened to her. Using the broken net's cable, she jumped off of Oogi and climbed atop the airship using her metal wires. Once on top, she ripped a hole in the metal, tearing the hull clear off the airship. She jumped to the second one to do the same, but was ambushed by Equalists and knocked out with electrified bolas.
Following the capture of the metalbender, the lone Equalist airship turned back and stopped pursuing Tenzin and his family. Lin's sacrifice prompted Meelo to declare her his hero, a statement with which Tenzin solemnly agreed.
Lin was brought back to Air Temple Island to face Amon. He inquired about Korra's whereabouts, telling her that if she complied, he would not remove her bending. Lin, tied up and defenseless, chose to remain silent and willingly sacrificed her bending in order to protect the Avatar. Amon removed her bending and she collapsed to the ground.
==== Former glory restored ====
Despite losing her bending, Lin accompanied Team Avatar throughout Amon's conquest. After Amon was outed as a bender, Lin traveled with Team Avatar and Tenzin's family to the Southern Water Tribe compound, where Korra hoped Katara would be able to restore her bending. When Katara said she was unable to restore Korra's bending, Lin grievingly remarked that Katara, the best healer in the world, must be able to do something, as otherwise Amon's damage could never be undone. However, when Korra ran away on Naga, she was visited by Aang's spirit, who restored her bending through energybending. Later, Korra used energybending to restore Lin's earthbending, substantiated when Lin raised a number of boulders surrounding their location. Afterward, she thanked Korra for restoring her bending. Some time after she returned to Republic City, she was reinstated as Chief of Police. Due to Mako's good work in busting triads, Lin believed he could make it to detective.
=== 171 AG ===
==== Varrick's machinations ====
Six months later, Lin welcomed Team Avatar and Varrick back at Republic City, immediately getting at Korra for starting a civil war among the Water Tribes. She ordered Mako to resume his position as an officer, as there would be a peace march orchestrated by the Southerners later in the evening and he was needed to safeguard the order. However, despite the significant police force Lin had deployed, the peace march was disturbed by the bombing of the Southern Water Tribe Cultural Center.
The next day, Lin was paid a visit by President Raiko, who grilled her over the bombing and threatened to replace her if she failed to apprehend the culprits soon. When Mako interrupted said meeting, bringing news about the bombing, she snapped at him, ordering him to give the evidence he found to Lu and Gang, the officers in charge of the bombing case.
Later that day, Lin exited her office, finding the police station to be a mess. When she demanded to know what had happened, Mako stated that he had broken up with the Avatar. Amused, she commented that he got off easy compared to her break up with Tenzin.
When the news about the fifth robbery of one of Varrick Global Industries' ships reached Republic City, Lin questioned the captain of the ship in hopes of finding a lead to the culprits. Much to her dismay, her interview was interrupted by Mako, who was convinced that there was a link between the robbery and the bombing of the Southern Water Tribe Cultural Center. Angered, she shot down Mako's ideas, not taking the time to listen to them, and ordered him to drop his investigation and go out on the streets to do his job, as he was not a detective, but a beat cop.
A few days later, Lin traveled to Mako's apartment with Lu and Gang to investigate an incriminating lead she had been given by members of the Triple Threat Triad they had arrested. Mako admitted he had hired the Triple Threats for a sting operation, but Lin informed the young firebender that the information she had been given by the gangsters suggested he had assisted them in stealing from the Future Industries warehouse. Although Mako denied the allegations, Lin stated she was obligated to follow up on the lead. When Lu showed Lin the money and explosives he had found during his search of the apartment, she asked Mako why he possessed explosives, and despite both his and Asami's protestations that there had been a mistake, she left the apartment with Mako in handcuffs.
Lin and her fellow officers later provided security at the Pro-bending Arena during the showing of the final installment of The Adventures of Nuktuk: Hero of the South. Lin was alarmed when a waterbender was knocked onto the water and Bolin subsequently started battling three others on the center stage of the arena. She ordered her men to secure President Raiko and call for backup immediately. When Varrick was outed to be the mastermind behind the attempted kidnapping of President Raiko, Lin arrested him and by proxy, his assistant, Zhu Li, as she refused to leave her employer's side. With Mako's allegations proven right, Lin cleared him of all charges, and noted that he would "make a fine detective", while demoting Lu and Gang for their incompetence. She accompanied Team Avatar to Varrick's cell, where they learned of his battleship, the Zhu Li, which he provided for them to use in traveling to the South.
==== Harmonic Convergence ====
Several days later, Lin witnessed the energetic shift caused by Harmonic Convergence which caused the world to be enveloped by the spirit lights and a purple aura. During the preparation of Republic City's defenses for an expected attack, Lin personally secured the president's safety. When their airship was shot down by the Dark Avatar, she urged her officers to leave the ship and took hold of the president, leading him to safety on a nearby rooftop, from where she oversaw the destruction caused by the Dark Avatar.
==== After Harmonic Convergence ====
Two weeks after Harmonic Convergence, Lin was present at a press conference outside City Hall to address the disastrous overgrowth of spirit vines that had resulted from the integration of spirits and humans. She cut short an argument between Raiko and Korra over the blame each shouldered for the situation and promptly declared an end to the conference.
The next day, Lin and Mako made their way to Air Temple Island. When Lin saw Bumi punching at air, she asked the spectators if he was fighting an invisible spirit monster. Tenzin informed her that his brother had developed airbending abilities, only for the police chief to tell him that Bumi was not alone.
Later that day, Lin watched together with Bolin as Korra attempted to remove the spirit vines from a building by using spiritbending. When the vines grew back stronger than before, Lin, aided by Bolin, jumped to action and bent an earth pillar to stop a building from collapsing, giving Korra the time to get every inhabitant out safely.
That evening, Lin and members of her police force had tracked down the airbender, Daw, to Kyoshi Bridge. She tried to talk him down under the threat of action from her officers, though ended up watching how Korra saved Daw after he slipped while trying to come down.
Some days later, Lin was informed by Lord Zuko that Zaheer, Ghazan, Ming-Hua, and P'Li had escaped their respective prison, prompting her to journey to Ba Sing Se to warn Korra and the others. After Tenzin explained to Korra who the criminals were and that they had threatened to kidnap the Avatar, Lin added that they never got any answers as to their motive before insisting that Korra return with her to Republic City. When Korra declared that she was not leaving without freeing Ba Sing Se's airbenders, however, Lin decided to join the mission.
During the night, Lin and Asami took their airships to help extract the airbenders from the Earth Queen's temple before departing the city. After being radioed by Bumi that the group had freed them, Lin directed her airship over the Earth Queen's Temple, and the escapees and Bumi ascended the temple's scaffolding to reach the ship, with Bumi altering Lin to move once they were all aboard. Once they were far away from Ba Sing Se, Lin joined Team Avatar in searching for more airbenders while Tenzin, Jinora, and Bumi took the airbenders to the Northern Air Temple.
==== Family reunion ====
While the team was resting and Korra was playing fetch with Naga, Lin continued to warn her that she was being pursued by dangerous criminals. Naga presented the police chief with the ball being used for fetch, but upon seeing it covered in saliva, Lin passed on throwing it. Mako and Asami soon came out of the airship and alerted the rest of the team about a new airbender in Zaofu, home to the Metal Clan. Korra asked Lin if she knew the place, but the metalbender claimed she had never heard of it and said she would prefer her back safely in Republic City. Korra and the rest of the group, however, insisted on investigating the report of the airbender, and thus they ventured to the city. Before leaving, Naga again gestured for Lin to play, but she smashed the polar bear dog's ball with her metal cable out of frustration.
When Bolin saw the city was made of metal, he told Lin she should feel right at home, but she continued to sit and gave a noncommittal mumble in response. Upon landing in Zaofu, Lin remained aboard the airship, telling Team Avatar just to get the airbender and not to reveal her presence to the city's inhabitants; she refused to explain her reasoning for not coming along. Lin's presence, however, was soon found out by Suyin, and she went with the team to the airship to reunite with her half-sister, but Lin declared she had nothing to say to her. The half-siblings argued, Lin believing that Suyin tore the family apart; Suyin fired back by saying Lin had kept it that way. Upon being told that her niece, Opal, was the airbender, Lin showed no excitement.
The group went with Suyin to her home, where they were first introduced to three of Lin's nephews before finally met Opal; along the way, Lin showed no interest in talking to them. Once they met Opal, Lin's first response was that they take her and leave right there. After Suyin calmly introduced her daughter to her aunt, Opal was excited, saying she had heard many stories about Lin, but the metalbender simply looked away, mildly stating that she was sure of that. When Suyin informed the group of their accommodations and desire for Korra to train Opal, Lin still insisted that they leave as Korra explained to Suyin about the four criminals hunting her. Upon the matriarch assuring the group that Zaofu was the safest city in the world, Lin rolled her eyes.
At dinner, Lin made flippant responses to Suyin's delight at having five children, believing it to be a nightmare, and countered her half-sister's remark of it being a blessing by saying that their mother said as such, but never really meant it. She also responded to Suyin's belief that the Earth Queen could do what she wanted by saying that it sounded familiar, though promptly dismissed her when asked what she said. After her half-sibling expressed further views on the monarchy, Lin sarcastically called her an expert of world affairs, and refused to tell an angered Suyin what was bothering her. Before the sisters could get to verbal blows, they were interrupted by Varrick, who had taken refuge in Zaofu. This only made Lin lash out at her half-sister, telling her that while she was trying to keep the Avatar safe, Suyin was harboring a criminal. Suyin tried to explain that she believed people to be capable of change, but Lin stood up and told her that she had not before throwing her chair and storming out of the dining room.
Later that night, Lin was visited in her room by Opal and Korra; Lin angrily insisted that they talk. She was approached by her niece, who apologized for the difficult stay and expressed that, after getting excited from stories about Lin told by Suyin and Toph, she was sad that her aunt did not want to get to know her. After Opal expressed her desire for Lin to be a part of the family, the police chief only responded with a cold "get out". When Opal tried to apologize, Lin expressed the same sentiment more definitively, causing Opal to run out in tears. Korra scolded Lin for her behavior, insisting she only wanted to do something nice, but Lin lashed out the Avatar, saying that she should be focused on saving the world, not trying to fix her family. The Avatar left, but not before proclaiming that the metalbender would never change and would always be a lonely and bitter woman, making Lin bury her face in her hands and cry while alone.
The next morning, Lin did not join the team for breakfast, instead walking out to find two guards idly having a conversation, causing her to demand they get back to work. Aiwei approached, asking if everything was all right, to which she answered that the Avatar was in danger. She refused to accept his claim about Zaofu being the safest place in the world, vowing to search everywhere for any sign of a problem. She also tried to claim she was fine despite her apparent stress. Noticing this, Aiwei warned her that her health and job could be at risk. As she had no interest in talking, Lin was referred to Guo, the city's acupuncturist; she decided to give the treatment a try.
Watching as the needles levitated above her, Lin asked how many needles she would have to contend with. After being assured she had nothing to be scared of, she bluntly stated she was not scared before being advised to close her eyes and take a deep breath. As the needles were stuck into her, Lin did not feel anything, causing Guo to conclude her chi was deeply blocked and they needed more needles. She laughed off the concept of the treatment being able to reach into one's buried memories, but when the last needle was placed, she saw herself reliving her past confrontation with Suyin regarding the decisions she was making and began to sweat significantly. She subsequently flashed back to her chase of the Terra Triad and discovery that Suyin was helping them escape charges of theft. At that moment, Lin awoke and shot the needles out of her body, preparing to leave against Guo's advice, not caring if abandoning the session made her sick.
After returning to her room at Suyin's estate, she found herself approached by what she took as a young Suyin, though soon realized it was actually Korra, who wondered if she was going to sulk around all day and told her she needed to apologize to Opal, but when the Avatar noticed Lin appeared to be in bad shape, the metalbender said she was fine and began to walk away, although wobbling and out of breath.
Lin returned to Guo, wanting to know what that session had done to her. He escorted her back to the bed and resumed the treatment. Lin flashed back to her attempt to arrest Suyin and subsequent scarring from the metal cables before their talk with their mother. Upon awakening again, she disregarded the doctor's suggestion of resting, deciding instead to do something she believed she should have done a while ago.
Upon returning to Suyin's estate, Lin attempted to attack her half-sister with an earthquake. She subsequently told Suyin she could have taken responsibility for her actions when they were in Toph's office, but instead just stood by and let their mother throw her career away, rejecting Suyin's counter-claim that Toph simply retired, saying it was only because she felt ashamed to continue her police work. She also laughed off Suyin saying she made some mistakes in childhood and refused to believe she changed just because her sister had "a big, fancy house and a chef who cooked [her] fancy food", saying she could see right through her. After being told by her sibling that she was a bitter, selfish woman and it was why Tenzin left her, Lin attacked with a rock, sparking a duel. She was quickly knocked down by a fragment of meteorite, but quickly recovered. She attempted to use both earth and metal to take down Suyin, even going so far as to use one of Huan's metal sculptures, but all her attacks were dodged. Lin soon found herself knocked into stairs that led to a gazebo by Suyin's bending of the metal wall at her. Claiming she had not vented completely, Lin bent the stairs and prepared to attack again, but both siblings found their weapons blown away by an angry Opal, who demanded to know why they wanted to hurt each other. Lin subsequently passed out from exhaustion and fell into a sixteen-hour slumber.
Upon waking up, Lin felt well-rested and was in a substantially more positive mood, warmly greeting Korra, Bolin, and Mako before walking to the dining hall. She enjoyed a specially-prepared drink from the chef before sighting Opal outside the hall, prompting her to call her in for a talk. Lin apologized for her behavior, explaining she was not comfortable talking about such personal matters and that she and Suyin had a complicated relationship. She complemented Opal for being smart and an excellent airbender, believing it would be a wonderful opportunity for her to train at the Northern Air Temple. Hearing that Opal did not want to upset her mom, Lin sympathized, explaining that her joining with the Metalbending Police Force and becoming chief were to please Toph, but it did not. She advised Opal to decide her own life path before embracing her.
Later, while looking at a statue of Toph, Lin was approached by Suyin, who informed her of Opal's decision to leave for airbending training, knowing that Lin had something to do with it. Her attempt to explain was cut off by her reassuring half-sister, who lamented that while they had too much freedom from their mother, she did not give Opal enough. After Suyin wondered where she would be without having been sent away from the city, Lin joked her sister would be in prison. She was complemented by Suyin for her work as police chief and, upon being told Toph would be proud, she idly turned to look at the statue of their mother again. Lin was asked if they could move on, perhaps even living with her family and joining her dance troupe as co-director, she slowed her sister down, simply proposing she just did not show up at her house and attack again. Upon Suyin's agreement, the siblings shook hands and Lin smiled at her.
Sometime later, Lin joined her family and friends as they bid Opal a farewell as she left for the Northern Air Temple. Afterward, she told Korra they would leave Zaofu first thing in the morning.
==== The Red Lotus and Aiwei's betrayal ====
That night, however, the estate was penetrated by the Red Lotus, who sought to kidnap Korra. Lin helped Suyin, Wei, Wing, and the guards surround the criminals in metal panels, but the groups were separated when Ghazan turned the ground into a pool of lava, prompting her to catapult backward on a rock. She and the other members of Team Avatar hid behind a metal panel, occasionally rising to attempt attacks. They were saved from P'Li's combustion attack when Suyin, Wei, and Wing bent another panel toward them for shielding. Lin wanted to know how they got in, but her half-sibling had no idea. Upon Suyin's proposal to drop from the roof on cables to rescue Korra, Lin expressed skepticism as P'Li could attack them on sight. With a plan in place for Bolin to disable P'Li's abilities, Lin, Suyin, and the twins made their way to the dome's roof. At Wing's signal, the half-sisters descended, with Bolin able to disable P'Li at the last second. Lin retrieved Korra and the two began to ascend, but she found herself briefly caught by one of Ming-Hua's water tendrils. Mako was able to break the grip, allowing the escape to continue, but they were pursued by Zaheer on his glider. Suyin defeated him by shooting her metal necklace into the glider, which Lin thanked her for. However, upon regathering in her half-sister's office for Korra's recovery, the police chief demanded to know how the incident happened. She also told one of the guards, Kuvira, to keep searching for the criminals even though she found no sign of them.
With the group having concluded that the only way the Red Lotus could have gotten to the estate by working with one of the guards, Lin watched the next morning as Aiwei questioned them and Varrick, but when the initial round came up empty, she suggested Suyin as a possible culprit, but her half-sister's innocence was determined to be true. Lin soon looked on as it was discovered that a guard, Hong Li, appeared to be the one who assisted their foes.
Later that day, Lin and Suyin rushed to Aiwei's house after hearing an explosion. Korra explained to them that he was the real traitor and had lied about the guard, escaping upon confrontation. Using seismic sense, the chief concluded he must have collapsed his escape tunnel. Upon Kuvira's approach, Lin told her and any available guards to search the mountainside and find the tunnel's exit. She also comforted a distressed Suyin over Aiwei's betrayal.
Back in Suyin's office, Lin and the group were informed that while the guards found the tunnel's exit, they concluded he had already escaped, finding just tire marks. She did not want Team Avatar to go chasing the group, believing there could be secret agents hunting Korra, and wanted her to return to Republic City. Korra protested, saying the mission to find the Red Lotus was her job; Lin demanded she not lecture her about jobs. Suyin promptly intervened, voicing apparent agreement with Lin, which the chief thanked her half-sister for.
==== Tracking Korra ====
The next morning, after a half-hour's wait, Lin approached Suyin, wondering where Team Avatar was. Learning they had left in pursuit of Aiwei, she felt betrayed by her half-sister for letting Korra go after previously supporting Lin. Upon being told she could not control Korra's every move, the police chief decided she would try anyway and left the city.
Lin tracked down the team's jeep toward the Misty Palms Oasis, though when she investigated the now abandoned vehicle, she was scared by a roaring Naga. As the polar bear dog recognized her, Lin was promptly licked enthusiastically. After giving Pabu and Naga some meat to chew on, she radioed Tonraq, imploring him meet her at the oasis. After the Southern chief had arrived with Zuko, the trio awaited Korra's return at the local cantina. When the Avatar and Asami finally arrived, Lin somewhat bitterly thanked her for being ditched at Zaofu, before alerting the girls that Mako and Bolin had been captured by Zaheer and his crew.
Upon Mako and Bolin's return to the Misty Palms Oasis, Lin came out of the cantina to greet the brothers, stating she was glad they were not dead. When she learned the Red Lotus' plan to destroy the Air Nation at the Northern Air Temple, she told them the Metal Clan would have a strong radio transmitter with which they could warn Tenzin and the airbenders to evacuate to safety.
As they reached Zaofu, they were greeted by Suyin, who reported that even though they had a strong signal that reached the temple, no one was answering. Upon hearing her half-sister voice her concern over Opal, Lin placed a comforting arm around her, stating everything would be okay. While Suyin prepared her airship for takeoff toward the temple, Lin opposed Korra's plan to meditate into the Spirit World to try and trap Zaheer's soul in the off chance he would be there as they would not be able to protect her there. However, realizing they had to try something, she relented and went to help her sister made the necessary preparations for their journey.
==== Attempt to rescue Korra ====
On board the Zaofu airship bound for the Northern Air Temple, Lin was discussing a plan of attack with her allies. She dismissed Suyin's suggestion of an ambush attack from the air because P'Li would pick them off one by one. When asked if she had a better plan, Lin suggested dropping the valley and catching them off-guard by climbing up the mountain. Suyin was skeptical as it would give the Red Lotus the high ground and Ghazan the opportunity to melt them off the mountainside. Korra stated any effort would be in vain because Zaheer would wipe out the airbenders upon sighting the team, instead simply suggesting to the group she turn herself over to save the Air Nation. After they learned of Zaheer's desire to meet Korra alone at Laghima's Peak, Suyin came up with a plan to utilize their numbers advantage, having Lin, Tonraq, and the other metalbenders wait at the base of the peak. Before separating, Lin gave Mako a radio, telling him to alert her upon sight of the airbenders.
While the metalbenders were slowly climbing the mountain, Mako radioed Lin to inform them of the Red Lotus' double-cross and told her to get Korra out. At her command, the metalbenders rapidly ascended and confronted Zaheer and P'Li, the latter of whom moved to hold them off. Suyin and Lin fired large slabs of rock at the combustionbender while dodging her dangerous attacks. However, the half-siblings were forced to take cover behind a large rock due to P'Li's continuous strikes. Lin decided to draw P'Li's fire, telling Suyin to take her out, telling her dismayed sibling she loved her before initiating the plan. She went out, taunting P'Li by calling her a Third-Eye Freak and worked to dodge her attacks while firing slabs of earth at her. However, the police chief was soon hit by a blast, throwing her to the edge of the cliff. Just as Lin was about be finished off, Suyin bent her plate of armor at the combustionbender, causing P'Li's blast to blow up in her face, killing her. The metalbenders promptly swarmed in and surrounded Zaheer; Lin telling him to release Korra. When Zaheer intentionally slipped off the edge, the siblings ran toward it, only to see the airbender floating in mid-air. Suyin and Lin tried to capture him with metal cables, but the criminal flew away, much to their shock, the latter wondering out loud if he just flew.
The group reunited in a forest away from the temple with Kai having helped saved Mako, Bolin, Asami, and Tenzin; Lin asked how they made it out alive, to which Mako told them about Bolin's newfound lavabending abilities and Kai's rescue. The police chief, however, sadly told Tenzin that Zaheer had escaped with Korra. After Suyin told the rest of their allies about Zaheer's ability to fly, Lin told a skeptical Bolin that she would not believe it if she had not seen it herself. When Kai tried to make a suggestion, Lin initially brushed him off, but the young airbender subsequently told them about the location of the captive airbenders and probable location of Korra: a secret cave. She asked him if Ghazan and Ming-Hua were present for rounding up the airbenders from P'Li, to which she was told it was actually four other individuals. She told the group they needed to get to the caves; at that point, Oogi arrived, giving the group a means of transportation to reach the location in question.
==== Rescuing the airbenders ====
Kai led the group to the cave. The group, sans Tenzin, burst into the cave. Lin used her earthbending to blast a hole into the room where the airbenders and others were being held. After the captives were released from their bonds, Lin helped them get out of the cave, focusing especially on a substantially weakened Bumi and Kya, as Bolin, Mako, and Tonraq went to rescue Korra.
After everyone had emerged from the cave, they watched Korra and Zaheer duel. When Kai suggested he try and go after Zaheer, Lin told him he would have no chance because he was too powerful. The airbenders, however, combined their efforts, saving Korra and throwing Zaheer to the ground. Lin and Suyin promptly trapped Zaheer in an earth shell. The Avatar, however, had been poisoned, severely weakening her and leaving her on the verge of death. When Zaheer began laughing, Lin asked what was funny; she was told the Red Lotus had been successful. Because of the poison's metallic structure, however, they had a chance to save her. The police chief watched with worry as her sibling attempted to bend the poison out, though ultimately, she succeeded. She also gave Bolin a weird look after stuffing his sock in a ranting Zaheer's mouth.
Two weeks later on Air Temple Island, Lin joined her half-sister, Tenzin and his family, Korra's family, Lord Zuko, and President Raiko, watching as Asami brought out a debilitated Korra in a wheelchair. She helped the girls, Ikki, and Meelo reach the ceremonial temple by kicking up a slab of rock and raising it to the top of the stairs. The police chief later attended Jinora's airbending mastery ceremony, smiling as Tenzin praised both the airbender and the Avatar for their efforts in saving the Air Nation and watching as Jinora's tattoos were revealed.
=== 174 AG ===
==== Preparing for Wu's coronation ====
When President Raiko held a public ceremony to reopen Central City Station in 174 AG, Lin was present and guarded Prince Wu. After the ceremony ended, she tried to calm the prince's nerves about returning to the Earth Kingdom by stating that the chances he would be assassinated were almost zero. When she learned that Prince Wu had reached an agreement with President Raiko about Mako's permanent relocation to Ba Sing Se as the prince's personal bodyguard, Lin tried to protect her detective and keep him in the city, though the decision was made above her head, leaving her powerless to stop it. Later that night, she attended dinner at Air Temple Island, where she felt awkward to break the news to Mako. As an Air Acolyte alerted everyone about the arrival of a ship from the South, Lin and the others gathered at the dock to greet its passengers. However, upon learning that Korra was not among them and supposedly had left for the city six months prior though had failed to check in with any of them, everyone grew worried about the Avatar's whereabouts.
Later, Lin provided security with the rest of her police force during Wu's coronation ceremony as Earth King, where she also bore witness to Kuvira's declaration of usurping power in the Earth Kingdom, which she renamed "Earth Empire".
==== Saving her family ====
Weeks later, Lin was present at the meeting between the world leaders to decide on their course of action against Kuvira. Eager to free her family, she reiterated that Kuvira could not be trusted, since she had already broken her word before by not relinquishing power as she had said she would. She sided with President Raiko, supporting the idea to go on the offensive, and proposed to start their campaign by liberating Zaofu. After Tenzin and Fire Lord Izumi's opposition to a preemptive strike, the meeting was concluded with the decision that the United Republic would restrict itself to taking defensive measures and Lin left City Hall to find Opal. She interrupted her and Bolin's conversation, desiring to speak with her niece privately. Revealing that Raiko had failed to convince the other world leaders to attack Kuvira, Lin declared that they would have to save their family themselves, denouncing the help of anyone else, since it was an unsanctioned and dangerous mission into enemy territory and she was unwilling to let anyone else risk their lives for their family.
Before they could leave, however, Lin's presence as Republic City's Chief of Police was required at the city's Spirit Wilds, which had turned hostile and had abducted people. She ordered her officers to clear the area, put up a perimeter, and cancel all tours through the wilds. Since Jinora was among the vegetations' victims, she also ordered for someone to contact Tenzin. When Korra and Mako approached her, desiring to go into the wilds to save Jinora, Lin stated that she did not believe it was safe for anyone to venture into the spirit forest. After a vine shot out of the vegetation, emphasizing the danger the trapped people were in, Lin relented and allowed Korra to enter, though urged her to be careful.
After witnessing Jinora, Ryu, and the other tourists safely exit the Spirit Wilds, Lin retreated to Air Temple Island, where she helped Opal to prepare Juicy for their departure to Zaofu. As she loaded the last of the supplies on top of the animal, Bolin approached Opal and came along on their mission.
As they arrived at Zaofu, Lin ordered Bolin to stop babbling dramatically of how he would save the Beifongs and his relationship with Opal, noting that she had already heard enough of that during their journey. Surveying the area, she noted that Kuvira had an entire battalion of troops stationed outside of the city, though realized that if they wanted to find their family, they needed to get inside Zaofu. Much to her surprise, she found her plan rejected as useless by her mother, who remarked that all the prisoners had been moved. Baffled, she greeted Toph as "chief" and was in return acknowledged in the same fashion. When Bolin started to squeal due to being in Toph's presence, Lin placed a hand to her temple, severely annoyed with the young man's antics. Attributing his babbling to him being an actor, Lin asked her mother how she knew Suyin had been captured and learned that she had kept an eye on Zaofu via the vines of the Foggy Swamp. After Toph added that their family had already been moved to a prison camp and Bolin pinpointed its location to be that of a nearby factory and reeducation facility, they all boarded Juicy and moved out.
En route to the factory, Lin specified to Bolin that her mother's mention of a "little while now, couple years" since she had seen Lin was in fact twenty years. When Toph changed the subject to her wonder that Lin had come to save Suyin, Lin revealed that she and Suyin had worked out their grievances with each other, though when Toph joyously noted that she was glad they could put that behind them, Lin scowled at the idea, harboring a grudge toward her mother.
Arriving at the factory, they all sneaked in and when Toph used her seismic sense to deduce Suyin and her family were being kept in a cavern underneath the factory, as she could sense the mecha tanks, Lin verified her claim, confirming the presence of soldiers guarding a seemingly empty cavern. Not sensing their family, she deduced that they were kept in a suspended prison that prevented them from earthbending. When Kuvira entered the hangar, they all hid and overheard her conversation with Baatar Jr. and Zhu Li. Retreating to the hills surrounding the facility, the foursome decided to postpone their rescue mission until the next day after Bolin reasoned that the most ideal moment to strike would be during the testing of the spirit energy cannon, since Kuvira desired to have all the troops and workers present, which would leave the factory mostly deserted.
During dinner, Lin kept a distant attitude while Bolin and Toph talked. She sarcastic jabbed that Toph was indeed a "real sensitive instructor", when her mother stated that even a "blockhead" like Bolin could have learned metalbending given the right instruction, and scoffed at their conversation, noting that Toph was "real encouraging", when she had complimented Bolin on the possibility of being talented after all. As Bolin asked Toph who Lin's father was, Lin shot him a deadly look. When Toph casually answered that he was a nice man named Kanto with whom it did not work out, Lin was ordered to say whatever it was she wanted to say so they could "get it over with", since Toph could sense her daughter's "enraged breathing". Infuriated even more by that comment, Lin snapped at her mother that growing up without a father and never even discussing him weighed heavily on her. She added that she had entertained the thought of reaching out to the elderly earthbender after having reconciled with Suyin though concluded that now they were together again, she remembered why they had stopped talking in the first place, since Toph infuriated her and did not know or care why. She declared to not wanting anything more to do with her after they had saved Suyin, a decision Toph solemnly accepted if that was what made her happy.
The following day, after Opal alerted them that the demonstration was about to start, Lin, Toph, and Bolin burrowed themselves a tunnel toward the underground cavern where the Beifong family was being held captive. Toph and Bolin catapulted Lin atop the cell, where she fashioned a blade out of her armor and cut a hole in the wood through which the prisoners could escape. Using her cables, she swung her nephews over to Toph and Bolin, where the latter would catch them to ensure a safe landing. Everything went well, until the acrophobic Baatar refused to leave the prison and requested to be left behind, forcing Lin to forcefully grab hold of him and swing him over to Bolin. His screams alerted the guards to their presence and although she and Suyin managed to exit the cell in time, they were too late to swing to safety by the cables themselves and were attacked by a mecha suit. To escape, Lin cut two of the ropes suspending the prison and grabbed a hold of Suyin, pulling her out of the way of a flamethrower attack and letting the entire structure swing toward the other side of the chasm. Right before they would slam against the wall, the two sisters jumped inside the tunnel, where the rest of their family was waiting for them.
Resurfacing and reuniting with Opal, Lin urged them all to move out. When Bolin learned that Zhu Li had been chained up in the abandoned town that was to be blown up by the cannon and wanted to save her, Lin tried to reason with him that it was too dangerous now that they had been discovered. After Bolin and Opal left on Juicy to the town, Lin agreed with Suyin that it was possibly their best chance to take down Kuvira and destroy the cannon. As such, she left with her, Wei, and Wing toward the testing area. Just as the spirit energy cannon fired its deadly beam at the abandoned town to which Opal and Bolin had traveled, they used their earthbending to rattle the piece of artillery, distorting the beam's trajectory and causing it to miss the town. Working with her sister and nephews, Lin barraged Kuvira's soldiers with rocks and boulders. While Suyin left to battle Kuvira one-on-one, Lin and the twins erected a protective barrier around them. She lowered the shield to allow Wing to reel in Wei after he had gone to save Suyin, though soon found their entire defensive circle being brought down by Kuvira's troops. Although Lin prepared to continue fighting, she found herself outnumbered and surrounded. Before the battle could proceed, however, they were saved by Toph, who shifted the earth underneath the feet of their aggressors, bringing them all down. As Opal returned on Juicy, Lin escaped to safety with the rest of her family, Bolin, and Zhu Li.
Landing in a bamboo forest, Lin thanked her mother for having come to her rescue and apologized for all she had said the previous night. When Toph acknowledged that she had not been the best mother, though was nonetheless proud of the women her daughters had become, hoping they could find it in their hearts to not hate her, Lin accepted her words and embraced her mother. Their moment was ruined by Bolin, however, who joined in on their hug, while emphasizing the importance of family. Neither woman appreciated his intervention and Lin shoved him back after Toph had freed herself from his embrace. After her mother started on her journey back to the swamp, Lin was shocked to hear Zhu Li report that Kuvira planned to attack Republic City two weeks later.
==== Defending Republic City ====
Having returned to Republic City, Lin, Suyin, Bolin, and Zhu Li immediately set course for City Hall, where they interrupted a meeting between President Raiko, Avatar Korra, Prince Wu, Mako, and Tenzin. After Zhu Li announced that Kuvira planned to attack two weeks later, Lin stated that she expected Kuvira to come via the rail lines, reasoning she would need them to transport her heavy spirit energy cannon, prompting Korra and Raiko to agree to cut them.
After Raiko made the evacuation of the city mandatory, Lin, Mako, and Wu traveled toward the police headquarters, where Mako inadvertently started a panic among the citizens by alerting them via the emergency broadcast line of the imminent attack on the city and confusing them with the evacuation instructions, much to Lin's annoyance. As Wu took over, she was impressed with how he managed to calm the people down and stop the influx of calls, noting that he would make a good king after all.
A week later, Lin reasoned with Raiko that Air Temple Island was the ideal location for his base of operations and he would be safe there. When Team Avatar revealed the next day that Kuvira's arrival was only hours away and a week ahead of schedule, Lin was ordered to contact General Iroh and alert him of the new developments, as they needed to lock down the city.
Retreating to the tower, Lin and Raiko were shocked to witness the arrival of the enormous mecha suit carrying the spirit energy cannon, despite having been briefed about the size of the Colossus. After Kuvira used her cannon to sink the United Forces battleships in a matter of seconds and aimed the weapon at the United Forces ground troops, threatening to kill them, Raiko sadly told Lin that he had no choice but to surrendered the city.
Lin and Raiko awaited the arrival of Baatar Jr. at Air Temple Island together, though when the crew of his airship continued to whisper among themselves, Lin called them out on it and they revealed that they did not know where Baatar Jr. was.
Moments later, Lin witnessed how Kuvira blew up the Future Industries factory where Avatar Korra, Suyin, and their allies were located. She promptly ordered Officer Song to keep the president safe, while she left to check for survivors.
Arriving at the ruins of the factory, Lin was pleased to find that everyone had made it out and readily agreed with Korra that the world was not safe as long as Kuvira wielded the spirit energy cannon, declaring they had to take down the Colossus that day. While Asami and Varrick attempted to adapt the prototypes of the hummingbird mecha suits in Asami's office to get them airborne, she and the other benders faced Kuvira and her army in an attempt to stop them or at the very least, slow them down. As they ran past a paint store in the city, Lin asked Meelo what he was doing after he blew down the door of the establishment, only to be informed that he had just thought of a way to take on the Colossus.
Lin, Wei, Wing, Bolin, and Mako watched in worry from the cover of an alley how the airbenders assaulted Kuvira's machine with paint balloons, covering its windows and obscuring the vision of the pilots. Upon Tenzin's signal, Lin used her cables to fling herself on the right foot of the Colossus and attempted to bend its joints, though soon discovered that they too were made out of platinum, which was impervious to her bending. When Kuvira shot her cannon at the airbenders who had attempted to blow the suit off balance, Lin rushed to Opal's side, who had been rendered unconscious due to being knocked down by the energy emanating from the beam that nearly hit her.
While the others retreated to Asami's office, Lin made her way toward Republic City prison and released Hiroshi Sato from his cell. Taking him back to Future Industries Tower, she explained to everyone that he, as a genius engineer, could help them with their attempts to bring Kuvira down, though emphasized to Hiroshi that he would be incarcerated again as soon as the battle was over if the prison was still standing. With his help, a new plan was formed: the benders would once again try to stall Kuvira's advance, while Asami, Hiroshi, Varrick, and Zhu Li equipped the hummingbird mecha suits with plasma saws and, as soon as the suits were operational, the benders would relentlessly attack the Colossus to distract Kuvira and enable the two hummingbird mecha suits to land on the enormous machine and cut a hole in it without being crushed. As such, while standing atop a building and working together with Suyin and Bolin, Lin severed the top stories of a large building and toppled it on the Colossus. While the machine was buried under the rubble, she used her metal cables to lower herself back to the street, where Korra, Wei, and Wing where awaiting them; they were all shocked, however, to discover that the Colossus uncovered itself without so much as a scratch. As Kuvira resumed her rampage, Lin saw the metal cables of her nephews being severed by an energy beam, causing them to plummet down, and instantly made her way over to them, catching the two before they crashed to the ground. She was subsequently saved herself from being crushed by falling debris by Suyin, who erected an earth tent for cover. After Hiroshi Sato was crushed to death by Kuvira upon completing his mission of cutting a hole in the suit's armor, Lin grabbed a hold of Bolin and rappelled them both atop the machine with her metal cables. As Korra used her waterbending to prevent the Colossus from crushing them, Lin managed to dive inside the hole together with Suyin, Bolin, Mako, and Korra.
Inside, Lin was ordered by Korra to climb up to the weaponized arm together with Suyin and disable the spirit energy cannon. While Bolin and Mako headed toward the engine room and Korra would take on Kuvira, the Beifong sisters used their cables to quickly ascend toward the right arm of the machine. Upon arrival, they were immediately attacked by a guard, who barraged them with metal strips. While ripping a plate from the wall and use it as cover, Lin ordered her sister to disable the weapon while she would take care of the guard. She resolutely jumped down to the platform of her adversary and bent two metal sword out of the wrists of her uniform; she used those to knock aside the incoming projectiles, before retracting them in favor of her cable. After trading some punches with the other metalbender, she managed to overpower her and made her way back to Suyin, complimenting her on having torn down the cannon's loading mechanism, causing the spirit vine power cores to explode within the arm. As Suyin noted that although the outside of the Colossus was constructed out of platinum, the inside was metallic, making it vulnerable to their metalbending, the sisters worked together to cause as much damage as they could, effectively disabling the weapon and severing Kuvira's connection to the arm as a whole. They were roughly thrown against the metal wall, however, as Kuvira ripped the now useless arm off the suit and tossed it away; Lin saved Suyin and herself from being flung free by bending the interior wall around them to strap them in, though was rendered unconscious by the shock caused when the arm crashed into a building.
After they recovered, Lin and Suyin made their way to the Spirit Wilds, which had been blasted open when Kuvira had fired the spirit energy cannon from within the vegetation and now housed a new spirit portal. Realizing Korra and Kuvira were nowhere to be found, Lin and the rest of Team Avatar set out to search the area for the Avatar. She watched in surprise when the spirits emerged a few moments later from the spirit portal, followed by Korra and Kuvira. After Kuvira surrendered, Lin handcuffed her and led her away with Suyin's help.
Lin later attended Zhu Li and Varrick's wedding on Air Temple Island, sitting between Tenzin and Suyin; although she smiled when the couple sealed their union with a kiss, she did not applaud like the other guests. During the dinner party, Lin stood by herself on the side and took one of the offered food sticks, though eyed it warily.
==== Investigating the triads ====
In the chaotic aftermath of Kuvira's failed invasion of the United Republic of Nations, Lin and her police force had their hands full investigating the triads ravaging the city, as the different factions engaged each other in turf wars over the land that was not destroyed during the invasion. When the Triple Threat Triad attacked the Creeping Crystals, Lin and her officers interfered. Although many triad members escaped, Lin managed to capture a fleeing Viper with her metal cables and arrest him. She ordered her men to bring all the captured gangsters in for booking at their temporary police station and prepare them for questioning.
Back at the station, Lin questioned Two Toed Ping about the identity of the Triple Threats' new leader but quickly grew tired of his stubborn silence. Not making any progress, Mako approached her and suggested to trick Ping by telling him he had been identified by another triad member as the mastermind of the earlier fight. Although Lin had her doubts that the tactic would work, she went along with the idea and learned that the true mastermind had been Tokuga, the Triple Threats' new leader. As Ping continued to explain how Tokuga rose to power, she quickly realized that he was more dangerous than they had thought and declared him to be their first priority.
Lin later read Bolin's report on the Triple Threats' attack on the spirit portal, expressing surprise at Korra and Asami's relationship and asking Bolin to improve his penmanship. Mako informed her that he and Korra believed Tokuga was hired by Wonyong Keum as he had threatened the airbenders to evacuate his property. Lin rejected the plan to bring Keum in for questioning, as she would not question such a well-connected man without hard evidence.
At the docks, Lin led a recon team to investigate the Triple Threats' warehouse, using her seismic sense to check the interior. She kicked down the door and ordered those present to freeze but soon realized that they were looking at mannequins planted as a diversion. As the mannequins began to detonate, Lin and her force fled for their lives. In the aftermath, Lin promised to Mako and Bolin that she would not let Tokuga outsmart them again. When the police depot came under attack by the Triple Threats, Lin radioed Mako to order in every available task force member.
Lin came to the scene after Korra and her allies had the Triple Threats surrounded. She denied the Avatar's request for them to go after Tokuga, as he was threatening to turn the neighborhood to rubble if they moved in. She tried to reassure Korra that everything would turn out well, in spite of Asami's kidnapping. She would stand by to guard the area while Team Avatar brought an end to Tokuga's insurrection.
Lin was annoyed by Varrick's zany schemes as First Gentleman, as he kept disappearing only to turn up unharmed in ridiculous circumstances a few days later. The most egregious of these instances was when he went missing for nearly a month after thinking of a new use for moo-sow milk that was only going to work in the Spirit World. This led to her instituting a "Varrick Rule" in missing persons cases, that Varrick had to be missing for at least a week before anyone even spoke to her about the matter. This meant that Zhu Li felt uncomfortable about informing the police when Varrick went missing at the Pro-bending Arena a year after Lin instituted the "Varrick Rule", and instead enlisted a group of people she could trust to solve the case, as she believed it was urgent.Avatar Legends: The Roleplaying Game. Wan Shi Tong's Adventure Guide, Version 1.0, 2022, p. 168.Avatar Legends: The Roleplaying Game. Wan Shi Tong's Adventure Guide, Version 1.0, 2022, p. 173.
After the Triple Threat Triad's attempt to take over Republic City ended, Lin was looking forward to getting back to serving her community and keeping the peace; however, the police department she leads faced its own string of problems, including an insufficient budget, triads seizing new territory, and factionalism within her own organization. While she wished she could stay out of politics, political conflicts began to come from inside police headquarters: A subordinate with eyes on her position, Officer Xiaobo, threw accusations that Lin was weak on crime, making Lin unsure about which subordinates she could trust and therefore decided that finding or training reliable comrades, like Mako, was crucial to the police service's survival.Avatar Legends: The Roleplaying Game. Republic City, Version 1.0, 2023, p. 22. Despite this, Xiaobo managed to wield internal Republic City Police Department statutes to prove that Chief Beifong had turned a blind eye to a known illegal activty — tunnel racing — and got her temporarily suspended.Avatar Legends: The Roleplaying Game. Republic City, Version 1.0, 2023, p. 129.
== Personality ==
On the surface, Lin is tough, uncompromising, and blunt. As Chief of Police, she has a no-nonsense attitude, apprehending anyone who breaks the law, regardless of position, familial relationship or intent; as such, she was quick to arrest her own sister after she was involved in a robbery and condemn the Avatar when she destroyed public and private property in an attempt to apprehend the three Triple Threat Triad members by herself. Lin believes that the only way to maintain peace and stability in Republic City is through the use of military might and treats the city's laws with great respect, enforcing them with unyielding ferocity, even to the point where she felt the Avatar's presence could potentially compromise the city's safety.
Used to giving orders and having them followed swiftly and successfully, she sometimes chafes in family or social situations where she is expected to make nice or indulge in small talk. She struggles with setting work aside and relaxing, often pushing herself too hard or mistakenly taking out her stress on others. She is always looking for the next problem to solve.
Much of her uptight and guarded personality stemmed from her childhood frustrations with her mother: Toph's "hands-off" parenting style and continuous refusal to disclose the identity of Lin's father, or even discuss anything related to him, greatly infuriated her. This, combined with her belief that Suyin's rebellious personality brought dishonor to the family name and her painful breakup with Tenzin, made Lin put up barriers to shield herself from the pain of personal relationships going awry. This led others to describe her as "challenging" and a bitter loner who kept her grievances to herself.
Despite her gruff and indifferent exterior, Lin has a softer facet to her personality. Following the battle at the Pro-bending Arena, Lin became less harsh toward Tenzin and Korra. Despite initially struggling to do so, she was also not above opening up during intimate moments, as evidenced when she had a private talk with Opal, openly disclosing her hostile history with her mother. Immediately after, Lin assumed the role of the encouraging aunt for her niece, suggesting her niece should hone her new airbending skills under Tenzin's tutelage. Lin also inherited her mother's candid sense of humor and sarcasm, expressing her displeasure with back-handed compliments, such as when she congratulated Korra for instigating the Water Tribe Civil War, chastised Korra for leaving her at Zaofu, and when Naga licked her in joy.
Lin is incredibly loyal and selfless to her friends and allies, to the point where she would willingly sacrifice herself and her goals to help them in their time of need. She forfeited her chance to capture Amon to save Avatar Korra's life and accepted Tenzin's request to help protect his family without hesitation, for whom she let herself be captured in an attempt to secure their escape. When she was given the chance to sell Korra out to keep her bending, she blatantly refused. After patching things up with Suyin, Lin's display of heroism extended to her sister and her family, going as far as embarking an unsanctioned mission to save them after being held captive by Kuvira.
== Abilities ==
=== Earthbending ===
Like her renowned mother, Lin has mastered earthbending to a similar level. She is equally proficient in the traditional Hung Gar earthbending style and her mother's self-taught Chu Gar Praying Mantis style. She is able to easily elevate multiple large boulders simultaneously, as well as launch herself high up into the air.
Lin has also demonstrated a great mastery over the seismic sense technique, which allows her to detect the layout of the surrounding area and the people within it with great accuracy and detail. Thus, she is easily able to locate subterranean structures, as well as determine with accuracy who is within the general vicinity. For example, while on the hunt for her captured officers, she was able to pinpoint their presence within an Equalist hideout, but also perceive that Korra was absent. She could also sense the mechanism of a locked door without physically perceiving it in order to open it with her bending. Like Toph, Lin's ability is limited without direct skin contact, requiring her to either use her hands or retract the soles on her boots.
==== Metalbending ====
As the chief of the Metalbending Police Force, Lin is especially proficient in the specialized art of metalbending. She is able to rip metal beams or floors from their bearings and single-handedly tear apart an airship's metal hull. For more general use, Lin uses her standard retractable metal cables, which are highly versatile in battle. With them, she is able to perform considerable feats of acrobatics, easily maneuvering around cavernous locations, such as the Pro-bending Arena. She can also fashion them as wrist blades for close-quarters combat. Lin has also performed intricate and otherwise delicate metalbending as well, from unlocking metal handcuffs from a distance to wrapping her armor around herself, and even closing up Bolin's zipper. Despite all this, her mother, Toph, did not believe Lin picked up all the specifics of metalbending.
=== Teaching ===
While Lin also excels as a leader and a team player, she has little patience as a teacher. Her go-to methods are not designed to make people feel good about themselves, as she believes that emotional adversity builds character. Lin believes martial practice should develop precision and sensitivity alongside physical endurance, prioritizing observation techniques like seismic sense to bolster the bodily aspects of training. Her students must adhere to the same level of professional and martial discipline she demands of police cadets. Training involves a lot of doing the same difficult thing over and over until a student figures out on their own how to make it work. Lin prioritizes group training, both practicing in step with others and learning to work together to execute combined maneuvers. In camaraderie with others, her students can often find the moral support she herself prefers to delegate.Avatar Legends: The Roleplaying Game. Republic City, Version 1.0, 2023, p. 151.
=== Other skills ===
Lin is extremely agile and resilient, exhibited by her quick recovery from a chi-blocker attack and, in the same move, somersaulting upright and taking down two chi-blockers. She was likewise still able to effectively maneuver and fight on par with Suyin despite being visibly exhausted at the time. Her reflexes are great enough that she can subdue multiple chi-blockers by herself. She has also shown considerable skill in aim, as she was able to snap Tarrlok's gavel from across a large room with one of her metal cables without touching him with the cable. Lin is also a capable driver and pilot, being able to navigate a police car through crowded streets in pursuit of the Terra Triad and man an airship by herself.
Despite not being able to see through Varrick's ruse during the Water Tribe Civil War, Lin possesses decent detective skills, making her a valuable member of the police force. She also put her skills to use to track down Team Avatar after they left Zaofu to chase Zaheer.
== Relationships ==
== Relatives ==
== Appearances ==
== Trivia ==
* She was first announced on July 23, 2011 at San Diego Comic-Con, and is the second named child of a member of (the original) Team Avatar to appear, the first being Tenzin.
* Chief Beifong's appearance bears a greater resemblance to her grandmother Poppy Beifong than to her mother, at least as seen in the Avatar: The Last Airbender series.
* Lin was responsible for updating the metal cables on the police uniform from being in their belts to being in spools on their backs.
* Lin Beifong's character design, aside from her personality, was partially inspired by Han Young Ja, the general manager at Studio Mir, and longtime friend and colleague of Bryan Konietzko and Michael Dante DiMartino.
* Lin's "tough and natural beauty" was partially inspired by Marlene Dietrich, a German actress and singer.The Legend of Korra—The Art of the Animated Series, Book One: Air, page 23.
* When Korra was frustrated with her inability to airbend, she tried directing an airbending attack at a newspaper hanging on a line with an image of Lin on the front page inciting the mutual dislike between Korra and Lin. When she failed to blast it away, she set fire to it instead.
* Lin is the first person in The Legend of Korra to use seismic sense, but the third in both series. The first one to use this was Toph, who later taught it to Aang.
* Despite being an earthbending master, Lin appears to heavily favor metalbending.
* Lin is the first known female victim of bending removal, the first person to have their bending restored by Korra, and only the second person to have their bending restored by an Avatar.
* It was confirmed by the creators that Lin did not want to have children and that this difference of opinion with Tenzin hurt their relationship.Commentary for Making of a Legend, "Turning the Tides".
* Lin Beifong's decision to fight outside the law is ironic, since she showed no patience for people who would use vigilante justice against criminals.
* Lin typically enjoys eating foods that are high in carbohydrates and easily portable, storing sesame-dried sticks and beef jerky in her hip pouch for long stakeouts and search missions.DiMartino, Michael Dante; Konietzko, Bryan; Hedrick, Tim & Hamilton, Joshua (July 1, 2014). "The Sting" commentary. Book Two: Spirits Blu-ray.DiMartino, Michael Dante; Konietzko, Bryan & Montgomery, Laura (December 2, 2014). "Long Live the Queen" commentary. Book Three: Change Blu-ray.
* In response to a flood of questions about the identity of Lin's father, Colin Heck jokingly replied in his Tumblr blog that her father was Azula, stating it to be "really complicated".
* Lin Beifong is the second known individual to have been scarred in the face by a family member, the first being Zuko. However, unlike Zuko's scar, her scars were inflicted by accident.
== References ==
de:Lin Beifong
es:Lin Beifong
fr:Lin Beifong
he:לין בייפונג
id:Lin Beifong
nl:Korra:Lin Beifong
pl:Lin Beifong
ru:Лин Бейфонг
tr:Lin Beifong
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Category:Characters
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Category:Major graphic novel characters (Legend of Korra)
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