#tintedgreen

Tinted Green

Part Seven

.

Sneaking in was a lot harder than sneaking out.

Korra slipped out in the cover of night. She found the exit she went through led her into a part of Dragon Flats; dimly lit cobblestone streets with rips and cracks tattering concrete sidewalks and murky water pooling in the spaces between. The air was sticky despite the winter winds, if that were possible, and a shiver ran up her spine as snowflakes collected like glitter in her hair. She looked up at the night, grey clouds pooling around skyscrapers like ghosts, wispy yet heavy. Snow started trickling down and she was so caught up in the sight of it all (or maybe the lack of it—the dark of night comes in many shades, she thought) that she was oblivious to the police surrounding the area a few blocks down—until the cries grew louder.

She trekked toward the scene.

.

“Tarrlok, this has got to stop.”

Tarrlok did his best to ignore Tenzin as he kept instructed the police force, along with his task force. Saikhan was in the mix, coming in and out, throwing apologetic glances Tenzin’s way when he got the chance. Finally, when Tarrlok had enough of the looks, the comments, he whirled around. “The council’s decision is final. Now if you don’t mind, stay out of my way. Or I’ll have you arrested.”

Tenzin’s eyes narrowed at the mere thought. “Like you would dare,” he whispered fiercely.

“Try me.” Tarrlok smirked, before facing the bustle of cops and citizens. “Attention, citizens of Dragon—“

The citizens were quick to interrupt. “Hey! What’s the big idea?”

“Where’d the power go?”

“You can’t do this! This isn’t right!”

Korra appeared at the front of the neighborhood, emerging from unapologetic darkness and into the unforgiving headlights of police cars. “What the hell’s going on here?”

Suddenly everyone stopped what they were doing—policeman and citizens alike—and turned to the sound of anger. Korra stood before the mix, hands fisted on her hips, lips curled in a frown. Teznin shoved his way through the crowd, knocking over a metalbender and stepping on another’s foot before he stopped suddenly before Korra. His breathing was a bit heavy before he took one more step toward her, collecting her in a hug.

“Oh, Spirits, Korra. I was so worried.” He whispered. The hug was gentle, brief, and when they parted, he smiled fondly at her, playing with the strands of her new choppy and messy hair. “What happened?”

She eyed past him, back at the growing commotion. “Later,” she mumbled, she sauntered past him and marched right up to Tarrlok. “Alright, Tarrlok, what’s with this whole mess?”

Tarrlok tried to disregard the Avatar like he did Tenzin, but it was simply not going to work—all the citizens had quieted, waiting for the Avatar to speak, to help. “These are not average citizens,” he explained, gesturing to the crowd. “This is an equalist rally!”

“What!”

“You got to be kidding me!”

“We’re not equalists! This is an ourtage!”

“Avatar Korra, please!”

“Miss Avatar please do something!”

Korra turned slowly, surveying the crowd before her. “I—“

Tarrlok shoved the Avatar aside. “Metalbenders—arrest the equalists.”

At command, the police stepped forward. Combining their skills with metal and earth, they separated the people into groups, binding them by metal strips to prevent them from leaving. They lifted the earth up into platforms, making it impossible for them to jump or wiggle free.

“Let us go!”

“Stop! Please!”

“Help us!” One woman cried, her eyes pleading as she stared at Korra, her son clinging to her dress. “You’re our Avatar too!”

“Why save me?”

“Because you’re my Avatar too.”

“I—“ Korra was surprised by her own voice: weak, timid, quiet. It was as if her words were leaves, ripped from her tree of thought and carried in the wind, flying and whirling without a pattern, without a purpose, dead.  She was shaking, but it was not from fear—it was something far beyond that.

“Tarrlok!” Korra shrieked. This time her voice sliced through air like a twister. “Let them go!” She yelled.

And as she stared at him, she was sure the air around them was heated by her wildly beating heart; it was fast but steady, like a machine going rampant. But he just smirked—he underestimated her and everything else. So he had the audacity to open his mouth and say, “No.”

No one knew how it happened; only that it had. Korra had tackled the councilman to the ground. She growled, not far from a polar-bear dog, her face dangerously close to his. “Let them go.” She snapped.

Immediately, the metalbenders came to the aid of Tarrlok. Her writs were snapped and bounded with metal cables and she was pulled off, tossed carelessly to the ground like cargo. Tarrlok stood up quickly, dusting his clothes off with a few quick pats. He walked slowly toward her, kneeling in front of her like she was some sort of pet to be admired. He didn’t smile, but she swore she heard it in his voice: some sick satisfaction. “I strongly suggest you stop right now, Avatar Korra,” He looked up at Tenzin, who wore an expression of shock from the whole ordeal. “Otherwise I’ll arrest you and Tenzin. Clear?”

“Don’t bring Tenzin into this,” she barked lowly. “This is about me—always has been.”

Tarrlok laughed, short and amused. “Ignorant girl! Typical of you, isn’t it? This isn’t all about you—you may be the Avatar, but a half-baked one at that. Until you have mastered every element, until you have a better handle on this world will people stop to even spare you a glance. For now, you are a child. A child getting in my way.” Tarrlok nodded to the metalbenders. “Arrest—“

“No. Please,” Tenzin sighed, stepping forward. “Korra’s been captured. She’s probably tired and hungry and angry with what’s happened to her. Please. Just…let her go. Let me take her home.”

It was quiet, save the mumbles of the captive citizens. “Very well,” Tarrlok finally said. “Take her home—but make sure she stays there.” He pointed to Saikhan. “Start processing the citizens. We got a lot of work to do.”

The metal binding her wrists fell and in an instant she brushed past Tenzin’s reaching arm, right to the woman who called for her help.

“I’m sorry,” she choked out breathless, “I’m sorry—but you’re right. I’m your Avatar too. I’ll help you, I will. But I can’t right now. I…I can’t,” she felt her throat ties in knots, burning with subdued sobs.

The woman said nothing; but her son looked up at her with all the wonder in the world—Korra wasn’t sure anyone ever looked at her like that—and said, “Okay. We’ll wait.”

“Come on, Korra,” Tenzin said sternly, a hand on her back. “Let’s go.”

“Okay. Thank you,” she breathed before she followed Tenzin back to the temple.

.

Sleep never came.

She tossed and turned for hours, but her mind was rampant with thoughts of the revolution. Korra thought about her friends still working undercover with the equalists. She thought about Tenzin and his airbending family. She thought about political corruption and the revolution but most of all the danced around her duty as the Avatar; she was having a difficult time outlining her plan, her objective. No one told her being the Avatar was ever going to be this hard. She was dealing not with war, but with something bigger, something intellectual. Korra’s strength was…well, her strength! But she couldn’t use it to solve anything—it required something more, something that was currently out of her reach.

She thought about the spirits she never reached, her past lives that she had no contact with.

The answer was simple—but she didn’t know how to reach it.

Frustrated, Korra finally jumped out of bed and snuck out of the temple. She fetched Naga and headed straight to City Hall, no distractions. She’d take care of Tarrlok, because that was the only thing she was sure was right at the moment.

.

She left Naga behind, instructing her to loiter in the surrounding streets of City Hall. She whispered promises of a quick return, although she didn’t know how long this would take, much less the outcome. Korra knew she had been given a “fair” warning about future defiance—she was asking for trouble, but it was needed trouble.

She stepped into the empty City Hall—it was probably almost dawn, it was so late (or early, she supposed). The other councilmembers had gone home, and her mind drifted to Tenzin, asleep and safe at his home on the island. Her feet made quiet footsteps along tiled floors, climbing up stairs and maneuvering through hallways until she came across Tarrlok’s office somewhere in the center of the building.

Korra did not go out of her way to make any sort of entrance; she walked in quietly and stood on the opposite side of the room, waiting to be seen. His page looked up first, then Tarrlok. He looked not surprised, but rather annoyed. “Avatar Korra.” He said sternly. “What a surprise.”

“You and I need to talk.” She spat, anger bubbling in the pit of her stomach.

Tarrlok rested his chin across his woven fingers, staring her down from his desk. Finally, he mumbled. “I do believe it’s rather late. Go on home now—you aren’t needed.”

“But sir.”

“Go.”

The assistant bowed his head before scuttling out of the room. Korra kept her eyes on Tarrlok, all the while her chest heaving up and down with each and every nervous, labored breath. “You can’t do this,” she hissed lowly, the sounds of the indoor waterfall gushing from the wall.

Tarrlok spun side to side in his chair. “Why is that.”

“You’re doing just what Amon says you’d do!” She screeched. Her hand went up, tugging at her hair and scalp desperately. “Spirits, don’t you get it? You’re just proving his point! You’re using your power and status to oppress these people. They’re only going to hate you! And all benders alike. The equalists won’t go away—they’ll get stronger if you keep this up.”

“And, what, you don’t?” Tarrlok said, voice rising. “Take a look at yourself right now, Korra. What are you doing to me right now? Wouldn’t you say you’re trying to oppress me with your status? Your power? I do believe you play the Avatar card quite a lot.”

Quiet.

“You see Korra,” Tarrlok continued, rising from his chair. “I admire your persistence, your strength—your willingness to do whatever it takes to get what you want. A trait I see in myself.”

“We are nothing alike!” She screamed, teeth clanking and grinding.

The councilman sighed, suddenly rubbing his temples. “Things would be a lot easier if you’d just do as I say.”

“I will not! You can play the other members of the council, you can play Saikhan, but you can’t play me. These people need me—and I won’t have you taking me down with you. I’m going to stop you Tarrlok, just you wait and see.”

“I’d like to see you try,” he growled. “You’re going to regret not working with me.”

Korra let out a laugh—a mixture of frustration and un-believability. Her mind was twisted and stretched, at its breaking point. “Spirits look at you! You’re just as bad as Amon!”

Something inside Tarrlok snapped. With the widening of his blue eyes, the color they both shared, and the lifting of his brow, all his restraint began spilling out, running through puffs of air that he choked out and slithering through his veins that pumped wildly hot blood.

He raised his arm and a snake of water came shooting out, ready to wrap Korra in a choking grip. Korra moved just in time, but not without more of her already short hair getting sliced in the process. Korra vaguely recalled lessons in bending when she was a child. Don’t fight fire with fire—it wasn’t mean to be literal but she figured she was lucky he wasn’t a firebender. She spun her arms in a circle, creating a steady stream of fire she hopes would dry the water around him, and maybe burn Tarrlok in the process. But he wrapped himself in a protective cove of water before he started dishing out ice shards, large and quick in her direction.

Korra twirled and flipped but once one of them sliced her side, she stumbled, clutching her stomach in pain. Her speed and concentration broken allowed the rest of Tarrlok’s attack to hit her. Her neck, her cheeks, her arms were sliced and cut burning with cold.

“Argh!” she cried in pain before she gritted her teeth. Two more ice shards hit her as she used her earthbending to create a wall to catch the ice. Pain as her motivation, she gave another yell as she bent the wall behind Tarrlok, ripping it from the foundation and sending crumbling rocks and a waterfall to hit Tarrlok. She continued to push the wall so far, so quick, it sent Tarrlok flying out of his study, through a wall and left him hanging by a banister. All he had was the several feet of a fall to the council room before as he dangled in thin air.

Korra approached him slowly, crouching in pain, hunting him down like she was a polar-bear dog. With a flick of her wrist, the already broken wall came shooting out in large chunks, throwing Tarrlok off the banister and spiraling to the floor below. Korra jumped from the balcony, slamming the ground with her fist as she landed—an earthquake, a ripple of earth moved below them, throwing Tarrlok off balance as he tried to get up.

“Look at that—all out of water, pal!” She screeched, her hands igniting with flames. She was a picture of something broken, cuts like cracks tarnishing her skin. Her eyes were wild with anger—and Tarrlok saw that. He had upset the Avatar, and that meant extreme measures had to be taken.

He curled his fingers and she collapsed, shaking as she tried to move.

“What the—“ Korra yelped as she watched her arms bend and twist without her command. She managed to look up at him. “You’re a…bloodbender?”

“Very observant.”

Korra recalled the night. “It’s not even a full moon!”

“Life’s full of mystery, isn’t it!” Tarrlok growled before he lifted the Avatar in the air and threw her across the council room; she hit the wall and slumped down, her head thumping and her vision fading as she teetered on consciousness.

“You’re in my way Avatar,”

Korra’s mind was racing. “Move!” she told herself, but her weary body wouldn’t budge. “Move move move!”

Tarrlok came closer.

She squinted her eyes and took a deep breath. “I said…”

Avatar Korra help us please!

Help us!

We need you!

We’ll wait, Avatar Korra.

…AANG!...

“MOVE!” She screamed.

In seconds Tarrlok was whisked across the room, spiraling like a tornado. Korra saw him hit the floor before she stared at her hands “I can airbend?” she gasped, before clenching her fingers into fists. “Yes! I can airbend!” She lifted herself in the air, leaping with the air, until she stood before Tarrlok. “Still think I’m a half-baked Avatar now?” She asked. But Korra’s smile was wiped off her face when Tarrlok stood quickly, regaining his bloodbending technique and putting Korra back in a bind.

“Yes,” he said quietly, trying to stare as she crouched crumpled, shaking. “I do.” With one swift movement he knocked the Avatar down to the ground. He bounded her with ropes and just as she was starting to wake, he closed the door, ignoring her calls of protest.

“Let me out!”

He ignored it all the way up and through the mountain.

.

Asami twisted Bolin’s arm but before she could pin him to the ground, Bolin managed to kick Asami’s leg, throwing her off balance and sending them sprawling across the floor. Bolin pressed Asami down gently, an unsparking glove to her face.

“I win!” He taunted, a toothy grin on his face. Asami laughed before she rolled the both of them over—she then pressed him to the ground, her legs straddling his waist.

“Eh, not bad,” she said, and now they were both grinning. Asami got up slowly, offering Bolin a hand. “It’s coming along. That pro-bending training is handy for hand to hand combat, believe it or not. You’ll be rising in the equalist ranks in no time.”

Bolin smacked his lips together, the sound echoing off the concrete walls. “Living the dream,” he said sarcastically. He looked behind him, where he saw Mako and Tahno finishing up their sparring match. Bolin saw Tahno’s stuggle against his brother before he offered up a piece of advice. “Left arm! Left arm!”

Mako peered up, momentarily confused. “What the—“

Tahno took the opportunity to take Bolin’s advice and grabbed Mako by his left arm. He twisted it a bit, and found Mako gave a cry of pain before Tahno kicked him in the shins, throwing him off balance as he collapsed to the ground. Tahno looked on with pity as he clutched his arm. “What’s with him?” he asked.

“When he was seven he broke that arm.”

“Doing what?”

Mako gave his arm a few shakes before his eyes narrowed in accusation. “Don’t—“

“He wanted to save a kitten from a tree.” Bolin said, clasping his hands and batting his eyes profusely. “Remember what you said?”

“Who’s the traitor now?” Mako deadpanned as he starting picking up equipment from the spar.

Bolin continued, “You thought it was so cute! You said you wanted to rescue it so—“ he paused. “so it wouldn’t be scared and alone.” Bolin laughed, quiet. “Anyway, that arm was never the same, right?”

Tahno and Asami stared at Mako. He nodded. “No—it’s never been the same.”

Suddenly, Asami bid them adieu. “I have a meeting with my father in a few minutes so I best be off. See you.”

Tahno started following her out. “Yeah I have to….” He shrugged, uncaring to come up with a good excuse. “Yeah, I’m just leaving. Bye.”

Bolin raised his hand in protest. “Wait! Aren’t we going to go check up on Lin?”

“Takes just one guy, Bo. Catch you later.”

Mako and Bolin were left alone.

Mako liked to think he didn’t know how long it was since he was last alone with his little brother. He liked to think that because the weeks turned into months and months turned into years that his memory should slip. That like any other person, he adapted to his new life and what was old started to fade, blur and perhaps vanish altogether.

But that was simply not the case.

He remembered. He remembered the day too well. He had memorized his little brother’s face, his round eyes, full of wonder, dirty face, smile with missing teeth. He memorized it all because he didn’t want to forget what someone could never take away from him no matter what happened. Mako was always Bolin’s big brother. Always.

And he couldn’t really forget that.

“So…” Mako drawled, side eyeing Bolin. Feeling awkward, Bolin attempted to busy himself with the few things around him—spare weapons, posters of Amon on the wall, you name it. “So…” Bolin parroted back.

They fidgeted about, looking anywhere but each other. Seconds ticked by, minutes passed and finally the former earthbender cracked. “Why’d you do it?”

Mako feared this. He feared this more than anything. It was one thing to have to face his brother, to have him look at him and know that he hadn’t died, to have him, his little brother, think he was abandoned. That was bad enough. But to have him stand tall before him, look him in the eye and beg for an answer for his betrayal?

He wasn’t so sure he could give an answer that would satisfy him. But he decided, he might as well start with the truth.

“I—I did it for you.”

Bolin dropped the glove in his hand. “What?” He demanded, voice wavering in anger. “You mean to tell me all this—letting Korra get captured, taking my bending away was all for me? HA!” He ripped down one of the equalist propaganda posters. “Perfect! Great! How kind of you! And to think, it wasn’t even my birthday!”

Mako could help it—he stared at his shoes. “You don’t understand,” he gritted through his teeth.

“Oh, I don’t?”

“No, you don’t!” he argued.

Bolin marched over and grabbed Mako by his shoulders, balling the excess fabric in his fingers. “Then tell me! Make me understand! Please, just tell me why you left!” His hands began to shake, along with his knees and everything else and he slowly let go. “You’re—you’re my big brother!” Bolin cried, and Mako swore he saw tears, but he couldn’t really tell through his own. “And you left me all alone, Mako! You were all I had! So please—tell me.”

Mako took one step forward and crushed his brother in a hug. Bolin felt one tear, then two, fall on his forehead and run down the bridge of his nose. “I—I’m sorry. I’m so sorry, Bolin. I never meant to leave you. Never.”

Bolin embraced the hug, shoving his face into this brother’s chest. “So why did you?”

“I was working for the triads—and there was a trap. Amon’s trap. He took all our bending—including my own.”

Bolin looked up, eyes glossy. “Amon? All those years ago, Amon was there?”

A nod. “He’s been around for a long time. It was either my life or his regime.” He sighed, relaxing his hold. “I thought—maybe he had a point,” Mako whispered, a little embarrassed.

“Mom and Dad?” Bolin whispered.

“Mom and Dad. I wasn’t a firebender anymore, Bolin. I couldn’t hurt anyone. I wasn’t like our parents murderer. I was cleansed.”

Bolin took a few steps back, shocked. “I—I didn’t—how long did you feel like that?”

“I’ve always felt like that.”

It got real quiet after that. Mako could only hear his own heart pounding against his ribcage as his little brother stared at him, scrutinizing, judging. But eventually Bolin asked. “You really believe in equality, don’t you?”

Mako didn’t respond. Bolin’s lips twitched in a smile. “So why help me? Help Korra?”

“You’re my brother,” Mako responded. “And I know I messed up at first,” his thoughts were brought back to the championship. “But I pick you. I left you once—I can’t leave you alone again. And Korra—she’s the Avatar. She isn’t just about helping benders. She’s here to help everyone—and she reminded me of that.”

Bolin smiled. “But I’m not alone, not anymore. I’ve got Tahno and Korra. And you’re not alone either, okay?” Bolin gave Mako a friendly punch to his shoulder. “Korra….she’s pretty amazing, isn’t she?”

Mako blushed. “Well, I—“

“I knew it. You liiiiiiiiiike her!”

Mako rolled his eyes, stomping past him in a rush, trying to ignore how his cheeks grew heated. “Let’s go,” he grumbled, Bolin trailing behind him, laughing.

“Whatever you say, Big bro.” Bolin whispered.

Mako heard, and smiled.

.

“Let me out!” Korra pounded on the metal cage she was thrown into. Tarrlok managed to bloodbend her all the way down the stairs and place her in a metal box—one similar to the one she was thrown in when Amon took her weeks ago.

“Oh, hush.” Tarrlok snarled. “It’s no use. Your newfound airbending is useless. Such a shame you didn’t learn metalbending,” he commented, pounding on the wall once more. “But it’s platinum, so what’s the use.”

“You’re not going to get away with this!”

Tarrlok walked up the stairs. “Oh, I think I will.”

.

The next morning when Tenzin arrived at City Hall, he couldn’t believe his eyes.

He couldn’t believe after everything she’d been through, Korra snuck out. As he inspected the ruins of the building, reporters and police man informed him that equalists had attacked the hall, capturing Korra (again) and injuring Tarrlok in the process.

“I tried to save her—“ Tarrlok explained as a healer tended to his injuries. “But the equalists knocked me out with one of those damn gloves. I’m so sorry.”

Tenzin hummed. “Of course you are,” he said curtly.  “Saikhan, a word?”

Tenzin pulled the police chief over in the corner. “I don’t like this—I don’t like this one bit.” Tenzin’s eyes slid between Saikhan and Tarrlok.

“What? You don’t think—“ Tenzin shushed him before Saikhan continued, “You think Tarrlok is lying?”

“He gave Korra a hard time last night—and chances are Korra didn’t just stay and take it. I bet she went back.”

“What on Earth did she think she could accomplish on her own?”

Tenzin sighed, rubbing his head. He felt old—older than he ever had. “I’ve barely seen her. She’s been captured twice! Now three times! She’s been in the hands of equalists longer than she’s been in my own care.” Guilt crept up like a shadow.

Saikhan divided his attention to the leaving reporters and medics exiting the scene. “If you didn’t know any better you’d think she was collaborating with the equalists.” He laughed at his own joke, but Tenzin was not amused. The two men stared at Tarrlok who was finishing up a healing session with a medic. “Tarrlok,” Tenzin boomed. “Where is Korra?”

He scoffed, a bit annoyed, but he kept his political smile and charm. “I already told you—Korra came down to have a word with me, and then the equalists attacked. I’m sorry I wasn’t able to protect her. Look—“ he pointed to his arm, burned and scared. “Glove burn. I gave it my all, Tenzin. I’m terribly sorry.”

“Don’t worry, Tenzin,” Saikhan came up from behind him, laying a hand on his shoulder. “I’m mobilizing forces to search for the Avatar—we’ll find her. And these equalist hideouts as well.”

“Now, Chief, I think we agreed—“

“But nothing Tarrlok. This is the third time the Avatar has been captured. I intend to stop it. We’re going to find the Avatar, we’re going to find Lin, and we’re going to stop the equalists. Your help or approval is not needed.”

“Chief, Councilman, I really think you should reconsider. We can’t use all our forces to look for one girl!”

“She’s the Avatar!” Tenzin roared. “Why are you so against this it’s like—“ He paused, eyes going cold and hard. “You know where she is, don’t you?”

“Me!?” Tarrlok snarled. “I am offended! Why would you think I would withhold information?”

“Because you took her!”

The three of them looked up and stared.

Tarrlok’s assistant, round glasses and all, stood crouched behind a pillar. Tarrlok pointed an accusing finger. “Liar! I’ll have you fired for such nonsense!”

“Councilman Tenzin, Chief, please believe me! He took Korra last night! He asked me to leave and I was staying up to clean up when I heard a noise—a fight! I watched him tie Korra up and throw her in the back of her van!”

Like lightning, Tenzin sprung, his robes swooshing as he grabbed Tarrlok by the collar. “How dare you!” he seethed. “Tell us where Korra is, now!”

“How did you manage this—and you!” Saikhan pointed to the assistant. “You didn’t come forward, why not?”

“Because!” He braced himself. “Tarrlok’s a bloodbender!”

Next thing Tenzin and Saikhan knew, they were on the ground, unconscious.

.

“So this is the finalized airship. They are being produced as we speak, on track and ready for the invasion.”

Asami looked up, interest peaked. It was the first she had heard about any invasion. She stared at Amon as he looked over her father’s blueprints. “Very good. And you added the extra compartments for the bombs?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Excellent.”

At that moment, an equalist walked in, a letter in his hand, and captured the attention of Amon and the Lieutenant. Asami leaned in and whispered in her father’s ear, “What’s this about an invasion?”

“Oh right, sorry sweetheart. I’ll fill you in on it later. But Amon is taking the city!”

Asami nodded slowly. “The whole city,” she mumbled to herself. “That’s really something.”

“It is.” Hiroshi beamed.

“Well, well,” Amon said aloud. “It seems Korra has been captured again. But not by us.”

“By who, where is she?” Hiroshi asked.

“Don’t worry,” Amon stood from his chair, hands clasped behind his back and casually walked out of the room.

.

“How long are you going to keep this game up, kid?” Lin asked as Tahno “guarded” her cell.

He sighed, finally reaching behind his back and tossing her a pair of kali sticks. “Hide these. You’re gonna need them.”

“A key for the lock would do wonders.”

He eyed her briefly. “Surely the police chief knows a thing or two about patience. We’re going by Mako and Asami’s plan—they said we have to wait a bit, that’s all.”

“What makes you think they’re trustworthy?” Lin asked.

He sighed, loudly. “They freed us. Bad guys tend to hold on to your captives—another thing I assumed you’d know.”

“Your smartass attitude is not appreciated.”

“Noted.”

“Things may not always be what they seem. We’re constantly deceived.” Lin commented.

It was quiet, save the dripping and creaking of the walls of the hideout. “Think like that all the time and a man would go mad.”

“I’m just trying to make a point,” she emphasized, patience wearing thin. “The whole thing smells something sour. It doesn’t sit right with me.”

“Yeah, and why’s that?” Tahno barked back.

She laughed, humorless. “Call it detective’s intuition. She’s known you for what, a few days? Weeks? And she picked you guys, a rag tag team of beaten heroes over her own father? The only family she had left?”

Lin heard his loud breath momentarily stop. “You’re not giving her enough credit. She’s young, but we are all. She knows right from wrong.”

“Yeah, well,” Lin tossed the weapons in the air and caught them. “She may be using different definitions.” Lin shook her head, laughing again. “I don’t know kid—I hope you’re right. I really do.”

“TAHNO!”

He lifted his head as Lin was quick to stash the kali sticks out of view. Asami came bounding down the hall, panting for breath. “Tahno, where’s Mako and Bolin?”

He shrugged. “I dunno.” He took more concern over her disheveled appearance. “Why, what’s the matter?”

Asami eyed Lin for a split second, before her eyes drifted back up to Tahno’s. She grabbed his sleeve. “Korra’s been captured.”

Tahno rolled his eyes before slapping his face with his palm. “You have got to be shitting me. Again?”

“Just come on! I’ll tell you all about it on the way. She started running down the hall when she threw her head back and shouted. “We’ll come back for you Lin, I promise!”

The echoes of their footsteps faded quickly, leaving Lin in solitude.  Slowly, she retrieved them and tossed them in the air again, catching them with a smile.

“Good think I make my own promises,” she whispered to herself.

.

“Attack! What are you talking about?” Bolin tugged at his locks, his hair becoming a puffy mess.

Asami shifted her weight, placing a hand on her lip, using the other to gesture in explanation. “I was in a meeting with my father and Amon and they were talking about attacking the city…A cleansing, if you will. No more benders in Republic City.” Asami pointed a finger at Mako. “You didn’t know about this?”

Mako suddenly felt guilty. “I knew Amon always had plans to take the city, but…” he sighed. “I honestly thought we had more time. He must have really put his plans into action because of Korra.”

Asami grimaced. “And speaking of Korra…she’s been captured.”

“What!” Mako shouted.

“AGAIN!???” Bolin screeched.

Tahno nodded to Bolin. “Yeah that’s what I said.”

“But…But how!” Bolin stuttered. Mako thought his brother was about to pull his hair right out. “Amon’s right upstairs.”

“Wasn’t equalists—not this time.” Asami explained.

“ARE YOU SERIOUS!!!!???”

Asami winced, his shrill shouts giving sending pulses through her head. “Please! Quiet down! Amon’s on his way to making a team to retrieve her himself.”

Mako grabbed his mask and goggles as fast he could. “I got to make sure I’m on that team. It’s the only way to make sure she’s safe.”

Before the other three could even protest, even offer an alternative idea, he was gone.

“Maybe we could all get on this team?”

Asami shook her head. “Amon will only take Mako. It’ll be okay though. Everything will be just fine.”

Bolin gave Tahno a friendly jab. “Mako’s after her, she’ll be fine.” He chirped.

“…you really believe that?”

Bolin smiled softly. “Yeah,” he said. “I do.”

.

Korra decided she was very very bored.

She had tried everything. Kicking, punching, bending—but she was trapped, just like long before when Mako watched over her.

Mako.

She wondered of anyone would miss her, if anyone would try to help her.

But then she remembered she could only help herself.

She sat at the bottom, placed her hands together and tried to make a connection; afterall she had unlocked her airbending, she was bound to get to the Avatar State now.

…Right?

.

Mako was successfully placed on the team.

He was briefed, assigned, and partnered to drive up in a van to the mountains on the outskirts of town. He was in the middle of loading the truck with supplies and weaponry when he heard it.

“Hey.”

Mako turned around, snow collecting in his eyes and lashes. His partner was in uniform, mask and all. “…Hajime?”

He sighed. “Yeah.”

“You’re…still here?”

“No thanks to you,” he said, voice as cold as the winter winds. “Come on, let’s go.”

Mako closed the door to the trunk with a slam.

As they traveled up the mountains, Mako at the wheel, he found himself tapping the wheel in nervousness. They were silent, without a peep, until Mako finally said, “..are you okay?”

“You let her out didn’t you?”

The answer was so quick, so calm, so quiet, Mako had to say it over and over in his head until he managed a squeaky “..huh?”

“The Avatar, Korra? When we had her the first time. She didn’t electrocute me.” He turned his masked face and stared dead on at him. “You did.”

Mako’s mouth was parted in shock, hidden behind uniform. He didn’t know how to respond—he didn’t even know if he should. Hajime had paid the price for Mako’s actions and what was worst, Mako wasn’t even the one to tell him. He tried keeping his eyes on the road, hands moving nervously, ghosting over the wheel and the controls. But the guilt was strong, strong like Bolin, like leaving him and coming back—it was all the same. He felt terrible and he couldn’t just sit there and lie—or even worst, give him silence.

“…Yeah,” Mako choked out. “I did.”

He expected anger. Lashing out, punches and kicks. But that wasn’t the case. He heard the sharp intake of breath and then a quiet sigh before a feeble, “Why?”

Mako struggled for the right words. “I don’t know, I—“

“No,” Hajime said softly. “I think you do.” It was quiet again, but Hajime wouldn’t let Mako wallow in silence, not anymore. “Take your time—I want to know.”

Mako thought carefully. “Have you ever spoken to her?” He asked, but he didn’t expect a response. “She’s…young. Fearless. Brash. Stubborn as hell,” he laughed quietly. “But she’s also the Avatar. And sometimes, when you talk to her, when you hear her—you see it in her eyes, hear it in her voice.”

“…what?”

“Everything. You hear what she must have said time and time again. She’s here for us, Hajime—all of us.”

He shrugged. “So that’s it? As simple as that?”

“I guess so, yeah.”

Out of the corner of Mako’s eye he watched as Hajime took his mask off.  Mako looked and saw red line marring his face, slashed across his cheeks and rimming his eyes. “Hajime…”

“Don’t. Don’t say it. But Mako…”

“…Yeah?”

“I hope you know what you’re doing.”

Mako nodded. “I do.”

“Then that’s good enough for me.”

Mako wasn’t sure what he meant, but he kept driving.

.

Korra had tried everything but it was no use.

She couldn’t connect with Aang.

“I can’t believe the mess you’ve caused.” Tarrlok’s voice suddenly echoed around her. She sat up straight, a sly smirk on her face.

“Lemme guess—busted?”

Tarrlok groaned. “Whatever the matter, you’re coming with me.”

Korra scoffed. “I’m not going anywhere with you!”

“Lucky for me you don’t have a choice.”

CRACK!

It was the sound of wood creaking, breaking. “What was that?” Korra asked.

Silence. Then,“…I’ll be back.”

And that was the last Korra heard of Tarrlok.

.

Hajime and Mako followed Tarrlok into the shed.

“Stand here,” Amon said. “And wait.”

Mako and the other equalists stood behind as instructed.  A few minutes went by when the stairs to the basement creaked with wait, footsteps growing louder-Tarrlok appeared.

It took all of Mako’s restraint not to charge at him. But when he saw Tarrlok’s eyes widen in fear, he felt a little better.

“You’re no match for me.” Tarrlok explained. He lifted his hands and began moving them, twisting his fingers like crooked branches.

“ARGH!” Mako grunted. He fell to the ground.

Why can’t I move! He looked around and saw everyone but Amon was down. Why can’t anyone move?

But Amon kept moving, albeit slowly. A few steps here, a few steps there and before he knew it, Mako watched as Amon grabbed the councilman by his neck and remove his bending.

Mako stood up, recovering. What was that? Was that...bloodbending?

He didn't have much time to muse it over. “Retrieve the Avatar,” Amon explained, hoisting an unconscious Tarrlok over his shoulder. “And don’t underestimate her.”

“Sir.”

Mako followed the Lieutenant down the stairs where they found a small box, the same she had been kept in from before. “Electrocute the box,” The Lieutenant said, handing another equalist the kali sticks. “Then open the box.”

Mako bit his lip.

“Arghhhh!” Her screams drove him mad. Like thunder after lightning, it shook him in all the wrong ways. But the worst part was the quiet after the storm, the thunk of metal when she hit the box in unconsciousness.

He clenched his fists. He was running out of time to think, and now she wasn’t even conscious to help him!

“Open it.”

The next thing he knew he was thrown into the wall, the floor beneath him wavering and crumbling like a landslide. He watched as Korra rolled out of the box before she dashed up the stairs.

“Korra!” Mako shouted, doing his best to regain his balance and run after him. His vision was blurry from hitting his head but he ran through the haze, up the stairs and out into the snowstorm.

She stood in fear, staring at Amon.

“Korra!” He shouted again. But she didn’t acknowledge him. She readied herself for a fight as Amon crouched, ready to run at her, ready to take her bending.

“NO!”

He ran towards her and in a mess of action, tackled her to the ground. Amon was only a few feet away, back to standing, back to watching, as Mako sat hunched in the snow, Korra under his arms.

“Mako…” Amon said slowly. “So I see.”

Breathe in.

Breathe out.

“You’re the traitor,” Amon growled. He took a few more steps forward. “I spared your life once a long time ago. But this time, I won’t be so kind.”

Mako held Korra tighter.

“Mako—“

“—is not the only traitor!”

In a flash, Mako’s vision was surrounded by hot white light, the pop and fizzle of electricity from a glove. Amon jumped back and Mako and Korra found themselves staring at the back of someone very familiar.

“I’ll hold him off! Go!” Hajime demanded, sparking the glove up.

“What are you doing!” Korra screeched. “You can’t win this fight!”

“…I know. Which is why you need to go. You need all the time you can get.”

“What! Korra screeched. “No, Hajime, you can’t--!”

“Mako, get her out of here!”

Mako tugged on Korra, but she wouldn’t move. In a hurry he collected her small muscular frame in his arms. “Put me down! I’m not leaving! I can fight!”

“Exactly! You’re the Avatar!” Hajime cried. “What chance do we have if you can’t fight for us? You have to leave! So Mako, get out of here! SCRAM!”

“Come on, Korra,” he whispered, before the two of them started running.

Amon squinted behind his mask. “Two traitors…” he mused. “I guess you didn’t learn your lesson the first time?”

Hajime scoffed. “You already burned my face, what’s left?”

Amon drew near. “Something much worst—I assure you.”

The glove popped and fizzled. “Bring it.”

They charged.

.

“Everything going according to plan?” Hiroshi asked, looking over his schemes. His daughter walked in, ruffling her hair as she removed her mask and goggles.

“They’re eating out of the palm of my hand.” She laughed. “They totally buy it—Bolin, Tahno, all of them--they think I’m on their side.”

“Excellent!” he beamed. “So you’ll have no trouble with the last part of the plan?”

“Don’t worry Dad—“ Asami smirked, playing with her equalist glove. It sparked to life. “I’ve gained their trusts—it’s only a matter of time before I get on that island. And then,” she walked over to the wall, looking over a drawing of Air Temple Island.

“They’ll be ours,” Hiroshi finished.

Korra leaned over and tugged on Bolin’s IV. “I still can’t believe this happened,” she sighed, her fingers running up his arm to then tug on his earlobe. “I shouldn’t have been so reckless,” she admitted before her fingers wrapped around his button nose and gave a hard pinch, to which he flinched. She chuckled as he swatted her away, an adorable pout adorning his lips.

“Are you admitting you’ve done wrong?” Bolin teased, wrinkling his nose. She sighed again, leaning back against the chair that sat beside his hospital bed.

“Yeah,” she mumbled. “Don’t get used to it.”

His eyes shone bright as he laughed. The two of them continued to talk about this and that for a while before a soft knock sounded on the door and a nurse let Tenzin in. He avoided Korra’s eyes as he gave Bolin a curt nod. “I hope you’re feeling better.”

He sensed the tension. Bolin swallowed. “Yeah, I’m doing okay.”

Tenzin nodded again before exhaling a sharp breath. “Korra, a word?”

“Tenzin, I know you’re probably—“

“Korra. A word.”

Like an already scorned child, Korra slumped out of her chair and followed him out the hallway—she wasn’t one to normally own up to mistakes (it’s not like she tends to make them, she thinks) but she knew when she did wrong.

Tenzin had the decency to shut the door quietly and she braced herself, chest out, shoulders back, and waited for the red face, frazzled beard, and strained yell; but it never comes.

“The council refuses to wait any longer,” he said quietly. Korra scanned his face and noticed deep wrinkles around his mouth and eyes, blushes of violet, signs of weariness, under his lashes.

“What are you talking about?”

Tenzin bowed his head a bit. “The search for Lin has come up with nothing but dead ends. We have no leads. A new Chief has to be appointed.”

“What!” Korra screeched. Her tongue couldn’t move fast enough. “They can’t just give up on her! We have to keep looking.”

“And they will,” Tenzin promised, laying a hand on her shoulder. “But the city cannot wait for her to return—it’s only been a couple of days and the city’s crime right has skyrocketed. Have you not heard? Cabbage Corps has been found to be working with the equalists! As much as I wish they could stop everything to look for Lin—they can’t.” He threw her a disapproving glare. “Honestly, Korra, how could you do something so foolish!? You could have not only killed yourself, but someone else as well!” He pointed to the door. “You landed your friend in the hospital!”

Korra slapped her hands to her face, her fingers gripping the stray hairs around her scalp. “I know, I know! Don’t you realize I feel bad enough?” she moaned.

Tenzin took a few calming breaths as he watched his pupil collapse under a mixture of shame and embarrassment.  “Alright, alright, calm down—remember your meditation techniques.”

Korra groaned but complied. After a few breaths, she stopped seeing red and focused. “So, what are they going to do?”

Tenzin rolled his eyes. “There’s talk of Tarrlok acting as temporary chief.”

She swore she choked on her own bile. “Tarrlok?” she spat. “What the hell does he know about protecting the city?”

“All he needs is a majority vote on the council to do as he pleases—even without my vote, he’s going to do what he wants.”

Korra gave her head a wild shake. “Wait, he can’t be the police chief—he doesn’t know the first thing about it.”

A nurse walked by with a cart and stopped in front of the door across the hall, a full tray of vanilla puddings for patients. It creaked and squeaked with movement and added to the tension. Tenzin explained quietly, careful not to let the dutiful nurse overhear. “He’ll strike a deal with a high-ranking metalbender—my guess, Lin’s second in command, Saikhan.”

It was almost too much. Every day, something was placed on her shoulder, stretching her muscles unnaturally and knotting her nerves so tight she never knew it was possible to be so nervous, so scared. Being the Avatar was easy when she was locked up in the South Pole—now not so much.

But she had to try.

Korra remembered. “How much time do we have?” she asked quickly.

Tenzin stroked his beard. “Not long. Tomorrow afternoon, I presume. The council meeting is at noon.”

A soft breeze rustled his robes as she whipped past him and down the hall. “Perfect! That’s all I need!” she exclaimed. “Don’t worry—I’ll fix this!”

I have to.

.

.

“Pull over here.”

The car came to slow stop as Asami pulled it over to the side of a street in Dragon Flats. Korra was the first to jump out and she ran over to the manhole, yanking up the cover.

“Uh…what are you doing?” Asami asked.

“This is it—this is where I climbed out when I escaped.”

Tahno stayed a few feet back, surveying the area—citizens walked by, baffled at their Avatar who was about to climb in the sewers. “Korra, a little poise?”

“No time.” She peered down the hole—besides a few leading steps, the hole was pitch black. She positioned herself to climb down when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She looked up and saw Tahno, face slightly concerned, a puzzled Asami right behind him.

“Be careful, alright? We’ll come on down in a few minutes.”

“There’s no need.”

“We’ll come down in a few minutes,” Although Asami was confused, she nodded.

Korra took a few steps down—but seconds later, Asami and Tahno heard an echo of frustration. “Are you kidding me?” she spat.

Tahno got on his knees to get a better look. “What’s wrong?”

“Rocks everywhere! They destroyed the entrance!” Well done, Mako. “Maybe if I just earthbend these—“

Asami’s eyes went wide. She pushed herself in front of Tahno. “Wait, Korra don’t earthbend!”

“Why not?”

“There’s no telling how unstable that tunnel is—you could collapse the city’s entire underground tunnel system, cause a landslide—and you could really hurt yourself.” She explained.

“Asami’s right,” Tahno agreed. “Come on out.”

“What? Oh come on I’m a master earthbender what could—“

“Korra.”

Korra sighed, gripping the handles on the side. She looked down into a pile of rubble and frowned—Lin had to be down there, but there it was, another roadblock on her way to the equalists. She hesitated, but hoisted herself up.

“There’s got to be a way to Lin.”

“Wait, this is about the missing chief? Beifong?” Tahno and Korra nodded. “What does she have to do with you trekking underground?”

Tahno sighed, side glancing at his teammate. He looked her over and when he decided she wasn’t going to say anything about herself, answered, “Korra was captured by Amon and taken underground.” He pointed to the Manhole. “We found her crawling out of that hole.”

Suddenly Korra shoved them aside, face in a tight line. “Whatever,” she grumbled. “Let’s just—let’s just keep looking for a way in, alright? If we don’t find Lin—no one will.”

.

.

After hours of nothing but dead ends, the three returned to Asami’s mansion, a freshly released Bolin in tow. The four of them lounged around Asami’s mansion, talking idly and swimming—well, Tahno swam, because Bolin shoved him in the pool. Korra ended up swimming too because she laughed so hard Tahno wrapped a water whip around her ankle and tossed her into the pool.

Drenching wet, she climbed out of the pool. She bent the water from her clothes and hair before she asked, “Asami, do you have a bathroom I could use?”

She nodded, attention dived between the laughing Bolin and pissed Tahno. “Yeah. Right up those stairs, take a left and then another left, first door on the right.”

“Thanks.”

.

.

After Korra cleaned up, her skin scented with something like sewage and pool chemicals swimming together, she walked down the door and headed down the hall, when a noise stopped her.

“Yes, yes of course.”

She immediately recognized the voice as Hiroshi. Looking left and right, she darted down the hall and pressed her ear to the door. The voice was muffled, but she could still hear:

“There’s no need to worry—they won’t see it coming.”

Korra peered into the small keyhole in the lock.

“No, she doesn’t suspect a thing. She never will.”

“With Cabbage Corps drama and that all out of that way, now’s our time to strike!”

Korra took two steps back, almost knocking down a vase, before she sprinted down the hall and back down the stairs.

She whirred past them, speeds that challenged an airbender, baffling her friends. Bolin stopped his laughter as he saw Korra reach for the door knob. “Hey, what’s the rush there, speedy?”

Flustered, Korra waved her hands around. “I’m late to airsit the babybenders.” She stopped, puffing up her cheeks and squinting her eyes shut. “Yeah, flip that. I got to go!” she shouted before darting out the door, not even giving the butler a chance to open it for her.

.

.

Korra headed straight for City Hall—she needed to get in contact with Tenzin. But when she got here, his office was empty, the other councilmen gone as well. Silently cursing herself, she bolted to the Police Department, where she was met by a massive gathering of people.

In front the station, surrounded by microphones and cameras, Tarrlok spoke. “It is with great sadness that we promote a new Police of Chief. Our esteemed Lin Beifong was last seen fighting the equalist attack—of which she was not prepared for, but none of us were—at the pro-bending arena. The council has come to an agreement—I will be looking over the Police, and we have chosen a new chief to act in her place until Lin Beifong returns.” He stepped back and allowed an officer to step forward. “Her right hand man, I present Chief Saikhan.”

The crowd erupted in polite applause and cameras began clicking and flashing, reporters shoving their microphones in his face. Korra slid her tongue over her teeth, before gnawing on her lip. “Well isn’t this just perfect.” She thought.

“Thank you, Councilman Tarrlok,” Saikhan adjusted the new badge on his uniform. “It is with great regret that I have to take place of Chief Beifong in such dire circumstances. But the city needs protection and it is a privilege to lead the forces in that protection. I will be reporting to Councilman Tarrlok regarding anything with the Equalists and anything to do with the search for Lin Beifong. ”

In a hurry, Korra pushed past the several reporters and made it to the top of the stairs. They all looked curiously at her, flashing their cameras and getting their equipment ready for asking questions, but they didn’t get the chance with Tenzin pulled her aside and tugged her away from the Public eye.

“I thought you said I had more time,” She whispered breathlessly. Saikhan moved on to talking about his more “police like” duties, his voice deeper and static, nothing like Lin’s.

Tenzin sighed. “I’ve told you—this isn’t my decision.” He narrowed his eyes in scrutiny. “What exactly were you planning on doing to stop this?”

She looked at him like he was stupid. “Find Lin?”

Tenzin went red. “Alone?” he hissed.

“No? I had Tahno and Asami!”

“That is not the same. You can’t just go digging into trouble like that. What if you got captured? Your bending taken away? Do you want the same fate as Lin’s?”

She gritted her teeth. “I am not a child! I am the Avatar! I have to do these things alone. I—have to do these things alone. This is my battle!”

Tenzin sighed, shaking his head. “No, it’s not. My father had the same attitude—but this is not your battle to fight alone, Korra. I’m here to help you, and your friends are too. But you do need to think a little more carefully about your plans. Amon is conniving, cunning. He’s got connections we’re still not aware of. In fact, just in the news this morning, it was found that Cabbage Corps is working with the equalists, remember?

Tenzin pointed to Saikhan, who continued talking. “Cabbage Corps will continue to be put under investigation. We have found substantial evidence in their factories that they hold and or make equalist equipment and propaganda. Until then, all accounts have been frozen until the investigation is over.”

Korra stumbled back, narrowly dodging the Fire Nation representative behind her. The crowd momentarily stopped, Saikhan included, and watched as she gained her footing, flashing them a nervous smile. Saikhan continued wrapping up his speech and Korra waited to the side, before she waited for Tenzin and Saikhan to stand alone. “Guys, I have some news.”

.

.

“What do you mean Hiroshi Sato is an equalist?” Tenzin asked. The three of them were in the new chief’s office upon Korra’s request.

The avatar rolled her eyes. “I overheard him on the phone! You said this morning the Cabbage Corps thing was all over the news—I heard Hiroshi say that now that the company was out of the way, it was their time to strike!”

Both Saikhan and Tenzin looked mildly surprised. “That does sound suspicious,” Saikhan admitted “And he does have motive.”

“Wait what?”

“Years ago, the Sato mansion was raided and a firebender killed Hiroshi’s wife.” Tenzin sighed. “Now are you sure that’s what you heard?”

She didn’t appreciate the skepticism. “Yes, I swear! He even made some comment about “her never finding out,” okay?” Korra pouted. “Never finding out…like hell! I just did!”

Tenzin closed his eyes, forehead wrinkling in thought. “Now hold on just a minute—who says he was even talking about you? What about his daughter, Asami?”

Saikhan frowned. “She could just as well be in on her father’s scam.”

“If Korra’s assumptions have any validity in the first place.” Tenzin reminded him.

No, Korra, don’t earthbend!

The thought stung and stabbed. Asami had given the warning for her safety, right? Or was she just trying to lure her away?

No, stop, Korra, she’s your friend she wouldn’t do that. Remember all the nice things she did for you—invited you to sit with her at Kuang’s, let you stay at her place, offered to set you up with—

Mako. The Equalist.

“I really think you should check it out.” Korra urged. Her mouth felt dry.

Saikhan considered it. “Very well. Since you’re the Avatar, and still technically a part of Tarrlok’s task force, I can take your request. We’ll go over to the mansion as soon as possible.”

.

.

Asami opened the door before several metalbenders stomped past her, quick to inspect her house. “What’s—what’s going on here?” she asked.

Saikhan stepped forward, Tenzin and Korra in tow. “Miss Sato, is there a way we can speak to your father?”

“What is this about?” she demanded as a metalbender walked past her.

“We’re just asking questions in the equalist investigation, ever since Cabbage Corps has had substantial evidence in being a strong supporter. We’ve gotten word that Hiroshi could also have connections as well.” Saikhan explained.

Korra felt a twinge of guilt at the face Asami pulled. “Equalists? You think my father is an equalist? I can’t believe this!”

Saikhan spoke with a few metalbending officers before they led him up the long staircase in the foyer. Outraged, Asami grumbled and sneered, throwing glances at Saikhan and Tenzin’s way. She turned to Korra, weary. “Korra, please, you’re the Avatar, do something about this!”

Korra’s breath caught in her throat. “I can’t because….” She paused. “Asami, I’m so sorry—I. I overheard him on the phone and I just—“

“Whoa, what! You overheard him on the phone? What are you talking about? We’re you spying on us?” she accused.

She puffed her chest out, getting defensive. “Of course not! I overheard, alright? Look, I don’t want to do this, but I can’t afford to take these things lightly. If you haven’t noticed, Amon is kind of dangerous! Just—just look at what he did to Bolin!”

Suddenly, Bolin and Tahno popped their heads into the hallway, all smiles. They faded when they saw the cluster of metalbenders inspecting the household. “I heard my name, what’s going on?”

Asami ignored him. “What he did to him? You mean take his bending away?”

“Yes! Yes take his bending away! Amon took an important part of him—he’s taking a part of all these people! And I won’t let it sit back and happen.” She pointed to Bolin. “You don’t know what it’s like!”

Asami gave something of a growl before she stomped past Korra, brushing her shoulder. “Oh, I think I could relate.”

That twinge of guilt came back. “Asami, you know that’s not what I meant—“

Bolin and Tahno came up behind her as Asami disappeared behind the corner and down the hall with Saikhan and the others. “What was all that about?”

Korra’s mouth set in a firm line. “Just follow me.”

They all filed into Hiroshi Sato’s office, just as he was finishing up a phone call. Hiroshi looked at Saikhan and Tenzin, puzzled by their worried faces. “Is everything all right? What can I do for you?”

Asami stepped forward. “This is ridiculous! My father has no part with those awful equalists!”

“Equalists!” Hiroshi cried. “Is that what this about? Well, I can assure you I have no part in that!”

“No!” Korra shoved herself forward. “I heard you! I overheard you on the phone! You said Cabbage Corps was the perfect distraction for you to strike! Explain that!”

Hiroshi let out a deep bellowing laugh. “Oh, this is all a great misunderstanding, all from the young Avatar’s over-imagination. Don’t worry, dear, I understand—the pressures you must be under---but anyway, the strike is for my cars! With them out of the way, I have no competition! I can release my new model with ease! You see?”

Korra and Tenzin share a look before Tenzin asks, “Do you mind if we search the Future Industries Factories? Just to put this whole thing to rest?”

Asami moved to make a protest, but Hiroshi stopped her. “Go right on ahead.”

.

.

They searched the factories high and low, but as the sun set and the evening sky rose, all Korra and the Police had were dead ends and what appeared to be an innocent man. Saikhan eventually wandered over to her, pulling off his cap to wipe his brow before he murmured, “We’ve searched everywhere—there’s nothing here.”

Asami leaned out of the shadows, arms crossed in an annoyed fashion. “Good, so you can leave.”

Bolin, who had tagged along for the investigation, tapped Korra’s shoulder. “Korra, a quick word? He tugged her gently away from Tenzin and the others. “Convinced yet?” he asked, but she didn’t hear any hostility in his voice.

Korra grumbled. “No I’m not! It’s just,” she sighed. “Look, when I was captured by Amon, I overheard some stuff there too, and I gathered some information—not much, but enough—and it’s just…Hiroshi really fits the puzzle. He really does! You have to believe me Bo.”

“You don’t know your brother’s an equalist. You don’t know he works for Hiroshi! You don’t know he’s friends with Asami!” she thought.

He grimaced. “I wish I could, Kor, but—“ he looked back at Asami. “Look what you’re doing to Asami. She’s our friend. She and Hiroshi have done so much for us. For me! Did you know Asami was going to teach me hand to hand combat?”

No, Korra didn’t know that. “But, Bo—“

He sighed again, interrupting her. “It’s not so bad being a non-bender,” he said quietly. “Maybe you, master of all four elements, can’t understand that. And maybe that’s why this Amon thing is driving you to wild assumptions, but it’s just not, okay Korra? I think you’re letting your worry and fear get the best of you. I think you should just drop the whole thing.”

She felt her cheeks grow red. “I’m not afraid of anything!” she said. “And I’m not backing down from my beliefs.”

Bolin just shook his head and walked away.

Korra began pacing back and forth, her thoughts racing like a Satomobile, leaving tire tracks and smoke that made her dizzy. Her life had become a complicated web of lies and deceit. Here she was, the Avatar, protector of the world, trying to fight the equalists. But people weren’t as they seemed and she was having a hard time deciding who was a friend who was a foe. Asami? Hiroshi?

…Mako?

She wrung her hands behind her back when she felt a small piece of paper slip between her fingers. She unfolded it hastily and read the message:

Korra—

Meet me under Yue Bridge at midnight. We need to talk—one last time. Alone.

--M.

She quickly lifted her head, looking left and right for the source, but he was long gone. She had a pretty good idea who it was, but Mako had quickly scampered off. She stuffed the paper in her pocket before helping Saikhan and Tenzin wrap up the investigation at the final factory.

.

.

Under the cloak of night, Korra walked with confidence under the bridge, tapping her foot impatiently. “Alright, I know it was you, Mako. Come on out.”

It took a few minutes, but he finally showed up, dressed in civilian clothing. He wore a frown and she noticed how his face was marred with tiredness. “Korra,” he greeted shortly.

Impatient, she bounced on her toes, trying to match his height. “Start explaining.”

“It’s simple—stop poking around Hiroshi Sato’s factories.”

Korra growled. “I knew it! I knew Hiroshi was an equalist! That’s why you work for him as a mechanic and designer, isn’t it? Isn’t it?”

Mako’s eyes blazed with fire as he clamped a hand over her mouth. “Sshh, shh! Shut up, will you?” He figured she’d bite his hand so he quickly removed it. “Listen, this stuff is a lot more complicated than you think.”

“But Hiroshi, is an equalist.” She prodded.

Mako didn’t say anything.

Korra gave a cry of triumph. “Aha! I knew it! It all makes sense.” She paused, shock flickering across her face. “Wait, does that mean, Asami…?”

Mako shook his head. “I honestly don’t know.” He rolled his eyes at her pressing glare. “Honest, I don’t know! If she’s involved in Hiroshi’s endeavors, I have no knowledge of it, okay?”

Korra knew she shouldn’t be listening to him, shouldn’t believe him, but she simply did. “…okay.” She shifted her weight, hands on her hips. “So, what’s the big idea? If you’re here to tell me to stop poking around his factories, which by the way, I won’t, then what exactly are you here for?”

Mako sighed, looking up to the sky—the night was cloudy, grey and murky, save for a small patch of navy dotted in stars right above his head. It was a constellation he was familiar with, one his mother told him when he was young, and the only one he was ever able to point out to Bolin when he was still with him out in the streets.

“…I’m here to tell you looking in the factories is useless.”

Korra immediately dropped her defensive, skeptical posture and slumped over, baffled. “Wait—you’re going to help me? Again? Does this mean…?”

A pained expression crossed his face, and she figured it was his wounded pride. He continued, “Why do you think I spend so much time at Hiroshi’s mansion? The secret equalist factory is underneath the mansion. That’s where you’ll find the evidence.” He explained. He pulled the collar of his jacket up to cover his face as he looked left and right. “I need to go, okay?” He reached over and jammed something into her hand, wrapping her fingers around it to make sure she knew it was there before he turned around and made to leave.

“B-but wait!”

He was gone.

.

.

The paper he had given her were basic schematics of the Sato Mansion—the only addition being the underground system of tunnels that converged to meet in the large, hidden factory.

Korra had gone straight to Tenzin with the news—he was skeptic. He told her this could very well be a ploy to make her look bad. He asked for her source and she was honest—an employee of Future Industries had given her the paper when they were finishing up the last investigation at the factory. She conveniently left out the fact that it was Mako, Bolin’s long lost equalist-affiliated brother.

“We’ll take this to Saikhan and see what he thinks,” Tenzin finally decided.

They both went to Saikhan and his reaction was similar to Tenzin’s—without being there to inspect the source himself, he wasn’t sure on its validity. He folded the schematics back up and handed them back to Korra. “I’m sorry, but there’s just not enough proof.”

Korra was outraged. “This is the mansion’s schematics! How can these be a fake?”

“After Hiroshi’s mansion was raided and his wife killed, police investigations led to paperwork that ended up with similar schematics, just like these.” Saikhan went back and tugged the paper out of her hands and unfolded it. “Look—for starters, it’s very…simple. This information could be obtained with a little hard work with anybody with connections, especially an employee.” Saikhan explained. “And besides…this supposed secret factory isn’t in the same kind of ink as the original. Looks fake to me.”

The Avatar groaned. “It’s not fake! Please, you have to believe me.”

A hard look crossed his face. “I already gave you a chance once—and look where that got us. Until something with a little more substance comes up, we won’t be interrogating Hiroshi and his factories any further.” He shoved the papers back at her. “That is final, Avatar Korra.”

.

.

Angry and confused, Korra stomped up to Tahno’s apartment, where and Bolin were staying. “I can’t believe this! If Chief Beifong were here, she’d do something about it! And speaking of Chief Beifong, are they even looking for her? Ugh, I can’t believe Tenzin would just let this happen!”

Tahno sidestepped the angry Avatar as she burst through his home and plopped angrily on the couch. “Do come in, Korra,” he deadpanned. He went to the kitchen and put on some coffee while Korra ended up sprawling out on the couch, her boot-cladded feet sitting in Bolin’s lap.

From the other end of the couch, Bolin readjusted his position to accommodate her feet. “Um. So. Are you still going on about this investigation thing?” he asked timidly.

Korra shot up, face practically hot with frustration. “Yes! Yes I am!” She saw Bolin open his mouth in protest, so she finished by saying, “But what you don’t know is, after you left, I got a tip from an anonymous source! An employee!”

Tahno pursed his lips as he finished making tea. “And what exactly did this source provide, hmm?”

“He said Hiroshi is an equalist—the factory is underneath the mansion.”

Both Tahno and Bolin stared. “Underneath?” Bolin questioned before letting out a low whistle. “That’s pretty impressive.”

She jabbed her foot in his face. “No, it isn’t!” She gave another cry of anguish before plopping back down on the couch. “I talked to Tenzin and Saikhan but they won’t do anything about it, they don’t believe me! You guys have to believe me, right?”

Tahno brought over a tray of tea and handed her a cup. “I believe that you were told what you were told—but I’m not so sure that he was being honest with you.”

“But why would he go to all that trouble to lie to me?” she asked.

“He wants to embarrass you?” Tahno said, like it was obvious. “Look, this employee might be trying to up Hiroshi’s status—he’s already been proven innocent. Maybe this is extra work to make you look bad, as payback for embarrassing him.”

“They wouldn’t be trying to get back at me unless they were an enemy,” Korra pointed out, a sly smile on her face.

“Good point,” Bolin chipped in.

“And,” Korra continued. “The source was supposed to be anonymous but….I know the employee. I’ve met him.”

That fact held Bolin and Tahno’s attention. “What! You know him?” Tahno asked.

Korra nodded. “Yeah, Asami—“

“Wait. Asami,” Bolin whispered. “Asami knows this person?”

A nod.

“Does that mean…could this all be true and Asami’s an…an…”

Korra shrugged pathetically. “I don’t know! This whole thing is just a giant mess—I just want to get to the bottom of it. I want to save Lin. I want to stop the equalists. I want to get your bending back!” She got up from the couch. “But I think in order to do it, we have to check out to see if this factory is real.”

“How would we do that?” Bolin asked.

“The employee,” Tahno murmured. “If Korra says she knows the employee works up at the mansion, we follow him until one day he goes down and reveals the entrance. If he’s trying to out iHiroshi, it shouldn’t be too hard.”

“Sound like a plan,” Korra agreed. “But there’s one problem standing in our way.”

“What?”

“Asami.”

.

.

The next day, all three of them headed over to the mansion. After some apologies, Korra watched as Asami’s mouth curled up into a faint smile.

“I’m sorry too. I don’t know how hard it is to have the job you do. I know you’re just trying to protect people.” She gestured them all inside. “Come in, Come in!”

The four of them spent time testing cars on the track and swimming in the pool. They laughed and had fun but once mid-afternoon passed, Korra pulled Asami aside, still fighting off a fit of laughter from one of Bolin’s stupid jokes.

“Asami, there’s something I want to talk to you about.”

The laughter died down when she noticed Korra’s serious expression. “What, what is it?”

“It’s about Mako.”

A knowing grin spread across her face. “Oh, Mako is it? You do like him, huh!? I told you he was cute! Want that date, huh?”

Korra gave a sheepish smile. “I just want to talk to him, for starters. Do you know where he might be?”

Asami nodded. “Yeah—it’s pretty late. He’s due for a meeting with my father in a few minutes, back in his private workshop.

Bingo, Korra thought.

“Do you think you could—lead the way?”

Asami giggled. “I probably shouldn’t,” she winked. “But for you, I’ll make the exception. Let’s go.”

.

.

Korra and Asami wandered back into the living room giggling like two school girls, which sparked the boys’ interests. Bolin popped his head over the couch, curious. “What’s got you two all smiley?”

Korra opened her mouth, but Asami beat her to the punch. “Korra’s got a little crush!” Asami blurted out. Bolin’s mouth fell open in an “O” while Tahno stared at her curiously.

“Yeah, so Asami is going to introduce me to him. We’ll be back and I’ll…” she struggled with the right words so they’d understand. “…I’ll tell you what happened. Okay?”

Bolin and Tahno instantly furrowed their brows—this wasn’t the plan; Korra wasn’t supposed to go equalist hunting on her own. She might have Asami with her—but that may not be enough.

Bolin put on his charming, conniving smile. “Oh, there’s no way we’re passing up on this!” he snickered, jabbing Tahno with his arm. Tahno grinned.

“That’s right, uh-vatar. We have to make sure this boy is all right for our little girl.”

Korra paid no mind to Tahno—her eyes were practically glued to Bolin, wide with panic and fear—it took all her might not to shout and scream. He couldn’t come, can’t come because if he came then he’d see him, see Mako, his brother.

The entire thought made her sick to her stomach.

Asami snapped her from her thoughts with a playful bump of the hip. “Oh, let them come. They won’t do any harm, I promise.”

Bolin jumped from his seat, Tahno right behind. “Great! Lead the way, Miss Sato!”

As soon as Asami turned around, Bolin and Tahno’s theatrical smiles fell, revealing worried faces. They shook their heads slowly. They weren’t about to back down.

Korra swallowed and turned to follow Asami, her legs feeling like jelly.

They walked up and down stairs, through winding corridors and fancy doors. Eventually, they were at the back of the property when Asami stuck her hand out and stopped the trio.

“Alright, there he is,” she pointed to a tall man, with short and slightly spiked hair, wearing a long black coat. Bolin squinted though the dark of night.

“I can’t see him—is he tall?” he wondered, trying to get a better look.

“Yeah,” Korra whispered hoarsely. “He is.”

Asami brought a finger to her mouth and they all snuck quietly through the night, slipping through the door and stepping into the workshop. They each poked their heads out of the doorway and into the small workshop, complete with workbenches and hundreds of tools. Asami began counting down from five on her fingers as Mako stood, back to them. But on three, he went to the side of the room and pulled on a monkey wrench and then—

The floor opened up.

“What?” Asami whispered. “What on earth…?” she whipped her head around and stared at Korra. Asami’s eyes were glossy with hurt and confusion and Korra almost had to look away.

Mako stepped down and the floor closed.

All four jumped out of their hiding places and scattered about the workshop. “No,” Asami mused. “No that doesn’t make any sense…this is his private workshop! Nothing else!”

“I’ll be damned,” Tahno whispered. “You were right.”

Korra kicked up some dust. “I wish I wasn’t.” She eyed the monkey wrench Mako pulled moments before. “I’m going down.”

Bolin’s eye practically jumped out of their sockets. “Don’t you think we should wait for Tenzin or Saikhan or the Police or—“

Korra tugged on the wrench, opening the floor. “I’m going down there—alone.”

Tahno stepped forward. “There’s no way you’re going down there. You need back up.”

Asami lifted her head a bit, her best attempt at determination across her face. “I’m coming too. I have to see what’s down there for myself.”

Bolin sighed, walking over and laying both hands on her shoulders. “You really shouldn’t. Let us go down there for you. We’ll see what’s up. Besides, if you stay here, I know there’s someone watching us from behind, okay? Got our backs?

Asami nodded slightly, hesitantly, but nodded nonetheless.

Korra’s gaze lingered on Bolin, scared and afraid, wondering what exactly he could do with no combat training, his earthbending gone. Even worse, Mako was down there, his brother. She couldn’t let him find him—not yet. So she decided to play dirty.

“Bolin, I don’t want to bring it up, but you’re bending is gone, how are you going to—“

“I’m strong!” he cried. “I can still fight! Asami doesn’t have bending, and she can fight! I’ve seen her! I can too, Korra. I can!”

She closed her eyes. “Bo, please you don’t understand—“

For the first time, he shoved her out of the way and walked down the stairs. “Let’s go!” he cried, determined.

This couldn’t end well.

.

.

The stairway was dark and Korra lit a flame to help them see. They came to an elevator which drew them down. The gears of the machine were loud and mimicked her own wild and beating heart. When the cart finally stopped, they walked off and opened a door, revealing a large showroom, the main focus being a huge poster with Amon’s face on it.

 “Shit…” she murmured.

Along the side of the wall, were several posters and boxes. Tahno ripped one open and found several equalist gloves. “No doubt about it—this is a secret factory.” He sighed. “Hiroshi is an equalist.”

Suddenly the lights went out. Moments later, bright flashing lights appeared, blinding, but not really lighting anything, and the kids had to shield their eyes. They were surrounded by a semi-circle of giant machines resembling humans, with large mechanical arms and legs.

“Guilty as charged.”

From inside the tank, behind metal bars, Korra caught sight of Hiroshi Sato, an evil smile on his face, a glare coming off from his round glasses.

Korra pointed an accusing finger. “Give it up Hiroshi! We know you’re an equalist! We’ve found your factory!”

Hiroshi cackled. “Ah, you did! Isn’t it great? Do you like my new invention—they’re called mecha tanks. And well, well, you’re about to find out just how strong my new invention is. Good work, Mako. You misled them well.”

“What,” Korra hissed to herself. “This was a set up!” she screeched, confused and hurt. She thought he was on her side, she thought that he was going to help them she thought that Mako, Bolin’s damn brother would--

Bolin…

She slowly turned her head and watched him. He was just…shaking. Not much, but just enough, a cold sweat collecting at his brow. He whipped his head to Korra, baffled. “Mako? It’s not….it can’t be.”

“Attack!”

All of a sudden, the half a dozen tanks came at them, spewing metal cables and weapons at Hiroshi’s command. Korra dodged the first one, using earthbending to try and trip them up. She tried to make for the wall, made of earth, when suddenly, a long wall of metal came clashing down, and eventually, three more came down, encasing them in a metal room. Korra thought back to her imprisonment weeks ago, guarded by Mako, but was instantly torn away from the thought as she had to dodge an incoming tank from crushing her.

“You’re not a metalbender yet, Avatar! There’s no escape!”

Tahno was using water from some skins he carried around, freezing it into ice in hopes of slicing the metal or breaking the glass cases of the head. He managed the second and managed to hop on top, using the water whip to try and beat the man working the machine senselessly. It worked and Tahno reached in, cutting his hand in the process and threw him out of the tank. “Bo!” he shouted. “Use this!”

Bolin ran over, dodging electrical metal wires and managed to climb in the mecha tank. He fiddled with the buttons, confused by the complexity of it all. He pressed one button and watched as an arm shot out, spinning weapons that Tahno managed to duck from just in time. “Watch it Bolin!”

“Sorry!”

Korra took on Hiroshi, using her earthbending and firebending to propel herself and throw fire his way. He was hit, but the flames did nothing to mar his suit. He was jostled in the tank, his glasses falling off, making it hard to see. He growled, grabbed her using a metal claw, and electrocuted her.

“AGHHHH!”

He swung her around twice before she was sent flying, hitting the ground with a hard thud.

“KORRA!” Bolin and Tahno screeched. Tahno jumped up and began fighting his way through some of the equalists that had appeared without tanks to get to her. Bolin reached for the controller to move the tank when he was suddenly slammed into from the side. He looked over and that’s when he saw it.

A pair of honey-gold eyes he thought had been dead years ago.

“M-Mako?” His confusion turned to anger and hurt as he scanned the man in the tank, cloaked behind a yellow tinted glass. “It is you?” Angry, he pressed another button on the tank and watched as more cables came from the shoulder of the tank. It sparked to life and Bolin did his best to maneuver the cables around the tank. The whole tank rumbled with electrocution, and some of it reached Mako where he had been holding on to metal controls.

“That’s for joining the equalists!” Bolin charged the tank forward, pressing another button to reveal another sharp, claw-like weapon. “And this is for abandoning me!” He rammed into Mako’s mecha tank and it was tipped over. Bolin’s collided with Mako’s upset one and managed to stop just in time. He leaned the tank over, the windows facing each other, so close that Mako watched as tears bubbled in his little brother’s eyes.

“Why?” Bolin begged. “Why,” he hit the tank over and over again. “Why why why!”

Mako gritted his teeth and endured the beatings. “Bolin, please you don’t understand, if you could just listen I’d--!”

Hit. “You were there, weren’t you!? You were there at the arena! YOU SAT THERE AND WATCHED ME GET MY BENDNG TAKEN AWAY DIDN’T YOU?”

Mako snarled and moved the tank, throwing Bolin off of him. “You’re not the only one who lost their bending!” Mako screeched.

“You didn’t lose it!” Bolin cried, dodging Mako’s hit. “You gave it up for an…an evil cause!”

“You don’t know what I had to do to protect you, my little brother!” Mako screeched, ramming the mecha tank into Bolin’s tank. Bolin gritted his teeth and threw Mako’s tank off of him.

“Don’t you dare call me that, Mako. Don’t you dare!” he launched at him. His metal fist broke through the mask and with every hit, he narrowly dodged Mako’s face as he screamed, “We aren’t brothers anymore!”

Mako froze, eyes wide. He stared back into his little brother’s eyes, and he saw he fear, the anger, the hurt, all emotions had had never seen before. He had never been this angry or upset in his life. Bolin finally gave one last scream before he lifted his hand, ready to strike.

“AGHHH!” Bolin looked over and watched as Tahno was taken down. Hiroshi, as jostled as he was took the opportunity to strike. He hit Bolin once, knocking him off Mako, injuring Bolin, and as he raised for another attack, a voice stopped him.

“DAD, STOP!”

He looked over and saw his daughter, hands clasped together, mouth in a deep frown. She was shaking with anger and confusion. “Why, dad?” she whispered, gritting her teeth. “Why?”

The tank opened and Hiroshi stepped out. “Asami, please..” he wandered over to her, and when he got too close, she took a step back. Hiroshi paused. “Think about what these people did to your mother! They took her away! These—these benders are responsible for so much hurt and violence! But the equalists! We can end this…together.” He reached out and handed her an equalist glove. “Join me, Asami.”

Wounded but still conscious, Tahno and Bolin managed to wander over to a still out of it Korra. With much anguish, Bolin passed his brother, sparing him a pained glance, before he helped gather Korra in his arms.

“We have to get out of here,” Tahno whispered. Bolin nodded but when he looked up, he saw Asami reach out for the equalist glove.

“Join me, Asami,” Hiroshi repeated.

“No,” Bolin whispered.

Asami was shaky as she reached out. Slowly she put the glove on and, testing its flexibility.

Korra in tow, Tahno and Bolin approached her slowly. “Asami?” Bolin whispered. “Asami, please…”

She looked back and forth between her father and her friends. From the corner of her eye, she spotted Mako stumbling out of a ruined mecha tank, his face running with blood from a cut on his forehead. She put on a stern face.

Bolin walked closer, Tahno now the only one holding Korra. “Asami…” he reached out, ready to reason with her.

Asami looked back and forth between her father and Bolin. Finally, she whispered, “I’m sorry, I’m so so sorry.”

She launched forward, electrocuting Bolin.

“BOLIN!” Tahno screeched. He made a move to help her, but Asami was quick. He couldn’t do much with Korra on his back and in a few seconds, both Korra and Tahno were electrocuted by Asami’s glove and on the ground, unconscious with Bolin.

Hiroshi approached his daughter, laying a hand on her shoulder. “Very good, my daughter.” The Lieutenant approached them, standing beside Hiroshi and Asami. “Load them in the truck and take them to Amon,” Hiroshi said.

“I’ll do it,” Asami blurted out. Her eyes flickered to Mako. “Mako, come help me tie them up.”

He simply nodded and headed over there. As they wrapped the three of them up and loaded them into the trucks, he whispered to Asami, “I hope you know what you’re doing.”

“Trust me,” she whispered harshly. “I do.” She pinched his shoulder before she patted the side of the truck, letting the driver know the captives were tied up. “Just be sure to pay attention, alright?”

“Wha—“ from the still open van, he watched as Korra stirred. She opened her eyes briefly, and through her disoriented vision, she saw Mako sway in and out. “Mako?”

With a grimace, he sighed, grabbing hold of the doors to close the back. “I’m sorry, Korra. Hang in there.”

“What? Mako—“

Slam.

Lin Beifong watched through hazed vision as Korra and an equalist tumbled off the roof completely. There was nothing she could do—she only hoped the Avatar could save herself.

She fought the electrocution that taunted her body and mind into unconsciousness. She was already rendered helpless by it once; she didn’t want it to happen again. She stood slowly, the glass cracking underneath her heavy footing, before she snapped her cables forward, ready to fight, ready to win.

Lin ripped her arm back, her shoulders cracking with protest, with age, and flung her cables as far up as she could—they wrapped snugly around one of the equalist lifts and felt the wires tense, tighten. Lin had the slightest hesitation as her toes balanced on cracked glass and she looked behind her once more, past the flaming police airships and boats on fire in the bay.

She watched as Korra landed in Yue Bay, her waterbending breaking her fall.

Lin let out a sigh of relief she didn’t know she was harboring. Her toes left the roof and she skyrocketed towards the enemy.

“Amon, here I come,” she whispered.

.

.

The room was dark.

Korra closed her eyes before lying back along the couch until she felt her head bump against Bolin’s knee. She felt his strong pair of hands grip her and lift her head to his lap before he started running his fingers through her hair. The two heard the door of his apartment creak open and shut with a rather loud slam. A small light cast long shadows across the room before Tahno came by and set the oil lamp on the coffee table. He leaned down and peered into Korra’s face, his scowl half hidden in the dark. His fingers went up to tap the bruises on her shoulder. “What a mess,” he murmured. He then tapped her knee. “Up.” 

Korra groaned, snuggling closer to Bolin and burying her face into his pant leg. “Why?” she whined.

“You’re all broken and torn up—and it’s not a very pretty look. You need a healing session.”

Korra revealed one eye. “I’m a healer; I can heal myself.” She argued.

Tahno had to fight to roll his eyes at his teammate. “This is not time to be difficult, uh-vatar. Just sit up.” 

With a sigh, Korra obeyed. Tahno immediately went to work on the wound in her side that alarmed them earlier. She said she had done a quick patch job—something good enough to keep the infection out. But as he unwrapped the bandages, her wound sparkled in the low light in an unhealthy way. He ignored her wince and cries of pain as his fingers picked at the area.

“Korra,” he hissed. “There’s glass in here!”

Bolin sat up suddenly, taking a look for himself. “Spirits, Korra, why didn’t you say anything?”

She huffed, blowing her oily hair out of her face. “There were more important matters.”

The candlelight got caught in his eyes, the ever so fine lines in his skin. Korra stared as the fire made him glow; but it did not warm him. It only served to bring out the shadows carved beneath his lashes and the faint tremble of his jaw. She wanted to reach out to him, to give it all back, but there was nothing she could do.

Bolin opened his mouth to protest; Korra saw that despite his lost, he still worried for her. But Tahno beat him to the punch. “Don’t bother.” He groaned. While he always enjoyed egging on the hot-headed firebender of their team, he knew if one of them started, it wouldn’t end—and he simply wasn’t in the mood.

The quiet returned and Korra concentrated on the quiet sounds of the water that dove into her wounds and cooled her burns and aches. The glow of healing technique made Tahno’s face a cloud, the grey of his eyes blurring into the whites. She blindly waved her hand around behind her, waiting for Bolin’s hand; eventually, his fingers tugged at hers and he leaned forward, resting his chin on the top of her head, placing a soft kiss into her hairline. Tahno raised an annoyed eyebrow, sparing only a glance before he moved on to his next wound.

“I know you guys are attached at the hip, but please,” he teased. “I’m trying to heal here.”

“Shut up,” the two of the spat at the same time. Bolin let out a weak chuckle as he leaned back and allowed Korra to turn, giving Tahno the chance to heal the last of her serious wounds.

Korra’s eyes slid to side, studying Bolin. His posture was all wrong—he was slumped over, shoulders sagged and chest hallow. The strong, confident, silly young man she once knew had taken a serious blow. Her friend, a rock, a mountain, had experienced an earthquake that shattered him into pebbles.

“Bolin,” she whispered.

He turned, offering a weak smile. His hair was a mess, his button nose covered in dirt, and the green of his eyes were dull.

“I’ll get it back. I promise.” The moment she felt Tahno stop healing, she scooted up to Bolin, grabbing him by the shoulders. “I won’t let them get away with it.”

Bolin shrugged, that same sad damn smile on his face. “I’ll be alright.”

Korra felt an uncomfortable knot in her stomach. “No—this is not okay. You can’t just accept it. It’s a part of who you are! They took that from you! And I’m going to get it back.”

Bolin’s shell of a smile finally dropped, his lips tight in a frown that simply didn’t fit. “I’m not an earthbender anymore, Korra. If I don’t accept it now—then when?”

She pulled him in to a fierce hug. She felt his arms wrap tightly around her as he buried his face into her chest. She ignored the hot tears that soaked her shirt. Her eyes hunted in the dark, finally settling on the unnatural green that glowed in the corner of the room.” 

The goggles, round and tinted green, taunted her.

“I’ll do whatever it takes, Bo.”

When she left the apartment the next morning, the sun low in the sky and the boys still asleep, she made sure to close the door quietly so not to wake them.

She hoped they wouldn’t notice the tinted green goggles missing from the side table.

.

.

The next morning was all bad news.

Korra stumbled onto Air Temple Island, bruised and tired. She heard the worried shouts of White Lotus Guards before she was bombarded by several children on gliders. Masking her pain, she hugged them back with the same veracity before Tenzin came rushing over, pushing his children gently aside. The back of his palm flew to her forehead and he looked her over with worried eyes. “Are you hurt? Korra, where have you been? I’ve been so worried—“

Korra leaned forward, her head knocking into Tenzin’s chest. “They took it,” she whispered, ending in a weary sigh. She was too drained, too tired to be sad at this point. Hesitantly, she felt Tenzin wrap his arms around her.

“Korra,” he paused and looked to his children, nodding for them to scram. Meelo and Ikki pouted but Jinora obeyed, dragging her siblings back to their mother. Tenzin let out a sigh before he gently pushed her away, tilting her chin up so she’d look at him. “Korra, Lin is gone.”

Her eyes widened and Tenzin could see her memories rip through her eyes; he saw them shaking in her fingertips and glistening in the beads of sweat that smeared her hair to her forehead. Korra ran her tongue over her chapped lips, mouth parted, the words, she can’t be I saw her I was right there, begging to roll off her tongue.

“She went after them,” Korra finally concluded, and she wished she could yell at Lin right now. It wasn’t Lin’s job to save the city; it was hers, the Avatar! First Bolin and now Lin; Korra didn’t want any more sacrifices.

She reached into her pocket and gripped the equalist goggles tight.

There would not be any more sacrifices.

Only hers.

.

.

Saying that Asami Sato’s mansion was huge was an understatement.

Korra almost turned back—and it wasn’t just because the hike up there was insanely steep. The gates of her mansion were silver steel. She noticed the faint patterns of gears and wires and other signs of the future, of industry, embedded in the decorations that branded her home. The Sato estate in itself was step into the future, with its new and original design aspects and its top of the line quality materials.

But Korra took a deep breath and grabbed the silver knock and gave a few good poundings anyway.

She waited for what felt like an eternity before the doors swung open, silent and without a noise, and revealed a small man in a black suit and glasses. He looked down at her, condescending, and opened his mouth as if to spew some regular speech when he stopped and checked again. He coughed uncertainly before he bowed politely.

“Avatar Korra, a pleasure.”

She laughed nervously, returning a quick and hasty bow. “Yeah, I’m just here to check if Asami’s home?”

The butler stepped aside and gestured for her to walk inside. “Wait here—I’ll be back in a moment.”

It wasn’t a long wait. Minutes later, Asami Sato bolted down the stairs quickly and graceful. Korra smiled slightly when she watched Asami jump on the banister and slide all the way down the spiral staircase, landing gracefully at the bottom. “Hey, Lee, my father wanted to—“ her voice trailed off when she noticed Korra standing by her door. “Avatar Korra?

Korra threw a thumb behind her. “Oh, your um…butler dude just went to get you. I think.” She scratched the back of her neck nervously. “Sorry, I probably should have called or something…”

Asami shook her head. “No, no, it’s fine!” She ran her fingers through her fine black hair before she asked, “So, would you like some tea, or something?”

Korra chuckled. “Tea or something would be great.”

.

.

They sat in Asami’s room, at a small table she had set off in the corner. Korra was extra careful with her tea, seeing as she was pretty sure the china was worth more than her parent’s igloo. She would watch as Asami would pick the cup up with grace, pinky out, and try to mimic her actions.

The whole ordeal resulted in tea getting on her shirt.

Nice.

Asami noticed and reached over, tapping Korra’s wrist. “Please. Lap it up with your tongue if that’s what you do. I don’t care one bit,” she laughed. Korra smiled, embarrassed, and settled for clasping the cup in her palm and taking long chugs.

“I’m a little better than my polar-bear dog, Naga,” she promised and Asami giggled. The two shared light conversation before Asami picked up on Korra’s nervous ticks and darting eyes.

“Korra?” Asami’s voice was light and feathery, gentle and calm.

“Yeah?” Korra couldn’t say the same for hers.

“…I’m sorry about what happened to your friend at the tournament.”

Korra’s shoulder sagged and she downed the rest of her tea—lukewarm and flavorless. “You see,” she sighed. “That’s kind of why I stopped by?”

Asami quirked an eyebrow. “Really?” She reached over and refilled both their cups.

“Yeah, you see…” She stopped short, staring at the steam that rose from the cup. She tipped her head forward, letting the smells drift through her nostrils and the spices tickle the back of her throat. It smelled like jasmine, known for its calming properties, but Korra felt anything but calm.

It didn’t feel right what she was doing anymore. Ever since the fiasco at the pro-bending arena a few days back, that left not only Bolin bending-less, but homeless as well, she saw his spirit fade. For the first time in awhile, he was homeless again. Sure, Tahno had offered up his apartment and Bolin has moved in with him, but he saw it his green eyes, in the way he walked and talked. It wasn’t the same. He was back to being the homeless, job-less boy he once was. She was sure by the way Bolin’s laughs would be slightly strained, how the circles under his eyes blared from no sleep, that memories of his life on the streets—of his brother-- kept creeping back, keeping him awake.

Mako.

Was Hiroshi aware of Mako’s ties with Amon? Was Asami? Her thoughts drifted back to the night in the restaurant. Mako was dressed up, talking closely with Hiroshi. Hood designs was it? Was he a top designer? Did he steal money from under Hiroshi’s nose? Or…was it given to him willingly?

No, stop Korra. Don’t think like that.

But then again…wasn’t it one of the reasons she was here?

She blinked suddenly, trying to chase the name out of head. Focus on Bolin, she told herself. Korra became aware of Asami’s gentle features, looking at her with concern. “You see,” Korra continued, “My teammates were telling me that long ago, they actually…uh, knew you? Kind of?”

Asami looked genuinely surprised. “Really? I think I’d remember faces as cute as those,” she snickered, taking a sip of tea. But then she considered it seriously, shaking her head no. “Sorry, I don’t remember.”

Korra tipped back in her chair. “Well, Bolin used to…work a lot of odd jobs. Including this mechanic job.”

Asami’s eyes lit up. “Oh, did he work for my father?”

No exactly she thought. “No, he—um worked for some guys who did some,” she struggled with the words, the accusation. “Illegal street racing.”

Silence.

Then, laughter.

“Oh goodness! You know about that?” She peeked out her open door, as if checking for her father, before she said, “Well, you got to test the cars somehow, you know? And that track outback does little to...what’s the phrase…have fun?” she paused. “Don’t tell my dad, alright?”

Korra laughed. “Your secret is safe with me. So…you remember now?”

Asami frowned. “Can’t say that I do—I’ve raced a lot of people, seen a lot of makeshift mechanics,” she took another sip. “He wasn’t one of my mechanics was he?” she whispered. “I always took some kids who were willing to help with pit stops in between races and what not.”

Avatar Korra quirked a brow. “You’d hire any old kid off the street to work on your father’s brand new cars?

The Sato shrugged. “Sure, why not? I like to give people chances—my father, no doubt rubbing off on me. He is all about giving people chances.” Another shrug. “Humble beginnings and such,” she mused. She perked up again. “Actually, he did hire a boy right off the streets! Became one of his finest designers. You met him the other day, at the restaurant? Mako!”

Korra squeezed the cup in her hand so hard, it shattered.

Face red with embarrassment, Korra struggled to pick up the pieces that lay in a puddle of warm tea. “Shit, I’m sorry, Asami….” She mumbled.

Asami chuckled. “Didn’t like the tea?” Asami joked weakly.

Korra snorted softly, picking up the pieces and dropping them in Asami’s open palms. She threw them away before grabbing a towel from her bathroom and patting down over the spilled tea. “Don’t worry about it,” Asami assured, noticing Korra’s still red face. “But yeah, he hired Mako right off the streets.” She threw Korra a dazzling wink. “You saw him--pretty cute, isn’t he?”

Despite herself, Korra blushed because yes, the asshole was pretty cute.

Asami picked up on her deepening blush. Her mouth opened in shock. “Ooh, you do think he’s cute! Can’t say I blame you.”

Korra bowed her head low, anything to avoid showing off her flaming cheeks. “I-I guess,” she stuttered. She chewed on the inside of her cheek before rolling her eyes. What in spirits name was she getting flustered for?

Asami leaned forward. “I could set you two up, if you want?”

Korra snapped up, shocked. “What?”

“Maybe you’ll have better luck than I did,” The Sato shrugged. “A bit of a recluse, but my father saw something in him so he can’t be all bad.” She waggled her eyebrows suggestively. “So what do you say?”

Korra sat up abruptly almost knocking off the vase that sat on the table. “Oh, no, I’m fine you don’t have to—“ she trailed off quickly, her hands wringing together nervously. Asami laughed her songbird laugh before she jumped up and grabbed Korra’s wrist and began dragging her out of the room and down the staircase.

“Where are we going?”

“Don’t worry, you’ll thank me!”

“Wait, what?”

.

.

It was several minutes before they had walked far enough behind the mansion to reach the Sato test track. Korra stared in awe at the dips and curves of the track that set nestled on the foothills of the mountains behind the city. The asphalt sparkled in mid-afternoon sun and Korra smiled when a car ripped by, tires squealing, rubber burning. Asami walked by, ignoring the loud roars of engines and headed right over to the covered garage.

Korra was greeted by two mechanics, each working on a vehicle that was lifted and torn apart. She saw scraps of hoods, boxes of tools, and something that looked like paint in the corner. They greeted Asami first, extending the manners to Korra, especially upon learning she was the Avatar. Korra walked over and stared at her reflection in the shiny new navy coat that was applied to the hood while she listened to the mechanics babble about gadgets that made the car go faster.

Asami twirled a wrench in her hand, looking around. “Mako here?”

One of them nodded behind her. “Right on cue.”

Asami whipped around, a bright smile on her face as she looked up at him. “Hey there!”

Korra turned around suddenly as he wiped his brow with the back of his hands before reaching into his pocket and grabbing a rag to wipe the grease from his fingers. He didn’t appear to notice her. “What can I do for you, Miss Sato?” He asked politely.

His voice made Korra’s heart speed and she turned back around, looking to maybe hide herself. But she tripped over a tool box, sending its contents sprawling to the ground with loud clanks and clatters.

All eyes were on her.

“You should really think about leaving your tools somewhere else,” Korra offered nervously, wiping her hands on her pelt as she tried to play it cool.

Mako stared.

Asami laughed the whole thing off before she looked up at Mako, all smiles. “Is that new model ready for me to drive?”

Mako stared at Korra a few moments longer before he looked down at the heiress and gave a half smile. “Almost.”

She turned around and waved Korra over. “You added those extra cylinders I wanted, right?”

Mako sighed, suddenly tired. “Not all of them. But we added two, yes.”

“Two.”

“You’d be surprised how much faster that already makes it.”

Asami put her hands up in defense as Korra slumped over to her side. “Fair enough.” She put her hands on the Avatar’s shoulders. “You remember Korra, right?”

Mako watched as Avatar Korra scrutinized her with her sky blue eyes, her lips puckered in a pout. Her whole stance was defensive, on the tips of her toes, no doubt ready to back flip and knock him upside the jaw (again.) But as he studied her, observed her, his eyes kept drifting to her lips, soft and thin, and how they were warm when his lungs were full of cold water.

So yeah. He remembered.

“Of course,” he said, but offered nothing else. Korra’s eyes narrowed.

“Of course,” she parroted, barely audible.

Asami kept looking between the two, deciding the tension between them was completely sexual. “So, Mako, I was thinking. I haven’t been out racing in awhile.”

Korra was a bit surprised. Mako knew about her racing?

But they both took note of his suspicious expression. “Right…” he drawled, daring her to go on.

She did. “So when the new model comes out, we should go out and…test it, if you know what I mean. All three of us!” She nudged Korra’s shoulders. “Hey! You should bring Bolin and Tahno! I’m sure they could use a little fun right about now.”

Mako made a choking sound. Korra would be lying if she said she didn’t revel in his discomfort. “Do you think it’s wise to bring her…” he struggled for the words and decided on, “teammates.” He picked the rag back up and absentmindedly wiped grease from his palms that wasn’t even there. “What if they got in trouble?”

Asami huffed. “They’ll be fine—long as I’m driving. Besides, the police haven’t been out much these past few days.”

Korra frowned. “”Chief Beifong…” she whispered.

“What was that?”

Korra looked up at Mako, guilt obviously written across her face. “Nothing,” she mumbled before turning to Asami, a faint smile spread across her cheeks. “You know what? That does sound like fun? We’ll be there.”

“Great!” She pointed to Mako. “You’d better be there as well.”

He looked over at the mechanics, thankful for the distraction as they called him over. “…maybe,” he said, but Korra could hear the opposition. But the funny part was she couldn’t decide if she wanted him to stay away, like he should, or turn up so she could kick his ass.

She felt Asami tug her out of the garage. “He’ll be there. Don’t worry.”

Korra didn’t say anything in response.

.

.

“Korrrrrraaaaaaa.”

Korra grunted as she continued to push Bolin down the streets. “Bo, cut it out! It’ll be fun.” She turned to Tahno. “Little help here?”

Tahno walked with one hand in his pocket, the other in front of his face, inspecting his nails. “Sorry, I’m a little busy right now.”

She blew her bangs out of her face. “You ass.”

“Hmm,” he hummed.

The same routine went on for a few minutes: Bolin would dig his heels into the ground, trying to keep Korra from dragging him down the streets and Korra would bark at him to suck it up. She threatened to pick him up and carry him if he didn’t shut up.

He squeaked. “You would never!”

She lifted him a few inched off the ground to prove her point.

“Okay, okay, I get it! Just save a guy some embarrassment and put me down!” he said quickly. With a laugh, she set him down. Bolin sighed, but his lips twitched in a small smile as he slung a lazy arm around Korra’s shoulders. “Alright, so what’s the big fun you have planned?”

Korra looked up, trying to find a street sign. “Are we three blocks from Dragon Flats?”

Tahno threw her a peculiar glance. “Four.” He corrected. “Dragon Flats. Why.”

Korra smirked. “You’ll see.”

As if on cue, a loud hot rod rounded the corner, complete with dark red, sparking paint and black detailing. It was a convertible with white seats and matching white wall tires.

It stopped right in front of them.

Tahno let out a low whistle. “Would you look at this pretty thing.”

Asami removed her goggles and helmet before offering the trio a polite wave and smile. “Hey, Korra.”

Korra nodded in acknowledgement. “Hey, Asami.” She tugged on Bolin’s sleeve. “Alright, hop in!” Korra didn’t hesitate as she jumped right in the back, leaving shotgun for one of the boys. But they did not follow as readily as she had anticipated. She frowned at their slack jaws and wide eyes. “What’s wrong?”

Bolin pointed at the driver. “That’s…that’s Asami Sato!” he squeaked. “Her dad makes these cars,” he whispered loudly, as if it were a secret.

Asami laughed. “Yeah, including this one—which isn’t even on the market yet. Thought we’d go for a test run…” she and Korra shared knowing smiles. “What do you say, Bolin?”

His hands flew to his mouth before he peeled them away just enough to whisper, “She knows my name?”

This time, Korra laughed. “Yeah, I told her about you. Now come on, we don’t have all night!”

Bolin and Tahno looked to each other before the both shrugged, faces breaking out into smiles. “Shot-gun!” the both shouted, but Tahno managed to snag the seat first. Korra patted the seat next to her. “Hey! What’s wrong with sitting next to me, The Avatar?”

Bolin’s eyes lit up to match his smile as he hopped in beside her. “Nothing—in fact, I think I got the better end of the deal, Miss Avatar.” He ruffled her hair and she sat back in her seat, pouting.

“Why didn’t you guys freak out when you learned I was the Avatar? I’m a big deal too!”

Bolin opened his mouth to protest when Tahno turned around slightly in his chair. “I’m sorry, were we supposed to?”

The car engine rolled to life, masking Asami’s laugh.

“Asshole.” Korra murmured.

Tahno just smirked.

.

.

The pulled up to a poorly lit part of town; it was a bit noisy, shadowy figures lurking here and there. The only light came from headlights as other cars arrived. When Asami turned off the loud engine, Korra could hear the snide remarks.

“Aw shit, the princess is here.”

“Look at those wheels.”

“The wheels? How about looking at her—“

Asami rolled her eyes. “Just ignore them—they’re sore losers.” She jumped out of the car and removed her helmet, shaking her hair free. “I’ve got to talk to a few people. Just stay here.” A sly smile twisted on her lips. “Maybe you can look out for Ma—“

“Okay cool I will!” Korra blurted before she could finish. Asami laughed lightly before she tucked her helmet under her arm and walked over to a guy in an expensive suit.

Korra felt the gazes before she heard the whispers. Some of them were low, dirty, remarks on her appearances. Korra and her friends were newbies, outsiders, in territory they’d never been in. She felt Bolin’s arms wrap around her protectively, and all thought she couldn’t see it, she was sure he was throwing them dirty looks back.

But most of them came from recognition. Her face was plastered all over the newspapers, so it wasn’t much surprise that people knew who she was. They weren’t in complete non-bender territory—she saw a few firebenders and waterbenders lurking about. But she saw a million different expressions among them all: fear, wonder, anger, disgust.

She didn’t like it.

One man in particular came up to her, all sleazy smiles and oddly cut clothing. He had a cigarette in his mouth and she watched as he lit the tip with his finger. “Avatar Korra is it?”

Korra jumped out of the car, standing on the edge of her toes, chest puffed out, refusing to look small. “Yeah, what of it?”

He circled her like one stalks his prey. “What’s a pretty thing like you doing in this part of town?”

She snarled a bit, baring her teeth. Bolin stepped forward, but Korra held up a hand to stop him before she took a step toward the man, her finger poking his chest. “Listen here, chump,” she hissed. “We’re just here to beat some of your scrawny little friends asses—that’s it. So stop staring before I make you.”

He didn’t back away from her touch; instead he looked down, his smug smirk growing. “So you came to play is it? Well, I’m sure I’ve got something that’ll make you race—OW!”

He cried out as Korra suddenly reached out and grabbed his arm, twisting it behind his back. He cringed in pain while she huffed, bored. “You were saying?”

“Hey now, I need Hiro.”

Korra looked back up to see Asami and the man she was speaking with in front of her; Asami had her gloved hand to her mouth, trying not to laugh—but Korra saw the amusement twinkling in her eyes.

Unceremoniously, she dropped “Hiro's" arm and watched with mild amusement as he hit the pavement face first. He jumped to his feet, wiping it his clothes and sending Korra dirty glares. The bigger, heftier man just laughed.

“Now, The Avatar is one of our guests, Hiro. She’s going to be participating in the races—you should be thanking her. The bets are large.” Hiro grumbled while the pudgy man stepped forward, hand open. “I’m Goro.”

Tahno stepped forward. “So someone’s stepped up and created a ring of this thing, huh?”

Goro laughed a big, loud laugh. “Been awhile since you’ve raced, huh? Well, what the government doesn’t know won’t hurt them.” He winked. “So, how are we going to do this? The usual?”

The conversation went back to Goro and Asami, leaving Hiro to throw her more dirty looks. He spat on he ground, right at her feet. “Pathetic. Do you even know how to drive? All you can do is bend—and I bet I’m even a better firebender, at that. What on earth are you doing here, little girl? Go home.”

Korra seethed. She was tired of having people pressure her and try to scare her away. There was Amon, who captured her and attacked the arena and left Bolin without his bending. He was enough—haunting her dreams and making her confused as she saw Bolin’s brother gone equalist all around town, lurking under her nose. He was trying to scare her. Tarrlok tried to manipulate her into joining the task force—and it worked! And what did it do? It got her captured, and she had to rely on Mako to free her. Korra knew this couldn’t continue.

“You’re the Avatar,” Bolin said, smiling. “Start acting like it.”

“Hey.” She barked, and she was proud of the steadiness, the confidence that oozed from that one word. Goro and Asami turned. “I’ve got an idea—if you’re up for a little…show?”

Goro smiled, all teeth. “Go on.”

Korra stepped forward, attracting her friends and those around listening. “Six drivers, six benders—six teams. Each driver gets a bender to sit in the back. While they drive, the benders try to create roadblocks.” She paused, thinking of pro-bending. “No rules. Lightning, ice whatever you want. Anything to slow the other guys down. So.” She looked around, a playful smile on her face. “Who’s game?”

The crowd erupted into cheers. Bolin though, grabbed Korra fiercely by the shoulder and whipped her around. “What are you doing?” he cried, worried. “You just made this…a lot more dangerous. And it was already bad enough—trust me. Right Tahno?”

Tahno was leaning against the car, face unreadable. But slowly he nodded, sighing. “I hope you know what you’re doing, Korra.”

Korra scoffed. “It’ll be fine. Hey, Bolin, you know how to drive right?”

Bolin didn’t think what her question truly inquired. “Well, yeah, I used to drive the delivery truck when I worked at Narooks, but,” he paused, eyes going wide like saucers. “Me! You want me to drive?” He sputtered. “Ask Tahno! He’s way better at it than I am—I’ve never actually raced.”

Korra nodded to Asami. “He’s going to be the waterbender with Asami. Besides, there’s a first time for everything, right?”

“Korra!”

“Oh come on!”

The Avatar was suddenly yanked from her argument and pulled into the crowd. “What’s the rush, Asami?”

“I found Mako for you! Told you he’d come.”

“What.”

She shoved the Avatar in front of her, placing her beside him. “This helmet looks familiar—glad to see you came to the races, Mako.” She suddenly darted off

Korra waited for Mako to take the helmet off. She saw the concern in his eyes as he looked left and right, checking to make sure the coast was clear. His scar looked a dull red in the dark of night before he looked down, a frown on his face.

“What on earth are you doing here?”

He sighed. “Making sure no one gets hurt,” he murmured, before his cold expression returned. “Don’t tell me you’re driving—then there’s no hope for any of us.”

Korra narrowed her eyes. “I’m not. But my friend, Bolin is.”

Mako tensed. She was certain she saw old flames, bright fire, flare behind his gold eyes before he quickly put the helmet back on. As he passed her, he bumped her shoulder. “Try not to get anyone killed,” he snarled.

“Likewise!” she snapped.

.

.

“I still don’t know about this, Kor.” Bolin nervously drummed his fingers on the wheel of the satomobile. “This thing looks expensive.”

Korra hopped on the back, settling in carefully. She cracked her knuckles, readying herself for the race. “Not really. Asami said it was abandoned—a couple of adjustments here and here and it’s good enough to race!” she grinned. “So, you don’t have to play nice to keep this thing in tact—all or nothing!”

Bolin swallowed. “Awesome.”

Korra sighed and crawled over to the front, her lips ticking Bolin’s ear as she whispered. “Come on, it’ll be fun! Team Earth! We’re the best duo Republic City has ever seen! We’ll beat everyone—including Asami and Tahno.”

Bolin sighed, and she heard him shake in his breath. “I hope you’re right.”

Goro announced the “rules” (There weren’t any) People placed their bets as the six cars were assigned colors, seeing as each car was at least slightly different in shade. There were two firebenders, two waterbenders, and two earthbenders—Korra was acting as an earthbender, agreeing to only earthbending.

As long as her life, or any of her friends’, wasn’t in danger. Tahno and Bolin made her promise that.

Though, she wasn’t too worried.

Korra looked down the row of cars and spotted Mako, compete with dark helmet that covered his hair and made it hard to see his face. Someone was worried about being found by Bolin. But as Korra picked up on mad thumping of her heart, she figured she was just as worried as Mako.

The worried feeling melted into pure competitive spirit and as the countdown began, Korra was looking to make sure Mako’s car was the first to go down.

3

2

1

Korra was surprised at how the engine roared, how the tires squealed. She watched as Bolin threw the gear stick to the right and was off, taking off immediately. For a second she caught the side of his face; he was determined, strong, and steady.

Like an earthbender.

She was pulled from her thoughts when a flame licked at her side, singing some of her hair. She looked over and saw Hiro staring at her, smirking.

The driver, dark helmet and all, kept forward.

Bolin steered a bit to the left and Korra got an easier shot at Mako’s car. She clenched her fists and earthbent several, sharp pellets of earth from the ground, releasing them at rapid fire at Mako’s car. She nicked the side and put in a few dents, But Mako managed to dodge to keep them from blowing out the tire.

Korra looked straight ahead—Asami and Tahno had a strong lead, battling the other earthbender and his driver. Behind her, she felt the other firebender snap whips of fire her way.

Bolin suddenly yanked the wheel; there was a turn. “Hold on!” he yelped, and not-so-gracefully, the car ripped to the right as they went left; Korra held on to the side, almost falling out. She turned her attention back to the firebender and sent two large disks to the car—one of them popped the back left tire.

“Aww yeah!” Korra cheered, right before Bolin took another sharp turn. He swerved again when they avoided the earthbender that Tahno and Asami had taken out. She noticed the large daggers of ice that had popped two tires.

Not as far ahead as Asami, but still ahead, the other waterbender began throwing water and ice at her. Korra broke the ice but tossing rocks in the air to prevent them from hitting the car, but eventually the waterbender caught on, a devilish smirk on her face. Korra watched as the driver stepped on the gas and the waterbender used the extra space to lay down a sheet of ice on the pavement.

“Bo! Step on it!”

“But the ice--!”

“Just do it!” she screamed.

He did as she said and the car roared as he yanked the stick into higher gear. Korra took a quick breath before she made a ramp of earth.

The car flew up the ramp and in the air, past the waterbender, and right behind Tahno and Asami.

“Nice one!” Korra cheered. “Now we just have to—“ she stopped when a flash of lightning crackled in her vision.

She narrowly dodged the attack and looked behind her—Mako had overtaken the other waterbender. Korra frowned, readying her rocks when another bolt of lightning from Hiro came her way, but this time, he aimed it at the metal mechanisms of the interior.

When the electricity faded, she watched as horror as Bolin’s face hit the wheel, sounding the horn. He had been touching the metal and he was knocked out. “Bolin!” she screamed. She reached down, trying to wake him up.

Up ahead, a sheet of ice, laid down by Tahno, still remained.

“No, no!” she cried. She tried to move the wheel, but it was no use—Bolin’s foot was still pressed to the gas.

The turn and the ice came up and with what she had left, Korra yanked the wheel to the left. The back left tire grazed the ice and sent them spinning into the intersection. The car fell on its side before it skidded, sparks flying as metal scratched the earth, and stopped suddenly as it hit a lamppost.

Korra had ducked in between the seats, bending what she could to protect herself—she was left with a large gash on her arm, but she was better off than Bolin. She crawled through the twisted metal of the car toward Bolin, who still unconscious, a gash on his forehead bleeding onto the wheel. She gripped his face and shook it slightly. “Bolin? Bolin, you got to wake up.” She didn’t wait as she looped her arms around him and tugged him free, dragging him out into the road.

There were few people out—but she did notice the lights that turned on in the surrounding buildings. “Bolin?” She spotted a nearby puddle and bent the water over, trying to search for some wound on his head. “Bolin, please, wake up!”

Tires screeched, and she looked up, expecting Tahno and Asami.

But it wasn’t.

He ran toward her, throwing his helmet to the ground—the tinted covering cracked. “What have you done!” He growled, kneeling beside them.

Korra smacked him away—she wouldn’t dare let him touch Bolin, brother or not. “ME? Your firebender electrocuted him!”

“You were supposed to take care of him!”

“Would have been easier without the electrocution!” Korra looked around. “Where is that little punk I should—“

“He’s knocked out in the back seat.” Mako said quietly. He kept his eyes trained on his unconscious brother. He nudged Korra. “Go on—heal him.”

Korra growled, cradling Bolin closer to her, but she didn’t yell back. The water hovered over his head, trying to find an injury—nothing she could heal was present. “He’ll wake up—eventually.” An I hope lingered in the back of her throat. One was never too sure with these injuries.

Korra watched as Mako reached out, his hand hovering over Bolin. It was then Korra noticed the fine lines, long, wiry scars that smeared his palms and fingers. She saw him swallow before he whispered, “Bo?”

He stirred, eyes still closed.

From behind, Mako and Korra heard the screeching of more tires. Mako ran to fetch his helmet. “I got to go,” he barked, putting it back on. He pointed a finger. “Do a better job of taking care of him…” he said quietly, before he jumped into his car and drove away.

This time, the car that pulled up was Tahno and Asami. Asami jogged forward, Tahno right behind her. Korra was certain she has never seen her fellow teammate look so…guilty before.

“Was it…?” he asked, voice quiet.

There was no need for him to finish the sentence. “The ice made us swerve but—It was Hiro who knocked him out in the first place.”

Asami bit her lip. “Spirits I had no idea it would get this bad.” She looked at both Tahno and Korra. “I am so sorry.”

Korra snorted softly, running her fingers through Bolin’s hair. “Don’t be. I shouldn’t have turned it into what I did.”

“Korra?” Bolin groaned, slowly opening his eyes. His hand flew to his head. “Ow…”

Korra laughed, thankful. “You okay?”

He slowly sat up, looking around. “I was unconscious, right?”

Korra nodded slowly. “Yeah,” she drawled, noticing his puzzled face. “Why, what’s wrong? Do you need something healed or—“ her hands started darting all over him, looking for injury.

He knocked her away gently, a breathy laugh caught in his throat. “No, it’s just…” his mouth fell into a frown. “I mean, I know its been years, but I thought I heard,” he sighed. “It sounded like… him,” he whispered, so soft, that only Korra heard.

Her stomach tied in knots.

She helped him stand up, and the four of them headed to Asami’s new hot-rod, ready to go to the hospital. Tahno kept Bolin awake in the back, chattering about something Korra paid no attention to. Asami turned on the radio and soft jazz echoed through the streets as they entered better lighting, clubs and restaurants lining the streets.

“Hey, Korra?” Bolin eventually asked. She turned from her seat in the front and offered a tired smile. “Yeah, Bo?”

“Did that asshole firebender and his little driver get what he deserved?” he asked, all smiles, all jokes.

He has no idea, Korra thought.

The sun poked through Bolin’s ripped and tattered curtains, the light painting jagged tattoos on her skin. When it inked across her eyes she squinted, red blinding her behind closed lids. She mumbled and groaned, rolling over in the sheets; she felt something jagged pressed into her back.

“You sure kick a lot in your sleep.”

She recognized his voice instantly, light and teasing. His hands went up to nudge her away from him and she scooted closer to the wall until she felt the worn mattress dip with the absence of his weight.

He didn’t say anything as he padded to the kitchen. She listened as the stove hissed with oils in the pan and the smells of breakfast wafted through the air.

Is that seal jerky?

She was up in an instant, almost falling over when the sheets got caught in her legs. Not bothering to re-make the bed, she took the small sheet and wrapped it around her like a hooded cape. It dragged along the floor as she sleepily made her way to the kitchen. Her chin came to thump on the counter as she rested there, watching with half-lidded eyes as Bolin made breakfast.

“Please tell me my nose isn’t deceiving me.”

Bolin cracked a half-smile, his attention kept on the pan in front of him. “Figured you could use a little slice of home before we played the big match tonight.”

Korra felt her mouth water as she watched the seal jerky sizzle. It popped and cracked and reminded her of the fires her mother kept going in the igloo back home. Bolin added two eggs on the other pan, the symphony of delicious foods intensifying. “Sunny side up, am I right?”

“I love you.”

“I’m aware.”

They ate breakfast like they always did—loudly. Both lacked table manners: that much was evident by the food crumbs scattered on their shirts and laps. They hooted at each other’s jokes, made jabs at the other team’s lame name--“Eel Hounds? I could eat ‘em, for breakfast!”--and even made room to go over the plays they had perfected the last few months in the previous matches.

“I’m telling you Bo, I think we really have this!”

“That’s what I like to hear!,” he began, “But don’t forget! These guys are known for bringing a whole new game come the championship. They’re good at curve-disks...so to speak. They haven’t won twice for nothing.”

Korra stabbed angrily at the last bite of her egg. “Well, this time, the third time is not the charm. Not if I have anything to do about it.”

He bit off a piece of seal jerky, gnawing it aggressively. “Just play by the rules,” he warned her. Korra was notorious for penalties and fouls—he’d admit, she hadn’t committed one in some time—but at the start of her career, when she was fumbling with the rules and relying on her brunt strength, she tended to get carried away.

Korra swallowed her food. “Yeah, yeah over the back not the side, can we not bring that up again?”

A faint knock sounded at the door. Bolin scurried to get up and answer it when Korra shouted “USE THE KEY.”

Bolin whipped back around towards her, crumbs still on his face. “You gave him your key?”

Korra laughed and began making a cabin out of the pieces of seal jerky left on her plate. “No—I made a duplicate of the one you gave me and then I gave him my key. Duh.”

Tahno walked in, hair perfect and clothes neat. He spared his teammates not one glance before he shuffled over to Bolin’s small kitchen. He helped himself to the leftover pieces and stuffed them in his mouth.

“Guess what,” he said with a mouthful of food.

Bolin rolled his eyes before collecting his plate and heading to the kitchenette. “Good morning to you, Tahno. Do come in.”

Tahno swallowed. He took the last piece of jerky and twirled it in the air. “The Eel Hounds have a last minute replacement.”

Korra dropped the last piece of her jerky, sending her little cabin collapsing on the plate. “Wait, what?”

Bolin groaned, dropping the plate in the sink. “See, what did I tell you? CURVE. DISKS.”

Tahno went to the fridge and grabbed the carton of lychee juice, and poured himself a glass. “I’m telling you, Hasook is in it to win it, guys.”

Korra stuffed the last few pieces of her food in her mouth. “Fucking Hasook,” She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. “I can’t wait to destroy that little pompous waterbending captain and send him swimming.”

Bolin ran his hands through his hair, letting his palms run over his face. “Ah, this is a disaster! We’ve spent so much time listening to their matches and memorizing their plays and GAH!” He slammed the counter, upsetting Tahno’s glass. Tahno sighed, but retrieved a rag and went to get himself another glass. “I bet this was Hasook’s plan all along,” Bolin continued. “That little—“

Korra stood up, raising her hands defensively. “Whoa, whoa, whoa! What’s the big idea? So they got a new player—big deal. Tahno, do you know who the replacement was for?”

She watched with annoyance as Tahno lifted the now empty glass to his face, turning it side to side as he gazed at his reflection. “Tahno!” she snapped.

“Alright, Relax, will you?” He set the glass down, his lips quirked to the side in thought. “The firebender. I think.”

“What?” he screeched. Bolin ran over to Korra, gliding across the wooden floor with his sock-covered feet. He grabbed her by the shoulders. “Alright, the firebender, huh? You got to be real careful, Korra. Hasook’s a nasty dude. We’ve drilled you pretty hard and well about earth and water tactics—but fire, for obvious reasons, has the most leeway. I bet this new player has a few tricks up his sleeve.”

Korra looked back and forth between her teammates before pointing to herself. “Why are you telling just me this? We’re all playing them, in case you forgot, captain. Just because I’m the firebender doesn’t mean I’m the only one that has to look out for him.”

Tahno began licking the crumbs from his fingers. “It’s obvious he’s baiting you.”

Korra crossed her arms across her chest before sticking her nose high in the air. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You’re new to the pro-bending gig. I mean, you joined our team like what…2 games into this season? Hasook knows you’re good—you’re the uh-vatar—but let’s face it: you lack in experience. His tricks aren’t going to be on the physical—he knows that’s where yours lie. He’s focusing on the planning and plays aspect.”

 “So you think he’s going to try to…mind-fuck me?”

Tahno smacked his lips. “Precisely.”

Worried, Korra relaxed into Bolin’s hold. “So, what should I do to prepare?”

Bolin saw the fear, the worry in her eyes. It was so unfair for her to have all this stress—the equalists, the threat of the attack, the championship at stake. And now this twist? He didn’t want to worry her—couldn’t afford to worry her, but luckily the truth might just help.

“Nothing. Don’t let Hasook convince you aren’t smart. You’re smart—smarter than him,” he said, growling at the last part. “Just keep in mind what he’s doing. Stick to what we’ve practiced—if there’s a problem, we’ll change up our game.” He relaxed a bit, offering her a smile. He patted her already messy bed hair. “We’ll be fine.”

He watched as her frame deflated, the tension in her posture gone. “You’re right,” she said, before motioning Tahno over. “Group huddle!”

“No.”

“Tahnooooo.” They both cried.

“Spirits,” he murmured, but he joined the huddle regardless.

“Alright team, let’s show them what we got! Fire Ferrets are here to play!”

.

.

.

Mako flexed his glove-cladded hand. He hadn’t taken the thing off since Hiroshi had given it to him, to be honest—the new model was a lot sleeker, a lot lighter, and he was surprised that the Future Industries’ CEO had managed to churn out these things in a matter of days.

Well, only slightly surprised. The man was Hiroshi Sato, after all.

Mako had spent the last few hours in the secret headquarters, the mass maze of underground tunnels that were below the city, practicing his moves. He liked the glove; it packed a lot of punch. But it was nothing compared to those kali sticks the lieutenant had given him when he was guarding the Avatar. His eyes drifted to the corner of his station where he knew the sticks were kept.

Slowly, he took the glove off and set it carefully on the ground. He wandered over casually, making sure no one was looking—he wasn’t entirely sure if he was supposed to still have them. Mako removed the small brown cloth. There it was, long and lean, a few scratches from the previous fight but it was still—

Wait, he thought. Where’s the other one?

As if on cue, someone jumped from behind, gripping his shoulder. “Looking for this!”

Instinctively Mako kicked his back leg up, his foot connecting harshly with his intruder’s jaw. He whipped around, taking advantage of the now, doubled over, pain-ridden man, and clutched him by the neck, pushing him against the back wall. It took a few seconds, but after muffled laughter rung through his ears, he dropped the young man, leaving him in a puddle of his own laughter as he lay on the ground.

“Man, that is too much fun! It’s worth a little pain.”

Mako rolled his eyes, reaching for the kali stick. “Hajime, why do you always feel a need to do that?”

Hajime took the kali stick and hid it behind his back. “Messing with you is fun.”

In a lot of ways, Hajime was annoying. Yes, if you asked Mako, he would definitely say that being annoying was one of his more prominent strengths. But in a lot of ways, Hajime reminded Mako a lot of his little brother—they both laughed a lot, that was for sure. Great, booming laughs that rumbled in their chests. In uniform, Mako couldn’t see it, but when they were in civilian clothes on the streets, Mako would watch as Hajime’s lips spread far too wide, like his laughter would split his cheeks and rattle his teeth until they all fell out. Bolin laughed a lot like that too; in fact when he was six, he laughed so hard, he did lose a tooth. The entire thing freaked Bolin out and his laughter turned to hysterical tears.

It was one of the moments Mako wasn’t the caring big brother there to help because the whole thing made him laugh; the same great booming laughs that Bolin did.

Mako was pretty sure he hadn’t laughed like that since.

He figured that’s why he put up with Hajime—why he put up with anyone, really. He would pick and prod until he found little traits of his brother in others—similar haircut or similar stature or even if they talked the way he did. It wasn’t healthy, it wasn’t smart, but Mako couldn’t help it.

Hajime watched as Mako seemingly got lost in thought, his eyes still trained on the kali stick. He began waving it back in forth in his face. “You are getting very sleepy…”

Mako snapped out of it, reaching out to grab the stick—Hajime held a tight grip. “Give me that, will you?”

“Sheesh, okay, here you go.” He let go of the stick and Mako yanked it back. “I didn’t know Lieutenant let you keep those—not after what happened.”

Mako froze. Hajime had been there. Mako was the one who knocked him out, after all. Did her remember what happened? Does he know it was him that struck him, or was he convinced it was the Avatar? A terrible sense of dread almost sent him shaking, but he took a few calming breaths through his nose.

“Hajime?”

“Yeah, dude?”

“Do you, uh,” it wasn’t like Mako to stutter. He took another breath and tried again. “Do you remember what happened?”

Hajime poked at the weapon. “You mean with the Avatar’s escape?” He huffed, kicking lightly at the ground. “Damn girl struck me from behind.” He sighed, scratching the top of his mask-covered head. “I guess I shouldn’t have baited her like that—“Can’t even free herself from a box”—I guess that wasn’t the smartest move.”

“So, you don’t remember anything after you taunted her?”

Hajime shook his head. “Nah, man.” He paused. “Well, I think I might have heard my name—I guess you were trying to warn me. “ He perked up. “Hey, do you know how she got out of the box? I didn’t think she was a metalbender.”

Memories if him prying open the box came flooding back. He remembered asking her to help, how the edges were melted around the lock. “She’s certainly not a master at metalbending, that’s for sure,” he considered the melted metal. “But I think she just melted the lock. So…I guess a little of both?” He lied. Mako twirled the kali stick in the air. “I don’t know—I guess we needed a better box.”

Hajime snickered. “Or a better guard!” Mako sent him a cold glare. “Kidding, kidding!” Hajime suddenly stepped forward, tapping on the rim of his green goggles. “Hey, are these new?”

On reflex, Mako went to clutch them. “Uh…”

“They don’t have that little scratch in the corner.”

Mako swallowed.  One of Hajime’s finest skills was attention to detail. He was excellent at picking up subtle changes; Mako counted himself lucky that the electrocution wiped out some of his memories. “I earned a few more scratches, so I got another pair.”

Hajime shrugged, accepting his story. “Okay.” Suddenly, he slapped him on the back. “Hey, did you get the briefing yet?”

“The meeting for out ranks isn’t for another two hours—you listened in on the lieutenant’s meeting, didn’t you.”

Hajime flashed him a thumbs up. “Of course! I have a streak to maintain. Anyway, turns out Amon revealed his little plan for the big attack.”

Mako almost dropped the weapon in his hand. What was he talking about? Wasn’t the plan to just interrupt the game and destroy the arena? “I thought the plan was…well, mass destruction.” He said, voicing his thoughts.

Hajime laughed. “Yeah, that too but—“ he leaned in, looking left and right to make sure the coast was clear. “Amon has a special treat for the…guests of honor.”

This time Mako really did drop the stick; it clattered and clanged against the tunnel floor. Mako was quick to pick it up, acting like nothing happened. Hajime stared at him, his unsure expression masked, but continued anyway. “Yeah, well, turns out whoever’s left on that final round of the tournament—well, they’re the main event!”

It struck him like electricity, the realization. It coursed through his veins, ripping at the tissues and burning and boiling underneath his skin. He felt his pulse thud between his ears and his limbs felt fuzzy and he was looking into a world that was green green green.

Bolin.

“So…you mean…” he choked out softly.

“No more bending, baby! How about that! And the winners…the winners lose!” He hooted excitedly.

Mako dropped the kali stick once more.

Only this time, he didn’t bother picking it up again. 

.

.

.

“Lin.”

“Tenzin.”

The councilman watched in silence as Lin surveyed the arena. Every once in awhile, she’d break her stance to point to some obscure area or bark an order. Finally, Tenzin sighed, laying a hand on the chief’s shoulders. He felt the heat of her glare, but she did not pull away from his touch. “Lin, I would really appreciate it if you would let me help you.”

She turned, letting his hand slide off. “I don’t need any help,” she said simply, but Tenzin heard the underlying stubbornness in her tone—he’d only been listening to it his entire life.

He held his breath, trying to remain positive—if he let on how frustrated he was, she’d be all over him, pouncing on his fears and shouting declarations of her strength and how his worried attitude didn’t belong here. The trouble of it all was he was worried. Worried for Korra, worried for the tournament, worried for Lin. He watched her fall for Tarrlok’s trap, perhaps even Amon’s trap, and he still wasn’t entirely sure if Lin was oblivious to the whole thing, or if she thought she could simply beat him.

Then again, while Tarrlok wasn’t the most straight forward of councilman, it didn’t mean his intentions were bad.

Tenzin just wanted to make sure this tournament went as expected—that’s all.

“…Did you check under the bleachers?”

Lin groaned, rolling her eyes. “Yes. And before you ask, I checked all the dressing rooms, gyms, the stage itself—I even checked the pool. I’ve got patrol out in the bay, in the sky, and every little inch of this place you could imagine. I don’t need you help, so please just let me do my job.”

Tenzin resisted the urge to snap, instead choosing to reach up and stroke his beard in thought. “I will. I’m aware of your capabilities, and I know you are very strong—but a little extra help couldn’t hurt, right?”

He watched as her tense shoulders deflated. Her lips jutted out in a small pout, one she always gave when she didn’t want to admit to loosing a sparring match back when they were kids. “…I guess not,” she whispered. I fond smile appeared on her face. “I guess it’ll be just like old times, right?”

“Like old times.”

Quiet rushed over them quickly. Tenzin remained by her side, close, but too much. He helped with orders, yelling for her when she didn’t feel like it (which, surprisingly was often. Tenzin had a feeling she liked hearing him sound frustrated.) And the search was wrapping up nicely. Eventually, she turned to him and said, “Well, looks like things are all checked out. Be sure to tell the girl—she’s possibly a bundle of nerves.”

Tenzin considered the thought. “She hasn’t said anything—then again she’s been with her teammates most of the time.”

Lin’s lips slid to the side. “Ah, I’m sure she’s fine, for the most part. A little unstable at times, yes, but the girl is tough as nails. After all, she is playing in the tournament.”

Tenzin allowed a light laugh. “Reminds me of someone else I knew at that age.”

“Hmmph.”

.

.

.

The crowds were loud with hysterics. Korra didn’t dare to look out from the small locker room; cameras flashed every which way, creating nauseating shows of lights. There were tons of unreadable signs for both teams, and every once in a while, she heard a shriek scream from a fangirl, declaring their love for their favorite teammate.

A lot of the time, it was Tahno. More times, it was Bolin.

But most of all, it was Korra.

Korra cringed.

Tahno came up from behind her, tossing her uniform in her face. He wandered over to the little bench and reached underneath to grab his water bottle before he took a swig. “Hurry up—it’s game time, Kitten.”

She glared at him—she was already in her undershirt and shorts. She began slipping into the uniform, trying to ignore the slight shake of her hands. She had never gotten nervous before a match before, and she didn’t want to start now. Korra spotted Bolin in the corner, where she saw him leaned over, chattering excitedly to their little mascot, Pabu.

“Now buddy, don’t get nervous. We’ll do great!”

Korra relaxed at his words. She knew they weren’t directed at her, but she knew he’d say them to her, had she asked him. Bolin believed in her, in all of them. And she wasn’t about to let him down.

The three of them continued getting ready and Korra started to feel like herself again. Bolin kept making team pep talks, Tahno kept rolling his eyes and she kept making snide remarks at the both of them. She knew things were back to normal when they got in their final huddle and Tahno slapped her ass again.

“I’m telling you; it’s how teammates say good luck around here.”

“Pig.”

“Don’t act like you don’t like it.”

Bolin shushed them. “Okay, okay,” he looked behind them, the platform in the center of the field rising. “This is it guys! Let’s win this thing!”

They collectively hooted and howled before filing onto the moving platform that would extend to the arena as their team was announced.

“Introducing the Fire Ferrets!”

Bolin stepped forward, almost on the edge, waving enthusiastically and blowing kisses. Tahno lazily kept one hand in the air, waving to what he thought were all the cute girls. Korra pressed herself to the edge. The platform moved, slowly, and she peeked her head straight above—this was really the only opportunity she got to see some of her fans, as the pro-bending field was so far in the middle. She looked up, expecting to see Malina and her little friends.

But that simply wasn’t the case.

Korra was completely and utterly floored. She blinked, once, twice, ten times just to make sure she wasn’t hallucinating or dreaming. Her mouth fell open and her throat went dry but she couldn’t move, couldn’t speak, couldn’t even find the strength to turn around and grab Bolin and scream, “He’s not dead! Look!”

She couldn’t do any of it because this simply couldn't be happening.

She recalled the conversation she had with Lin earlier that afternoon; the arena was secure, security increased by numbers she couldn’t imagine, with Tenzin watching the whole thing as well. Nothing would go wrong, Lin had promised. Not if she had anything to do about it.

So as she stared at him, her gaze drifting up to trace the unsightly scar patterns along his neck and cheek, she wondered: If he was here…

Mako.

…Then who else?

Suddenly, the game was the least of her problems.

.

.

.

“Oooh, dude, let’s sit here!”

Mako allowed Hajime to pull him through the crowd, toward the far side of the arena. “Why do you want to sit all the way over here?” He asked, irritated. His eyes drifted to the other side and he silently hoped the Fire Ferrets were on that side.

“Because,” Hajime said, stuffing a large handful of popcorn in his mouth. “I want to see their faces filled with hope before they are rightfully crushed!” He nudged Mako suggestively. “If you know what I mean.”

Mako sneered, pushing his fellow recruit away. He looked to the highest seats in the arena. “I don’t see why we can’t just sit up there.”

Hajime ignored Mako’s brooding behavior and continued to push the two of them through the crowd. “We have to sit in this section anyway, so you can have that easy access to the stairs that lead to the pool, and I can hop the platform—might as well get the best seats, you know?”

Oh yeah. Their assignments.

Mako fought a cringe.

The gigantic stadium filled quickly with people of all kinds. He saw benders and non benders alike, both old and young. He saw frail old couples holding signs: One of which said “BE OUR GRANDSON, BOLIN” and another saying “I CAN’T REMEMBER WHICH TEAM I’M ROOTING FOR. JUST BEAT EACH OTHER UP.” Hajime pointed it out and laughed. Mako saw little girls begging Tahno to be their boyfriend and he saw a giant cut out poster of Avatar Korra’s head. And that was only the Fire Ferrets. There was support for Eel Hounds as well; posters, costumes you name it, all held by people with big smiles and laughter.

Everyone here had come together in peace.

And he and a bunch of other people were about to fuck it up.

“So, who do you want to win?”

Mako almost jumped at the sound of his voice—since when did he get so jumpy? He reached up and started to tug as his scarf. The scarf he had given his brother almost five years ago before he unknowingly abandoned him. Angry with himself, he sat on his hands.

“…I don’t think it matters.”

“Huh?”

Mako tried to collect his thoughts.  He regarded the people around him and decided they were too busy screeching in each other’s ears to pay any mind to his conversation. He continued, “I just think that he’ll do what he wants regardless of the winners.”

Hajime stroked his chin in thought. “I dunno, man. I really think he’ll do as he says. I mean, it’ll probably fit his plans and speech and all that jazz.”

Worry churned in the pit of his stomach. His mouth went dry.

“You’re probably right.”

The lights in the arena dimmed and the center platform rose to reveal the announcer.  He pointed a finger to their side of the arena.

“Introducing, the Fire Ferrets!”

The platform was slow moving. Mako saw three players emerge from below.

And that’s when his heart stopped.

He was completely and utterly floored. The little dork still had the same haircut he had a few years back. Well, he wasn’t so much little anymore. He had gotten taller, muscular, evidenced by the frame of his backside. He watched, awed, as his little brother held his fists high in the air, curled with victory, like he already won.

He found himself hoping he really, really didn’t win. And for Mako, the equalist, the Lieutenant’s right hand man, the guy all about equality…well, he thought he would want Bolin to be like him. He was supposed to want the best for his little brother, and wasn’t Amon’s plan the best?

But despite it all, he decided he didn’t want this for his little brother. He didn’t want his bending to be taken like his was and he didn’t know for the life of him why.

Finally, blue met gold.

And as Korra looked to him, slack jawed and dare he say, terrified, Mako found himself curling his lips into a soft frown, scrunching his brow in worry.

Please. Don’t win.

The blues of her eyes vibrated and shined.

And suddenly, he found himself understanding just exactly why.

.

.

.

“And their opponents, the Ember Island Eel Hounds!”

The crowd erupted into more cheers, paired with more boos. The platform came to a stop and Bolin stepped off, still reveling in the praise, a wide smile on his face. The other platform came approaching, Hasook at the front, along with his teammates, including the replacement firebender.

But Korra was still staring behind her, her eyes trained on the young man who was nothing but a speck lost among flashes of lights and cheers. Tahno gave her a not so gentle push from behind. “Let’s go,” he snapped.

The Avatar stumbled off the platform, still doe-eyed and confused. She looked around the crowd, the stadium suddenly filled with a lot of people, more than she ever realized. There were moms and dads and families and the possibility of that being ruined worried her.

She thought she might throw up.

She felt another shove, this time from Bolin. She looked at him and at once, he saw his slight annoyance wash away into deep concern—she figured she wasn’t hiding anything very well at the moment.

“Hey, relax, okay?” he said quietly before nodded to the far right. “Go get in your spot.”

Dumbly, she followed his orders. She hunched over—and looked straight across to the waterbending captain.

He smirked. “Nervous?”

Korra sneered.

All six of them waited for the introductions to finish—all the stuff about the winning pot, the player profiles, all the things that were routine with these big-time events. But it bought her time, Korra decided. She took some deep breaths, giving herself time to think.

Lin has everything under control.

If they’re here—she’ll catch them before they get a chance to attack.

Maybe Mako took my advice—maybe he’s here to see Bolin.

The last thought gave her some hope.

Yeah, Mako’s here to see Bolin. He’s going to cheer us on and watch the game.

She swallowed.

He…didn’t look worried at all.

“READY?”

She snapped out of it, forgetting all about red scarfs and green goggles and broken families and Amon Amon Amon.

Hasook looked her up and down, his eyes squinting. The damn boy thought he was better than her. She’d prove him wrong. There was no way she was letting them win this game. She’d do this for Bolin. She’d do this for the Fire Ferrets. She’d do this for herself.

Ding!

The gong sounded and Korra hopped out of the way, dodging the first attack Hasook threw at her. He was always the first to attack, that much she had noticed in past games—Bolin was right. She was smart, smarter than him, and she wasn’t about to let him think otherwise.

Bolin tossed a few disks at the new player in hope of getting a quick glimpse of  his technique. He watched as the firebender destroyed the disks. After a few of what they Fire Ferrets hope were discrete efforts by all three of them, they had concluded that the new player was left handed—uncommon, especially in sports. Usually it didn’t mean much—unless the player knew how to play that strength.

Which, this guy did.

He sent Korra back not one zone, but two, his firebending spurt whirling toward her with uncommon spin. She blocked it, only to be slammed with a regulation water whip from Hasook that sent her sprawling back to zone three.

Korra was heaving, winded and tired—odd for someone of her stamina. For a moment, the brunt of the hits were focused on Tahno and Bolin, intent on sending them back in her direction to no doubt take a swing at winning a knockout. But as she tried to find air, tried to ignore the sweat that lined her brow, she looked around and felt suffocated with all the people and if it were possible—

“Oomph!”

“And the Avatar take a nasty fall, folks! Who would have thought the Fire Ferret’s Feisty Flame would be the first to take a dip!”

The water slapped her back hard and she sunk into the cold pool of blue. She blew bubbles of air, angry with herself for getting distracted. She swam up, ripping her helmet off and gasping for air. Korra looked around, and saw no one has taken a fall but her.

“Great,” she said sarcastically under her breath as she swam to the platform to get back on the stage.

“And Round One goes to the Ember Island Eel Hounds!”

When she saw her other teammates, she was met with Tahno’s disapproving look and Bolin’s confused expression. She sighed and shook her head, ignoring Tahno and making a B-line for Bolin. He stood there, only a sliver taller than her and she opened her mouth to say something, but the words were lost, and she didn’t think she ever found them in the first place.

But slowly, Bolin’s eyes softened and his posture relaxed, and he pulled her in a close hug.  He didn’t care that the crowd erupted into a mix of cries and awes. He whispered in her ear the three words she needed to hear. He’d learned it was a little petty, a little shallow, but sometimes it was all she needed to shine and be the Korra he knew she could be.

“You’re the Avatar.”

Korra smiled.

He pulled away and gave her a mock-stern look. “Start acting like it.”

The three of them readied their positions for round two. The gong sounded and they were off, once again falling in to their routines, playing out the playbooks Bolin spent hours making. Bolin threw an earth disk that ricocheted off the side, knocking Hasook back to zone two. The Eel Hound’s earthbender caught Tahno while he was in the middle of landing a flip, sending him back to zone three, where he scrambled to stay on the stage. Korra sent short and powerful flames toward the new firebender and it became a battle of strengths, eventually pushing Korra back to zone two, and he to zone three.

Ding!

The referee came forward. “It’s a tie!” he declared. All three players from each team came forward, tired and out of breath, and lined up at the center of the field. The referee held up a two sided coin and threw it in the air.

“The Eel hounds win the coin toss! Which element do you choose?”

The Fire Ferrets watched as the new recruit leaned into whisper something in Hasook’s ear. It was quick and sent a wicked grin spreading across the captain’s face. He slapped the firebender on the back and pushed him forward.

“We choose fire.”

Korra heard Tahno let out a sigh and she felt Bolin grip her by the shoulders. “You can do this,” he whispered.

“Knock his head off, Korra,” Tahno said loudly, making sure the other team heard. She turned around and stuck her tongue out as she stepped on the platform that would raise them for the duel.

“No head shots, remember?” she teased, before giving a wink. Tahno smiled, appreciating her cocky attitude—he thought she could use it right about now.

The platform rose and the firebender stared her down, giving some pathetic smolder as he tried to intimidate her. “You’ve been a little off your game, Avatar. But give me your best shot.”

She growled, curling her fingers into a tight fist.

The gong sounded.

She sidestepped his first attack, which was a flame that licked dangerously to her abdomen. He kept throwing punches, but she only dodged, not sending a single throw back. Eventually, he stopped, his lips curled in the most condescending smirk.

“What? All out of fire?”

Korra breathed in and out, heat bubbling in the back of her throat.

He had the audacity to turn around, to take his eyes off her—but still, she waited. He turned to his teammates and laughed. “Look at this!” he turned back, surveying her posture—tall and still, with the exception of the intense rise and fall of her chest. Her cheeks puffed and she bit her lip hard.

The Eel Hound gestured toward himself. “Come on, got something to say? Since, you obviously can’t throw a punch.”

Below the platform, Bolin twiddled his thumbs nervously. “Korra…”

Breathe in

Breathe out

In

Out

The heat pooled into her mouth, burning and intense.

But the firebender was exasperated, tired of her stillness, her unwillingness to throw a single flame. “Well, come on!”

In—

“Spit it out!”

--Out

So she did.

Korra opened her mouth and a large burst of fire came pooling out. It was hot, hotter than any fire she thought she'd ever made. It blew a huge hole through the front of her helmet, melting the plastic into a good, clean hole; It left sparks and embers tickling on her lips in the backlash and right before the damn boy was knocked clear off the platform, she reveled in the bright light and fear that reflected in his eyes.

She took another deep breath, blowing the aftermath smoke out of her mouth. “Chump,” she huffed. Behind her, Bolin and Tahno cheered.

“Round Two goes to the Fire Ferrets!”

Korra hopped off the platform and collected high fives from the remaining Fire Ferrets. “Nice one, Kor!” Bolin studied the opposing team, already in a huddle. He gathered the other two. “Alright, we’ve got another round—it’s anyone’s game. At this point, we don’t need a knockout, but,” he shrugged. “Wouldn’t hurt hehe. But don’t let them get one. That would be bad. Okay, break!”

They readied themselves for the third and final round.

Ding!

And they were off for the third and final time. It became a cycle of tradeoffs: Tahno took the earthbender, Bolin the firebender, leaving Korra to fight against Hasook.

The time ticked on. The earthbender, learning from Bolin, ricocheted two disks, one on each side of the ring, and they collided painfully with the person dead center in zone two, which at the moment was Tahno. He was sent sprawling off the back. But as the earthbender relished in his winning move, Korra took the opportunity to direct a stream of fire kicks his way, sending him in the water as well.

“Oh! And the waterbender takes a swim, along with the Eel Hounds’ earthbender! It’s two against two now—with 1:30 left in the round, which team will it be?”

Bolin and Korra fell in sync dodging and jumping attacks, but the same went for Hasook and his replacement. But Korra watched as the two of them just stopped, stunning both the Fire Ferrets still—

--one right behind the other.

With a quick flick of his wrist, Hasook sent a long water whip, paired with a hot searing blast of fire. The pair tried to separate, seeing the trap, but it was no good; the two were knocked off the ring.

“Looks like we have a knockout folks! The Eel Hounds win the championships aga—hold up! What is this? I don’t believe it! Avatar Korra is still in the game, one hand in the ring, the other holding her teammate! Astounding!”

Korra grunted, gripping Bolin’s shirt collar tight. She tried pulling him up, but her arm shook with the weight, shook from the lack of support she had—she only had the very edge of the stage. Her other arm started to go numb—Bolin was a heavy guy. 

“Korra! Let go! Pull yourself up!”

That was the thing—she didn’t know if she could. She had been messing up all night—she was slow, uncoordinated—the only thing she had done right was with the duel, and that was only because she thought of breathing fire, nothing more. She wasn’t fit to win this match. And that was all if she managed to crawl back up in the ring in time and catch her bearings. She simply wasn’t fit.

But Bolin was.

She started swinging him, figuring she only had a few more seconds. Back and forth, back and forth, her face contorted in pain and she let out a grunt as she swung him high in the air, and he landed back on the arena before she plummeted to the water.

“I don’t believe it! Avatar Korra has thrown her teammate back in the game! What an amazing move!”

Caught by surprise, the Eel Hounds were unprepared by the mass amounts of disks that Bolin hurled at them; they tried to fend off the attacks, but their guard was long gone and after a few good throws, they were off the ring. Bolin stood, there, stunned.

He’d done it.

.

.

.

Tenzin howled as Bolin delivered the final blow. He turned to Lin. “See, I told you…”

He froze.

“LIN! Look out for—“

But it was too late.

He as well crumpled to the ground.

.

.

.

  “It’s a knockout! The Fire Ferrets have won the championships, Bolin, the only man standing!”

From the waters below, Korra cheered. She slapped the water playfully and tossed her helmet in the air. Uncharacteristically, Tahno jumped in the water and swam to join her. “I’ll admit—that was impressive, what you did. I didn’t know you had it in you to throw a man back in the game—literally.”

She shrugged, her smile wide. “I’m full of surprises!” She splashed water in Tahno’s face “Yes, we did it we won the championship! Now we can—“

Korra froze.

The two of them looked up, terrified. The Avatar watched as the arena flashed with lights—and this time, they weren’t cameras. Hot, blue bolts of electricity popped up around the arena and had people dropping like flies. Shouts and screams went from excited to horrified. She even saw one person fall over one of the levels, thankfully to be caught by someone below.

But they ended up being electrocuted as well.

She managed to tear away from the sight, block out the screaming and hysteria. “Tahno, no! This wasn’t supposed to happen!”

For the first time, his grey eyes looked back at her with fear. “KORRA!” Tahno screamed.

She whipped her head around and watched as an equalist, clad in green goggles and wielding a set of kali sticks, twirled his weapons in the air. The electricity cackled and created bright reflections in the water. She tried to be quick as she directed a whip of water his way, but he stuck the sticks in the water before she could reach him.

Hot, searing pain—familiar and all too horrifying—sprung up her spine, spreading throughout.

Tahno and Korra fell back on their backs, unconscious. The equalist swung a lasso, and started to pull them in.

.

.

.

“WAAHOO!” Bolin screamed. He clapped his hands together, swinging them high in the air with victory as the announcer described the win, of Korra’s seemingly impossible feat of strength. He knew her strengths were on the physical! That’s what he’d been telling her all season. The victor continued to bask in the glow of success, his eyes shut in pure joy.

“We love you Bolin!”

“Fire Ferrets rule!”

He kept his eyes closed, circling around on his side of the ring. “That’s right! Who’s your man? Bolin!” he laughed.

“Ahhh! No, stop!”

“No!”

“Please, don’t—“

He opened his eyes abruptly; green scanned the arena. His mouth fell open in disbelief as he watched the stadium pop and burst with random bolts of lightning. An electrical problem, he told himself. Because Lin said the arena was safe and there was no way—

People started dropping like flies.

Bolin panicked. He looked around, trying to figure out what was going on. He heard the faint sound of gears turning. The platform.

But then, there it was. Bolin felt bile rise in his throat. The world around him seemingly fazed in and out, sections blurry, bits and pieces sharp. His hands were sweaty but he still shivered and it was all because there was a man in a mask staring at him, the blood red dot on his forehead much to bright.

“Amon,” he whispered.

The equalist leader and his minions said nothing as they took one step forward. Bolin counted the earth disks he had access too—there were so few and but only now did he think so. His entire life, his entire bending career, depended on nothing but those little disks. Earth was the element of substance: he had learned that somewhere long ago. It was everywhere, massive and unyielding. There were miles of it, mountains of it, and he heard of great tales in which those more powerful before him struck the earth with their fist and split it, created avalanches, devised tunnels. But he never needed it. But all Bolin had? The only part of earthbending he thought he'd ever need?

Disks.

And it wasn’t enough anymore.

But he had to try anyway. He raised two in defense. “Um, Mr. Amon, sir,” he started, “I think there’s been a misunderstanding….”

Amon lunged for him and Bolin threw the disks, dodging the attack. He was sent spinning on the floor. He moved his hands to bend again, but equalists on either side of him ambushed him, tying his arms with flying ropes.

He collapsed to the ground, helpless, unable to move. Amon approached him, his fingers curled menacingly. “Please, stop, you don’t understand! Let me explain!”

But Amon didn’t say a word.

The leader placed his finger on Bolin’s forehead. He felt a scorching heat bubble at the base of his spine. It swam up in jagged line, chipping at his bones. Everything he knew was rock and then it was all just pebbles and when the heat jumped up to burn behind his eyes, he saw a light much too bright before he crumpled to the ground.

At first he couldn’t move. But when he finally found the strength, the energy he thought was lost forever, he stretched his hand and tried moving the disk beside him—it didn’t budge.

So now?

Bolin didn’t even have disks. The Earth was gone.

Amon tossed him over the edge and into the water.

.

.

.

“I believe I have your attention now, benders of Republic City.” Amon said.  “Ah, and would you look at our little victor—the Fire Ferret earthbending captain. Of course, you’ve spent the majority of the season worshipping at his feet, prizing his…skills…and congratulating him for his bullying ways.

Take a good hard look at this sport. This is nothing but benders beating up each other; and by worshipping this sport, but rewarding their behavior, you’ve allowed them to act this way…outside the ring. Benders are terrorizing non-benders, believing their powers make them better than everybody else.” He pointed down to the pool, where Bolin swam to the platform and barely heaved himself up before he passed out.  “But as you have clearly seen, it only took my a few seconds to cleanse him of his impurity—permanently. Let this be a warning to all of you benders out there: if any of you stand in my way, you will meet the same fate.”

The stadium filled with cries of worry.

“Now, to my followers: for years the Equalists have been forced to hide in the shadows, but now we have the numbers and the strength to create a new Republic City. I'm happy to tell you that the time for change has finally come...”

.

.

.

Mako listened with half an ear as he finished pulling Tahno and Korra out of the water and under the stage.  He tied them both up to a post. He slung his kali sticks behind his back and prepared to hop the platform to join Amon for the rest of his speech when she stirred.

“Mmm, Aang?”

Mako’s brow creased in worry. He stopped, completely frozen and waited to see if she’d wake.

She did.

Blue eyes flickered open slowly. He saw the pain, the disorientation in her expression, as she looked around confused. But the softness was erased instantly as she recalled where she was and what had happened. From above, she heard a voice.

“Very soon, the tyrannical bending regime will be replaced by a fair-minded Equalist government. You and your children will no longer need to walk afraid.”

“A-Amon!?” she yelped. She wiggled trying to get free. She stared straight ahead.

The recognized his height, his weapons of choice. She noticed how his hands were just the same as hers, but most of all, she recognized the nervousness of his presence, his chest heaving wildly.

And of course, there were those gold irises tinted green.

“You,” she seethed. Korra tried again to wiggle free, but the knots were too tight. “You!” she cried again, but this time the sadness and desperation slipped in. She looked to other side of the arena and saw her teammate sputtering for air. “B-Bolin! He took your brother’s bending, didn’t he?”

Mako didn’t answer.

“Didn’t he!”

His anger bubbled over. “You threw him back in the ring!” He screeched before he could stop himself. He marched over, ready to grab her, ready to yell in her face to tell her just what had happened, to tell her it was all her fault.

But then he remembered it wasn’t.

He shook his head and snarled. With one last quick glance, he tried to forget the pleading look in her blue eyes as he hopped the platform to join Amon.

“For centuries, benders possessed an unnatural advantage over ordinary people. But thankfully, modern technology has provided us with a way to even out the playing field.”

Korra pressed against Tahno and realized he was still unconscious. “Tahno!” she hissed, but he didn’t stir. She tried again: “Tahno!” When he still didn’t move she leaned in close and bit his ear.

“Eeyah!” he yelped, waking up. He picked back up on the situation. “How are we going to get out of here?

“That’s why I woke you up!”

“Korra! Not now! We need to—hey, wait, look, it’s Pabu!”

Pabu came swimming over, jumping out of the water and sitting in their laps. “Pabu, we need you to cut the ropes!” Korra cried.

The ferret tilted its head to the side, not understanding.

“Now anyone can hold the power of a chi-blocker in their hand. My followers and I will not rest until the entire city achieves equality and once that goal is achieved, we will equalize the rest of the world. The revolution has begun!”

The arena exploded.

Debris started following around, hitting the water and creating large waves. “Pabu, please! Listen to me!”

Tahno rolled his eyes. “For the love of—“ he began clicking and chattering, and Korra realized he was actually trying to talk to it.

“Stop messing around!” She exclaimed.

He paused. “I’m not. I saw Bolin do this so just—shut up.” He chattered a few more times before the ferret squeaked in response and began nibbling the ropes away.

“Told you.”

“Oh, can it.”

The ropes fell to the ground, and Korra instantly jumped up. She ran over to the waters edge and froze it, creating a platform for herself to see what was going on.  The glass ceiling to the stadium shattered and she witnessed several long ropes lifting equalists to the airship.

“Go find Bo!” Korra shouted to Tahno. “I’m going after him!”

But whether it was Amon or Mako….she still wasn’t all too sure.

She jumped in the water and spun. It was one of the first tricks she learned down in the south pole—she remembered Katara telling her it was the first waterbending move Aang ever performed and he reached so high in the air, Katara swore she saw him touch the clouds.

Korra figured it was good enough for this.

She launched herself in the air with immense speed. She felt the rush of wind in her face, the power of it all, and for a split second she wondered if this was what airbending felt like. But the ceiling was high and suddenly her water whirlpool lost its strength, lost its punch.

And just like her airbending, it failed her.

“No!” she shouted, reaching her hand up as if it could save her. But it couldn’t; she closed her eyes and braced herself for the fall.

But it never came.

Korra grunted as a long cold metal wire wrapped several times around her waist. Her hand went up to grab the rope and she stared, awed, as Chief Beifong twirled around the arena. She felt a small tug before she was completely flying, soaring through the open space of broken glass.

Now that, she thought, felt like airbending.

Her leg flew out to kick and she knocked two equalists off their lift. She looked up and saw Amon file on to the airship.

“ARGH!” she roared, sending the strongest blast she could muster. The fire faded and the sky went dark again, but she noticed an unnatural glare coming from below. She bit her tongue, daring herself to look—

Everything was on fire.

She spotted Lin jump up on the glass roof, her metal ropes twirling around her. She slung one up to the lifts and managed to knock down an equalist, slamming him into the glass, making it crack. Distracted, Korra didn’t notice the two equalists slither down the ropes of her lift. They knocked her off but she managed to land on her feet, the glass cracking every so slightly.

She stared back up at the ship and watched as two other men flew down to join the fight—they both wielded kali sticks—one had a long mustache—and the other…

She snarled. He was her fight.

Korra headed straight for him—an equalist wielding a glove tried to get in her way, but she slipped below her as she hopped in the air and she sent her sprawling, her head hitting the roof with a “thunk.” Mako whipped the kali sticks off his back. The Lieutenant watched him as he readied himself, prepared for the Avatar’s attack.

“I got her,” he said fiercely, quietly; and with that the lieutenant went off to deal with the metalbender.

They became a collision of fire and electricity. Korra was the one mainly throwing the punches; all his attacks were defense, and only when he saw the opportunity, an opening she left because of her anger, did he strike. He managed to knick her in the side. The electricity burned her, but she was not knocked out.

“I can’t believe you!” she declared, kicking him in the stomach. “All that time talking about your brother—you liar! You never cared for him!”

That made Mako angry. He swung one kali stick, still bright and hot, and smacked her across the chest, the brunt of it burning her shoulder. “You don’t know what you’re talking about!”

She clutched her shoulder in pain, but shrugged it off. From the corner of her eye, Korra spotted Lin take down the remaining equalists, leaving her to only fight the lieutenant. But she Lin electrocuted, and collapsed to the roof.

She dodged another one of Mako’s swings. “I don’t do I? I think you just helped your brother get his bending taken away!”

“ARGH! I didn’t know! And it wouldn’t have happened if you never threw him back in the ring!” he screeched. He flipped in the air and spun quickly. Korra did a back flip, but just as she was regaining her balance, she felt the hot weapon sear her abdomen. She tumbled, but seeing as the two of them were on the slope of the roof, she skidded down the side. Her foot flung high in the air and knocked Mako in the jaw, sending him sprawling as well.

They tumbled and tumbled and tumbled until the roof disappeared completely.

The air was back, rushing in her lungs, but Korra didn’t have the time to think about how she couldn’t bend it to save her. Yue Bay grew larger and larger and she managed to twist her wrists enough to bend the water just enough to catch her. She landed with a big splash, but beside her, she heard Mako hit the water harshly.

She swam to the surface and gasped for air. The waters where Mako had hit were bubbled with disturbance. She waited for him to come up for air, so she could yell at him, tell him right from wrong. How dare he say she had no clue! How dare he imply this was her fault! How dare he—

He wasn’t coming back up.

Korra didn’t know what took over—her healing instincts, her avatar instincts, or just her common decency, but she took a deep breath of air and plunged into the water. The bay wasn’t blue, it was black, but she managed to see a speck of twinkling green slowly sinking in the water. She yanked him by the collar, wrapping one arm around his chest and swam to the surface.

When she reached air, she looked around—there was no one on the side of the arena, or the bay. She swam to a small, beaten up dock, one that was shoved in the corner and hardly used since the use of the new ferry and its port. Korra shoved Mako on land first before hoisting herself up. She didn’t have time to take a breather because as she looked over, she noticed how still he was—how he was not breathing.

Well shit.

She ripped his goggles and gear off first. She cupped his face in the palms of her hands before tilting his chin back. First, the young waterbender recalled Katara’s teachings—she tried bending the water out of his lungs. And to some extent, that worked. Water floated out and she deposited it back in the bay.

But he still wasn’t breathing.

Korra whined. She looked around, making sure the area was still clear before she took a deep breath. She did a few rough pounds to his chest before she opened his mouth and began mouth to mouth resuscitation.

Korra tried to ignore the soft feeling of his lips, how they were hot even when the water was cold. As she breathed into him, over and over in hopes of saving him, she started to notice how he tasted. His lips were thin, but not too much, and every time she pressed hers against his, she wondered if they were supposed to fit like puzzle pieces, molding together, melting together.

Korra tried to ignore it all because he was the enemy—and she shouldn’t be saving him in the first place.

Mako finally coughed, his eyes going wide as he tried to gain his breath on his own. Korra jumped back, a wild blush on her cheeks concealed by the dark of night.

“W-what, How—“ he stopped short. Her eyes had an eerie glow, to them; little patches of afternoon blue among black and fire and destruction. Her brow was creased with worry and hurt, and that’s when it all sunk in.

“I didn’t know,” he explained softly, his voice still shaky. “I never knew Amon was planning on taking anyone’s bending until today. I—“ he sighed, closing his eyes, as if the very action would undo what he had done. “Amon planned on using anyone left on stage. The winners—the one’s left standing—he planned on taking their bending all along. It was going to be the Eel Hounds! But then—“

He looked over and saw silent tears running down her cheeks.

“I threw him back on that ring,” she hiccupped, the words barely coming out.

He nodded. “You threw him back on that ring.” He repeated.

Mako saw her bury her face in her hands; her entire body shook, and he knew she was crying—he wanted to cry too. But he didn’t hear one sob, not one cry, until she tilted her head back and screamed.

It was pathetic and broken, and yet so quiet. But after that, she sat up a little straighter and wiped the tears from her cheeks, her lips in a tight line. As he studied her, he kept feeling the question roll on his tongue, pushing against the insides of his cheeks.

“Why did you save me?” He finally asked.

Her eyes slid over at him, and he swore they were glowing they were so bright. “Have you forgotten so soon?” and he started to hear the normalcy, the confidence in her voice, and he for the life of him couldn’t understand how she could just do that. He just looked and waited for her answer.

“I’m your Avatar, too.”

.

.

.

Mako leaned against the curved surface of the tunnel, ignoring the rough surfaces that pressed against his wounds. He looked into a world tinted in electrifying green; the tunnel glowed with an unnatural light and he could clearly see a small trail of water drip down from a pipe that ran along the tunnel’s path. He fiddled with his newly acquired glove. It was only recently that he and his ranks were issued the new technologies—Hiroshi Sato had finally caught up with the production. Apparently, the multi-millionaire was having trouble keeping things secret from his family—a mere 19 year old girl.

Mako fought a snort at the thought.

The glove didn’t fit quite right, in his opinion. His fingers were unusually slender and knobby, marred with slick scar tissues and chapped by winter winds. It was a bit bulky, his fingers swimming, the pads of his fingers barely brushing the edges of the material, but he was told that it was the case with most of the other equalists and chi-blockers.

Bored, he looked left and right before rolling the kinks out of his neck, getting into position. The tunnel remained dark as he lifted his gloved hand to the ceiling. His lip quirked and he watched as the glove sparked to life. The electricity jumped around, staying confined to the metals of the glove before he nudged a nearby pipe—the bright light shot crookedly in a semicircle around the tunnel’s opening, giving an eerie entrance to their hideout. He immediately threw his hand down, looking down the tunnel once more—a faint light appeared in the center.

“Shit,” he thought to himself.

Suddenly, an amused chuckle echoed from behind before he felt an unfamiliar touch to his shoulder. True to his training, he turned, twisting the intruder’s arm and pinning him to the wall, lighting his glove ready for an attack. The chuckle grew louder as Mako registered the familiar green glow of his glasses.

“Relax,” the Equalist said, the last part of his sentence strained as Mako pushed his chest a bit further into the wall. He never appreciated being snuck up on, even when it was someone of his own ranks. “Jeez, Mako, lighten up,” he said, more irritated. The fizzle of the electricity left a static noise ringing in his ears as he let go of the man, giving him a rough push for good measure.

“What’s up, Hajime.” Mako tried to sound disinterested.

Hajime brushed off his chest, cocking his masked head to the approaching cart. “Lieutenant’s got a job for you.”

Mako glanced down the tunnel. “Lieutenant’s always got a job for me,” he reminded him, despite his piqued interest—he noticed a metal box about six feet tall.

He pointed, shifting his weight. “That, my brother, is not an ordinary bender.”

“Bender? He wants me to guard another bender?”

“The Avatar, to be precise.”

The cart came to a rushed stop at the station, leaving Mako to hurriedly leave his post on the edge of the tunnel. The Lieutenant grunted as he jumped off the cart, leaving the other two chi-blockers with the box.

“Got a job for you,” He said to Mako, waving Hajime to leave. Mako heard grumbling from his brother, something about “Never getting the cool prisoners,” before he hitched a ride with the other equalists, leaving Mako with the Lieutenant and the box.

The Lieutenant pounded roughly on the box. “Special package.” He explained, emphasizing the “Special” part. “To be honest, I have no idea of Amon’s intentions with her; all he said was to keep her quiet, keep her handicapped, and keep her quiet. Understood?”

Mako peered past his shoulder, glancing at the box. “Her?” He asked.

Liutentant sighed. “I shouldn’t say, but it’s all in fair warning, so I suppose…” He leaned forward. “The Avatar.”

Mako swallowed discretely. “Avatar Korra, huh,” he mused.

“Look, kid, He asked me to get a guard and you’re one of the best. You’ve dealt with all the gang members—Shady Shin, Lightning Bolt Zolt…even all of Beifong’s metalbenders.” The Lieutenant wandered to the box, giving it a swift kick—not a sound came from inside. “But this is the highest prize we’ve had. Do not underestimate this girl.” A funny look crossed his face. “Trust me.”

Mako nodded in affirmation. “So the usual?”

“Yeah, yeah. Electrocute the damn thing every once in awhile. Keeping her unconscious is the safest way to keep her locked up.” An empty cart came spurting down the tunnel. “Take her to west wing. I don’t know how long it’ll be—just radio if you need us.” The lieutenant hopped aboard the cart. “And one more thing—”

He tossed a pair of kali sticks his way.

“Packs a hell of a lot more power than that damn glove. Figured you might need a pair.” He gave him a two finger salute before driving away.

It was awkward balancing the pair of sticks in his gloved hand, but he did his best. Curious, he turned both on; the currents vibrated in his hands and the heat left faint warmth around him.

He sighed.

It still wasn’t half the feeling he had long ago.

.

.

.

Korra groaned.

She blinked, her surroundings clouded. The first sensation she felt left her gritting her teeth and clenching her jaw. She wiggled, bound tightly in ropes and confirmed the worst.

That stupid kali-stick flailing sidekick of his had broken her damn hands.

It wasn’t too bad, she noticed. She’d broken her hands before—she remembered the pain being a lot worse. It was back when she was twelve and she was starting her first day of Earthbending. She got a little too enthusiastic and tried reducing a boulder too big for her yet into pebbles.

Katara tried not to laugh as she mended her hands.

It didn’t sting when she didn’t move—but that wasn’t going to be much help in an escape. She sat up slowly, her head spinning. Korra noticed she’d been tossed in a not-so-cozy box. There wasn’t room for her to stretch more. She glanced up and looked at the squares that let in faint, synthetic light in. Her pupils were wide as she recognized the top of the ceiling.

A tunnel?

She wiggled again, placing her foot to the side of the wall that encased her; she pounded the metal with a decent kick. “Hey,” she said, her voice hoarse from not being used. She kicked again. “Hey! Let me out!”

Electricity and pain ripped through her veins before her world went dark again.

.

.

.

Mako sighed, leaning his head against the Avatar’s cell. When she had fallen to the ground with a heavy thump, he slid to the floor, drawling one of his legs up to rest his arm lazily on his knee. He closed his eyes, tempted to sleep—she’d be out for at least another hour. Those kali-sticks, plus his glove, were not a healthy dose of electricity.

Then again, his lightning used to have a much stronger effect.

When he closed his eyes, he’s flooded with memories he’d spent so long trying to repress. His father, broad-shouldered and tall, his mother, slender and sarcastic and his brother, the one person he promised to protect, now a fuzzy image of messy hair and bright green eyes.

He opened his eyes, suddenly aware of a headache.

Hours passed, and he went through the same routine; listen as she spat some dirty insult and then electrocute her until she went unconscious. A very small part of him felt guilty—he remembered watching Amon remove prisoners after he’d done as asked—they often had skin raw and red, covered in star patterned burns and bright white lines.

Mako remembered the same fire patterns that marred his parent’s faces and couldn’t help but wince.

“You won’t get away with it.” It was the most venomous her voice had sounded yet, scratched with pain and weariness. He looked to the other side of his room where the kali-sticks had rolled down after carelessly letting them fall from his grip. He was slow to get up, his feet sluggish as he walked to retrieve them.

Mako didn’t feel the need to remind her of her dwindling physical state—taunting her could result in her anger trumping her pain; and he couldn’t afford to have her best him with some trick. So instead, he went with a hard emotional slap to the heart.

“No one will find you in time.” He said, leaning down to pick them up. He fired them up, appreciating the synthetic fire in the grip of his hands.

“You don’t know them,” she countered. He tried to drown her voice out by intensifying the voltage—too bad she was such a loud-mouth. “Bolin—he won’t give up on me.”

He stopped.

Mako turned the kali sticks off before running up to the box, his hands clamping loudly against the metal shell. Unknowingly to him, Korra flinched, expecting another electrocution, but was mildly surprised when she realized he had only banged on the wall. “Getting mad, are you?” She taunted, a smirk growing on her face.

Mako took a few steps back, inhaling and exhaling, and got a running start before he kicked the metal chamber so hard, the entire thing fell to the side.

“Ow, ow, ow!” Korra hissed, readjusting her position, she looked to her source of air and light, now to her left as she lay sideways in the box. She blew her frizzy hair out of her face before a masked equalist, complete with green glowing goggles, appeared in the grits of her cage.

“Who?” He snarled, the coldness of his voice now. He stared into her eyes, the inside of the box a dark green; her eyes appeared a bright green, and he had to look away.

Korra’s expression matched that of his demand. “My friend, my teammate, Bolin! And Tahno, Tenzin and Lin, too.”

Mako’s face relaxed underneath his mask. “Bolin.” He repeated, the word falling off his tongue as gently as water trickled down a stream. Confused, the Avatar quirked her brow, giving him a funny look.

“Yeah,” she drawled.

“…Earthbender?”

She visibly tensed. Mako took her body language as a yes.

“Is he…well, is he okay?” Mako asked quietly.

Korra’s eyes narrowed. “What the fuck is your deal?” She scooted closer, staring him hard in the goggles—trying to see past the glow and fear and into the apparent human eyes of her guard. “I don’t have to tell you anything,” she finally decided, puffing her bottom lip out with a pout. In an attempted grand gesture, she scooted away, struggling with her position that left her awkwardly on her side. She eventually managed, a bit dissatisfied, but turned away all the same.

Mako gripped the top of the cage tighter, his fingers wrapping awkwardly with his glove. He stared at the power source, small and round, and remembered the familiar blue glow. He sighed, and slid it off slowly, placing it on the ground. He looked to the Avatar—she hadn’t noticed. Next, he took the kali sticks and dropped them with a clang!, watching as Korra flinched from the sound. She whipped her head around, her face a picture of awe and confusion.

His chest heaved and he realized he had never been so nervous.

“How is he?” He asked again, softer.

Korra scooted closer towards him, peeking her head left and right to see who else was around—they were completely alone. She looked back toward the equalist and Mako sucked in a breath as she studied him over. Her head cocked a bit to the side as her eyes ran over his masked face, still clearly confused. With an audible sigh, Mako got up and ran down the hall, looking left and right—the closest guard was at the next station, hundreds of yards away. He ran back to Korra, and saw she had leaned her head back against the metal, waiting. With another sigh Mako ran his fingers along the bottom of his mask, hesitating at first, before slowly yanking the whole thing off.

Korra gasped.

He stared, expectant. It was a common reaction. He kept a stoic face as Korra’s wide eyes looked him up and down, ignoring how her eyes were a pretty blue. She opened and reopened her mouth, struggling to find the words, so Mako did it for her.

“Firebender.” He said simply, reaching his hand up to trace the large scar that ran from the bottom of his left cheek down the side of his neck.

Korra nodded, understanding. Her own thigh had a similar mark from when she was learning the trade herself. But she figured their matching scars were not given under the same circumstances.

Silence enveloped them and Mako slid down to the ground, his back against the corner of her fallen metal cage. She could see half his body and a clear view of his scar, the only thing lit as the rest of him was a shadow from the lack of light in the tunnel. She blew out a ragged breath and took another one for courage, because surely she was crazy.

“He’s fine.” She finally said, a smile betraying her poker face from the mere memories that came back. Bolin had that effect on people.

Mako turned his head, pleased. Korra watched as dulled amber went wide with emotion. “Well, what does he do?”

Korra wouldn’t lie—it was amusing to watch this equalist get so riled up about Bolin. Strange, of course, but also amusing. His whole “tough-guy” demeanor went crumbling to the ground. He had literally pulled the mask off just at the mention of her teammate’s name. “He’s a probender. Captain, actually. Of the Fire Ferrets.”

Mako nodded, his face a clear indication for her to continue.

Hesitantly, she mentally agreed. She shifted her weight, trying to adjust her broken hands so they wouldn’t throb as much. “He’s an earthbender—you’re right. And um, I was on the same team with him. We had a waterbender on our team named Tahno. Which made me the firebender.”

Mako nodded, inching closer. Korra bit the inside of her cheek.

“We won the championships?” She supplied, scooting back. Mako ran his eyes over her.

“That’s it?”

Korra shrugged. “What else do you want to know?” Her confusion sunk back into disgust. “I’m not giving you anything that’ll get him captured.”

“I would never.” Mako quipped in. Regret sinks in instantly and he closed his eyes, refusing to look at her.

Korra scoots even closer, his face almost touching the metal bars of the side. “And what does that mean?” She asked hurriedly. “Because last time I checked, you’ve been electrocuting me the past 12 hours, letting me sit on my own broken hands,” she barked, baring her teeth in a snarl. “Catching benders is kind of your thing.”

Mako didn’t respond.

“Tui and La,” she grumbled under her breath, letting her head fall back with a clunk. The silence came rushing back, echoing in their ears.

Mako listened as she wiggled and fidgeted—he supposed the Avatar wasn’t used to being so still and confined before. “Stop wiggling or I’ll electrocute the box,” he finally warned.

That made her freeze. “Why haven’t you?” She whispered. Mako turned his head completely, looking at her. He ran his eyes over, counting all her scratches, all the cracks in her chapped lips, the wrinkles in her forehead as she gazed at him with curiosity.

“I don’t know,” he finally answered, turning back around.

Korra rolled her eyes. “That’s a load of bison shit if I’ve ever heard it. Come on, out with it.”

Mako tensed. “Quiet, Korra.”

Her mouth fell open in shock. “What did you just call me?”

He faced her yet again, a disinterested façade masking his rapid heartbeat. “Korra; that’s your name, isn’t it?”

She nodded dumbly. “Well, yeah.” A familiar sparkle in his eye distracted her from a witty comeback. She watched as Mako just shrugged.

“It’s not like you’re going to be able to hold on to the Avatar title for much longer anyhow.”

That one hit her like a punch in the gut. The worry and fear she once harbored came rushing back, igniting an uncomfortable fire in the pit of her belly. Her broken palms grew sweaty and the skin on her dirty forehead began to glisten.

She inched closer to him close as possible; her body presses uncomfortably against the bars. She needed his full attention, but he was a shadow once more; cloaked in rebel uniform and darkness. Pain wracked her body as she tried to free her hands; she settled with blowing air on the nape of his neck—he didn’t even jump.

“Hey,” she whispered. Still nothing. She blew again. “Hey.”

“Be quiet.”

She shrugged off his coldness; it was just a wall, and she had already witnessed some of it crumble at the mention of Bolin. She was determined to pick and prod until she got some answers. “I don’t understand.”

Mako sighed. “What?”

“Why are you doing this?”

He eyed her incredulously before picking up his discarded his goggles, waving them childishly in her face. “It’s my job?”

She rolled her eyes. “I get that but,” She paused. “Why are you an equalist?”

He groaned, looking down the tunnel before readjusting his position so he was facing her. “Typical; you think you have me pegged.”

A cocky grin appeared on her face. “Kinda. I’ve dealt with my fair share of equalists—you’re not exactly the cookie-cutter example they usually turn out to be.”

He was a bit offended. “Why am I any different?”

“For one thing, you’re talking to me. That’s probably No-No number one.”

Damn, he thought. He shifted, clearly uncomfortable and frustrated. He refused to look into her eyes—those pools of serene blue, picture perfect of Yue bay on a sunny day. “Spirits, you benders are all the same,” he grumbled. “You just don’t understand.”

“So help me. I really want to know.”

He threw his hands up, exasperated. “Have you not been paying attention this whole revolution?”

“Of course I have!” She fought, anger bubbling inside her. “I just want to know why you guys hate bending so much; why youspecifically. I want to help.”

He gritted his teeth. “You’re a bender! Why on earth would you ever help us?”

He watched as her face contorted with sadness and regret. “I’m your Avatar too!” She finally cried out, her eyes brewing rainstorms. An odd hiccup echoes through the chamber. “Spirits, why don’t you get that?” she whispered to the air. “I’m your Avatar, too.”

Mako’s jaw went a bit slack. He watched as The Avatar curled into herself, contorting her body to keep her hands out of harm. Her back was to him and he stared at the finely tone muscles and bugled and shook with her agony and pain. He opened his mouth to say something but stopped himself; he only continued to watch as her movements slowed and her breathing became steady as she fell asleep. Mako looked to the discarded goggles and gloves before placing them in his lap, leaning back against her cell and falling asleep as well.

.

.

.

“Oh my spirits!”

Mako was jolted awake with a rough slap to the face. He stared up and waited for his eyes to adjust before he recognizes the familiar pose of his fellow brother.

“Dude, if the Lieutenant spotted you asleep, you’d be electrocuted, no doubt.” Despite his chastising, he sensed the amusement in his tone

Mako rubbed the sleep from his eyes. “What do you want, Hajime,” he asked bored. He pretended not to jump when Hajime reached down, took his mask and smacked it in his face.

“Put that back on, you idiot; you can’t just go around sharing your face to the Avatar.” He studied the newly positioned box. “Have a little…trouble?” He asked, noticing how it was on its side.

“Nothing I couldn’t handle,” He answered quickly, voice like ice. Hajime shrugged.

“Not gonna doubt the pro.” He waved his hand about. “Anyway, I was just told to check up on things,” he glanced in her cell, nodding with approval. “Looks like she’s out cold.” A chuckle escaped him, and Mako looked to him puzzled. “Such a shame—she’s kinda hot.”

Mako hit him in the shoulder with his un-electrified kali stick. “Shut up.”

“Aw, come on!”

From his place on the ground, Mako kicked Hajime in the bum. “Alright, that’s quite enough.”

Hajime chuckled as he jumped aboard the cart Mako hadn’t noticed pulled into the station. “Whatever; but I mean what I said: put that mask on!” He gave him a two fingered salute before rushing down the tunnel.

Mako grumbled to himself, playing with the goggles and mask in his hands. He was pulled from his internal rant when he felt a brush of air tickle his ear.

“So.” Korra chimed, weariness tainting her voice.

“So?” He challenged.

“You think I’m hot, huh?”

A blush bloomed on his cheeks and he was happy that the underground tunnel was dark enough to hide it. Apparently, he wasn’t the best liar and he had to admit the Avatar was pretty. He kept his back to her. “Were you awake the whole time?” He asked, ignoring the question.

“Long enough. I was wrong—maybe you equalists aren’t all the same after all; that Hajime’s pretty loud.”

Mako fought a chuckle, placing his mask back on, but pulling it down to wrap around his neck. The goggles rested comfortable on the top of his head. “See, we’re not all so bad.” He murmured.

The previous conversation came to haunt them both. The realization struck them both silent, leaving them to shuffle awkwardly and pick at their clothing. Finally, Mako heard Korra sigh.

“I meant what I said.” She mumbled, staring at his back in hopes that he would turn around. “I’m here to help everyone. But I can’t do that unless I get both sides—you know?”

Mako fiddled with his goggles on his head before he shifted his position, sitting in front of her with his legs crossed. He stared at her, studying her intensely. He watched as she chewed on the side of her lip in anticipation. Her hair was spun wildly, bursting from their hair ties. Her nose was scratched up and covered in grime and those eyes-those damn eyes that would catch him in such a trance with their alluring tranquility, bold color and familiar sparkle. She held a lot of emotions in those eyes and the worst part was, if they were green, he’d be staring right into his brother’s eyes.

It scared him. But at the same time, he couldn’t help but grow attached.

He picked the goggles from his head. He ran his fingers underneath the surfaces, watching as his nails tinted bright green. Green. As an equalist, it was everywhere and it only reminded him of his brother more. But that color, on those eyes…that’s why he took the mask off. Spirits, he couldn’t take it.

He stared at the goggles, ignoring her scrutinizing gaze. “I couldn’t tell you when I joined Amon—it was a long time ago. There were equalists training long before Republic City knew of them. But anyway, After the murder of my parents and living on the streets, Amon’s revolution gave hope to people like me, you know?” He shrugged.

Korra squinted her eyes, watching as he played with the goggles in his hands. “That’s not it, is it?” She whispered. To her surprise, he looked up, a playful smile on his lips.

“That Avatar intuition, huh?” She returns the smile.

“Something like that.” He watched as she wiggled once again, only this time successfully tucking and twisting so she could bring her bound hands from behind her. Throbbing in pain, she stuck her slender fingers in between the spaces; she managed to wiggle her fingers. “Hey, look at me.” She demanded. Mako hesitated but did as she asked and tried to ignore the way she looked at him.

Korra scanned his eyes, getting lost in their color; a beautiful golden honey, sparks of something long gone still remaining.

“What happened with Bolin?” she whispered. Despite his hunch, Mako winced, his eyes crinkling in dissatisfaction.

He brought his mask up momentarily, covering his mouth briefly, before lowering it again. “I was eight when my parents were murdered by a firebender. A firebender.” He spat, and Korra tilted her head, curious.

“Bolin’s parents were killed by firebenders.” Korra commented.

“I know. He was six.”

Korra’s mouth fell open. She stumbled into the back of her cage in shock, her hands getting caught in the bars, eliciting a small yelp from her due to the pain. Mako just went back to staring at the ground. Words caught in her throat as she fumbled to find something to say. “No, but—No, Bolin’s brother was a bender you can’t—”

Mako groaned.

“…Mako?” Korra whispered in disbelief and suddenly she was back to the edge of the chamber, her hands dangling crookedly, the bones not properly aligned. “You can’t be! Are you?”

He whipped his head up, a sad smile on his face before he nodded slowly.

Korra sputtered. “What-I can’t even—there’s—explain! Please!”

Mako brought a finger to his lips. “Shh, calm down,” he grunted, trying to regain some of his serious composure; it wasn’t working too well. He readjusted his posture, his back erect, before he looked down the tunnel once again. He finally leaned forward and said quietly, “Yeah, I’m Mako.”

Korra shook her head. “That doesn’t make sense. No, not unless…” A smile broke through on her face. “Are you a spy?” She asked excitedly. Her wrists bang against the metal as she bobbles with glee. “A firebender amongst the equalists! Man did I have you—”

“No!” He growled, tempted to grab her by her broken hands. “Stop it! I’m not a firebender!”

Korra furrowed her brow, skeptical. “But Bolin said his brother was a firebender and—”

“That was taken from me a long time ago, okay?” he screeched and he clamped his hand over his mouth, Biting his thumb. He took a few breaths, reminiscent of his firebending training long ago, but it did little to calm him in the same way, to comfort him like it used to. “Like I said—Amon was doing equalist stuff long before Republic City knew.”

Korra wore a look of complete and utter horrification. Her mouth parted with a frown and her face scrunched with worry. “When?” She asked.

“When what?” He spat.

“When did Amon take your bending?”

Mako sighed. “I was around 14, I think. That’s when I lost track of Bolin. I was doing some…” he hesitated with the confession. “Work with the Triads, trying to get some money to help me and Bolin out, but…” He threw the goggles to the ground. “Didn’t really work out in our favor. We were lured into a trap, kidnapped and taken to a secret location. I don’t remember much but…he took our bending.” He groaned, the memories unpleasant. “I managed to escape. I was going to run to City Hall, tell everyone what was going on but then…” He stopped.

“Then what?” Korra asked, practically standing in her cell.

“Amon caught up with me. He gave me a choice. If I tried to run, I would be killed. But If I stayed, he’d offer me a spot to fight for equality. He gave me a chance to see the light.”

Mako threw Korra a cold stare.

“And I did,” he said simply.

She felt so close, her heavy breathing so precise it was almost like a song. Her face captured many emotions as she struggled to deal with the information she had been given. But after she closed her and took a few deep breaths she opened her eyes and smiled sadly.

“That makes sense.” She nodded, approving her own words.

A bit shocked, he said, “Are you, the Avatar, condoning my actions?”

“No,” She rectified, “But I get it. Amon gave you a home, gave you a reason to change sides.” A frown briefly fanned over her face. “Although, I feel your forgetting the part where he took your bending away,” she grumbled. “I guess, in a weird way, that equality gave you hope. Is that right?”

Mako nodded, appreciating her odd understanding. “Firebenders killed my parents. A couple of Earthbenders beat the shit out of Bo and me when were on the streets, and once we were almost killed by The Red Monsoons when we accidently stepped in their territory. I once thought that I alone could help unbalance the bad that benders did but—it would never be enough. Benders do more harm than good and that alone was enough to make it okay.”

Korra brought her hands to her chest, cradling them awkwardly. “Well what about Bolin?”

“What about him?”

“He’s a bender; a pro-bender. He’s on Team Avatar! Doesn’t that make you angry?”

Memories of his brother flooded his mind. There was the time he challenged Mako to an Agni Kai, only to have Mako explain they couldn’t because Bolin wasn’t a firebender. All the times his baby brother wanted nothing else but to grow up to be just like him, firebender and all; he even remembered the disappointment on Bolin’s face when he discovered he was in fact, an earthbender.

“I wanted to be a firebender!”

“What’s wrong with being an earthbender? They’re pretty cool—maybe you’ll join the police force one day.”

“But I wanted to be as cool as you!”

Mako ruffled his brother’s hair. “Well maybe this way, you’ll be even cooler than me.”

“No,” Mako whispered. He looked to Avatar Korra, her dirty face a mess and gently reaches into the chamber. Korra fliched backward at first, but noticed the shaking of his hands, the softness of his smile and leaned forward. She was a bit startled as he struggled to wrap his goggles around her eyes.

He looked into bright green eyes and felt his heart pound.

“Bo’s just looks at the world differently; our lives are tinted different colors. And to be honest—” He hesitated, but continued, “I’m still not sure which one of us is right.” Mako whispered.

Behind the goggles, her eyes went wide as saucers. She watched his movements carefully, picking up the subtle sag of his shoulders and downcast glare. If he was on the fence, she wanted to change his mind. Finally she admited, “Amon is going to kill me.”

Mako whipped his head up. “No, he doesn’t kill anyone. He just wants to take your bending away.”

Korra huffed. “He threatened to murder you!”

“That’s different, he grumbled, even though he wasn’t quite sure.

“It is different—only it’s worse for me. Amon’s smart—and he’s got a plan. He’s going to kill me.”

Skeptical, Mako eyed her. “What makes you so sure?”

“Avatar intuition.” She shrugged, looking away.

The quiet came creeping back, but Mako was determined to keep it at bay. “How long do you think you’ll be down here?”

“You’re asking me? Who’s guarding who again?”

“You said Amon had a plan!”

“Doesn’t mean I have all the pieces!”

Mako groaned, repositioning himself to lean against the box again. Korra did the same. She fiddled with the goggles on her face, taking them off and on, before,

“Do you miss it?.”

He fought a sneer. “No.”

“Really? You don’t miss firebending at all.”

“Firebending is destructive and painful,” he recited, his parents murder in the front of his mind. “My loss was for the better.”

“I doubt that,” Korra whispered. “Come here.” She motioned gently. Skeptical, Mako leaned into the box, his face almost pressed completely to the metal.

“What?” He asked wearily. She turned her broken palms upward.

“Put your hands under mine, just like this.”

“What are you—”

“Just do it.”

He sighed, doing as she asked. He waited patiently as Korra stared at her marred palms, eventually allowing the smallest of flames burst to life.

Mako stared in awe. Her hands, similarly built like his held fire so gracefully. The feeling of it so close to his palm was warm and satisfying—it was nothing like the lighting he produced with gloves and technology. It was raw and pure and dare he say beautiful.

Damn her.

Korra couldn’t help but smile as she watched his amber eyes glow bright gold, shining with light and fire, just like a true firebender’s did. “Firebending has often been used for the wrong reasons,” she admitted. “But, if you go way back you will see—true firebending isn’t about destruction; it’s about breath it’s about life. All the bending arts are.”

She extinguishes the flame.

“But I’m sure you already knew that. Once a firebender, always a firebender.” she winked. She took the goggles off, inspecting their hardware. “You know, you can go back.”

He whipped his head up so fast, it cracked. “What.”

“You don’t have to be an equalist. You can bust me out and join my team!” She flashed him a grin.

“Korra, shut up.”

“What, don’t want to see your brother again?” If the girl didn’t have broken hands, he was certain she’d have them sassily on her hips.

“That’s not it at all.”

Korra rolled her eyes. “Then what is it?”

“Bolin doesn’t want to see me, okay! Not—” his voice started to waver. “Not once he finds out what I’ve done. He’d never understand.”

Korra looked to the shallow ceiling in thought. “Oh, I wouldn’t be so sure about that.”

Mako snorted. “Really. Name one person who would ever consider forgiving me after what I’ve done.”

“I would.”

His blood ran cold.

The young Avatar looked at him, soft and gentle, the understanding etched between her scars and dirt; the understanding she promised that she had. He spotted blood in the corner of her mouth, crusted over with time from her captivity, a soft bruise blooming on her cheekbone. She was only seventeen years old, but under her gaze he felt the presence of thousands of years.

He believed her.

“Thank you,” he whispered. Korra’s soft smile curled wickedly.

“But, you’d have to change of course. It’s kind of a package deal.” She flashed him her teeth,

He allowed a soft chuckle. “Right, right…”

For the first time, the quiet that settles between them isn’t awkward. He leaned up against the gritted side, his back pressing through the spaces. Korra leans up against him, her shoulder blade poking out just enough to touch his back. He pulled his mask over his mouth, once again uniform, once again, only a mere number in the system. His eyes, the only thing exposed, bright and gold, closed slowly, claiming sleep.

.

.

.

“Hey!”

He grunted, shifting his weight, but her guard did not wake. she shoved harder. “Mako!”

He woke, startled, but disguised it well. He threw is mask down to wrap around his neck before he whipped around and met Korra’s concerned face. She pointed down the tunnel, where a small, faint light appeared.

His mouth fell agape. “Oh.” He rubbed the sleep from his eyes. “Oh!”

In a panic Mako jumped to his feet. He grabbed the edge of her box and with a few labored grunts, managed to lift the damn thing back upright. He heard a distinct thunk, followed by a shriek, “Hey!” But he offered no apology. The light grew until it stopped, allowing one lone equalist to jump off, waving his glove around for show.

“Hey, Makoooo,” Hajime greeted. “Lieutenant should be down in a few minutes to get the Avatar,” he noticed the box was back and upright. “Cause any trouble?”

Mako grunted. “No. She may be the Avatar, but not much of one.”

From inside, Korra sneered. Hajime, though, laughed. “That’s apparent! Can’t even free herself from a box.” He clapped Mako on the back. “Well, I got to pick up a few things but, thought I’d give you fair warning.” From behind the mask, he grinned. “You know, in case you messed up and you needed time to make a run for it.” Hajime turned his back, heading back to the cart.

Mako eyed the pair of kali sticks lying on the ground. “Hey, Hajime,” He said slowly, tiptoeing quietly to retrieve them.

Hajime adjusted the setting on the cart, not turning his back. “Uh-huh?”

“Sorry.”

“What are you—AGH!” Hajime crumpled to the ground, his body flailing a few times as electrocution wracked his body.

Korra kicked the inside of her cage for the sake of noise. “Hey, what’s going on? Mako?”

Mako swallowed the guilt and ran over to Korra. “Korra, can you make this look like an accident?”

From inside, Korra sputtered. “What on earth are you talking about! What’s going on?”

He pounded on the metal, begging for her focus. “Korra! Can you make this look like an accident?” he repeated.

Realization set in, a smile growing on her face. “Most definitely.”

Mako darted to the cart, running to the engine control settings. He flipped open a small tool box and yanked a pry bar free. “Hold on,” he said quietly, throwing a glance down the tunnel—still dark. He passed an unconscious Hajime and ran to the box. Finding the lock, he set is glove ablaze and electrocuted the lock, letting the metal grow red with heat. With the pry bar, he wedged it in the small space created from the melted metal. He bit his tongue in concentration and tugged hard. After a few times, the metal loosened a good deal, but not completely.

“Think you can help out?” he whispered harshly. He heard a muffled “stand back” before he was running a few feet back, dodging the intense heat that came from her firebending. The young woman stumbled to the ground, still tied up around the waist and knees.

“I’ve done my part—you’re gonna have to do the rest.” Mako quickly untied her and collected the ropes in a bundle, throwing them on the cart. He peered down the tunnel.

A light.

“Shit.” He pushed her towards the cart. “You got to go, now!”

Korra, looked back, confused. “What—you’re not coming? then…Then why would you save me.?”

He paused for a moment. Then, “Because: You’re my avatar, too.”

She smiled, throwing her hands around his neck in a hug. He pushed her off quickly. “Enough already, now go.”

She configured the setting before looking down the tunnel. Mako read her mind. “Set it for route 3. Take the second staircase 2 minutes after a guard pasts. Then, climb up the fist sewage cover you see and you’re home free.”

Her smile grew wider. The light at the tunnel was still faint. She watched as he picked up the kali sticks, sparking them to life. “Are you sure you don’t want to come?” She knew what fate might become of him.

He peered down. “I still don’t know, okay?” he admitted quietly. “I might regret this tomorrow. But for today…” He was at a loss of words.

“Maybe, eventually?”

Korra nodded, her smile now sad. “I get it.” The light grew bigger as she started the cart to life. She thought she heard voices over the cackling of the sticks.

“Get going, Avatar!”

She put her broken hands on her hips. “Hey you called me Avatar!”

“Looks like you’re keeping your title after all—though it seems like a pretty sucky job.” He heard the cart rattling down the track as he positioned the sticks to both sides of his chest. “Now, go!”

He waited for the cart to leave the station before he struck himself. The pain ripped through his body, and he bit his tongue to keep quiet. He crumpled to the ground before the other cart arrived.

His vision clouded and the last thing he saw was a man in a mask before everything went dark.

“I could never be cooler than you, Mako!”

“I think you already are, Bo.”

.

.

.

“KORRA!”

Picking her head up, she let loose an ear-splitting grin. “Bolin!”

He got to her much faster than she could. He picked her up in a crushing hug, causing her to cry out in pain. He let go immediately, a guilty look across his face. “Sorry! But, Spirits, Korra we were so worried!”

From behind she saw Tahno approach, his demeanor more collected. Though she was pretty sure this was the happiest he had ever seen her. “Glad to have you back, Uh-vatar. That is, if you still have your bending?” Both boys looked nervous until Korra nodded smiling.

“We’re good. Aside from the broken hands.”

Tahno reached over and slung one of her arms around his shoulder, Bolin grabbing the other one, before they started helping her trudge down the streets.

Bolin sniffed the air. “You smell like a sewer.”

She pouted. “Don’t judge me, I was kidnapped.” Bolin laughed.

“Sorry, sorry,” His free hand started running through her hand. “Hey, cool, what is this?” She felt him slide the goggles off her head. Clumsily, he made a one-armed attempt to put them on; they ended up sitting crooked on his face. “How do I look? Scary enough?” He made a silly face, causing her to giggle.

“Terrifying.” Bolin took them off, juggling them with his hand.

“Bet you had to bash an equalist head pretty good to get this baby.” He wiggled his eyebrow suggestively before putting them back on, resting them on the top of his head. “I think I look pretty cool.”

“You should keep them.” she said quickly. “A reminder of a battle won.”

“Really? Wow, thanks Korra!” He gently knocked his fist against her forehead lovingly. “Maybe one day, We’ll run into him again, hmm? He probably wants them back.” He adjusts them, letting them sit straight. “And I might give them to him—after I kick his ass, of course.”

Korra smiled. “I sure hope so.”