She noticed it the moment she stepped foot in her new cell. At first she thought she was starting to go crazy. She had spent the last few month's locked up alone, with her only companions being the occasional guard. It wasn't necessarily the greatest living situation. Perhaps this observation was her mind, desperately wanting to escape.
But as walked further into the small cell, she realizes her observation was correct. The cell was made of metal.
"This is my cell?" she asked, as the guard began to close the door. He simply laughed.
"What's wrong, Great Uniter. Not cozy enough for you?" he taunted, before slamming the door in her face. She blinked. This couldn't be happening. Why would the Great Republic possibly put her in a metal room. She was one of the best metal-benders in the world. They might as well be putting a water-bender in a cage made of ice.
She looked down at her handcuffs, made of platinum. Since her capture, she had been surrounded by the stuff. Her handcuffs, the floors, the walls, even her toiletries were made of the stuff.
Yet here she was, in a simple metal room. Maybe this was some sort of cruel joke. Perhaps the outer layer of the room was coated with platinum? She walked up to the walls and flicked it with her fingers. No, the entire room was metal. Pure, simple, untampered with metal.
Was this actually happening? There was no way that the Republic Justice Department had overlooked putting her in a metal cage. She knew enough about the city to know they weren't idiots. If it was the idiot king locking her up, that would be one thing, but this? She was dumbfounded.
She sat down and closed her eyes. She needed to think about this one. This cage was either an opportunity, or a trap.
Maybe they placed her in here as a test of loyalty. If she stayed put, then maybe she wouldn't be given as harsh a sentence. It was a possibility to be considered. Maybe there were rows of guards, waiting for her outside. They were prepared for her attempt at freedom.
Or maybe, just maybe, this was a simple paperwork error. A dyslexic guard had written a six instead of a nine, and made the biggest mistake of their career. This was the universe giving her an opportunity to not live out the rest of her life in a cage.
She stood up, and walked to the cell's tiny window. She looked around for any sign of a trap. She squinted her eyes in the sun. She was not used to the glaring brightness.
That's when she realized. This was the first time since her capture that she had seen the sun. Up until now, she had been kept in a windowless block of platinum. Her only source of light had been a faded florescent like. She looked at her hands. Up until now, she had never realized just how pale her skin had become.
It wasn't as if she blamed her captors for this treatment. After all, she had treated her prisoners in a similar fashion. Quite frankly, she was amazed at the lack of torture she had experienced her.
Her stomach started to growl. She sighed. The prison kept its inhabitants just fed enough to not die of starvation. She pulled her shirt up. She could see the outline of her ribcage. And glancing at her arms, she realized she had lost the glorious muscle she had worked so hard to maintain. Her time in prison had turned her into a stick. She had previously taken great pride in her strength, but she realized she just was going to accept that being powerful was a thing of the past.
Except, maybe she didn't. Because she could metal-bend her way to freedom.
It wasn't as if she would take revenge against those who defeated her. While she marveled at the thought of wiping the smug grin off of Suyin's face, she knew she couldn't. Besides, if she escaped and was re-captured, she would live out the rest of her life in conditions much worse then the current ones she faced.
No, if she was given the opportunity for freedom, she would run as far away as possible. Somewhere where the Avatar's allies couldn't catch her. Somewhere where she wasn't seen as weak, or strong. Somewhere she could just be herself.
And if she didn't take this opportunity, she may never be faced with the chance again. It was a risk, but if she succeeded...the benefits greatly outweighed the risks.
With a deep breath, she walked up to the cell wall. Though her hands were restricted by her handcuffs, she could still feel them position them just right on the metal walls. She closed her eyes. Three...two...one.
Her hands punctured through the wall, shredding it like a piece of paper. When her hole was big enough, she jumped through.
Even though she was out of shape, she managed to land of her feet. She looked at the view ahead of her. There was a forest.
She smiled. She was out. She was almost free.
As fast as she could, she began to run. She ran as hard as her body would allow her. She ran like her life depended on it.
And maybe, it did.
Suyin Beifong walked down the prison halls, accompanied by her sister. She hadn't been planning on visiting Kuvira. She never wanted to look at the traitorous metal-bender again. However, she realized she would have to face the woman sooner or later. She might as well get it over with.
"Where are you taking us?" Lin asked the guard, taking Su off guard. The guard was just a kid, he looked like he hadn't been here fore more then a week. He looked at the chief, confused.
"I...uh...I'm taking you to Kuvira's cell, ma'am. We just had her relocated today," the kid replied, "Is...is something wrong?"
"These are metal cells," Lin said, ice in her voice. Su felt her heart jump as she watched the color drain from the guard's face.
The guard pointed out the cell Kuvira was supposed to be in, and Lin quickly kicked down the door.
They were greeted to an empty cell, with a large hole in the window.
Su felt like she was about to faint.
She was gone.
Kuvira's feet felt numb from running, but she wasn't going to stop. She had found herself in the depths of the forest. She ran as if armies were chasing her, but in the back of her mind, she knew she didn't need to.
She was free.
I couldn't sleep so I wrote a Kuvira one shot. And who said insomnia couldn't be productive? Anyways, I hope that you all enjoyed this. I really love writing about Kuvira. Hopefully, there will be more of these in the future.
In the meantime, have a wonderful Christmas Eve to those who celebrate it, and those who don't, have a wonderful Wednesday!