"Once, I was king."
Korra's eyes widened at the familiar drawl. "T-Tahno?"
Slowly, the figure approached the young Avatar's bound body.
"Once, I was king," he repeated softly, as he reached out towards Korra's face, his fingers barely grazing her cheek, "I thought I had everything I could want. Wealth, talent…" His features transformed into his signature smirk, "handsome looks."
"I had everything. Almost."
His eyes lingered over her lips for a few tense moments. Korra tried to break the silence.
"Tahno, I don't know what kind of a game you are playing at but -"
His hand closed over her mouth, and he leaned in close to her, his breath hot, "I'm not finished, Uh-vatar. This is me time, so be good little girl and keep your mouth shut."
He straightened suddenly, his eyes never leaving hers.
"Yes. I was king once. But, you know the rest. How I lost it all." He let out a low, humorless laugh. "Like something out of a fucking Ember Island show."
"It was pathetic. I was nothing but a victim. A reminder of a very, very unfortunate night. The way people looked at me – with pity. Disgusting."
"But, not everyone forgot me. There was one person who cared, who didn't see me for what I used to be, but for my potential. You know who that was, Korra?"
She looked at him, his hair slicked back in his former hairstyle, a smug look plastered on his face. He looked like he had when she had first seen him a few weeks ago, at Narook's. But something about him was different now…
It finally hit her, "Amon…" Korra whispered.
Tahno smirked again, "There's something strangely poetic about it, don't you think? The man took away one life and gave me another. He showed me the lies, the injustice – the ugliness."
His hand reached for her again, this time cupping her chin, much like Amon had done once. Korra shivered at the memory and tried to turn away.
"He will bring great things, Korra. An entire new world for us all. It will be like nothing before. And, who knows? Maybe you will still be here to see it." He suddenly let go of her face, as if it had burned him. "Though, I doubt it."
Korra tried to speak, "Tahno. This isn't you. You know that."
"Please, spare me the speech. I'm really not interested in hearing you talk, anyway. I rather hear you scream." He turned to her again, this time holding two electrified kali sticks.
Tahno grinned in amusement at her petrified expression. "These? A gift from Amon himself. He can be very generous to his followers, you know." Gently, he began to stroke up and down her thighs with the kali sticks, causing Korra to let out a muffled cry.
"Yes, he can be very generous. I can't even begin to imagine how he is going to repay me when I deliver the Avatar herself to his hands." The kali sticks traveled up her inner thigh, and Korra gasped. Tahno smirked, "Though, I do have a few ideas…"
Korra gritted her teeth. No, she would not scream for him. No matter how much pain Tahno put her in, she would never give him the satisfaction.
Tahno traced the outline of her breast lazily with one of the kali sticks, "Aw, still the tough little girl aren't we? Let's see how long you can keep that up."
He forcefully thrust one of the sticks under Korra's chin, forcing her to look at him. Searing white-hot pain echoed throughout her body, and Korra finally screamed. Just as sudden, Tahno removed the weapon, and she collapsed, shaking.
He bent down to her, pulling her hair back with mock tenderness. "It's all the same, really," he whispered into her ear, "I have everything again."
"Except this time, I have you."
Author's Note: So. This is pretty much the first "fan fiction" thing that I have ever attempted to write. I'm quite partial to the Tahorra pairing, and I think that the idea of Tahno as an Equalist working for Amon would be quite interesting. I apologize for my amateur writing - I hope to improve!
Reviews would be lovely, if you are so inclined. If not, then thank you for reading anyway :)
Have a nice day!