Trigger Alert! : contains mature themes, and may cause trigger for past traumas. Assult & harassment
i.
The dungeon was dark, dimly lit with green lanterns, and cold. Jinora was shoved roughly into the room, which made her stumbled onto the ground. Her Airbending clothes had been confiscicated and were traded in for pale green tunics- prisoner clothing.
Jinora got up and looked around. There were prisoners like her too. The Earth Queen hadn't given up on her so-called army, and had begun rebuilding it since the escape with the previous prisoners who now reside with her dad in the Air Temples.
"Work starts tomorrow," the guard said as he closed the thick concrete doors, leaving her in the darkness.
ii.
Jinora was the only girl among the Airbending prisoners, and one of the youngest. Out of respect, her brothers had decided to go easy on her. But she didn't want any of that.
"I can handle it," she said confidently, when they were paired up for duel training. Her partner threw a weak gust of air at her, and she retaliated it. Hard. The fifteen year old boy flew back, and slammed against the wall. Jinora gasped.
"I'm so sorry," she exclaimed, "Are you alright?"
"A soldier never apologizes to their opponent," boomed a Dai Li agent behind her. Jinora looked at him.
"I am not a soldier," she snapped " And Airbenders are not supposed to be one. We are a peaceful race,"
"Not in the Queen's Army," the man smirked, "You will be a soldier once you're done with your training,"
"I will never serve her,"
"Oh you will. Now, back to your position!"
"And if I don't?"
Three Earth disks took her by surprise. She didn't have enough time to airbend, and covered her head. Two aimed for her arms and one collided at her stomach, sending her to the ground. The girl gasped in pain. The man chuckled.
"You will obey, or you will get another disk on your head. Now get up!"
iii.
For her whole life, Tenzin had taught her that Airbending is not used for violence, but to maintain peace and balance. But for this case, she had to force herself to disregard her father's teachings.
"Strike him harder," the Dai Li ordered. Jinora hit her new opponent again, softer than what had happened with the previous boy,"
"I know you can do better than that. Harder!"
"I won't hurt him," she blurted out.
Airbending is not used for violence but for peace, her father's words rang in her mind.
"Do it again," the man ordered, looking fiercely at her. "Or you'll be punished,"
Scared by the guards' tone and face, Jinora threw a punch.
Here it's not for peace, but for survival. Here, it's either kill or be killed.
iv.
She couldn't remember how long she had been down here. She couldn't tell. It has been perhaps days. There were long hours of training, and short times for rest. Her body screams in pain as it is battered in bruises. There was very little food too. The hunger was nothing was compared to meditating and fasting up in the mountains with her father. No, it was because her body was hurting and exhausted from the harsh training.
She wonders about her family. Was her father searching for her? Was her mother worried? How was Korra doing? What about Ikki and Meelo? More importantly, what about Kai and those captured baby Airbison?
She was afraid of that bearded Dai Li agent. He was always watching her, and occasionally threatening her to hurt her more if she didn't throw her harder punches to her weaker airbending brothers. She hadn't meant to be afraid of him because the threats meant nothing to her. Not until one day, he roughly grabbed at her hair , letting her hair tie loose and her brown locks falling to her shoulders.
"You look prettier with your hair down," the mans' sneered, like a dangerous predator waiting to pounce on his prey.
That was when the real terror had came over her.
v.
There would always be a new prisoner occasionally brought into the dungeons. One night, everyone was awaken by the opening of the stone walls, and two agents holding a boy wearing the same uniform as everyone else.
"Welcome back to the prison, boy,"
They shoved him to the ground and closed the doors, leaving everyone in the dark again. The prisoners went back to bed, ignoring the newcomer as always. There was no point comforting anybody new because everyone had went to the same experience and even with some words of encouragement or assurance, it will all die the next day with brutal training.
Jinora ran to the boy. She had gotten a good glimpse of him before the lights went out, and she felt a burst of happiness in her.
"Kai!" she cried, as she wrap her arms around his neck, engulfing him in a hug.
She felt arms wrap around her waist , and him breathing out a loud sigh.
"I finally found you," he whispered.
Jinora pulled herself away. "What happened? Why are you here? And dow did you manage to get captured?"
Kai chuckled. "I came to find you, silly, and to get you out of here,"
Kai told her that her father and uncle were here in the Earth Kingdom, trying to get to the Earth Queen to get her out.
"But the process to speak to the so-called 'majesty' took a long process. And I bet she would lie to your father about you not being here," said Kai, filling her in that night.
"The Earth Queen wouldn't know anyways. All she cares about is her army," Jinora sighed, hugging her knees. "She doesn't know any of the Airbenders personally. I doubt she even saw their faces. Once I arrived into the Earth Kingdom, the poachers sold me to one of her guards, and brought me here,"
"We caught one of the poachers to tell us your whereabouts. You should've see your dad's face. He was fuming mad,"
Jinora smiled. Her father was so protective of his little girl.
"And the baby bisons?" she asked. "Did they manage to find them?"
"Looks who's more worried about the babies than her well being," Kai mused , "What was amazing was that some of the wild bisons followed us here. They kinda left a mess in the market. We saw two babies in two different places. I don't know what had happened to the third one,"
Jinora's face fell, "I knew what had happened to the last one. The one which was with me. It…."
She remembers the bison crying out as the men dragged it away from her. One of the men had an axe in hand. She cried out as her captives forcefully shoved her back into the cage. The baby bison was dragged away from the clearing, but it's cries pierced in to the air.
And there was sudden silence in the air. And a man returned with the axe covered in blood.
Her body shook when she relived that horrific memory. She leaned on Kai's shoulder.
"It was horrible," she choked, bile rising to her throat and her voice getting high pitched, "He was just a baby….,"
She leaned against Kai's shoulder.
vi.
Because they had been training at the Air Temples, Kai and Jinora were the strongest Airbenders among all the prisoners, and also the kindest. After 'training' the kids would teach their airbending brothers the right techniques to deflect objects like the earth disks. Kai added that it is useful if they plan an escape.
Everyone did very well in the next training, deflecting and preventing the disks from hurting them.
"Please, I can't take it anymore," cried out someone standing next to Jinora, covering his face. It was the fifteen year old boy whom she had apologized to on her first day. Three more disks flew at him. The lad covered himself in defense, but Jinora was quicker. She threw an airbending slice into the air, which directed the disks away from the older boy.
One of the lessons on being an Air Nomad is to show mercy to the weak and helpless.
"He said he couldn't take it anymore," yelled Jinora.
"Then prepare to take his toll," the guard said, flinging disks at her. She managed to deflect as many as she could. Everyone had topped their training to see the performance of one of the strongest Airbenders.
After the twentieth one, she was getting tired. Beads of sweat fell down her face. One smashed against her stomach, and she was just in time to put her arms up before another smashed her face. She opened her eyes to see three more coming at her! She closed her eyes again, preparing for the impact.
She felt a strong gust of wind from her left, and the disks flew past her. When she opens her eyes again, she sees a figure standing in front of her.
It was Kai.
vii.
Kai had noticed her change of hairstyle ever since he got thrown into the dungeons. Her usual top bun was now in a simple low ponytail, revealing her longer hair which goes past her shoulders, wrapped up with a stip of the hem of the bottom of her shirt.
"You look beautiful," he had said, hoping for a smile in return. But she didn't smile and said nothing.
And that bothered him. He knew something was wrong.
She's like everyone else who listens to the guards, but he noticed she stiffens when a particular agent passes her. Her eyes would sometimes stare pass him, filled with fear, whenever he talks to her, and when he turns around to see what she was staring at, the agent would be gone.
There was one time when he saw a Dai Li tucking a stray strand of her hair behind her ear, murmuring to her. Jinora looked petrified. He didn't see his face, but he saw that smirk. A chilling one. By the time he got to her, the man had gone, and he had to gently shake her to break her out of her trance.
She didn't know how to tell him, but he didn't need an explanation. And would try to keep her as close as possible.
vii.
It sounds bad, but Jinora is happy that Kai was with her. She feels much stronger with him. After the hard training, she and him would share their food (Kai would give most of his food to her, but she would decline), and huddle next to him when they sleep.
She knows that he was genuinely concerned for her when that man always approaches her. She would see his body tense up and his green eyes looking angry. But there's only much he could do. Everytime when that agent harasses her, she would see Kai coming up to them, and the man would leave before Kai could reach them. Jinora would thank him with her smile before getting yelled at the Dai Li's to resume their training. Afterwards, she would bury her head in his chest, seeking comfort. He would wrap his arms around her, cursing and praying for rescue to come sooner.
viii.
They were going back to their cell when a big hand grabbed her shoulder from behind and pinned her to the wall. She cried out in shock. When she opened her eyes, she saw him smiling at her and touching her face. Terrified, she let her instincts take over. She shoots a burst of air at his chest, sending him flying a few feet back.
The man got angry. Jinora brought her arms up in a defensive position. But they became useless when the man shot out his rock glove, cuffing her wrists, and pinning her against the wall with her arms above her. Jinora screamed when her head hit the concrete, and began to struggle.
As the Dai Li agent approached her, panic filled her as she saw the horrible smirk and evil gleam in his eyes. Like a hungry wolf. Her stomach churned. The girl felt a new fear in her. A fear that she had never experienced before. She began to struggle harder.
"It's useless," the man smiled.
Suddenly, a blast of air shot out, knocking him sideways, till he hit the other side of the wall. The man grunted in pain. Jinora turn her head, to see Kai walk past her to the fallen agent, furious.
"Don't you dare touch her," he growled.
All the Aibenders had heard Jinora's cry, but before they could come to her rescue, the guards had quickly closed the doors behind them. It looked like it had been planned because the guards knew that the prisoners had grew protective of the girl. Only the boy, who had been alert everyday, was quick enough to slide in between the closing doors, knocking out the two agents before quickly coming to Jinora's rescue.
Kai had had enough of this game the agent was playing. It was too agonizing to watch his friend get petrified day by day as the horrors grew. He had been on the streets long enough to see where this was going. And this has gone far, and must end.
Huge boulders flew at him. Kai immediately ducked sideways, and sent air slicers at the mans' direction. The fight went on for a while as Kai showed no signs of giving up to protect his friend.
He spent most of the time defending and deflecting as many rocks were sent at him. The agent got nearer but the young airbender stood his ground, refusing to move. Finally he got a clear shot, and hit the man, sending him back to the wall. Before the enemy could recuperate, Kai continued to send, harsh and brutal air punches at him. The wall cracks behind the man under the pressure.
Kai decides to leave all his Airbending teaching behind, on how to show mercy to a weaker opponent. No, this was no ordinary opponent. This opponent was a monster. He didn't care about the consequences later, or Jinora's pleas for him to stop. He was doing it to keep Jinora safe. He was ready to give his final death blow-
"Kai, behind you!"
He wasn't quick enough.
Suddenly, four slabs shot out around him, entrapping him. He struggled to move. The more he moved, the tighter the concrete crushed painfully against his body.
The monster limped over to them, smirking.
"You thought you would defeat me? You're not strong enough," he mocked, smiling evilly. He glanced at Jinora. " Not strong enough to protect her,"
A chill ran down his spine, and he struggled harder. The other two men stood at either side of him.
"Throw him into the hole," the leader ordered. "No, take him to that special room. It's time for him to be…..obedient,"
"No!" Kai was taken aback by her protest.
By the time the four slabs came down, Kai was back to his fighting mode, but he was weak, and tried his best fight against to fight against the two guards. But the guards were stronger, and dragged him away. He screamed Jinora's name. She did to.
Kai struggled as he saw the monster approaching Jinora again. When they headed downstairs, he could no longer see her. But her screams and cries echoed through the walls. He began to wrestle harder. He wouldn't give up. He can't!
He never stopped when he was brought to a strange room. Or when he was strapped to a chair. Or when a yellow light encircled around him.
ix.
He was wakened by a gentle hand on his shoulder. He can't remember what had happened. The last thing he remembered was Jinora trapped against the wall-
Jinora!
He bolted straight up. He was back in the prisoner cell. Most of the Airbenders were asleep . But the person next to him was..
"Jinora?" he gasped.
"You've been out for over an hour," the girl said. He is surprised by her calm voice. "Do you know what had happened?" she asked.
Kai grabbed her wrist. "Are you alright?"
Jinora quickly snatched back her wrist, and stood up.
"I'm fine," she replied, too quickly. There was a small tremble in her voice.
She was lying.
Kai outstretched his arm towards her, worried.
"Please don't come near me," she pleaded, wrapping her arms around herself, moving away. He noticed that her clothing was more wrinkled than before. And were there stains on her trousers?
He felt sick.
And angry.
He stood up, and slowly walked towards her. Every time he takes a step forward, she takes two steps back. Until she hit the wall.
"Please don't hurt me," she whimpered, her voice cracking, and closed her eyes.
Kai gently placed his hands on her shoulders and pulled her into a surprise hug.
"I won't hurt you," he said softly.
"I'm okay, I'm okay," Jinora repeated to herself as a mantra. But the more she said it, more tears fell, and the chokes turned to sobs. She let herself fall into his arms and cry.
Airbenders are supposed control their emotions, and aim for enlightenment. But at this moment, she didn't fell like an Airbender. No, she felt like a broken, lost little girl.
"I'm here, Jin." the boy hushed her . "I'm here. You're safe now ," Kai held her until her sobs died down, and sleep took over her.
x.
They heard a loud explosion upstairs, and then debris falling on them.
After a moment, the stone doors flew open. The men standing at the entrance were not wearing the green uniforms. Instead they were wearing red.
"It's General Iroh!" Jinora exclaimed.
"We're here to get you out," the man informed them. "We better hurry. The Earth Queen is sending in more reinforcements,"
"Jinora, are you in there?" a too familiar voice rang out behind the general, revealing a familiar monk.
"Daddy!" Jinora ran to Tenzin and gave him a huge hug. Kai followed behind.
"I'm glad you're alright," her father sighed. He looked at the boy. "And you too, Kai,"
Kai smiled at his teacher.
The soldiers led the prisoners out. Iroh, Tenzin and the kids left last.
The Dai Li agents were everywhere, and more menacing than at the training grounds. But thanks to Kai and Jinora's helpful teachings, the Airbenders were well prepared to face them. Air clashed with Earth, turning rocks into dust.
"Stay together," Tenzin ordered as he knocked off one agent off the ceiling. The ground shook madly, and more debris began to fall down.
"This place is going to collapse!" Jinora yelled.
"We need to hurry," Iroh said, and the group made their way into the tunnels.
They were almost out when the four had been cut off from the group by a grown wall.
"Let's find another way out," Kai yelled. They turned back, but the end tunnel was also closed off, leaving a little light. And at the end of the other tunnel was a Dai Li agent.
"Not so fast,"
Jinora gasped. Kai's blood boiled at the familiar voice. The monster was back. He quickly got into a fighting stance.
"We meet again," the man smiled. "And you're not going anywhere. Ever. Again,"
Kai threw a punch at him. The Dai Li jumped up, sending rock gloves at him. Quickly, Tenzin stood in front of the boy, and deflected the weapons. Iroh threw a fireball, and the sequence continued. With three against one, their opponent had no chance.
After a while, it looked like the man was weakening. With a final blast, the man was slammed onto the wall and fell to his feet, unconscious. But Kai wasn't done with him.
"This is for Jinora!" He sent the man high up into the air, and letting him fall to the ground with a sickening thud."Kai, stop," Tenzin yelling, grabbing the boys' arm "An Airbender never attacks a defenseless opponent," Kai saw red.
"He hurt Jinora!"
Tenzins' eyes went wide. "What?" he gasped. He looked at Jinora, realizing she had never joined the fight. Instead, the monks' daughter had pressed herself against the other wall, shivering, her face pale, and a petrified look on her face. He looked back at Kai "What did he do to my little girl?"
Before Kai could answer, they turned to see the Dai Li getting up on his feet again. Kai stood in front of Jinora, and readied his stance.
"Give up, you're outnumbered," said Kai "And I'm not afraid to take you down again,"
The Earthbender laughed again. "I'm not afraid. You should be,"
What?
The man grinned. "Kai," he said "The Earth Queen has invited you to Lake Laogai,"
Jinora gasped. Those are very familiar words she had read in one of her books. But that's impossible! Lake Laogai is underwater. Destroyed. Gone! How could that same words have the same effect after 70 years and have no meaning?
Kai turned around, and faced her. His pupils were dilated.
"No," she gasped, bile rising to her throat.
Kai's face was expressionless and his voice came out monotonous.
"I am honored to accept her invitation,"
Jinora wanted to cry.
Kai was gone.
End.
What do you think happens next? Does Kai breaks out of the Dai Li's control? Or will his fate end like Jet? You decide. And please review!
I leave it to your own interpretation :)