I Promise Part I

Korra laced up her boots, standing and straightening her tunic. She glanced at herself in the mirror, stunned at her own appearance. Iroh was right, she had changed. She looked, bigger, stronger, more lethal.

"Are you ready?" Iroh appeared behind her, leaning in the doorway, a smirk on his face. His uniform had been replaced by a stealthy outfit of black cloth, shrouding him in shadows. He looked deadly, cunning and gorgeous. His body looked strong and fit, outlined by the clothing, painted in the soft glow of the lanterns, illuminated by dancing light.

"We look like quite a deadly pair," Korra stated, stepping closer to Iroh, trailing her fingers down his chest.

"Yes. Yes we do," he smiled crookedly and pressed her body into his, placing his hands on the small of her back. He pressed his lips to hers relishing the warmth of her touch, allowing her hot breath to flood his cheeks.

The two pulled out of the embrace, at the sound of the footsteps, echoing through the corridor. Iroh turned just in time to see Mako, Asami, and Bolin round the corner and crossing the threshold.

"Oh," Mako muttered, eyes narrowing as he glimpsed Korra past Iroh's shoulder. "Hope we weren't interrupting anything," he glowered turning his glare on Iroh.

"It's alright, you weren't," Korra sniffed, returning Mako's stare.

"Th crew is all ready. Your Officers asked us to notify you," Asami interjected, stepping in front of Mako.

"Good. We should get a move on. It will be daylight in a few hours," Iroh moved through the doorway and sauntered down the hall. Korra followed, ignoring Mako's hard glare as she pushed past him. His eyes burned into her back as he sulked behind the group.

He couldn't take seeing Korra so close the this man, this General Iroh. Once upon a time she was his Korra, and he was the one she talked to ,the one she wanted to be with. But now..it seemed like all she wanted was Iroh. And Mako didn't know if his heart could want anything else but Korra….

When the team stepped on the banks of the City, the moon still shone like a beacon, a skimming across the water and illuminating the shadows on the streets. Once they assembled on the shore, they moved swiftly into the alleyways, covered by Iroh's Officers. The crew slunk through the dark city streets soundlessly, poised for attack, unwilling to be surprised by the Equalists.

Korra went over and over the plan in her head, hoping that the strategies that had dealt with for the past few days would unfold as expected. The covert mission itself was simple: they had a known position for Amon and a large nobler of his Equalist soldiers. They would assault the facility, hopefully capturing Amon. Dead or alive.

But still something nagged at Korra in the back of her mind. Something about the scenario, the plan itself, made her feel uneasy. She crept along behind Iroh until she noticed that the footsteps making hollow clacking sounds in front of her had seized.

They had reached the Equalist hideaway. Korra leaned against the wall, waiting to move the party inside, feeling her heart thunder inside her chest, her breathing quicken to a pant and then an electrifying blue light lit up the alleyway.

Bolin's scream echoed off the buildings in the alley, raising goosebumps on Korra's skin. She whirled around just in time to see Asami and one of Iroh's Officers pinned against the wall, tased by an Equalist.

"Ambush!" Cried Iroh, spinning out into the center of the alley, illuminating the walls with a crimson glow as he blasted two Equalists sailing from the roof top. Korra spun to launch a boulder toward the onslaught of Equalist soldiers.

An explosion shook the ground, flinging Korra against the wall, reverberating against the desolated buildings in the street. Korra tried to drag herself up but when she did, she found her limbs were heavy and blakc smoke, mixed with the black night, was screening the alley.

Two hands reached through the shroud and lurched her to her feet. Their grip was strong, and Korra felt the electricity consume her body as the taser ignited against her skin.

"Uhhh," she moaned as she felt her eyes press closed. Her mind began to fade as she struggled to fight, to move, to do anything to free herself.

"I have the Avatar, let's go!" shouted her captor, lunging inside a caravan and slinging Korra to the ground.

Iroh felt his heart sink as he saw Korra pulled into the back of the van.

He heard Mako scream her name, his voice full of pain and worry. "Korra!"

He wanted to scream, yell for help, call to Korra but he wasn't sure if any sound emanated from his mouth. Fear swam in his veins, ripping at his insides and for the first time in his life, General Iroh didn't think or plan. He moved on pure impulse and ran hurtling himself into the van. The minute he found himself in the van he felt the singe of electricity, felt his body go limp.

But it didn't matter. He was vulnerable but at least he was with Korra. And for right now that was all that mattered.

The caravan rumbled down the city streets, leaving the chaos of the ambush behind.

"Where does Amon want them?" questioned one of the Equalists.

"At the main camp. He said we can house them there until he can meet us," replied another.

The van rolled into a large, factory facility in the warehouse district. As the van pulled inside, Korra began to wake, eyes flickering open. Despite her vision blurring, she could make out Iroh positioned across from her on the floor of the van. She could also see the many soldiers surrounding them, attending to the captives as the van rolled to a stop.

"Leave them here," barked one of the Equalists.

There was muttering in assent and then the van jerked to a halt.

Korra caught Iroh's eye as the back of the van swung open, iridescent light flooding the area. His lips formed the words stay still and shut his eyes. Korra followed suit, feigning unconscious and waited as the Equalists set them up against cold concrete walls, pinning their hands behind their backs.

A few quick knocks placed strategically on Korra's body and she went limp. The chi-blockers had provided a little extra security by prolong their incapacitation.

Iroh felt Korra's body, warm and limp, laying against his own, hot breath tickling his chest. He felt the hot fluid drip from his shoulder and he winced. Blood wafted, thick and sweet into his nose.

Near his ear, Korra groaned and shifted her head closer to his. Through his closed lids Iroh sees the lights fade and he hears the van grumble away farther into the factory.

The cold, hard floor beneath Iroh proves to be exceedingly uncomfortable and he shifts causing Korra to fall even closer to him.

"Iroh," she whispers in his ear, looking up dazedly into his eyes. Her bright eyes shone with fear, oriented by pain and helplessness.

"They…they're taking us to Amon," she shuddered, raising goosebumps on her own arms. She gazed up at Iroh, finding comfort in his strong, cool eyes.

"No," he whispered, careful not to alert their captors to their wakefulness. He wanted to take Korra in his arms, to make her feel safe, but his restraints wouldn't allow it. Instead he pressed his lips to her forehead, feeling her cool temples pressed between his lips. Her touch comforted him, made him more resigned than ever to break free of the Equalists' clutches. He had to make it out, not for himself, but for Korra. He could not, no, would not, let her fall into harm's way. He could not live with himself if he didn't do all he could to protect her.

"They won't get the chance. I don't know exactly what we will do, but I will get us out of here Korra."

He gazed down at her face, but was met with residual worry and uncertainty in her eyes.

"I promise." he whispered against her forehead. He looked back down to see a small smile creep across her lips and this time her eyes shone with confidence in him and hope, mixed with something else, deeper and perhaps more powerful. But also more frightening.

She arched her neck and turned her face upward, reaching up to kiss him, warmed and comforted by the exhilarating touch of his lips, the heat of his skin.

Korra know she should be afraid, scared, and worried. But all she felt now was safety, comfort, and love, buried in the warmth of Iroh's skin, entranced by the touch of his skin on hers.

And for some reason she knew everything would be alright