Sanguine Petals, Chapter 2:
Tenzin and some of the other airbenders were currently flying on sky bison to the large town of Hangyi in the Earth Kingdom, one of the current victims of a Red Lotus band liberating other towns in the area.
The last week had been quite a hectic one as they scrambled around the country in their attempt to help bring order back to the Earth Kingdom. They had only helped smaller towns, because they lacked the numbers to assist Ba Sing Se. The status of the capital city was not known well by the people outside of it, but the rumors did not sound pretty.
It only made sense to bolster their numbers while they assisted the smaller towns in fighting off the chaos trying to consume them. Bumi and some of the other airbenders had split off to locate any airbenders that they had missed during the first time recruiting was attempted. Even if they did not want to join the Air Nation, surely they would assist in helping to bring their country to peace once more.
"I see it!" Jinora exclaimed as she pointed to the ground. "But... are those walls around it?"
"It looks like an earthbender walled the place off," Tenzin observed. Sure enough, his suspicions were confirmed when they got closer and saw the jagged peaks surrounding the town. There were several plumes of smoke wafting into the air, but unfortunately this was all too common of a sight across the kingdom.
"Okay everyone, get ready!" Tenzin shouted to the other airbenders. "We're going to drop down into this town! Slow your descent like I taught you!" While they had done aerial drops on the past few towns they had to take back, some of the newer airbenders had made rough landings, so it was still necessary to remind them.
They all jumped off of the few sky bison present and began bending the air around their legs to slow their fall. Jinora had her airbender staff out and was gliding over the town, surveying it from above.
"Watch out!" she warned as she maneuvered out of the way of large rocks thrown her way. Looking down at their source, she could see a man with shaggy dark hair and a long goatee manipulating the earth around him. He shifted his aim towards the larger group of airbenders and lifted more rocks from the earth before bending them in that direction.
Tenzin unleashed a blast of wind to knock several of them off course, but their spread was much too wide. He heard one airbender cry out in pain as one of the rocks hit their leg, disrupting their bending and making them crash to the ground. That person probably wouldn't be walking again for a while.
Jinora swooped down and landed near the earthbender, swinging her staff to unleash a powerful wave of air towards him. He raised a wall of earth that took most of the blast before punching off sections of the wall towards the young airbending master.
The other airbenders landed, and Tenzin was quick on the assault, firing several blasts of wind towards the Red Lotus man, but their adversary was quick and astute, making more rocky defenses to keep him rooted in place.
"Looks like you're out of luck here, airbenders!" the man boasted.
"That's what you think!" Jinora exclaimed as she formed an air scooter beneath her and began to circle around him. Tenzin was about the assist his daughter, but he heard commotion behind him. He turned around to see that another Red Lotus man was attacking the other airbenders.
"I can handle him, dad!" Jinora exclaimed as she darted around segments of rock being fired at her. Tenzin nodded and ran towards the other airbenders, who were facing a man that had a long braided ponytail and several large metal rings around each arm. This man was not bending, but he did appear to be a skilled martial artist, avoiding most of the air blasts coming his way with acrobatics.
Tenzin saw the man take down two airbenders with arm strikes. Those rings must be quite heavy if they could take down a grown man in one blow. Without bending, however, this fight would be simple.
"The great Tenzin, here to save the day!" the man exclaimed sardonically. "To restore the tyrannical order once more!"
"It is not your call to enforce anarchy on these people! Why do you think they are hiding in their homes at this moment?" Tenzin asked.
"Enough of this... we're not here to discuss ideologies..." the man said as he assumed a combat stance.
"I couldn't agree more. Unfortunately, you will never even touch me," Tenzin said. The Red Lotus man charged towards him, and he fired a few blasts of air. The martial artist avoided them like usual, but Tenzin had a trick up his sleeve. Before the blasts of air dissipated, he curved them around. They struck the Red Lotus man in the back, launching him towards Tenzin, who finished him off with a hammer blow of air that sent him crashing face first into the ground.
With that man disposed of, Tenzin turned around to see Jinora continuing to circle around the earthbender, who was still keeping up his defensive assault. Tenzin knew immediately what she was planning, and smiled as he saw her leap off of her air scooter and sail above the man. One decisive blast of air in the open spot of his rocky shield was all it took to bring him down.
As the father-daughter pair ran over to assess the injured airbenders, people began to come out of their homes. It looked like those two were the only Red Lotus members present in Hangyi, then.
"These people need medical attention!" Tenzin called out to the people of the town. It looked like they would be staying in this town for a few days...
"Dad, it's okay," Jinora said, placing a hand on her father's shoulder as she saw the worry and frustration written on his face. "We're helping the others as best as we can. Staying here for a while won't hurt anything."
Tenzin sighed. "Looks like you could tell what I was thinking. You're right. Rushing things is just going to get us killed."
Tenzin stood up after inspecting the injuries on the man that had fallen the first time. He had it the worst off with a broken leg... it was likely he would have to be left behind after the others recovered from their bruises gained from the martial artist. The people of the town were clamoring about, likely checking if their town was still okay, as well as locating a doctor for their saviors.
"I sure hope they have an earthbender here..." Jinora said as she looked at the earth walls the earthbender had formed around the town.
"Thank you for saving our town!" a woman exclaimed as she ran up to them. Judging by the number of people behind her and their expectant stares, this was the doctor. "Please, let's get the injured up as best as we can. I'll help to the best of my abilities..."
Pema stared out a window looking out into the ocean, absentmindedly watching the waves gently roll against the shore of the island. She was reflecting on the events of the past week; it was tough thinking about what her husband and daughter were going through, as well as the sorry state that the Avatar was in. Korra's friends even stopped by, but not even they could make her snap out of it.
She was stirred out of her thoughts when she heard a baby's cry. "Don't worry little Rohan, mommy's here," she cooed softly as she walked over to a crib and pulled up her youngest son. While she rocked the fussy baby in her arms to attempt to calm him down, she made her way over to where a bottle was kept.
Once Rohan was quieted down, she returned to gazing out the window, but this time she saw a boat sailing towards the island in the distance. There was no mistaking it... it was from the Southern Water Tribe! Pema made her way to the dock of the island, with some of the White Lotus guarding the Avatar meeting her on the way.
When they arrived, they saw Katara walking off of the ship, Kya trailing her with her lone crutch for support.
"Oh, it's so good to see you!" Pema greeted as she walked over to Katara, who smiled at seeing her newest grandson.
"Hey! How come you didn't tell us grandma was here?" Meelo asked with a whiny pout as he and Ikki zoomed towards them on air scooters.
"Yeah! No fair!" Ikki complained.
"She just got here, kids!" Pema exclaimed with a sigh.
"Come here, grandchildren," Katara said with a smile. Meelo and Ikki grinned back and hugged their grandma.
"How come you didn't attend Jinora's ceremony?" Ikki asked once the embrace had concluded.
"I really, really wanted to... but a group of hunters were injured when a pack of wolves ambushed them. A little boy that was with those hunters got very hurt. I had to be responsible and heal them before I could come here," Katara explained.
"How's Korra?" Kya asked as she limped past Katara and looked at Pema. The way she said that indicated that business had to be done.
"Yes... how is she?" Katara asked with concern.
"She's not doing well at all..." Pema said with a heavy sigh. "She's just been under the sheets of her bed for the past few days. She won't eat, she yells at anyone who tries to help her... she's absolutely miserable. I'm worried that she might... you know..."
"Is Korra going to be okay?" Ikki asked anxiously.
"Maybe she's just reeeeaaaally tired?" Meelo suggested.
"We're going to make sure she's fine," Katara said with a smile towards her two grandchildren. "But we need to be left alone so we can focus on helping her, okay? And don't worry... you'll have plenty of time to be with grandma."
This response satisfied the two children. "You better not leave right away!" Meelo exclaimed as he and Ikki raced off elsewhere on the island once more as they formed air scooters.
"Have you done anything to help her?" Kya asked the two White Lotus men.
"Her friends have been trying to do that... seeing as how she yells at even them, I don't think a stranger offering assistance is the best idea..." the man said sheepishly.
"We shouldn't dawdle. I, too, fear that she may be suicidal," the other White Lotus member said. The two led Pema, Kya, and Katara to Korra's chambers. Pema handed off Rohan to Katara and walked towards the door, knocking on it a few times.
"Korra? Katara and Kya are here. They're going to make you better again," Pema said sadly. She bit her lip and braced herself for another outburst from the Avatar, but nothing happened. Pema reached for the doorknob, hesitated, and then opened it.
Korra was lying in bed, staring at the wall with an empty gaze. The tray of food that Mako brought to her earlier was on the ground, and most of the food was likely on the wall.
"No... I deserve this..." Korra mumbled, her voice barely above a whisper.
"Korra..." Katara said sadly, but Kya walked towards the Avatar indignantly.
"Cut the feeling sorry for yourself crap! You don't deserve this at all! Nobody does!" Kya shouted. Korra slowly turned to look at her, showing that she had deep bags under her eyes.
"I know you hate this, but... please... let me help you on your wheelchair. One last time," Pema pleaded. Korra mouthed some words, but no sound came out. She glanced down in submission and allowed Pema to move her to the wheelchair. Korra shut her eyes tightly as she was wheeled out into the light, and she did not open them for the remainder of the trip back down to the docks. She was wheeled onto the boat and led to a large vat that contained a lot of water.
"This is spirit water, Korra. It would have taken a long while to gather this much, but fortunately the Northern Water Tribe was able to lend a substantial amount from the Spirit Oasis. Though for us to work at our best, you'll need to be mostly submerged in the water with your clothes off. I know this must be humiliating for you, but we need to undress you..." Katara explained.
Korra slowly opened her eyes and pursed her lips. She would have balled her hands up into fists if they weren't shaking so much.
"Please, leave us be," Kya said to the others. "The Avatar needs her privacy, and we will need to focus soon."
It was not long before the three water tribe women were alone. Katara walked over to Korra and began to take off her shirt. Korra started to cry and sob as the feeling of complete helplessness returned. She wanted to lash out and scream, but she was clinging on to the hope that these two could bring an end to all of this pain.
"There, there... it's okay now..." Katara said as she finished undressing Korra. She and Kya helped Korra into the bath of spirit water, and Korra closed her eyes as the two healers began their work.
The woman took a deep breath of the ocean air as she walked out onto the deck of the ship heading towards Republic City. It was such a relief to get away from the filthy stench of the Fire Nation. They may have tried their hardest to cover it up, but she could still smell the blood from the Hundred Year War all over the country. A whole nation of savages trying to pass themselves off as civilized...
"Hey there!" she heard a man greet. "What takes you to Republic City?"
She really didn't want to engage in conversation, but she sighed as she admitted to herself that there was little else to do on this boat. "I'm visiting up on an old friend."
"I hear you. I have family over there," the man said. Now he was getting comfortable next to her.
"Yeah... he stayed there to do a lot of research..." she said with a sigh. She had the sinking feeling that this guy was just trying to hook up with her.
"Yeah, Republic City does have the best libraries. All of those different cultures mixing together and all. I didn't happen to catch your name. I'm Toyoki," the man said as he extended a hand for a shake.
"Chizue," the woman said, slightly annoyed. She glanced at the man's hand, but did not shake it.
"Okay, sorry if I'm being too forward then," the man said with a smile as he shook his head and retracted his hand. "But I am curious about what he's researching."
She saw no reason to lie to the man, but there was absolutely no way he would get his hands on the whole story. "Avatar Yangchen. She was such a fascinating Avatar, and he wanted to learn more about her journeys."
"I'm not sure if you're going to find a lot about airbender history there," Toyoki said.
"'Learning is eternal. There is always knowledge to be gained, even from the smallest of sources.' Guru Lakshmi said that," Chizue said.
"Oh, you're big on Air Nomad culture, then?" Toyoki asked. "I mean, you just quoted one of those Gurus of theirs..."
"Yes, I am. Ban and I have studied quite a bit of Air Nomad culture, but Ban decided to see views of Avatar Yangchen as recorded in the history of other nations, while I have made a pilgrimage to each air temple, gaining all of the knowledge that I can."
"Wow, you guys seem really into this stuff. Is there any reason you're doing all of this research?"
"To plant the seeds of change..." Chizue said. She frowned when Toyoki continued to look clueless. "Not a lot of people know about the Air Nomads after the Fire Nation wiped them out. With the resurgence of airbenders in the world, we figured that it would be very helpful to compile as much information as possible to the new generation of Air Nomads."
"Well, that's a very noble goal. I wish you and your friend the best of luck," Toyoki said. There was a pause as nobody said anything. "Well... I can tell you don't really want to talk to me, but thanks for putting up with me, anyway. Good day to you, Chizue," Toyoki said brightly as he raised his hand in farewell and walked away.
Chizue sighed with relief... thank goodness that was over. She felt foolish for dropping part of the code the Red Lotus used to identify each other, but comrades could be found hiding in the unlikeliest of locations. Fortunately she was quickly able to spin a lie and smooth out what could have been very suspicious and awkward.
Her gaze returned to the sea. Hopefully Ban found what they had been looking for these past few years, because the historical accounts in the air temples only explained the events, not their cause. Finding this information was imperative to their goals. She had little doubt, for instance, that many attempts would be made on the Fire Lord's life by other Red Lotus members, but they would not succeed. But with what Ban may have found out, there would be no holding back the natural order anymore.
"Don't disappoint me, old friend..." Chizue said aloud as she decided to return to her cabin.