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"Where do you think Bolin could be?" Korra asked, scratching Naga behind the ear while Mako put his jacket on. They were going to look for Bolin after Korra refused to left Mako do it alone.
"I have an idea, but I hope I'm wrong," Mako muttered.
"Well, let's just check all the bars and stuff. I bet he's just partying with some cute girl and forgot to check in." Korra tried to sound upbeat, but Mako's eyes tightened with worry.
"Hey, doom and gloom," she said, punching him in the shoulder. "I'm sure it's fine."
"You don't know that," he snapped at her, shrugging away her hand. "Let's just get going."
He climbed up on Naga without looking at her. Korra felt hurt but knew he was just worried. She climbed up in front and leaned forward so her mouth was next to Naga's ear.
"Go find Bolin! Yes, good girl, go find him!" Just to make sure, Korra held out one of Bolin's shirts she had stolen for Naga to sniff.
She raised her head and sniffed a bit, then took off down the road. Korra was worried for a second that they had lost Mako, but when she turned around to check, she found him sitting there, holding onto Naga tightly. His posture was stiff, lips pressed together. It didn't take a genius to see he was worried out of his mind.
The route Naga was taking them went through twisty streets and an area Korra hadn't been to yet. It was dark and sinister looking, making Korra tense in her seat. The last thing she needed was a distraction from finding Bolin. If anyone attacked them, she would take them out.
"Where are we?" she called back to Mako.
"We're headed to the Triple Threat Triad headquarters," Mako replied, after a second of hesitation.
Korra frowned. "I encountered them once. I stopped them from burning down some man's shop. What would Bolin be doing with them?"
He sighed loudly. "I told him not to but-" He was cut off as Naga barked and turned sharply, racing down a street.
"Woah Naga!" Korra yelled, trying to take control. But Naga just ignored her and continued to chase whatever she had found.
They came to a stop at a lamppost, and Korra spotted a furry creature on it.
"No Naga! Pabu is a friend, not a snack," she said sternly. Pabu was Bolin's fire ferret so maybe they were getting close to where Bolin was. He scurried across Naga's back and over to Mako, climbing up on his shoulder.
He smiled briefly, then got serious. "We should keep moving."
With Naga back on track, it only took them a few minutes to reach the headquarters. Mako hadn't explained why Bolin would be here but Korra wasn't going to push him. It didn't matter why he was here; they just needed to find him.
Mako hopped off quickly, Pabu still on his shoulder. "Something isn't right. Normally there are a few thugs hanging around outside to keep guard." It was obvious Mako had been here before but Korra didn't comment.
"We need to be cautious," he said, then crept up to the door. Korra held in a giggle as he peeked in carefully, looking ridiculous as he tried to be "cautious." But it was strangely endearing too.
He glanced at her then gestured for her to come over. Holding in her laughter, she strode right up the door and kicked it in. Proud of herself that she actually managed to knock both doors in, she ignored the look Mako shot her.
She already suspected that no one would be here and a quick scan of the place just confirmed that. They looked at each other and she started to shrug when she heard voices. They both took off running and burst through a set of doors.
The first thing Korra noticed were the people on motorcycles, wearing really weird outfits. They had some sort of strange masks on their faces, making it impossible to see what they looked like.
The next thing she noticed was Bolin sitting in the back of a truck, hands and feet tied and a gag over his mouth. There were some other people in the truck with him but no one that Korra recognized.
"Bolin!" Mako yelled, alarm making his voice a little higher than normal.
There was a second before the truck's doors closed where Korra made eye contact with Bolin. His normally sparkling green eyes were wide with fear and one of them was swelling shut, like he had been hit. Then the doors closed and the truck took off.
Korra felt rage spread through her body and she started towards the truck. But the guys on motorcycles pulled out cans, flicked something at the top and threw them on the ground. Green smoke poured out, obscuring Korra's vision and making her throat sting and eyes water. Off to her left, she heard Mako coughing and stumbling around.
Attempting to pull in a breath, Korra managed to call for Naga. As the big polar dog barreled towards her, she managed to grab hold of the harness and pull herself up, then grabbed Mako by the back of his jacket and tossed him on behind her.
"After them Naga," Korra hollered as they burst out of the smoke. The motorcyclists disappeared around a corner and Naga ran after them. They came around the corner onto an empty street.
Suddenly Naga pitched forward, flinging Mako and Korra off her back. She hit the ground painfully and heard Mako land with a thud and a groan. She jumped to her feet just as the motorcyclists came out of nowhere and charged them.
One came at her, and Korra shot a burst of flame at him, which he dodged easily. He swung at her, which she deflected, then twisted to shoot more fire at him. But he just knocked her arm up, the fire going harmlessly into the air. Korra jumped and spun, kicking an arc of fire, but he just ducked out of the way and came up to meet her next kick with one of his own.
He was faster than she expected but didn't seem to be a bender of any type. Korra felt more confident when she realized this, knowing her bending would always bring her out on top.
Then, he ducked under her raised arm and delivered a series of quick blows to her arm. She cried out in pain as her arm went numb, and throbbed with pain, the fire swirling around her fingers disappearing.
Fighting with a limp arm was awkward but it didn't stop Korra from bending fire at the attacker with her other hand and feet. Despite her best efforts, he was too quick.
Out of the corner of her eye, Mako seemed to be having a difficult time too. As she watched, his attacker struck his arm in the same way, and he let out a gasp of pain, eye widening with surprise and fear. He too was firebending, but none of his flames were getting near the guy.
On her other side, Naga was on the ground, tugging at a cord of some type wrapped around her front paws. The motorcyclists must have thrown it at her when they came around the corner.
Korra focused on her fight but in a matter of seconds, the assailant had struck her quickly all over her body and she collapsed on the ground, numb and terrified.
He took my bending away, she thought, panic racing through her veins. She was completely helpless for the first time she could remember. And it scared her more than anything.
Mako was thrown heavily to the ground in front of her, his chest heaving as he panted. The motorcyclists advanced towards them and Korra couldn't even defend herself.
Then, Naga jumped between them with a loud roar that showed every single one of her teeth and the attackers jumped out of the way. Hackles raised, Naga stalked towards them, Pabu hissing on her back. For a second, Korra thought they were going to try to fight off Naga, but then they ran and jumped on their motorcycles, racing off down the street.
Korra let out a breath she did realize she had been holding in. Bits of hair stuck to her sweaty face but when she tried to brush them away, her arm wouldn't move.
"You okay?" Mako asked hoarsely, rolling over to face her.
Korra nodded her head, feeling panic rise in her throat. She was the Avatar, damn it. She didn't panic. She was cool and calm. Cool and calm.
"I can't move," she said, she voice sounding so shrill she wanted to wince. "They did something to me."
Mako looked grim. "They blocked our chi."
Korra just gaped at him. "What? How do you know? How is that even possible?"
He frowned, the furrow better his eyebrows deepening. "Haven't you been reading the papers? Or didn't Officer Bei Fong tell you?"
Korra just stared at him. They only thing she focused on in the newspaper were the Pro-Bending scores.
"There have been attacks all over the city. Revolutionists who are against bending are doing something. They call themselves Equalists. Somehow, they manage to block people's chi and there have been some kidnappings. Like… like Bolin."
She didn't know what to say. She hadn't even known that was possible. But she remembered that man she saw on the first day here who was talking about the oppression of non-benders.
"How long will we be like this?"
"I'm not sure. The only reason we know what it is, is that in the time of Avatar Aang, he encountered someone who knew how to chi block too. As far as I know, we are the only people who have escaped so far, so Officer Bei Fong has just been mostly speculating."
"I didn't know you were so well acquainted with her," Korra frowned. From what she saw of the officer, she seemed like a jerk.
"I've ran into her a few times," Mako said, grimacing. "And none of those times have been pleasant. But after a match a few weeks ago, one of the benders from the team we beat went missing, so she took us in to interrogate us. That's the only reason I know as much as I do."
The sat in silence for a few minutes, as the feeling slowly returned to Korra's limbs. She felt worn out and exhausted, and her body felt strange, like she had been violated. Having her chi blocked was not something she wanted to happen again.
They stumbled to their feet and Mako crossed his arms, staring off in the direction that the motorcycles had vanished.
Korra knew he was worried about Bolin, but she also knew that they were in no condition to go after him.
She put a hand on his arm comfortingly. "I promise we are going to get Bolin back. But right now we need to head back and rest. We can start again in the morning."
He nodded jerkily, arms dropping to his sides. The look on his face was so distressed that Korra's throat tightened. She wrapped her arms around him, trying to give him some comfort.
His breathing hitched a little, before his arms went around her, so tight it was hard to breathe. They stood there for a minute, as he composed himself and she soaked up the warmth his body radiated. When they broke apart, he offered her a small smile, barely an upturn of his lips, but it make her feel better. They would look for Bolin again in the morning.
And when they found him, those Equalists were going to regret they day they ever took her friend. She would make sure of it.
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