Here is chapter 3! I thank all of y'all for reading/reviewing. It really means a lot to me. I admit this story has been typed for a bit, but I haven't gotten around to updating it until now. With summer projects catching up to me (I am sooo lazy), I have been focusing on them instead. Plus I just got my license, so that took some time. With school starting, it will be a challenge to update this, but I will do my best to continue writing.

I didn't want to go beyond canon, but this is a bit of a stretch. Also this chapter is very dark compared to the others. Plus, it is told from Mako's point of view. At SDCC it was announced that Mako will be a cop next season, so I thought about how I could use that in the story. I also have no idea how a real police force works, so I made it how I thought it was. I have had this idea for a bit, so I hope you enjoy!

I do not own Avatar or Korra.

Mako's POV

Seeing Red

It was getting late, the sky already beginning its losing fight with the night. I sat in a chair at the police station drinking a cup of coffee. My eyelids would shut from time to time, but the constant reminder of possible crimes kept alerting me to the present. Sometimes I could relax, even take a small nap, but when it grew dark, the possible danger seemed more real. Crime flooded the city at night, and it was times like these I had to be awake and alert. I lowered the mug onto a coaster on the table and allowed my eyes to shut one more time, just for a few seconds.

Through my closed eyes I could see my Korra standing on the edge of the ship, waving goodbye as she sailed with Tenzin's family to the South Pole. I promised her that the rest of the team would come down for a festival she mentioned, but it was still some time away. Her hair was down for once, and the sea breeze would sweep through it, covering her face. Yet through her hair I could still see her bright, blue eyes and her wide, beautiful smile. My memory went back further, and I lived again through our final kiss, when the entire world seemed to disappear as we shared our sacred moment on the port, one of my hands resting on her waist as my other tangled in her hair.

Suddenly the sound of the radio woke me up from my daydream. I stood up with the other officers and listened closely to the dispatcher. "We have a report of a robbery near Central Station, house 198 on the Southside."

"Officer Mako, Officer Li, Central Station now," the chief of our unit called.

"Yes sir!" the two of us shouted, and we ran outside to our bikes. Li, an earthbender, had a year on me of experience. He was kind of hard to agree with, but knew more than I did, and I respected him for that. We both jumped on our motorcycles and took off for the destination.

My mind raced as fast as my vehicle. The location, I couldn't help but notice, was close to where I used to live. The situation didn't help either, and I suddenly flashbacked to that horrible night all those years ago. The screams of my parents filled my ears, and I quickly sped up. The area became too familiar, and I suddenly remembered a shortcut that would take me very close to the location. I shouted this to Li, who shouted that he will take the other route to try to block the thief off. With that I made a sharp right, and continued forward. I closed my eyes for a few moments, and didn't open them till I knew to turn, that way my old home would be far behind me and out of sight.

Then suddenly house 198 crept up to me on the left. I slowed down and leaped off the bike. Silence filled my ears, and I quickly ran to the front and banged the door. "This is the police!" I shouted, and when no response came, I kicked open the door. Fire suddenly erupted in front of me, as well as a plume of smoke, and I staggered back. A man in a black mask appeared, and I quickly shot a burst of flames at him.

"Don't come any closer!" he shouted as I shooed the smoke out of my vision. A scream shouted, and I came face to face with the thief holding what looked to be a woman in her thirties by her neck. Small screams cried, and I saw with horror two young kids hiding under a table in fear.

"Don't move!" the woman shouted to the kids. "Stay where you are!"

"Mom!" the oldest shouted, his arms around what looked to be his younger sister, who was crying hysterically, sobbing something I couldn't understand.

"Shut up and listen to your mother!" the criminal shouted. He produced a flame in one hand and held it close to her face. "None of y'all move, or she's dead too!"

My heart wrenched, and I saw laying on the ground by the stairs the slumped figure of a man. I suddenly understood the girl's cries. "Daddy! Daddy, daddy, daddy…"

I couldn't think. I never expected to see the mirror of my past right in front of my eyes, and when I heard a familiar shout from outside that distracted the thief, I took my chance. I moved my hand to grab his hand off of her neck. Then I shoved him to the ground, shooting a blast of fire at him. Another shout sounded, and Li suddenly burst through the door as I sent one other blast down. "Help them!" I shouted at Li, and he quickly helped the woman up, who grabbed her kids and fled out the door.

"The thief?" Li questioned as he turned back around.

"He is down," I replied. The blood that had been thumping through me like an angry drum began dying down, and I began to breathe regularly. I moved towards the stairs and checked on the father. The ghostly open eyes spoke only of death. "He is dead," I told Li. The thief killed him."

There was a pause. "They are both dead, Mako." I stood up and turned around. The criminal lay on the ground with deep gashes on his neck, blood dripping out at a rapid pace. Burn marks stretch from his chin all the way down to his chest, with his shirt singed in many places. My insides turned to ice, and I quickly kneeled to the floor in astonishment.

My breathed hitched. "I… I killed him," I whispered. My hands went to my face as I realized what I had done. A man who once was alive and breathing now was nothing more than a corpse. My body began to shake as the realization settled in.

"It is part of the job, Mako. You helped save this family. That man rests in hell now, one less to worry about," Li said, offering me a hand and helping me stand. "I called others in to help the family. Someone else is coming to take the bodies away." Bodies. The word seemed to echo in my head. Sure enough sirens began to sound, and I found myself stepping out to see the family. The mother stood in the streets sobbing as her children clutched the skirt of her dress, tears streaming down their eyes.

The daughter looked up at me, and in a quiet voice asked, "Is daddy alright?" I drew in a breath, and knelt down to look into her eyes.

"He is with the spirits, child," I whispered. She nodded, then continued to cry. A couple of ambulances came and took the father and thief away. A police car came to take the family to the hospital with the father. Officers began to assess the crime scene, and I filled them in with what had happened. Eventually I was given the clear, and I hopped on my motorcycle and drove back to the headquarters.

Death seemed to follow me everywhere. The children now had no father, just like me. My thoughts drifted to Asami who lost her mother. All the orphans running through the streets had a story. Now I too had become a character. Do I call myself a killer? The thought plagued me until I was cleaned and resting in my bed. I glanced up at the ceiling, and all I could see was red. My mind drifted to Korra again, and I found myself drifting to sleep with death invading my dreams.

The End! Please review if you have the time! And thanks again!

Also, I have a cliche idea to write a story about the Avatar after Korra, set in modern times. Should I attempt this? And thanks!