(a/n: Sorry for the extremely long wait! Anyway, if there's anyone still around to read this, enjoy! if not then...never mind. Please review and all that!)
Ch.4: Keeping Up Appearances
Shendu tapped his foot impatiently as he watched Finn, Ratso, Chow and Hak Foo take turns trying to pry open the mystical Pan'ku Box. The Dark Hand had fled from the ancient temple where the magical box had rested and returned to the warehouse without any incident.
In one of the backrooms of the warehouse, Shendu's human henchmen worked the rest of that night, through the morning and late into the next evening to crack open the box but to no avail.
They had used hammers, crowbars, and small power tools, industrial strength tools with no result.
Shendu's eyes narrowed to slits and he hissed in annoyance "My patience is wearing thin"
"Sorry Shendu but this thing doesn't even have a scratch on it" apologized Finn, wiping away the sweat off his brow with his shirtsleeve.
Shendu growled threateningly, "Try harder. The Pan'ku Box must be opened".
Hak Foo charged at the table and he slammed his head on the box in another attempt at cracking the box open but he only managed to destroy the table holding the box and leaving an impression on his forehead.
Chow scooped up the box from off the floor and inspected it closely. He frowned and said in an unsure voice "Uh, open please?"
Shendu growled in frustration and looked ready to rip his henchmen to pieces but suddenly his eyes stopped glowing red.
Valmont blinked his eyes and he scowled "What an absurd waist of time, I'm out of here".
During the long, grueling hours of working on the Pan'ku Box, Shendu and Valmont had begun wrestling for control of Valmont's body, so occasionally Valmont would abruptly regain control and try to leave but Shendu would retake control and force Valmont to stay.
As Valmont walked towards the exit, he stopped and he twitched for a moment and his eyes turned scarlet once more "Need I remind you, Valmont" hissed Shendu "It is I that holds controlling interest in this partnership".
The demon forced Valmont to turn around and walk back towards the Pan'ku box. As he approached the table, he caught a glimpse of himself in a broken window.
Shendu's translucent, true face overshadowed Valmont's own face. The dragon in the reflection glared at Valmont and hissed "The sooner that we find the portals and release my demon brethren, the sooner you may have your pathetic body to yourself".
Velmont's body shivered and Valmont retook control of his body. He turned towards the Pan'ku Box. The crime lord growled and he stomped over to Chow and snatched the box, growling "Open already!" once his hands made contact with the box, green energy crackled across his skin and sent pain all through out his body.
Valmont yelped in pain and he dropped the box.
Shendu took control and scolded his host, "Remember, I cannot touch good magic".
Valmont took control again and he let out a frustrated groan. The crime lord kicked the Pan'ku box and it went soaring across the room. The box hit the wall with a crack and it landed on the floor. Valmont and his henchmen saw that a section of the box had twisted slightly; making the shape of the box change a little.
Suddenly, it began to levitate. Finn pointed at the floating box "Uh, Shendu"
Shendu turned towards the floating box and frowned. Shendu and the enforcers watched as the box began to shift and change. Different sections of the box began to twist and rearrange. The sections clicked into place and shifted again and again.
"Hey!" exclaimed Ratso "It isn't a box, it's a puzzle". The box stopped shifting and the sections clicked into place.
Suddenly the box glowed bright green and a small corner of the box opened, revealing a glowing core. A beam of bright light shot out of the core and hit a nearby wall. The light washed over wall and it slowly dimmed revealing a detailed map of the land.
Shendu's eyes widened "Ah, a map to the first portal!" he approached the glowing map.
Chow noticed some inscriptions on the bottom of the map. The enforcer frowned and said "Uh, it says that we gotta find, that which runs but never walks, to the mouth that never speaks"
"A puzzle with a riddle!" exclaimed Ratso excitedly.
Shendu grinned triumphantly "Soon, the demon sorcerers shall walk the earth once more and we shall cast a shadow upon all human-" but suddenly the map flickered and vanished back into the Pan'ku box. The open section slid shut and the box dropped to the floor with a loud clack.
Shendu and the enforcers gathered around box and stared at it blankly.
Valmont took control once more and he glanced around at his henchmen "Please somebody tell me that they wrote that down, anyone?" but to his disappointment, the henchmen all shook their heads. Valmont groaned and he could hear Shendu muttering curses inside his head.
Before Valmont or Shendu could express their displeasure, his stomach growled and he stopped.
The enforcers looked at Valmont oddly for a moment then the crime lord sighed, "Lets go get something to eat, maybe one of us will remember then"
"Yeah, I'm kinda hungry" agreed Finn "Me too" said Chow and Ratso in unison.
Shendu cut in "What of the Pan'ku Box and the riddle?" "We haven't eaten anything in almost a day and a half" complained Valmont "And we're exhausted, once we have eaten and rested, we will resume work".
Valmont could feel Shendu's rage building up within him but he knew that the dragon wouldn't argue. Shendu may be a very powerful demon but now he was trapped in a mortal form and without food and rest, world conquest would be very unlikely.
"Very well" conceded Shendu, grudgingly.
Valmont took over and he could feel that Shendu concede control for the moment. "So, does anyone know any good restaurants?" asked Valmont.
Ratso raised his hand "Ooh, ooh I know one!"
At Uncles Antiques, Korra and the rest of the Chan's were scrambling to work up a plan in the backroom. They made it back to Republic City an hour or two before dawn. Korra wanted to go home and sleep but she was so exhausted that she went to sleep on a mattress that Uncle kept in the backroom in the antiques shop.
The avatar woke up that afternoon, feeling partially rejuvenated and a little sore from the defeat that she was given.
Korra now sat in a chair, thumbing through a thick, heavy tome, trying to find a clue to the Pan'ku box and to demon portals. Uncle divided a huge pile of books among her, Jin and Tohru to do research on the demons and the Pan'ku Box.
Meanwhile, Uncle, Jackie and Captain Black were going to chase down a few of Uncles old friends to see if they have any more books or notes on Shendu.
It had been a few hours since they had left and so far, Korra almost fell asleep several times and found several chapters devoted to ancient dynastic wars in Earth Kingdom history. Tohru closed the book he was reading and placed it on a small stack of books that he had finished reading and picked up a new one from a nearby pile.
Korra glanced over to Jin, who was reading through a small, thin volume and asked "Is magic always this boring?"
Jin shook his head "Not always. It's a lot of fun, but it does require a lot of research" "Lots" agreed Tohru as he flipped another page.
The avatar flipped through a few more pages and found nothing remotely useful or interesting.
Finally, Korra closed the book and placed it on the floor by her chair "Well, I've had my fill of books" she stood and stretched her limbs. Jin looked at Korra's stack of books and saw that she had barely finished three books out of her pile and then up to Korra who turned to leave.
"Where are you going?" asked Jin.
"Going to get some lunch" answered Korra "Do you want to come with?" Jin thought for a moment and felt his stomach rumble.
"Sure" said Jin. He closed his book and stood up. "Tohru?" asked Korra.
Tohru looked up from his book and shook his head "No thanks. I'll stay here and keep looking". Korra shrugged "Alright".
Jin promised to bring back something for Tohru and the two left the antique store.
As they walked down the street, Korra and Jin bumped into Bolin and Mako, who asked about what happened with the store robbery and the events that followed. Korra suggested that the two brothers could join them for lunch and she would explain it to them then.
The small group walked a few blocks over and several blocks down into a small and busy street. Jin pointed out a few restaurants and commented on their quality.
After passing a few restaurants, Korra, Mako and Bolin decided on a pleasant looking restaurant called "The Golden Lotus". It sat on the corner of a busy intersection and had some red and gold lanterns hanging outside.
Inside partly filled with several people, all scattered about different tables and booths.
A woman led Korra and friends to a small corner booth and gave them their menus.
While they waited for someone to come and take their order, Korra elaborated on their encounter with Shendu and the Pan'ku Box shrine. Bolin and Mako were interested in the story but at the same time had a bit of a hard time believing.
During the soft chatter of the restaurant, the sound of chefs working in the kitchen and people entering and leaving the restaurant, Mako and Bolin considered Korra's story and eventually put in their thoughts.
"So you're saying that a demon sorcerer wants to destroy the world?" said Bolin slowly. He frowned a little "That's…kinda new".
Mako nodded "Yeah…I mean, you are the Avatar but demons? Seriously?"
"I know" said Korra with a sigh "Its kinda crazy but…." She trailed off. She remembered the images she saw at the Pan Ku Box's shrine. The horror and the misery that Shendu and those other demons had unleashed upon those people. It was like something out of a horrible nightmare. She wanted to disbelieve it but deep down, she felt as if she had actually been present for the whole thing.
She shook her head "And it's all my fault that he got away with the Pan'ku Box".
"Don't worry" assured Jin "We'll find the box and we can stop Shendu."
"Yeah" agreed Mako "We can help you find this Shendu person. It can't be to hard to find a big demon dragon, is it?"
"Actually yes" said Jin, his expression became crestfallen. He sighed, "Normally you would be right, Shendu would be rather hard to miss but apparently the demon is now hiding in a human body."
Mako and Bolin gave Jin a shocked look. "Hiding in a human body…as in?" began Bolin. Jin nodded "He's possessing someone. Searching for him will now be like finding a needle in a mountain of hay". He frowned "However…his host…"
"What about him?" asked Korra.
Jin shook his head "I've seen his face before. He looks very familiar to me but I can't place it".
Mako leaned forward a little "Can you describe him?" Jin nodded.
Korra cocked an eyebrow "Why do you ask?"
Mako smiled a little "I'm applying to join Republic City's police force." The avatar's eyes widened in surprise and she smiled "What? That's amazing!"
"Yep" said Mako proudly "And one of the aspects of the training is identifying and chasing down criminals. If you can describe who this Shendu person is possessing, I can probably get a sketch artist to come up with a rough sketch of the guy"
"And you can give it to Lin or someone in the police department" added Korra, catching on to what Mako was getting at.
"And Boom! We'll catch that demon" declared Bolin.
Just as a plan was starting to come together, Korra noticed that Jin was sitting perfectly still and his eyes were wide with shock. The avatar nudged Jin "Hey, what's wrong?"
"I hate to burst everyone's bubble…" began Jin in a soft voice "But that sketch idea is no longer necessary"
"Why?" asked Mako. Jin nodded towards the front door. Korra looked and her heart stopped for a few beats.
Standing in the doorway was the light haired man that she and the Chan's had encountered at the Pan'ku shrine. Shendu.
He was dressed in the same suit that he wore that night and the same men that were with him flanked him. The man, or Shendu, chatted with the serving lady at the front door and she directed them to an open table in the middle of the restaurant.
Korra watched the new comers in shock as they took their seats around the table. What were they doing there? Did they know that Korra was there? The avatar strained to listen to what they were saying but she couldn't hear.
She ran a bunch of scenarios through her mind of what they could be doing but they all seemed very unlikely.
Korra felt anger and frustration burning inside. She wanted to go over there and teach Shendu a lesson and get the Pan'ku Box back. The avatar slid out of the booth and was ready to approach the table, but Jin placed a hand on her arm.
"Wait!" hissed Jin "You can't just go over there, not now!"
"Why not?" asked Korra "He's right there! We can get the Pan'ku box back from him"
"I know but I think we should wait" said Jin pleadingly "Wait and assess the situation. We still don't know much about him or the human he is possessing."
Korra heard him but she felt nothing but anger. Seeing that smirking man sitting there, just within reach made her see nothing but red. A part of her agreed with Jin but she wanted to take this demon down and put an end to him before things got out of hand.
Jin continued to try and reason with the avatar, saying that if they were careful, maybe they can confront him in a more private setting and maybe have Uncle use a chi spell on him. However, Jin saw that Korra had already made up her mind. She brushed Jin's concerns off and left the table.
Jin wilted a little and had a very bad feeling about this.
Valmont's mouth watered and stomach growled as a waitress walked by with a trey of steaming hot food.
The assortment of aromas filled the crime lord's nostrils and made him feel even hungrier than before. Ratso, Finn, Chow were just as hungry. Even Hak Foo, who usually was stoic and impassive, was caving in to his hunger as another waitress passed them by with a bowl of steaming turtle-duck soup.
Even Shendu seemed less angry about being at the restaurant, as far as Valmont could sense.
As Valmont perused his menu, he suddenly felt a shiver travel up his spine. Suddenly a shadow blocked his light and he heard a familiar voice hiss "Shendu!"
Valmont looked up from his menu and froze. Standing there was the Water Tribe girl he encountered at the shrine. She looked incredibly angry.
"I-I'm sorry miss?" asked Valmont, as innocently as he could "What did you call me?"
"Don't play dumb with me Shendu" growled the avatar "What are you doing here?"
"I don't know what in the world you are talking about" said Valmont calmly "But I would have you know that I am trying to have a peaceful lunch with my employees". He gestured to his enforcers. They all had tensed up and were trying their best to act innocent, but the avatar's furious gaze made them all on edge.
Luckily, a waitress arrived and was ready to take their order. Valmont turned back to the girl and said politely "Now, if you excuse us, we are going to have our orders taken".
He closed the menu and placed it handed it to the waitress. Before he could react, the avatar slammed her fist on the table, causing the silverware on the table to rattle and everyone in the restaurant to go silent. "I'm not going to play these games with you" growled the avatar. She looked him in the eye and demanded, "Where is the Pan'ku box?"
"The what?" said Valmont in confusion "I don't know what you are talking about"
"Yeah" chimed Ratso "We've never even heard of this Pan- whatever it is"
Valmont fought hard to keep a straight face and to maintain control. He could feel Shendu squirming angrily within him like an angry viper. The demon wanted to take control and rip the girl's insolent throat out but Valmont managed to keep hold, barely.
"Allow me to take hold, Valmont" hissed Shendu angrily "And I will crush this insolent child in a matter of moments"
"Patience Shendu" soothed Valmont, mentally "We cannot act. It would look very bad for a trusted businessman like myself to end up killing the Avatar in public now would it?"
Shendu seemed to pause and asked, "What do you mean?"
"I know that you are used to being worshiped and crushing anyone who dares to even look at you wrong but these are different times" reasoned Valmont "In this day and age, we will need to tread lightly and keep up a good image, especially if we want to free your siblings without interference".
Shendu didn't reply. He seemed to be considering Valmont's words for a few moments, then said finally "I hope you know what you are doing".
As the avatar stared Valmont down, a young man and an older, mousy looking man in a suit scurried up to the table and asked Valmont "Is everything alright sir?"
Judging from his appearance, the man was probably the owner, or at least the manager. "Oh yes, everything is simply wonderful sir" said Valmont with a warm smile "I am merely catching up with an acquaintance of mine" he tilted his head to the girl "I believe you know her, the avatar".
The man nodded quickly "Oh, yes of course!" the young man looked to be the avatar's age, give or take, and looked a little concerned for the girl.
He placed a hand on the avatar's shoulder "Korra, come on lets go"
"Not now Mako" grunted Korra, shrugging off her friend's hand.
Valmont's smile broadened and he turned his head back to the girl "You know, it has been very nice catching up with you Korra, but I am famished! Run along now, or would you care to sit and share a meal with us?" he gave the girl a rather casual look and his warmest smiles but the look on her face looked like she was going to freeze him from the inside out.
The young man, Mako, spoke softly "Korra…".
The avatar said nothing. She stood there and he noticed that she clenched her curl into a fist. After a few long moments, Korra sighed in defeat and turned to leave.
Valmont smiled and he turned away and was ready to make his order but suddenly he felt himself being pulled violently out of his seat. He found himself almost nose to nose with Korra.
"Where. Is. The Pan'ku Box?" demanded Korra.
Valmont's eyes widened in shock and sputtered, "I-I don't know what you are talking about!" "Hey!" exclaimed Ratso.
Chow, Finn and Hak Foo glared at Korra and slowly rose to their feet.
"Korra!" exclaimed Mako. Korra snarled, "Where is it! I'm not going to ask again".
Valmont looked around the restaurant and saw the restaurant patrons watching with shock and interest. He looked her in the eye and hissed, "Let go of me! You're causing a scene!"
"Wrong answer!" growled Korra. She dragged him out of his seat and was pulling him to the door. Hak Foo and Chow got in her way. The avatar momentarily let go of Valmont and with a gesture, knocked both men aside with air bending.
Chow was sent crashing onto a table, splattering food and sauce all over the two patrons occupying the table. Hak Foo quickly flipped through the air and landed with on his feet. The red haired marital arts master snarled like a furious beast and he launched himself in the air, screaming, "Angry crow takes flight!"
Korra pushed Valmont aside, sending him tumbling into the arms of her friend and the owner of the restaurant.
Valmont quickly apologized to Mako and the restaurant owner then he turned and watched the spectacle unfold.
Korra dodged Hak Foo's attack and she delivered a kick that was enhanced by air bending. The large martial arts master was sent flying.
Ratso and Finn joined the fray. Ratso caught Korra with a bear hug and Finn moved to attack. However, Korra elbowed Ratso in the gut and with effort, hurled the enforcer at his friend. The two crashed into each other and were sent tumbling to the floor.
Hak Foo had already recovered and he scooped up some knives from a nearby trey of silver ware "Silver Razor Storm!" bellowed Hak Foo. He began hurling knives in Korra's direction furiously.
Valmont, the restaurant owner and everyone else caught in the middle, threw themselves to the floor or took cover behind overturned tables as a storm of gleaming silver sliced through the air around them.
Thinking fast, Korra quickly ducked and dodged most of the knives, knocked a few out of the air with air bending and stopped the remainder with a trey she scooped up off the floor. Once the hailstorm of knives was over, Korra fired back by hurling a plate at the large man.
The man expertly jumped over it. While in the air, he spun and caught the plate. He shot a smug grin at the avatar.
She snarled and summoned up a stream of water from the nearest glasses and cups and lashed out at Hak Foo.
As the avatar and Hak Foo traded blows, Valmont and the restaurant owner watched in awe.
"As fun as it is to watch humans fight each other" said Shendu "I believe its time that we end this"
"Don't worry" assured Valmont, noticing rapid movement coming from outside the restaurant. He smiled "This fight is just about over".
Korra and the large red haired man stared each other down. The man crouched down into a fighting stance that Korra didn't recognize. He let out a low, animalistic growl and was ready to attack, when suddenly the door burst open and a voice shouted, "Nobody move! Republic City Police!"
Korra sighed with relief. Finally, some help.
Police officers clad in grey poured into the restaurant with Chief Lin Bei Fong marching in behind them. She went stock still when she saw the destruction of the restaurant.
Patrons were huddled behind cover, plates, silverware, and food was strewn all over the restaurant. "Chief Bei Fong, thank goodness!" cried a man.
The mousy man in the suit, that was now spattered with a dark sweet sauce crawled up to her "Its been mayhem! Madness!"
"What is going on here?" demanded Lin.
The man jabbed an accusing finger at Korra "That girl assaulted Mr. Valmont and his bodyguards!"
"What?" exclaimed the police chief in outrage. She directed her furious gaze at Korra.
The avatar held up her hands defensively "Lin, wait you have to listen to me, its not what you think"
"She's right" agreed a silky voice.
The blond haired man emerged from his hiding place, underneath a mountain of fallen food, shattered plates and cutlery and brushed himself off.
"I'm afraid this good sir is a little confused" said the man politely as he withdrew a square of cloth and wiped some food off his face "You see, there was a little misunderstanding between Ms. Korra and myself". He gestured to his cohorts, who were busy picking themselves off the floor and stepping over obliterated furniture "My men and I were having a pleasant lunch and Korra approached us and asked me something about an artifact that was stolen from a antique store, which happens to be owned by a dear, dear friend of mine".
He looked to Korra and frowned sadly "However, our discussion got a little heated and she began to accuse me of robbing said antique store". He gestured to his cohorts again "My men came to my defense and a bit of a scuffle broke out"
"You could say that" muttered Lin, scanning the ruined restaurant.
The large man the bandage on his nose, the one with the sunglasses and the man in the white suit limped to Valmont's side.
"Freaking Benders man" muttered the man in the white suit angrily "Always thinking they can pick on us Non Benders" the other two men murmured in agreement.
The large red haired man that she had been fighting lumbered past her and grunted something that sounded like an insult at her in a different language.
Lin looked at Valmont sadly and spoke "Mr. Valmont…I'm so, so sorry for what has ha-"
Valmont cut her off with a raised hand "Chief Bei Fong, it is quite alright. I'm just glad that nobody was truly hurt" he looked at the mousy man kneeling in front of Lin "Mr…?"
"Long" answered the man.
Valmont nodded "Mr. Long, please accept our humblest apologies."
The light haired man and his cohorts bowed low to the mousy little man.
Valmont straightened up and said, "Also, please accept a humble donation". He reached into his suit coat and withdrew a huge wad of cash. He handed it to the man, whose eyes went wide as dinner plates "I hope this covers the cost of the damages" said Valmont.
Long nodded furiously "Oh yes! Yes it does!" he looked up at Valmont "Thank you! Thank you very much sir!" he crawled over and hugged Valmont's legs "You and your men are welcome here anytime!" cried Mr. Long happily.
Korra watched with fascination at what had just transpired.
Korra, Lin, the police officers and everyone else in the restaurant watched as Valmont patted Mr. Long on the back, straighten his dirty suit and bid everyone a good day. He nodded to Korra "Goodbye Korra". He sniffed and before he turned to leave, Korra noticed that Valmont's eye flashed red for just a moment then returned to normal.
With that, Valmont and his cohorts filed out of the restaurant with as much dignity as they could muster.
When they were gone, Lin threw Korra a glare that could burn holes through metal. To say that Chief Bei Fong was angry was a huge understatement.
"What were you thinking!" demanded Lin furiously.
Korra, Jin, Mako and Bolin stood outside the restaurant, withering before Lin's fury.
"Chief if I could-" began Mako but Lin cut him off with a glare.
She returned her attention to Korra "Not only did you destroy private property, you also assaulted one of the wealthiest and most respected businessmen in all of Republic City! You're lucky that neither he or any of his bodyguards didn't press charges!"
Korra frowned "What? You're kidding me right?" "So that's why he looks familiar!" exclaimed Jin in realization.
Lin looked at him and frowned in confusion "Who are you?" she shook her head "Never mind" she turned back to Korra "Just…just why did you attack him?"
Korra sighed "You wouldn't believe me" "Try me" said Lin, folding her arms "Please, do explain to me what possessed you to attack a respected man like Valmont?"
The avatar let out a small frustrated sigh. She wanted Lin to know the truth and understand what's going on but without anything to show for it, Lin would probably lock her up in an isolated cell.
Suddenly a thought came to her mind. Korra smiled and said "Don't say I didn't warn you".
End of Chapter
(a/n: Well, what do you think? Sorry if it was out of character, i'm a little rusty and i'm just trying to catch up on Legend of Korra, i missed the rest of the series during my hiatus. Please review, should i continue or no?)