A plate of cookies and muffins for my reviewers: BeccaRomano and vampheart410! I would also like to thank those of you who have put this story on your favorite/alert list. I hope everyone's enjoying the story so far! Amon (and maybe Bolin?) will be coming back in the next chapter.
Please read, review, and enjoy! :)
I do not own The Legend of Korra or Amon's radio speech – the latter of which I altered a little so that I wouldn't be copying word-for-word.
"So?" Saikhan asked when the councilman entered his office, although the younger man's smile was enough to tell him things had gone well.
"The Council has agreed on the formation of a task force to take down Amon and the Equalists – the only vote against it coming from Tenzin, of course." Tarrlok seemed energetic delivering the news, unable to stand still as he paced back in forth in front of the desk. "I want you to pick out the best officers for the team; make sure they are not only metal benders."
"Consider it done." The officer nodded and interlaced his fingers. "You never gave me an answer after you read through the file this morning. What do you think?"
"She's definitely hiding something," Tarrlok agreed, "and I'm very sure that it is protecting the Equalists."
"Should we arrest her?"
"No. Right now you do not have any concrete evidence proving she is working with them. The best the police could do is arrest her for lying to the authorities; you wouldn't be able to keep her for very long."
Saikhan frowned at this and watched the councilman, whose smile had still not left his face. "You want to use her."
Tarrlok did not reply, but stopped pacing.
"I know you've wanted to ever since I spoke to you about her case yesterday, and I'm not sure if that's a wise decision. Can she be trusted when she's already lied? We don't know her motivation, and there's only so much we can do to try and make her cooperate, should she refuse…"
The councilman raised an assuring hand at his concerns. "I'll speak with her about it. As for her response to my… invitation, I think she'll cooperate."
Saikhan was curious, but let his superior's answer satisfy him for the time being. Tarrlok would no doubt persuade the teenager to fall in league with the task force, and at the very least, serve as an informant. Things would work out for the best in the end, he told himself.
"Should I leave the Avatar to you, then?" He raised an eyebrow in a grimly amused expression.
Tarrlok sent him a wry smile. "Sharp as ever, Saikhan."
"Miss Li, you have a visitor."
Li looked up from the desk of the boy she was helping with his multiplication. Mrs. Fong waved a hand from the door, gesturing for her to come closer.
"Miss Li's in trouble," sang the student beside her, and several children giggled.
"Shush. Work on your assignment." She gave the children a good-natured frown before moving towards the older woman.
Ling glanced at her before Mrs. Fong shut the door and turned to introduce her to the man standing in the hall. "Miss Li, this is Councilman Tarrlok from Republic City's ruling council. He has informed me that he wishes to speak with you in private."
"Thank you, Mrs. Fong. This hallway is private enough." He bowed to short woman as she left them to discuss matters.
As soon as Mrs. Fong had disappeared around the corner, the councilman addressed her. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Li."
"Nice to meet you." Li returned the small bow Tarrlok gave, and smiled politely to mask her confusion at his summoning. She wasn't sure why the councilman wanted to speak with her, but she decided to keep wary around him. The majority of politicians she heard about back at home were more infamous than popular, so it was possible his reasons for being here were not good.
"I hear from Mr. and Mrs. Fong that you're doing well in your teaching position, and seem to have adjusted to life here in Republic City." His voice was smooth and almost conversational, as if he was an old friend catching up on recent events.
"Yes, I really like the city. It's a challenge though, getting used to a new place." It wasn't really a lie. She liked Republic City; some of the citizens, however, were held in an entirely different regard.
"Hmm, I know what you mean," commented Tarrlok, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "I noticed you were experiencing some problems in the newspaper."
"O-oh, yes, that," she stumbled slightly, immediately putting up her defenses. Is this what he wanted to speak to me about? "I hope that's all over."
"Dealing with the Triple Threat Triad and the Equalists in your first week can be very trying, I'm sure."
Li chose to keep her mouth shut.
"Did you forget that there were other witnesses that night?" Tarrlok wondered, lowering his voice. He paused again, and still no reply. "You failed to mention the Equalists in your report to the police, Miss Li. After reading through the accounts in the file, your recollection was the only one out of place. Why did you protect them?"
Li had unconsciously balled her hands into fists; her heart was beating faster with every word the councilman spoke. She hadn't thought about the accounts of the other people there. At the time, she had been so worried about herself that she forgot about everyone else. "I can't answer that."
Tarrlok frowned at her response.
"I don't know how to answer that," she said, unwilling to look him in the eye.
"Did you know," the man went on slowly as if speaking to a child, "that cooperation and association with the Equalists is now being treated as criminal activity? The Council voted upon it earlier today." Although Tarrlok's voice remained soft and even, there was something darker behind it. His words were full of malicious intention, hidden behind a sympathetic countenance.
In that utterance, Li realized that the councilman was threatening her. "Why are you here?" Her voice was tight but controlled.
"I am here to discuss the Equalists." He took a step towards her, and she realized that her back was against the wall. "What really happened that night? I know you were with the Equalists."
"I'm not with them!" Emotion heightened her voice, and she swallowed heavily to control it. "I'm not with anyone."
"Yet you're not willing to talk about them," Tarrlok countered.
Li bit her lip. "I don't know anything about them, and that's all I can say."
The councilman tilted his head to the side, gazing at the pattern on the floor. "Lying to the police and fraternizing with the Equalists. You've waded into dangerous territory, Li, and now it seems as though you might sink."
An unpleasant chill went down her spine when he dropped the form of address he had been using with her. She would have given anything to get out of this conversation; but right now, she was the only one who could save herself.
"You've made your point. Now what do you want from me?" If he was there to escort her to the police he would have already done so. For him to continue speaking like this, to threaten her, he must have wanted something in return for not turning her in.
"Finally caught on?" His smile was not nice. "Besides declaring the Equalists a dangerous and criminal group, the Council decided to organize a task force to deal with them." Li felt her stomach twist as Tarrlok continued. "While the task force is publicly fighting the Equalists, I believe aid from an internal source will quicken our victory against their rebellion. That is the job I have in mind for you. Infiltrate the Equalist movement and report everything to me, and I will make sure the police do not any reason to come for you."
"Why not report the police?"
"Who do you think is in charge of the task force, and taking out the Equalists?"
Her next question was hesitant. "And what would stop me from leaving Republic City or telling a member of the Equalists about your plan?"
Tarrlok leaned in closer to her, his eyes narrowing and voice turning cold as she pushed herself as flat as she could against the wall. "Make one wrong move, put one step out of line, and I'll make sure that you never see the light of day again. That is a promise." He straightened and smoothed his robe, his posture and facial features relaxing, although the atmosphere remained tense. "Are you in or out?"
I can't do this. I can't do what he's asking. But… He's a councilman, and I'm a citizen; he has all the authority. If I run, he'll send the police after me and lock me up forever. Can he do that? She looked away, staring at the end of the hall in thought. Her stomach felt like it had been tied in knot, and she pressed a fist against it to try and ease the discomfort.
Tarrlok was waiting for her answer.
Maybe if I prove to be horrible at this job, he'll fire me…? But then I'll be in prison, or worse. My future is ruined, no matter which option I choose. I survived being abducted by the Equalists, but I've never been in prison.
The man in front of her gave an impatient sigh and she panicked. "Okay, okay, I'll do it."
"It's nice having you back to help with the kids," Ling sighed, stretching out on one of the apartment sofas as Li opened the newspaper. "I sometimes wonder how I ever managed to keep order in there without another person's help."
Li hummed in response, looking for an interesting article to try and keep her mind off the day's earlier encounter.
"Hey, I never got the chance to ask you earlier, but what did the councilman want with you? I mean, it's not every day that one of Republic City's leaders turns up for a visit." The question, although innocent, did not help.
"I agreed to keep my eyes open and watch out for any Triad business. If I see anything suspicious I'm supposed to report to the police or the Council." She never told Ling what happened the night she was kidnapped, and she was thankful that her friend hadn't pried for answers. In time, she was sure that the truth would come out; but right now she wasn't ready to share it or her new burden.
The other girl sent her a mischievous grin. "I would have thought it was Bolin, with what you told me earlier."
"No!" She scowled, wondering if her cheeks had turned pink at the mention of the Pro-Bender. It had been a mistake to tell Ling about the Fire Ferrets. Her friend was a huge fan of the team – especially of Bolin – and she hadn't hesitated to hound her about having met him.
"I'm so jealous of you!" Cried the black-haired teenager, whining like a child. "You're even blushing!"
"No I'm not!" She turned her attention back to the newspaper, where a small article caught her eye.
"Equalist interferes with radio broadcast." She mumbled the title out loud. Her eyes darted towards the radio playing music from the corner of the room. It seemed like an interesting little story, but she wasn't sure if she wanted to read it after what she was going to do in the next few days.
"Yeah, I heard about that," Ling spoke up, having thought she was being spoken to. "We must have had the radio turned off at the time. Apparently, one of the regular reporters on the radio was an Equalist, and started spouting out propaganda on one of the main channels. He was praising Amon and stuff like that, and he was going on for about five minutes before the metal benders arrived. They arrested him because – "
Ling suddenly cut off as the radio in the corner made a crackling noise. Both girls turned their attention to the device.
"Good evening, Equalists of Republic City." The hairs on the back of Li's neck stood up at the familiar voice. "This is Amon."
Ling whipped her head around in her direction, making a 'what's going on?' look. She shook her head and kept quiet, the newspaper crinkling in her hands.
"As I'm sure most of you have heard, the Republic Council has recently named us the city's number one threat," Amon continued, "proving that the benders in control of this city are against a world of equality." His voice grew passionate, and Li could hear him smiling at his words. "But the revolution cannot be stopped, as our numbers continue to grow. You do not need to live in fear anymore… Now is the time for benders to live in that fear."
He does plan on ultimately removing all benders' abilities. Goosebumps broke out on her exposed skin, and she repressed a shudder. And the councilman expects me to infiltrate this man's forces? I'm not a bender, and I'm afraid of him.
The music came back on, as if the interruption had never occurred.
"I guess they are growing stronger," Ling commented from the other sofa. "Despite what happened yesterday, the Equalists still managed to get on the air. Do you think the police caught them?"
"…No. Probably not." Her reaction was delayed, and she pulled the newspaper in front of her face to hide a nervous frown.