Disclaimer: THIS IS NOTMIIIINE! *sound of persians being kicked into a hole* (Well, more specifically, 'THIS' refers to any copyrighted content, such as main characters, themes and the universe, except for my own aditions, but that's a lengthy explanation not quite fitting the 300 reference.)
Author's notes: And helloooooo my pretties! I hope you all enjoyed my latest chapter and have been waiting for this next one. Tell you the truth, I was slightly nervous about the way I led this story, but the positive feedback I received motivated me to keep going and finish the story, despite the difficulties that rose to stop me in the final months of 2016. And thus, a new chapter, a new episode of this adventure commences, with my hopes being that you will like itt o the very end. As I always say: ON WITH THE STORY!
The sound was…indescribeable. It sounded like the roar of Naga, combined with the hiss of an eel hound and the howl of one of Tenzin's flying bisons, but beyond that, it had something in it that Mako just could not imagine existing. As if the spirits themselves came to shake the life out of him with this banshee-like scream. His body felt as if it was paralyzed, not just out of fear, but by the waves of invisible force hitting him in the back, creating a feeling very similar to that confrontation he had on the first day…
And thus, as his legs were swiped from under him and his torso was grabbed by two thin, yet strong hands, slamming him onto the ground, Mako looked up, with a groan, witnessing a sight he never believed to find.
Standing not too far away was Baroque, hands folded in front of his chest, with his best attempt at a stern look. But Mako was perceptive enough to witness his slightly twitching cheek muscle and his eyes, cast to the side. Then his eyes trailed higher and saw the demonic entity standing above him. The sight was as terrifying as the witness from a few days ago explained. Tall, thin body, grey clothes that looked like some kind of special combat uniform designed for stealth and agility, with light armor in some places, like the shoulders. Above the shoulders meanwhile, sat the head covered in a metal mask, its face a twisted grin of sadistic happiness. As if the mask itself was happy to see the detective. Or to cause him pain.
"Well, hello there, detective. Long time no see, eh?" Songtan questioned in a mocking tone, before delivering his left foot with considerable force straight into Mako's face, causing his vision to go blurry, as well as pain to erupt from his cheeks, punctuated by a faint feeling of cool, fresh blood slowly dripping from the cut caused by the assassin's boot. "But unfortunately, this is the end. You've gotten too close to the flame and now, you burn. Heh, ironic, isn't it?" He taunted, leaning forward and reaching for the neck of his opponent.
Still dizzy, but unwilling to give up, Mako pushed himself up, ignoring the pain his wounded arm felt, the other one desperately trying to bend flame, aiming at the masked madman, however, Songtan precisely sidestepped and grabbed Mako's wrist, twisting his arm and slamming a hand into his elbow, nearly snapping it backwards, causing another pained grunt to escape the firebender's throat.
"Oh, none of that. I had quite enough of you." The assassin chuckled, shoving Mako back down on the ground and landing a kick on his body again, this time, into his stomach. Both the painful grunt and the attacker's sadistic enjoyment of it seemingly unnerved Baroque enough to speak.
"I think torture is unnecessary, Songtan. Just kill him and be done with it." The minister spoke, drawing a sharp stare from the assassin, his masked face turning to stare at him, as he continued. "I…I do not want any more blood to be spilled here. Just deal with him quickly."
A slight hiss was all he received as a response at first, before the mercenary spoke again, his voice sounding far less happy than before. "Shut up, 'minister'. You'll receive your pretty princess head soon too, but for now, let me do what you paid me for the way I like to do it." He growled, moving his arms quickly, sending a sharp wave of air into Mako's chest, causing him to cough violently, clutching at the spot the forceful gust of air hit. Baroque, though visibly disturbed by the thought of witnessing murder right in front of him, stepped away, clearly unwilling to try and hold back his hired murderer.
As Songtan stepped up to him, Mako tried struggling against his attacker, while the grey gloved hands grabbed him, pulling him up into a somewhat seated position by the neck, as one of the two produced a small knife from a pouch on the assassin's belt. "Oh, I wish I could make you scream, but it wouldn't be wise for me to do here. Sorry about that, little detective." The masked man said, his tone seemingly conveying sadness, sounding apologetic even. As if he was genuinely feeling sorry towards Mako for not being able to make him scream. "Can't have the guards coming here, you know. Oh well." His voice at the end, rather suddenly, turned cheery as well, while the knife came closer and closer to the detective's throat. "Maybe I'll send one of your fingers to the little princess that's been running around with you through the city. Or your nose. Hmmm, maybe your tongue. But alas, time to-"
As he was about to drag the sharpened blade across the exposed throat of Mako, suddenly the both of them were sent tumbling against the nearest wall by a force unseen by both. Or at least they would've, had the grey clad man not jumped away in the last second, leaving his almost unconscious victim to be washed away in the wave of water, slamming him against the wall with a shout of pain. Looking at the doorway, he saw an unbelievable sight. Eska stood, dressed still in that unusual outfit he previously saw her in, hands outstretched, bending the water and ferociously twisting it around, sending wave after wave at the assassin, forcing him on the defensive. Near her feet lay Baroque, hands and feet encased in ice, while the chief kept up her aggressive assault.
"I shall have you encased in ice before you lay a single finger on anyone else." She called, clearly fed up with the insolent killer's evasive murder spree, though the fight seemed fairly even despite her determined words and stern expression. Mako could see her attacks as less elegant and balanced than he remembered seeing them before.
"Oh, speak of the evil spirit and she shalt appear. That makes my job so much easier, princess!" Songtan cackled, slipping past a long tendril-like formation of water, rushing at the chief with speed unparalleled by anything Mako has ever seen. Eska dodged backwards, leaping away from a kick aimed at her chest, before slipping to the side, just as a sharp wave of air came right at her from Songtan, coming close enough to ruffle her hair slightly.
"You will find me to be much more threatening than a mere spirit, beast." Eska's voice rang clearly, her eyes glancing to the side, spotting Mako's attempts to shakily stand up, grunting in pain from the strikes he took. Her defiant retort, however, was soon met with another mad cackle and another airwave aimed at her face. She raised a wall of ice, letting the attack crash against it and was startled slightly, her eyes widening a little as the blast she assumed would be stopped with no effort, actually managed to nearly shatter the protective wall, as deep cracks appeared throughout the entire structure, punctuated by another snicker from the sadistic killer.
"Threatening you are, but what will you do with someone unafraid of ghosts?" Songtan taunted, aiming another shot at her, before Eska managed to regain her composure, turning the icy wall back into water and split it into two long tendrils, rushing the assassin's hands in order to stop him from using his bending abilities. She focused all of her attention on him, hoping he could be subdued, but she began to doubt herself. This man was graceful, agile and precise, a form of ruthless elegance evident in his fighting style. She noted reminiscence of the agility and knack for evasion of airbenders, but his movement held evidence of a ruthless desire to harm and kill, something quite unlike any monks of the air nomads she has ever seen.
Still, as the tendrils held firmly onto his hands, beginning to crawl up the grey clad arms, Eska grew hopeful. From the way Songtan appeared to struggle with his bonds, the chief of North became optimistic about the situation, but it was only for a moment, before the masked man pulled his hands in front of his own face and taking in a long breath.
A terrifying shriek that seemed to be inhuman came from his mouth, hands amplifying the strength of the soundwave vibrations, sending it through the water tendrils, causing Eska to let out a loud shriek of surprise and pain, as the vibrations crashed into her arms connected to the water she bent, feeling as if the bones in her forearms and hands were being broken from the inside of her arm. She pulled both hands away from the water and grasped desperately at her forearms, the water splashing harmlessly onto the ground.
A fist to her face quickly followed from the side, as Songtan ran across the room in seemingly no more than a mere second, before a quick sweep of his leg and another slam of his fist into her chest immediately after sent Eska to the ground with a grunt of pain, her head slamming painfully against the icy floor, knocking her unconscious. Songtan quickly took another knife from his belt and was ready to cut Eska's throat immediately, before, strangely, Baroque himself yelled at the murderer.
"Wait! Stop!" The man called, his face at once frightened. "Do you hear this?!" And as the room became devoid of sounds, all three present and currently conscious heard the boots of guards slamming against the ground, the noise becoming louder as they were getting closer. "Damn it, don't kill her now, take her down to the basement of the building." Baroque suddenly instructed, receiving an agreeing, yet somewhat disappointed nod from the madman, who grabbed Eska's unconscious body and hoisted her over his shoulder, making Mako question how such a thin man could lift another person so easily. "Take that one too. Kill them both later, it would be suicide now." Baroque nervously continued, pointing at the detective, who Songtan quickly approached and, upon seeing the firebender raise his arm in defense, aimed a precise kick at his face, with the last image of Mako being the grey boot coming right at him…
…and then everything went dark.
…
Nothing…
Nothing at all, but silence and blackness.
That was all that surrounded him for a long time. It all seemed…peaceful. He seemed alone with his thoughts, but for some strange reason, he was unable to recall how exactly it happened that he reached this place, or how long he was here for. It was only emptiness…and his thoughts.
But as soon as he began to think back to the path he took to be in this…place…(He was not even sure this was a place itself.) his memories became slowly, yet painfully clear.
He saw images, glimpses of his memories, guessing maybe it was a blow to the head that scrambled his mind somewhat, but retracing his steps to the point in time this occurred seemed possible. He saw Eska first…strange, as his memories on how he came to be close to Eska seemed fuzzy looking back. Why was he with her? He was…helping with something…that slowly became clear. But why? Was he sent by Lin? Despite the fact he clearly seemed to remember that prior to his head injury, some help of Eska was occurring, Mako couldn't find the reason why. As if he couldn't find reason for it even back then. Besides it being…being important. And right by his own admission.
Then came the details. It was about death. Lots of deaths. And Eska…she…she almost died too. And then he remembered being with her…investigating…something. Oh, how it made his head hurt, especially in the back. Or was it the head injury? Could be both.
Regardless, Mako grit his teeth and endured the pain, forcing his mind to remember, to recall something, anything useful from the past few days or weeks that could lead him to a clear answer as to where he was and why.
Looking through more images, Mako slowly reconstructed the past few weeks' events, but his understanding of them remained hazy. As if he was reading a storybook filled to the brim with pictures, but he couldn't fully connect emotions to the characters on said pictures, as he wasn't there himself. Thus, the look on his actions became somewhat strange for him and he began to question some of his decisions, almost asking himself 'Was I really such a reckless idiot?' on several occasions. Yet, as he came to understand the situation around him, something began to stir in him. Looking through more memories of his encounters with the Chief of North, the question kept resurfacing. Why was he still helping her with this? Not initially, his original involvement was completely understood by now, but as he began to recall his conversation with Lin and his newer findings of the man they were after, especially after remembering that Eska, upon reaching doubt of his method's effectiveness, offered to replace him in the investigation, he began to ask himself why he didn't take this opportunity.
He clearly bit off more than he could chew and with his injury, it was a ballsy move to continue the investigation just with the intent of uncovering the truth, let alone with the idea of apprehending the killer himself. And yet, he kept doing it, because of…why exactly? Was it hurt pride caused by his previous failures and a desire to prove himself to Eska and Lin later? No, he never imagined himself to be so selfish. At least he hoped so. Was it plain stubbornness about protecting his own ideas of the procedure? A little bit closer, but this answer left Mako…unsatisfied. As if he felt like it wasn't the only answer. That something else contributed to his determination, something that might have been even bigger than hurt pride or stubbornness. Besides a desire to help.
'Still haven't realized you're totally in love with her?!' Came another voice, which strangely resembled his brother's. Wait, what? Was he going mad? No…this was just a thought, materialized as a voice in his own mind, nothing more…Mako hoped.
'Don't be ridiculous. Why would that happen?' He replied, strangely, without feeling his lips moving. So it was a thought. An annoying and completely inappropriate thought. Yet, as he responded so vehemently, he began to doubt himself slightly, asking questions internally…which seemed to only invigorate Bolin's already irritatingly confident tone concerning his brother's desires about a certain someone.
'I'm not ridiculous, you're simply afraid to admit it!' The voice called back. 'Just think about it, you guys have been hanging out for a while, mostly only talking to each other and you can admit it, you began to feel something for her.' The other voice replied, annoyingly cheerful. As if it was happy.
'And so what? We became good partners in work because we worked together for a while, that's it.' He angrily retorted, but the argument would not end so easily.
'Oh, don't lie to me, "detective" because I'll know. I'm your brother…sorta, afterall. You like her, don't even try and hide it.' The voice called again, somehow even more annoying than it used to be, as it seemed to snarkily revel in the idea that Mako found himself feeling something he never expected…especially towards someone like Eska.
'Okay, don't get me wrong, but why would I like her? I mean, besides the obvious and what happened to you, I only spent my time with her time searching for a homicidal maniac. I'd hardly call those times enough to start feeling anything like what you're describing.' Mako retorted desperately, slightly frightening himself as he rolled with its game and addressed his own thought as his brother. Well, not like Bolin would say anything different in a situation like this, he guessed. Clearly, this thought was caused by the head trauma and was simply invading his mind's more embarrassing ideas. And yet, as this back and forth occurred, he slowly began to ponder these thoughts. Just why was this internal argument even happening? Well, because what this thought was proposing was pure madness and he attempted to reject it, of course. But why was he even thinking it? Surely, he had to have thought it if one of his thoughts was giving him these ideas inside his head…haven't he? He was getting confused.
Though, upon closer inspection, he had to admit, he came to understand Eska and her behavior far better than he previously did. Mostly when they talked during their dinner together, which 'Bolin' wasted no time to insufferably remind him of, but even during their professional time together, Mako began to slowly see through the veil of apathy, possessiveness and seemingly lack of care about anything besides her own interests that he originally saw her under. If anything, he had to admit, he…got to know her better to some degree. But that didn't mean more than the two of them getting along well…better than when they first met anyways. Or did it?
Thinking this over, further thoughts began to invade his mind. He felt somewhat sorry for Eska due to her sheltered and closed off upbringing, her being always alone except for her brother being most likely the source of her…awkward nature. And yet, he couldn't help, but also admire her wish to help the people of her tribe, both because of responsibility and a sense of compassion he didn't really get from her previously. Yet, as the image of Eska comforting the sole witness a few days prior flashed in his mind, there was no doubt in his mind, Eska did care about her people. And that was something he always admired in leaders. Unlike Unalaq…or…and that thought made him shiver, as an image quite older than recent memories, but still frightening took over his mind for a mere moment. That pale, emotionless face…no, mask. That pale mask, the emotionless stare of its black eyes, its eternal frown of disgust and dejection at all people different from its wearer and the intents behind it…a stark contrast from the current mask he was dealing with. Yet soon, as if impatient to receive its own description, the other one soon appeared.
It was grey, for starters, from chin to forehead and from what he had seen, was shaped much more like a helmet, meaning it might have been permanent, were it not for the small straps he noted near the sides. But the biggest differences came in the form of its face and emotions conveyed through it. The…first one held clear disdain for all benders, yet carried a certain aura of majesty and feeling of highness in spirit, as if the wearer thought he was deserving of more than benders, thus the slight ornate decorations and the red circle on its forehead, almost resembling some religious symbol. Unlike that, the second one carried simplicity, yet a deceiving air of happiness about it. Concerning the acts its wearer committed and how many people he committed it against caused happiness on the level it displayed to be a disturbing emotion to have. Its mouth was curved into the widest smile Mako has ever seen, seemingly inhuman, reminding the detective of an old story he heard as a child, of a certain 'chess cat' or something, that had a smile similar to this one. Its grin was punctuated by the eyes, which, akin to masks Mako has seen used in comedic stage plays, curled slightly upwards, as if to further convey the overwhelming and true happiness its wearer felt during what he was doing. And the thought of that sickened the firebender. That relentless, sadistic joy in his work Mako couldn't imagine finding in any other person. At least, not in any sane person.
And yet, as more memories came back to him, seeing the situation clearer by the second, the detective sighed to himself. Just how did he get into this? Fighting a fight that wasn't his, trying to solve a case while on vacation and crippled, in a land he felt morbidly held back by, spending time with a woman he, at best, felt uncomfortable around before and yet, thinking back, he could only associate good thoughts with the chief's presence around him now. Sure, they started off rough, but getting to know Eska, the point of his 'brother' came clear, without Mako wondering why the other voice suddenly fell silent. She was a little strange at first, but he had to admit, her company was pleasant and her help was more than useful during the investigation. And at once, his worries came back and he began to wonder where she might be. They were together before he was knocked unconscious, though he didn't know how or why he remembered that, but that wasn't the point. The point was, where was she now? Why was she missing and…just where was he in the first place? But the answer didn't come soon. Instead, he just felt more emptiness, as the darkness stared back at him.
Only…after a while, a faint voice broke through the abyss, repeating a specific word a few times. No, wait, it was more specific. It was a…name. It took him a short time to realize it was his name. And for even longer, he couldn't identify the voice. But it was familiar. He began to follow it, seeing no better options other than this, feeling the darkness slowly dissipate.
"Mako…Mako!" Eska's voice called to him as the detective slowly opened his eyes. Immediately, he felt different than before. The darkness he resided in previously felt strange, but soft, warm and a little welcoming. This new place was, for starters, cold. Very cold. And hard. Like ice. And, as he soon came to realize, it was. Looking around, Mako noted the two of them were locked in some kind of cell in a dark chamber, most likely underground, no windows or other openings to the outside, with only a small light source on the ceiling.
"Mako?" Soon after, he glanced to his left and spotted Eska, kneeling not too far away from him, seated on her heels comfortably. Her appearance, however, was a stark contrast from her usual demeanor. She looked sad for the most part, but never before has he seen her express sadness this much. Her face carried the clear signs of despair, a slowly approaching acceptance of her situation, as well as slight terror. Seeing him move, she moved slightly closer, a slight, almost shy smile creeping onto her face. "Are you feeling okay?" She asked and once more, he was baffled. Her voice was its previously unusual tone, but even more so than the way he has already gotten used to over the last couple of days. As if great relief just washed over her as he opened his eyes.
Slowly moving the rest of his body besides his head, Mako moved from his current sitting position, grunting in slight pain as he felt a sharp sting at the back of his head, as well as something slightly wet against it. Yet, he stayed all the determined. "I…I think so. What…what happened?" He asked, wanting to both find out the current situation's circumstances and drive the conversation away from his health. He didn't like seeing her like this. Sad and scared.
"The guards came to investigate the noise, I assume. As much as I can gather, we were moved into a storage room beneath the building." She elaborated, moving her clasped together hands slightly, which revealed to Mako why she held them the way she did. They were shackled together, with her hands both covered and held in place by metallic 'gloves' that were forced onto her hands, attached to the shackles. Looking down, Mako spotted the same kind of contraption on his own, not needing any more hints to figure out their purpose. They were there to restrict bending and thus, make escape impossible. "As I was waking up, I overheard that we would be killed soon after nightfall. I assume it will be soon, as it has been, by my assumption, hours ago." And during that final sentence, he unmistakably heard slight fear in her voice. And it sounded dangerously similar to the fear he felt. "This is…not the way I imagined it would happen."
"Okay, hold on, we aren't done yet, we'll figure it out." The firebender said, using all the restricted movement he was capable of to move next to her. Unlike any previous occasions when this happened during their investigation, she didn't move away, nor even flinch aside. She merely looked at him with those sad eyes. Well, at least she was showing some kind of emotion, though he decidedly agreed with himself that it was not an emotion that looked good on her. "We'll make it through, don't worry, we just need to-" At that moment, however, she interrupted him.
"Please, it is useless. I have tried many things while you were unconscious. Bending through the bonds, bending without my hands, calling out to see if anyone would come to help, even smashing the bonds against the wall, hoping they would break…" He glanced to the side, as she said, spotting a small dent and a few cracked spots in the icy wall, most likely where she smashed her bonds into it. "All to no avail. It seems there is nothing left but to accept our fate."
Mako couldn't believe his ears. Eska was many things, but not a pushover. Throughout most of the investigation, given how he was incapacitated when it came to bending, usually she brought the muscle and the bending required, when situations have gotten forceful a fair few times. Her being scared and giving up was frightening to him, but he refused to give up. Slowly, with a few grunts of pain, he rose to his feet, taking a few small, careful steps around the room. "Like Hell we will. We'll get out, get help and put those two criminals behind bars." He confidently declared, sighing as he observed the only way out of this room, a metal door that looked like it belonged to a vault, judging from the way it looked from the inside, but it was locked and the whole thing seemed like it was designed to deter intruders from accessing the chamber, so the detective quickly gave up on trying to smash it open with a shoulder. "We'll be free and everything will be okay soon, you'll see."
"I wish I could share your optimism." Eska's sad response came, prompting him to turn around towards her, wanting to retort with something snappy about optimism or foolishness or pessimism, but…
As soon as he looked at her, his body seemed to freeze. His mind stopped in that sad, depressing moment. She seemed to still carry the same apathetic expression, but he could see through it. To him, she looked sad. And lost. And he decidedly hated seeing her like this. Upon looking at her more, he swore that a small, lone teardrop rolled down her cheek. Moving closer, Mako sat down next to her again with a sigh, deciding that comforting her, an act he never imagined as necessary, much less for someone like him to do, was the best idea out of everything.
"If…if I am killed…" Eska started, looking at him and her eyes conveyed more than fear for herself. They spoke of her worry about far more than just her own life. "…Will Desna be targeted? What happens to our people if we are gone?" She asked, sounding confused, scared and worried. "I do not want that. Not now, not ever."
With a sigh, he looked into those sad, yet still sparkling, blue orbs that were her eyes and did his best to think of something optimistic and uplifting to say. "Well, look, we don't know what their plan is as a whole, but we know who they are and I promise you, we'll get them for what they did to you and your people. I promise you that."
"What use is a promise that cannot be kept, Mako?" She responded, noticing his attempts to catch her gaze and, for the first time in a long while, it was her that evaded. "You cannot ensure our escape and that monster's capture, but neither can I. It is time we accept the truth. We have no chance. I don't see how you can still believe in false hopes. We were confronted by that foul man and we were outmatched. I certainly don't see anything to be so hopeful about."
Mako sighed, taking in a breath right after to respond accordingly, not willing to give up, but having realized that he was fighting an uphill battle. She clearly held no more defiance. As if her usual, strong and somewhat stubborn side has been erased by the horror of being killed by that mad assassin. And he was doubtful of their ability to make it out alive himself, but no matter how dark everything seemed, the firebender kept telling himself to not give up. For the Northern Water Tribe. For himself. For…her. Like he was trying to keep a candlelight alive in an icy wind. How ironic…but then she continued speaking.
"I…I will miss many things. My brother…our great city…the sight of the sky…" Her voice was still slightly telling of despair, but it seemed she wished to heed his words, so much as to at least think of happy things. Or attempt to, at the very least. Then, she turned towards him. "…you…I think…" She fell silent right after and Mako felt like he either should say something or feel incredibly flustered that she counted him amongst the people she would miss after death. Well, would both work? It seemed so. But, honestly, it was just fear and her familiarity with him speaking, wasn't it? She would forget him a week after he went home after solving this case…right?
Right?
"You know…a wise old man once told me…" He was lying, of course. Korra told him. But Korra said that a wise old man she met told her this, so…it counted. It at least attracted her attention enough to prompt one of her eyebrows to rise slightly, her eyes gazing intently into his. "… If you look for the light, you can often find it. But if you look for the dark, that is all you will ever see." He spoke softly, keeping eye contact as he told her. He observed her visage and, for once, caught himself admiring her. Not just in a physical sense, but in terms of her situation and actions. He saw and heard her go through so many things as both princess and chief, he was sure he would've snapped like a twig under all that pressure. And yet, she held herself together during those dark times,…only to snap now. He couldn't let that. He had to do his best to change the situation. Both to figure out a way for escape and to help her out of the pit she felt herself in. So, he imagined he'd elaborate, seeing as she seemed to be curious enough for an explanation.
"I'm not a philosopher, but…I think it means…you can't just wait for hope to find you. You have to find it yourself." A slight, shy nod urged him on, telling him she was listening. "I mean…optimism and hope aren't things that you just have. It's whether or not you can see the good in a situation or not…" He was sure he wasn't making as much sense as he wished he did, but what else was there to do other than try to dig himself out of this cell by smashing his head against the wall enough times? What she said next, however, made him gasp quietly in surprise.
"Well…you are here." She spoke, her voice much less sad now, yet still carrying that softness. As if…as if she was slowly regaining her composure, yet not at all sounding apathetic. "Your company is…pleasant…and…good…" It was awkward. Really awkward. He knew that. And so did she. But what the Hell? For all the both of them knew, they would either die tonight or be traumatized for the rest of their lives by what they already witnessed. So what was there to lose or hide?
"I…I like spending time with you…though we haven't done terribly much outside of work. You are…a pleasant person to…be around." She spoke and for the first time ever, he could've sworn a slight blush made its way onto her cheeks, barely visible against her skin tone. He felt the same. Hot in the cheeks and…slightly warm? Well, what she was saying did make him feel good, at the very least.
"I…I feel the same way…you know…it's…it's nice…to be with you." He smiled slightly, feeling happy that she seemed somewhat less depressed than before. Maybe his words were working? He made a note to thank Korra if they made it out of here alive. "I promise you, I won't give up. Not on this land, not on…you." And there he was again, saying things his regular mind would've found weird, but somehow…it felt right to say these things now. "I'll do my best to…to help you…and to stop those two."
She stared into his eyes intently and leaned slightly closer, her face just inches away from his. If he didn't know her any better, his first assumption would've been that she wanted to kiss him...well, she actually looked like it, but that was most likely impossible.
Of course, a moment later, she withdrew from him and kept gazing into his eyes, both curious and, for the first time, visibly happy, it seemed. "I trust you, Mako. And while I have my doubts, I think you might have a point." Her face took on the most subtle of smiles, but he noticed. It was a sweet thing to see on her again. A subtle smile was something he liked her wear. As if it could chase away all worries, because when Eska was smiling, he was sure times had to be happy indeed. Or, at least hopeful.
But, unfortunately, all good things eventually end. That is just the way of life.
"Oh, isn't this sweet?" Came a voice very familiar to the two from outside the room, but unobstructed by the walls or door, which, as they glanced, was already open, with him standing close by. "It's almost too sweet to kill. Buuut…" He didn't finish his sentence, instead stepping quickly to the two and grabbing Eska by the collar, yanking her to her feet and starting to lead her out of the room. "I'll take you on a little walk, Princess. Don't worry, the good detective will be following you closely."
Before the two could reach the door, however, Mako got to his feet and called out to the madman. "Hey, let go of her. I won't let you hurt her." He declared, looking defiantly into the black abyss visible through the eyes of Songtan's mask. What was he doing? This was surely suicide. But he didn't care. What he cared for was the case, this city and…Eska. And he promised her he'd protect her. Thinking quickly, he glanced down at his hands, seeing them still bound, unable to move, one of them painfully protesting against the damaged bandages and the cold metal pressing tightly against it. He couldn't use his hands, or his feet, as looking down, he saw them being attached to each other via a semi-long chain, rendering them unable to use much firebending either, so he had noth-wait, that was it! He took in a breath slowly, eyes once again sending daggers right into the assassin's own.
The madman looked back at his newly risen opponent and for a moment, stopped in his tracks. As if he had to do a double take at what he was hearing. And, in a way, he was. The words made him snicker, then laugh slightly, then let out a loud, mad cackle, finding the prospect of a bound man threatening him to be the funniest thing he has ever heard or seen in a long while. "What?!" He demanded the answer with a voice still distorted by laughter. "Are you completely insane?" As if to provoke, with a quick movement of his arm, he used his elbow in a quick strike, aiming at Eska's face and immediately rendering her unconscious, before catching her mid fall, hoisting the slender girl onto his shoulder. "There. Now what will you do, spit at m-"
And that was what he just did. While Songtan talked and laughed, Mako focused all the strength he felt he could still muster and, upon seeing the masked maniac hurt Eska again, that strength seemed to multiply, increase as rage filled his mind, forcing all of his will onto one single directive. He would make the grey clad man into ashes before morning came. Focusing his strength through his throat, like a dragon wishing to burn its opponent to a crisp, fire burst out through Mako's mouth, like a breath of pure flame, aimed perfectly at him, ensuring a hit and the possible incapacitation, possibly even death of his opponent.
However, like a candlelight, this hope was soon extinguished, as with a blinding fast move of his hand, Songtan simply sent a strong gust of wind, perfectly aimed at the approaching firebreath and, with precision, sent it right back in the direction it came from, catching Mako in the face with it, stunning the surprised firebender and knocking him back to the ground. The pain was almost unbearable, as some of the flames hit his mouth, slightly burning his tongue and throat, as if he actually attempted to swallow a flame, though not too seriously. Some of his hair was burned and most of all, it seemed to extinguish his last hope at attacking the man.
"You idiot. Do you really think my hearing is that bad, I can't catch you huffing and puffing like a factory chimney, trying to breathe fire at me?" Songtan taunted, earning nothing but a look that promised murder and nothing else. "Not a bad try, though. I like you, detective. Maybe after I'm done with the little lady here, I'll let you try and fight me again, see how that works." He said, chuckling as he walked out of the room, shutting the door, with Eska on his shoulder, no doubt heading to kill her in some spectacle of sorts, as if she was merely another victim of the murder spree.
But now Mako knew.
He understood everything. The political murders, the many other deaths completely unrelated to throw the authorities off, all of it leading back to this madman and his employer, who was ready to cause so many people so much pain and suffering, simply to further an agenda of greed and hunger for power.
It angered him to no end.
Seeing Eska like that, remembering his promise, but also coming face to face with the reality that he was unable to do anything against this man only served to brew anger in Mako. It felt maddening. Like an itch that just won't go away, or a pain that…
The pain…
The pain.
Mako looked down at his hands and for once, remembered the reason he came here. He was powerless. He could do nothing in this state and came to the North to fix that. And ironically, he was met with more things rendering him unable to fight, unable to save anyone. That only served to fuel his rage even more. He looked up, at the door, as if merely willing it would cause the entire thing to burst into flames. Gritting his teeth, the detective stood again, an odd warmth crawling all over his body. As if fire was lit under his skin, throughout his entire body, causing intense pain, but also, the feeling of immense strength.
But this mad rage was not just out of his powerlessness. No. He felt it because this exact powerlessness prevented him from protecting someone…someone dear to him. The candle of hope he had been protecting was extinguished with a gust of wind, just like that.
"Eska…" He reminded himself. Here he was, struggling against his chains, pounding at the imaginary cell's walls, like the sea does at the sides of ships. And the anger just grew and grew, not willing to accept that she would die, simply because he was too weak to protect her.
"Eska…!" His voice called again, this time louder, more determined, as if calling out to her would wake the chief and allow her a way to escape. But nothing of the sort happened. Instead, it just helped to anger him more. From behind the candle in the dark, he felt he could hear something. A bellowing roar, akin to a dragon, he thought. The roar of an angry, furious dragon, determined to burn everything in its path.
"Eska!" Mako cried and at once, with rage burning through his entire body, took in a deep breath, then opened his mouth again, spitting a flame at least three times the size of the one he tried previously, melting the metal door to his prison in a few moments, arms outstretched and…wait.
Looking down, he spotted his bounds…previous bounds. In hot, red puddles on the floor, the clothes on his body charred around the spots where they previously were, on his wrists and ankles. His hands felt hot, but numb to pain. To physical, at least. His entire brain felt aflame with white hot fury and now, having melted his restraints by mere will alone, Mako ran out of his cell.
He would make that madman pay.
He would catch up to them and save her from that terrible fate. His body still felt on fire, but Mako didn't mind the heat. It gave him strength, determination, and the will to destroy that man for what he has done and what he was going to do unless he was stopped.
And as he rushed out of the building, blasting a couple of guards aside with quick fireblasts, he set out into the night, mind focused on one, single, very important task.
Saving Eska.