AN: Things might get a little dark here. Fasten your seatbelts, peeps.
Chapter 11
Deceptions and Truths
Satori's POV
We walk out of the bathroom and down the plush-carpeted hall. Korra's face shows her emotions like an open book: panic, disbelieve, betrayal. My face, on the other hand, is blank. I have calmed down from my little panic attack in the bathroom. I don't give any of my inner turmoil away.
I am the better liar anyway.
As we walk down the hall, though, we hear a familiar voice emanating from a door. I make a shushing motion at Korra, then tiptoe my way to the door – although that isn't necessary, considering the thick carpet muffled our footsteps to the point of them being inaudible. I bend and peep through the keyhole.
I have to suppress a gasp – whether of surprise, excitement, or whatever – when I see Hiroshi Sato leaning back in his chair and talking into a phone; it looks pretty serious. I motion Korra forward and we somehow manage to share the keyhole.
"No, no, I assure you. Everything is going exactly as planned," he says. "Mhhm, yes. Luckily the Cabbage Corp investigation has bought us enough time. Trust me. By the end of the week, we'll be ready to strike."
He pauses in his side of the conversation for a moment. He swivels his chair around, and we can see his hardened face.
"Yes. That girl is a loose end. She might give away some important identities. What is it? You want me to take care of it? No, no. I only manufacture the weapons; do not expect me to get my hands unnecessarily dirty just to eliminate one girl."
Another pause in the conversation.
"Yes, she is here… What? You want to set up an ambush? No can do. The Avatar and her friends are here too… It would just reveal my involvement."
Korra and I look at each other. I make a signal with my hands – let's go. We climb down the staircase; Korra's face is pale and mine very much close to it.
Both of us run towards the door, and I vaguely register the fact that Bolin is doing some ridiculous pose and the butler is squirting some perfume on him. It smells like rose petals and cinnamon everywhere.
When we dash past the others without looking at them, almost at the door, Asami's confused voice makes us pause: "You're leaving already? But I-I thought-" she stutters.
I turn back with a smile on my face. "Sorry, Asami. I just remembered something important that Korra and me were supposed to do today. I'm sorry for leaving, but both of us had a nice time."
"Yeah, Asami," Korra says, hiding her anxiousness very poorly. I am surprised how no one seems to notice something off about her. "W-we were supposed to, uh, airsit… um, I mean, babybend… gah! I mean, babysit the airbender kids." She gives Asami a nervous smile and waves as she drags me outside with her; the door swings behind us.
"Babybend…? Where do you come up with these things, Korra?" I ask, chuckling despite the situation.
Korra flushes. "Shut up. Besides," her expression turns serious, "we have more important things to worry about."
xxxx
"CHIEF BEIFONG!" Korra shouts as she bursts into the police station. Several officers sitting at their desks jump up at the sudden loud disturbance, and I even see some unconsciously shift to matalbending positions. They all relax when they see it's Korra, though, but their wary expressions don't go away.
An officer, a man with a clean-shaven, young face, says, "Avatar Korra. What brings you here?"
Korra looks to the officer with panicked eyes. "I need to speak with Beifong. It's urgent."
"Code red," I add.
Maybe it is the panicked and urgent looks on our faces, or maybe "code red" is a legit thing, but the officer's eyes widen and he scurries out of the room to get Beifong.
"What's going on, Korra – Satori?" Chief Beifong says as she walks towards us briskly. Her eyes say that she means business.
"We were just at the Sato's," Korra breathes. "We- can we talk somewhere in private, please?" she asks as the officers around the room 'subtly' lean closer to us to hear our conversation.
The Chief nods, and beckons us towards the interrogation room. She shuts the door and leans over the table standing at the centre of the white, blank room to turn off the microphone.
"Have you come across something?" she asks, her eyes sliding to me.
I nod, and say, "It's Hiroshi Sato! He's the one supplying weapons for the Equalists."
The Chief's eyes widen a little bit, before her stern gaze returns. "Are you sure of this, Satori?"
"Yeah," I say. "I know I didn't say it during the interrogation, and it was because I had forgotten. I was pretty sure I'd heard Hiroshi's name somewhere on the compound, but I hadn't made the connection."
Lin nods at me, then gazes to the side as if in deep thought. "It all makes sense," she says. "Hiroshi Sato has the means… and he has motive." She turns to us sharply.
"What is it?" I ask.
"Twelve years ago, the Agni Kai Triad robbed Sato's mansion. A firebender killed Sato's wife during the break-in," another voice says, and we whip around to find Tenzin standing in front of the door. I hadn't even heard him come in.
"That's terrible," Korra says. Her brows are furrowed, and a frown is tugging at her lips.
"It sounds awful," I say, crossing my arms over my chest. But that doesn't mean he has to target all benders, does it? I think.
"… It's possible he's been harboring anti-bending sentiment all this time."
"Sounds reasonable," Korra says, her hand banging against the table decisively. "Now, let's go tell Tarrlok."
"Why?" I grumble, in spite of myself. I don't particularly like Tarrlok; it was pretty obvious that he looks down on me because I can't bend.
Tenzin stops me as we are exiting. "Look, Satori… I know that you don't particularly like Tarrlok, but he's in charge of the case. He's the only one who can give us the needed clearance to search Hiroshi Sato's house."
My arms cross across my chest. I try not to huff, but I feel a warmth in my cheeks that just betrays my frustration.
"Let's go, then," I say, briskly escaping the stark room, Tenzin following behind.
xxxx
Tarrlok thoughtfully strokes his chin. My eye twitches involuntarily as his thoughtful gaze shifts to me.
"You know, Satori…" he starts to say, gaze unreadable. I brace myself for whatever comes after, because I'm sure it's something condescending.
"Good job."
I blink. Twice. My expression turns to one of disbelief, I'm sure, and the others mirror the look.
"What?" I ask, thoroughly surprised.
"Even though it was late, you still gave us valuable information with regard to the Equalists. This would probably help us learn more about them."
Tarrlok turns to Bei Fong and nods sharply. "I'll leave this to you, Chief," he says, then turns and strides out the door.
I am still trying to figure out what just happened. Did he just… praise me? Congratulate me?
Is the apocalypse already upon us?
Someone had just acknowledged me for something other then the fact that I was Korra's sister… and that someone was Tarrlok.
I am not sure whether I should be happy or freaked out.
I shake my head. Korra grabs my arm and starts to lead me away. Tenzin and Bei Fong are talking rapidly with each other in little whispers; probably planning or something.
Korra's worried face brings my attention back to her.
"What's up, sis?" I ask her, frowning a bit. I mean, aside from the obvious fact that we're going to raid Asami's home… but I know that it is something different bothering her.
"Satori…" Korra murmurs, looking straight ahead; her grip on my arm tightens. "They're after you, Tor. I don't want you to be in danger again."
"What are you trying to say?" I question weakly. "That I'm not capable? Korra, please, I can take care of myself."
"I don't know that," Korra snaps. "I'm sure you've learnt a lot of cool things at the Equalists', but they're out to kill you. I can't let my baby sister get taken again, and this time not even return alive."
I know Korra is just worried. I know that she cares about me, and that's why she's acting so protective.
But I can't help that little sliver of hurt that worms its way inside me. Doesn't Korra think I'm strong enough? Am I still weak in her eyes? Have I not proved myself enough to her in rescuing the trio when they were tied down?
I know that, deep down, the on thing I've wanted most was my sister's acknowledgement.
"Look, Korra," I say, detaching my arm from her grasp and entwining my fingers with hers. I smile at her reassuringly. "I can take care of myself. I don't want you to worry about me, okay?"
She looks uncertain. I know she wants to pursue the matter further, but we reach the airship. When we enter, Korra purses her lips and looks out the window.
xxxx
The doorbell rings, and is opened by the butler. The butler expresses some semblance of emotion when his eyes widen and his face falls. I wonder, distantly, whether he knows anything about Hiroshi's involvement with the Equalists.
I see Mako and Asami walking down the stairs. I guiltily avoid their gazes.
"What's going on? Why are they asking Hiroshi more questions?" I hear Mako's voice say, indignant. Lin and Tenzin pass briskly by him, not bothering to answer – that, or they trust us to explain it.
"I – we –" Dear lord, she's dragging me into this "– overheard him on the phone. Asami, I don't know how to tell you this, but your father might be involved with the Equalists."
Asami is outraged. It's the first time I've seen her face twist up like that. "I don't believe this!" she says, and prepares to stalk off.
Mako glares at Korra and makes a comment about how he couldn't believe that she – we – were spying on Hiroshi.
My hand snakes out of its own accord and grabs Asami's wrist. "Asami," I say calmly, "don't be like that. You are being childish and no help at all in this situation, whether to us or to your father." My eyes meet hers. "I was there. Do you want to know what I heard?" She prepares to shake her head, and her hand twitches in my grasp. "No, Asami." My hands are shaking as well. "He was talking about me too. He talked about 'taking care of me' and that I was a 'loose end', like I wasn't even a person. He was discussing my death. He said that he just couldn't afford to get his 'hands dirty' just to eliminate one girl."
Asami's eyes are desperate. They dart side to side, frantic.
My own eyes finally fill with long-suppressed tears as it finally hits me. He was discussing my death like I was a piece of trash and not a person.
Finally, Asami's hand is yanked away from me. She stands, shaking. "No, you're lying," she spits out. "You were a part of the Equalists. You were the one who betrayed your friends and sister, the one who joined with those- those monsters. Not my father. You're lying. You're the one in league with them, not my father."
She turns and storms up the stairs. I don't even bother to look at Mako as he chases after her. That action in and of itself is enough to tell me where his loyalties truly lie.
A thought hits me, and I wonder where Bolin is.
xxxx
Lin and Tenzin arrest Hiroshi on the spot. They don't need any more evidence, since my testament is enough. They take him for questioning, and the affair is kept hush-hush so that the press don't find out until we finally know and confirm for sure.
Asami and Mako have disappeared somewhere in the mansion, and we are all too busy to go and look for them. They probably need time to cool down.
I can't help the pang of betrayal that lances through my heart. I've known Mako for longer; he was – is – my best friend, the idiot who came to me for unplanned love advice, the one who believed in me even though I am not a bender.
I never thought-
I am jerked out of my thoughts when a high-security alarm flashes through the police department. I leap out of my chair and take a defensive position on instinct. It feels a little sloppy, like my body is as distracted as my mind. Maybe it's because I'm too tired to handle any more.
A police officer – who, if I recalled correctly, was name Saikhen – rushed by. When I asked him what was wrong, the answer that he gave me froze my blood in my veins.
"Hiroshi Sato has escaped custody! There's a high-level security alert out for him!"
How? How in the world did Hiroshi manage to escape? Wasn't he under Bei Fong's custody?
I ran alongside Saikhen, my body too weak to keep up with him without me panting for breath. "How- how did he manage to escape?"
He look grim. "We're not sure, but our main suspects are firebender Mako and Hiroshi's daughter Asami Sato."
I feel numb. Mako? Asami? Why… why would they do such a thing? Why would they betray us like that? Asami, I'm not really sure about, but Mako? My best friend? Bolin's brother?
No. I refuse to believe it.
We exit the police building to see over a dozen police cars and bikes gathered outside, their lights blinding and flashing. I notice Korra over by one of them, restraining Bolin and he thrashes about in her arms and attempts to bend the earth around him.
I have never seen him look so wild or angry. He is shouting something that I cannot hear, his eyes wide. I stop and stare for a moment, trying to come to terms with this scene. After a moment, I steel myself in determination and run over to them. I think I can hear Saikhen say something to me, but I ignore it.
As I come closer, Bolin seems to notice me. He twists around with a renewed effort to break free. Now that I am closer, I can finally hear what he is shouting.
"… innocent! Mako would never do that! My brother is innocent!"
It breaks my heart.
I step up beside Korra, dodging a stray piece of rock that Bolin haphazardly bends, and before anyone can blink, my arms shoot out and hit Bolin precisely with my fingertips. He turns his disbelieving eyes towards me as he realizes he is unable to bend anymore. With a whisper of, "I'm sorry," I hit him on the temple with enough force to knock him out.
Korra gently lowers him to the ground and binds him up. It doesn't matter, anyway. He will be out of commission for a while.
"Report?" I ask tersely, and for a moment I am back in the Equalist compound, shaking and exhausted and numb after a drill where we had to mimic an actual 'mission'.
Korra gives me a look, but continues, "Well, we've received some intel on the supposed location of Hiroshi's factory. Apparently not all Equalists are happy with the way Amon is running things," she adds wryly. "Anyway, our source says that the factory is hidden underneath the Sato Mansion. Lin and a few other metalbenders are preparing to infiltrate."
Images rush through my head and voices fill in the blanks:
"New weapons…" "… metalbenders… useless…" "Sato…" "… test run…"
No, no, no, no. Why is this happening now? Why am I remembering this only now? Why haven't these memories – all this precious information – come to me before, like when Chief Bei Fong was interrogating me?
My mind is blank and unhelpful.
I stumble and try to convey to Korra that, "No, the metalbenders are useless, these machines are unbeatable," but words escape me and Korra steadies me with a hand.
I can tell that it is already too late, because a couple of police cars have raced by while I was distracted, full of metalbender soldiers. I think I can see the Chief leaning out one of them, jaw locked.
"Korra," I breathe, "We have to go and st- help them! They don't know what they're getting into so come on."
Korra nods and then whistles, high and long. Naga immediately bounds forward, screeching to a halt in front of my sister.
I steal a police bike, ignoring the look my sister gives me and the shouts that are sure to follow.
We make our way to the Sato mansion at breakneck speed, relying half on Naga's sense of smell and half on our memory to find the huge estate.
We see police officers when we enter the estate grounds. They are guarding the gate and most of them are converging near the workshop set behind the mansion. Two metalbender police are standing guard in front of the entrance. The moment they see Korra, they let her through with a nod of acknowledgement. However, before Korra can enter, she turns to the guards and tells them, "Make sure she doesn't enter. It's too dangerous for her." She leaves.
It my mind about five seconds to process this. My feet are already moving towards where she disappeared, but I am stopped by the guards crossing their arms in front of the entrance. One of them gives me a stern look. "Sorry, miss," he says, not sounding very sorry at all, "but Avatar Korra has ordered us to prevent your entrance until further orders. It's for your own safety."
Dammit, Korra! You can't just leave me out of this!
I eye the guards contemplatively. They seem to be the only ones around this area. Maybe if I could just…
I knock them out.
No, I am not feeling guilty. Nope. It's for the greater good! I have to help!
xxxx
I enter to see that all the metalbenders have been knocked out, along with Chief Bei Fong; Tenzin is stumped against the wall, definitely unconscious, and Korra is desperately trying to hold off the rest of the giant bots.
My vision tints red, and even I am surprised by the sudden burst of anger that threatens to overwhelm me.
No one hurts my sister.
Out of the corner of my eye, I notice a shadow that looks suspiciously like Mako creeping along the wall. He is heading towards where Tenzin is. My eyes catch Asami as she tries to move stealthily to where Lin lies. I try not to think about whether or not Asami will be able to lift the metalbender, with her heavy uniform. It doesn't matter, because at that moment, I am not the only one who has noticed Asami creeping along the walls.
One of the mechatanks swings and arm and a grappling-hook-like thing swings out and pierces Asami's shoulder. She screams and clutches the injured part.
Another furious voice roars, "FOOL! THAT'S MY DAUGHTER YOU'RE HURTING!"
The person in the bot doesn't seem to hear, because the bot drags a whimpering Asami by the shoulder and dangles her by the wound.
Mako loses all sense and bounds forward, fists swinging outward and shooting fire in waves hotter and greater than I have ever seen.
Korra goes into some white-glowing state that I realize is the Avatar state.
Hell breaks loose.
My mind blanks, and before I realize it, I seize and Equalist member that's not in a bot, punch him in the throat, and steal his weapons. They are a variation of the Lietenant's electrified kali sticks. Then I run forward, jump as high as I can, clamber up a mechabot and pierce the kali sticks through the vulnerable glass portion of the mechabot. The man inside screams; I click on the tiny button on the side, and discover that it allows the stick to unfold into a wicked-sharp hook. The man stops screaming. I pull the stick out, the man with it, and toss the body.
I clamber into the bot, scratching myself on the glass and trying to make sense of my jumbles mind.
It doesn't work. I feel numb, but if I can think, I am sure that the only thing running through me would be, I just killed someone, I killed someone, Ikilledsomeone- help-
But Asami needs help. I swing the bot around with barely-remembered automobile training (the inside is manufactured in surprisingly the same way), and the hand swings with the spin of the right joystick. It hits the mechatank that is about to attack me with the same grappling-hook function that has Asami dangling in the air, unconscious and bleeding, losing so much blood.
Focus, Satori! I scream at myself. I jerk the left joystick uncontrollably and the corresponding arm releases fire as I hit a bright red button. I watch as it hits another bot's glass separation and the victim inside boils.
Huh. This fire seems different from bending fire; it actually seems to have an affect on the mechatanks.
I don't notice the metal arm about to meet the broken glass until it is too later; the arm shatters the remaining glass into glittering dust, and I hear squelch. I feel like I am floating, or as if I am not really experiencing this; I feel like an outsider as I watch the giant blade deep in my stomach.
I hear screams and a roar. Heat engulfs me, and everything goes dark.
REVIEW RESPONSES:
ro781727: Yup. He is. So much.
Well me (Guest): 'Lo! Thanks for reading! I hope your wait was, more or less, worthwhile. :) Thank you. :D
Lady of the Spirit: THANK YOU! :D
Hehe. I thought the ears part was quite fine myself. Bolin is so fun to write. ;)
mutedsymphony: First off… I love your username. I dunno why, I just love it. It sounds to awesome. ^_^
Thank you for reading! And wow, I'm so happy you love it. And read it straight for an hour. Me and (I'm sure) PerfectTwo are glad you read it continuously. :D
I'm so. Happy. I was grinning like a fool when I read it. Thanks for you reassurances. I was a bit worried about the change in styles, but thank you for telling me that it flowed well. I'm happy you think I'm a great writer. :)
And you're not the only one who's excited about seeing what's in store for them… I am too. Half the time, I don't even know what my brain conjures up. So the future is full of surprises, I guess, for both you and me! :D (Ahaha, that doesn't sound very reassuring, does it? Eh, well. I guess I do have a basic idea… :D)
Thank you for reviewing! I look forward to seeing you again!
Sandafairy: Yes, he is absolutely adorable. Truth was, I think that I chose to take up this story because the character is not exactly a fighter, and yes, was initially weak at first then got stronger. I also adore stories with character development. It kind of killed me when I heard that the story was abandoned, but I did understand the reasons. I wanted to write it for myself just as well as for others.
LOL. I loved that part too. It's such a Bolin thing to say, I agree. I crack myself up sometimes. ;)
Haha. I'm sorry about the late update, then. Augh. I hope I'm forgiven?
As sadistic as this sounds, I'm glad that there's someone out there waiting for an update… and the fact that I write this story and that I have THE POWER is… awesome. Haha. I think half my readers hate me now. I have a feeling that PerfectTwo is partially regretting giving the story to a lazy asshole like me. :P
Oh, don't worry. It was quite… punny. (HAHA. I'M SO HILARIOUS.)
Your review was awesome. And if I got awesome reviews like this every chapter, I would be the happiest Korra-fan in the world. Really.
Thanks for reviewing! :D
Guest: Of course I remember you! How could I forget? 'Sup, fanfiction-loving-fangirl? :)
Ah, I'm so so so sorry I haven't updated in so long. School… exams… a new year… and my own very lazy self got in the way. That's probably not an excuse, since I have taken up the responsibility to continue this story myself.
But don't worry. Even though my updates are slower than a slow-mo snail, I will still update. I hope you stick around.
Also, if I don't update for a while and you're getting annoyed, review or PM me to get my ass back into gear. Crude language may be in order. ;P
Thank you for reviewing! :D
Just wanna say I'm sorry. I've been busy, I've had a block, the usual bullshit. Things got kinda... gore-ish, huh? Well. I would love your opinion.
Also, are any of you opposed to shorter chapters? Like, about 2,000 to 3,000 words instead of 4,000? It'll probably mean sooner updates.
I can feel your hostility. And yes, I am sorry.
Feedback? :)
