My sincerest apologies go out to my fans. I don't always mean to disappear from the face of FF after updating something. Hopefully motivation will hit me hard one day and I can update more than one story at a time. Love you always,
Astrial. Xoxox
Please read, review and Enjoy!
Weeks had gone by.
And there were no more incidences from the Midnight Phoenixes.
Was it safe to say that the notorious gangsters had given up on crime? Probably not. There were times when a sort of "cold" era shrouded Chicago and the crime rates declined significantly, but never like this. It was honestly as if peace had settled amongst the city and everything from then on would be docile.
However, Hadoka knew better than that. His sworn enemies were probably planning to attack when his guard was down. Ha! He was thinking way ahead of the MPs: they would never catch him slipping. But he had to admit, this was a strange time. No crimes, no murders, no… nothing. Chicago was quiet and its' citizens finally came out from hiding. Kids stayed out late in the street with the fear of being killed lifted from their spirits. People began to wander the streets. People began to thrive once more!
But what did this all mean? Had Zuko given up on assaulting Chicago, or was this some sort of sick joke? Hadoka popped open the cap of his Coors and leaned back in his chair. Well, whatever the reason was Hadoka just wanted to sit back and drink his beer in peace.
Even if it's for a little while.
Xxx
Katara had been allowed back out of her room. After being confined in there for almost a week, it was great to be able to walk the streets and get some air. She sighed and ran a hand through her hair as she walked to the store for an icecream cone. Things seemed to have quieted down lately. There were no new news reports of a mass killing or robbery and police sirens were scarce. The city's violent times of crime had just… ended. Like an unfinished novel or sentence even. It was unnerving.
She purchased a plain vanilla cone and continued to stroll down the sidewalk. Katara hummed and licked the white goodness, lost in thought. Would it really be wise to say that the MP's had finally given up? Had they realized that in no way, shape or form would they outsmart the police and her own force? As amazing and desirable as that sounded, Katara knew better than that. She knew that Zuko and his team were soldiers—they fought hard and dirty for what they wanted. Whatever the cost, they'd go to extremes to accomplish their goals.
Katara was too caught up in her thoughts to notice that she was walking straight into someone. The person turned quickly and cursed under their breath.
"Oh—s-sorry!" Katara held up her free hand in defense. "I wasn't looking, that's my fault."
Yellow eyes blinked slowly and the black dots in them grew small.
Katara's own eyes widened and somewhere in her memory she remembered those irises…
"No, it's my fault." The female smiled apologetically and held out her pale hand. "The name's Jessica—and again I apologize, haha."
Katara took her hand and shook it, still a bit uneasy but she shook the feeling off and smiled warmly herself. "Yeah, and I'm Katara. Nice to meet you, Jessica."
Jessica slung her dark hair over her shoulder and looked back for a moment and then her eyes fell back on Katara. "Hey… you have pretty eyes, y'know?" Jessica's black lips curled at the ends and Katara's stomach churned for a quick moment.
"Thank you…" She made her way past Jessica and said, "Uh… sorry I have to go. Nice meeting you!" and rushed down the street.
Jessica sucked her teeth and pressed a button on her hidden Bluetooth and spoke quietly, "Yeah, you were right. She's out of confinement…" "Jessica's" eyes traveled the way Katara had previously went and she smirked.
"Tch." The voice on the other end groaned and a dark silence fell upon them before they spoke again. "Keep an eye out on her. We've been quiet this past month and once we make our next move, Hadoka nor his stupid little fucks will see it coming."
The female let out a rather bored breath and looked across the street at a couple of men hanging out in a group. Swiftly a drug exchange took place and as obvious as it was to her, no one else noticed. That was the thing about ordinary citizens that she hated—they were all blind. Naïve. Stupid. If they actually took the time to see rather than say, they'd be well aware of their surroundings and safe from harm.
But, no. Their mentalities couldn't possibly focus beyond the typical selfish wants and needs.
"…and after sunset I'll send them to the docks…Hey, are you even listening to me? … Azula!"
"What?" Azula snapped and started to walk down the street. "I heard you. Keep an eye on the prize, no slacking. Yeah, yeah I get it! Same song and dance—what else is new, brother?"
Zuko fell silent and let out an agitated breath. "…just… just make sure you follow orders, okay? I can't afford to lose your loyalty, too."
xXx
Later that night, Katara was getting ready to head back home. She had a long day of wandering the streets, shopping and just enjoying human interaction. She hadn't realized how long it had been since she was able to be a "normal" teenage girl. Today she was able to shop, chat with locals and feel free without having to think some crime was going to happen at any moment.
Katara was getting into that mindset, like everyone else. Maybe Chicago really did lose its terrifying touch. Maybe the murders and robberies were just a negative phase or something. If it were to go downhill it would've happened already, right? Katara smiled politely at the cashier inside of a clothing store and made her way out with bags of fresh clothes.
The night was eerie and lifeless. Cars zoomed past every once in a while and she'd see the occasional citizen, but other than that the streets were abandoned. Katara looked at her watch and sweat-dropped with a nervous laugh.
"Jeez, it's already eleven… I better hurry home before Dad gets too worried." She thought and started to pick up the pace.
When she passed a small pizzeria a dark figure emerged from that alley and leaned against the wall. They looked down at their own watch and back up at the sky. Across the street on a roof stood two more people clad in the same dark outfits who jumped to the next building and the next, following Katara at a safe, discreet distance.
The solo person climbed up a fire escape and ran along the rooftops with Katara in their sights. The unknowing teen continued to walk without any sense of danger. The illusion of safety came from the bright street lights. Anybody with a sane mind would know to never strike when under such bright lights.
But Katara's pursuers were smarter than one would think.
A few loud bangs echoed throughout the neighborhood and immediately the lampposts Katara was near exploded and shards of glass fell onto the street. Katara instinctively ran for an alleyway and kept her breathing easy.
"Gunshots followed by the streetlights exploding?" she thought and her brows furrowed uneasily. "What kind of ga—"
Two hands seized Katara, one covering her mouth and the other snaking around her throat. Katara's muffled screams were loud considering the leather glove covering her mouth. The more she struggled, the more pressure the pursuer placed on her throat, closing her airway.
"Shhh, go to sleep." They whispered and stroked her hair. "This'll be easy… just go to sleep…"
Katara's eyes watered and her head was light. The sky swirled, her thoughts raced and her pulse beat like mad… no… no!
When Katara finally passed out, the captor lay her down on the ground and pulled their mouth mask down, revealing black lips. Their hand pressed a button on their ear and their voice spoke with much maliciousness:
"Mission accomplished."
"Good," a deeper voice said and grunted. "Phase two commences now. I knew I could count on you, Ty-Lee."
Ty-Lee released the button and stared down at Katara's unmoving body. She pulled her mask back on and lift the girl up with grunts of annoyance. "Stupid… fat… cow…!"
xXx
"Come in—oh, it's you."
"Zuko." Aang stepped up to the dark desk and slammed his hands on it, face moving close to Zuko's. "Stop what you're doing: you don't have to kidnap her to make me come back. I made that decision on my own."
Zuko put his pen down and smirked. His unnatural topaz eyes shone cynically. "Is that what you think this is? Some type of lure to reel you back to me? Haha, Aang you were always the funny one!" Zuko leaned back in his leather chair and wiped legit tears from his eyes from his hard laughing.
Aang stood up straight and his expression was polar opposite from Zuko's. He grit his teeth. "Does it look like I'm fucking laughing? I'm telling you that it's a waste of time."
"I have nothing but time to waste."
"Zuko!"
"Just spit it out, Aang." Zuko leaned back on his desk with a widespread grin. "You and I both know why you're standing here—quite disrespectfully, if I may add—and you mind as well just get on with it."
Aang's grey eyes narrowed for a moment, and then he sighed, closing them. "I don't see why you're thinking to kidnap Katara. For what? So Hadoka could come running with his group and we all break out into a gun war? That shit gets old, real quick." He opened them again and folded his arms.
Zuko rubbed his chin and that grin wouldn't seem to fade. "You're right. Kidnappings get old… but who said anything about kidnapping?" Aang's pupils gradually dilated. "I could waste resources and kidnap her, and you're right, it'd break out into an unnecessary war. So, why not weaken Hadoka and his little group? Take out one of their obvious strongest members and the shock would bring down their defenses. Smart right? Thanks, I thought of this myself."
Aang turned and looked at the clock.
"Thinking of going to stop it? Think again. By midnight it's all over." Zuko laughed when Aang burst out the office door. "You'd just be wasting your time!"
xXx
Aaaaaand, cliffy! I'll try to update ASAP! Love you much!
