I've had a realization. There's something that I've been taking for granted all my life. The ability to see my surroundings. I'm not saying that my eyes have stopped working, though they're half of the equation. The other half would be having a source of light. That's what I've been taking for granted. In the south we were used to the sun being gone for large parts of the year, but even then we had the moon and the stars shining overhead, as well as the green fire of the aurora writhing in the sky. If you looked up in Republic City you'd see a few stars, but the thousands of windows lighting up at night would drown them out and take their place. Throughout my entire life I've always had a source of light that would allow me to see my surroundings. Until now.

This cell they've stuck me in, there's no light of any kind in here. No sun, no moon, no stars or lightbulbs or even a kerosene lamp. Just black, a complete and utterly impenetrable blackness. Without my eyes I've had to rely on my other senses to examine this cell. My head bangs against the ceiling if I try to stand upright, my hands hit the walls when I straighten my elbows. A chill seeps into my flesh when part of me touches the stone walls. They took my all clothes, including my socks and shoes, leaving me with an itchy linen shift that does little other than covering me up. It doesn't matter what position I take. Standing, sitting or curling up in a ball and trying to sleep, part of me is going to be cold. There's a small hole in in one of the back corners and the reek from it is enough to tell me what it's for. At times I can hear water running to clear the waste away, but the relief that provides is only temporary. The only other sound I hear, aside from ones I make myself, is when they feed me. As near as I can tell there's a slot in the bottom of the door that they push the food through but somehow it's rigged to not let light in. Every meal has been the same so far. Bread that feels hard enough to break my teeth and some stale water. It's not much, but it's all I get.

I've always considered myself to be a tough person who can handle herself. I've spent enough time at the gun range with my pistol that I can reliably hit center mass, but I don't need a gun to protect myself. Years of training and sparring in the gym give me the edge over people who don't and I'm ahead of many who do. None of that makes a difference in this case. I can't punch my way out of this cell and I doubt a gun would work on this door. I'm stuck and this cell isn't just made to hold prisoners. It's designed to make people suffer.

It's working.

Honestly I'm not quite sure how long I've been in here since I don't have a watch, not that I could see it if I did. If they feed me twice a day then it's been the better part of a week. That's plenty long enough for the cell to start doing its grisly work. I can't see the walls, but I can feel them grinding away at me like I'm a peppercorn. I don't know which will come first, but if I stay in this cell then there's two possibilities. One is that the cold or the hunger gets to me and I die here. The other is that I snap and I'll be gone even if I'm technically still alive. Hard to say which is worse, but maybe there's a chance I could come back if it's the latter. Not really a cheery thing to think about, but it's difficult to think about anything else when you're in a place like this.

The door opens.

I throw a hand over my eyes as light begins pouring in the now open doorway. When they dragged me down here and threw me in the cell, I saw oil lamps on the wall. They're pretty dim, but even pretty dim is still too bright for me to tolerate at the moment. A hand roughly grabs my wrist and pulls me up to my feet. I squeeze my eyes shut and stumble my way out of the cell as I'm dragged along. My jailer hasn't said a thing to me, but I don't need him to. If I had to guess I'd say I'm on my way to a date with a noose or a firing squad, maybe an electric chair. I suppose I should be scared, but honestly? I feel relieved. If I'm going to die then I'd rather it'd be quick instead of slowly wasting away in that cell.

My eyes remain closed, but I can still tell that we're going up and up. At first the stairs are made of stone, but it doesn't take too long until I feel carpet beneath my feet. I hear the sound of a door opening and I'm roughly shoved through and the door shuts behind me. The light is still painful so I keep my eyes closed for the time being, but bit by bit I open them ever so slowly and that's when I see it. Long black hair and a pair of green eyes looking back at me. "Asami?" I blurt out, confused. It's not who I was expecting though I'm not complaining. She's already a lovely woman, but the fact that she's not the executioner makes her even easier on the eyes.

"Hello, Korra." As my eyes continue adjusting the room comes into focus and I look around at my surroundings. Thick tapestries hang on the walls, there's a fire crackling behind a steel grate and opulent looking furniture is scattered throughout the room. There's three more doors aside from the one I just came through. Asami is sitting on a chair with a high back and she has a golden goblet with green gems mounted around the outside resting in her fingers. "Would you care for some wine? There are some exquisite vintages here in the palace. This one comes from the city of Garsai."

I stare at Asami for a moment, my eyebrow beginning to twitch, before I stride forward and knock the goblet out of her hand, the red wine splashes onto the carpet.. "Do you have any idea where I've been the last few days!?"

Asami glances down at the mess I made before looking back up at me and she places her hands in her lap. "Yes. I'm well aware of where the Dai Li took you. The Earth Queen told me me all about it over dinner. She was quite… enthusiastic I must say. Fortunately for your sake, I was able to convince her to free you."

This is the police station all over again. Asami got set me set loose because she had an ulterior motive for me then and I'm sure she does now. The only question is what it is this time. "... Thank you."

"You're welcome. However I'm sure you're wondering how, and more importantly why, I had you freed." Asami says as she stands from her chair. "We have a more pressing issue however. You need a bath. Badly." Her nose wrinkles as she looks at me and points at a door. "In there."

I freeze for a second before raising my arm and sniffing at its pit. I don't smell anything, but I'm pretty sure she's right. I haven't had a shower since I left Republic City and I've spent the last few days in a dungeon. A bath sounds good right now, really, really good. My shift hits the ground before I'm even into the bathroom and I hop into the clawed tub without any hesitation. I don't even care if Asami sees me in the nude. The desire to clean off all this filth makes it hard to care about being decent right now. I turn one of the spigots and water gushes out of it and onto my feet. It's cold, but I don't care about that either. Water, any water, is a luxury to me right now, regardless of its temperature. I hear a grinding sound and turn my head towards it. Asami's moved the grate in front of the fireplace and she's tossing the shift I was wearing into the flames. It takes a few seconds to ignite and then it's quickly turning into ash as the fibers wither away.

Once I've finished washing myself, and luxuriating in the tub, I find a green towel hanging by the door. Water drips off my legs onto the tiled floor as I fetch it and dry myself off before wrapping it around my chest and hips. When I step out into the main room Asami's back in the chair from earlier. "I don't suppose you can get me something to eat can you? I could use a proper meal."

Asami picks up a bell from the end-table next to her chair and she rings it once. Almost immediately a servant opens the door and is bowing her way inside. "Fetch us some food and tea would you? Something light that won't upset Korra's stomach."

I wait until the servant is gone before asking the question that's been weighing on my mind since the meeting with the queen. "What is going on here? You got your revenge on Yawno, but the way you were talking to the Earth Queen sounded like you had something else in mind."

She taps her finger against the chair of her arm while considering me for a moment before answering. "Yawno was about getting my revenge, but he was just a tiny part of a much bigger problem."

"The Triads."

"Yes. They're a plague on Republic City and it's long past time that they were dealt with." Asami says before getting up out of her chair. She heads over to a table bearing the bottle of wine she was drinking from earlier and pours some into a goblet identical to the one still on the floor.

"Then why not donate money to the police? They can hire more cops or buy better equipment. Why would you come here to Ba Sing Se if you're trying to deal with the Triads?"

"Because the cops will never win. It's not a question of numbers or equipment or even leadership. Lin Beifong is a fine police chief and the police are capable. The cops will never win because their hands are tied. They have rules and procedures, guidelines on ethical behavior, lines they won't cross. The Triads don't. They're savages with no conscience who'll do whatever it takes to get the upper hand. The best the police can do is slow them down and clean up the messes that the Triads leave behind." Asami's voice rises as she's speaking and she turns towards me. "I came here because this is where the answer is. If you want to wipe out the Triads then you need the people who are capable of doing it."

A chill runs down my spine as I realize what she's saying and its implications. "You're here for the Dai Li? The Earth Queen will never give them to even if you promise her a thousand airplanes."

"I don't need all of the Dai Li, just a handful."

"A handful of Dai Li won't be enough to take down the Triads. You'd need hundreds of people for that."

"I already have the people I need. They just lack the proper training… and leadership." Asami smiles as she takes a step closer and holds the goblet out to me. "What do you say?"

Now it's starting to make sense. Some of it anyways. If there's a police force capable of wiping out decades of organized crime it would be the Dai Li. Up until the last week I've only heard stories of their brutal efficiency that lets them dominate the world's largest city from the shadows. I've always thought them exaggerations or tall tales, but now that I've seen the inside of their dungeon… I don't doubt them anymore.

"You have people? What are you talking about, Asami?"

"The Triads have been around a very long time and they've no shortage of victims. People who've lost loved ones to violence or drugs, shop owners who refused to pay up and saw their homes and businesses burned down plus all of the others whose lives they've ruined in some way or another. I'm sure you know someone like that."

I do, as a matter of fact. Mine. I had a job, friends, and Mako had almost become more than that. Then Shady Shin had shown up and the life I was building for myself got thrown in the trash. What's worse is that Shin had made me an offer. If I had taken it then I'd still be working in the red light district, but not during the day. It'd have been at night and involve spreading my legs for anyone with the yuans to pay for it. Not the life I was dreaming of when I sailed into Republic City, but I'd take it over living on the streets again. I might even have grown to enjoy it. At least that's what I've been telling myself.

It's then the other part of what she said earlier sinks in. "Wait, leadership?" I ask. "What do you mean by that?

Asami lowers the goblet and she turns away before setting it back down on the table. "Do you remember what I told you after I shot Yawno? Why I chose not to kill you?"

"Yeah, you said our time together was interesting, whatever that means." I reply while adjusting the towel since it's starting to slide.

"Have you thought about why I called it interesting, other than the fact we slept together?" Asami asks, her eyes sparkling with mirth. My cheeks color and I slowly shake my head, the fact that I'm wearing nothing but a towel suddenly sinking in on me. "Well then, I'll stop teasing you about it and just tell you."

I snort and shake my head. "Oh, is this the part where you spin some yarn that'll make me go along with whatever it is you're planning? I think I'll pass on whatever lie you want to tell this time."

Asami freezes up and the amused look on her face slowly vanishes and she suddenly looks… hurt? "I can understand if you don't trust me given how things have unfolded, but I have never lied to you, Korra. I don't plan to either. As for your question, the answer is simple. I have people willing to help fight the Triads, but they need training, which I've taken care of, and someone to lead them."

"Wait, you want me to be their leader? Why not you or your father? This whole thing is your plan." I ask, more confused than ever.

"This whole plan is being financed off the books by Future Industries. If my father and I were publicly involved then that money goes away. It also wouldn't make sense if we were the ones in charge. Now you, you're a private investigator who worked for an agency that's known to occasionally get their hands dirty. People also think you killed a member of the Triple Threats and skipped town. It'd be in character for you to be going after them."

What Asami is saying makes sense, but I can see an obvious trap here. If I'm the leader of this vigilante group then I'd be the one who takes the fall if things go wrong. It's possible the Satos could get in trouble for this, but I have the feeling they've already covered their tracks and can't be connected to this.

"And if I say no? You sound pretty confident, but what's to stop me from walking out that door right now and not coming back?"

"You could do that, Korra, but I wouldn't recommend it. First, you're only wearing a towel and second, I wouldn't be able to protect you if you took off."

I don't need to ask who she's protecting me from and Asami had mentioned earlier that she had convinced the queen to free me. I close my eyes and take a deep breath before noisily exhaling. "What does she want?"

Asami tilts her head towards one of the other doors and starts heading towards it. "That's a good question, but I don't feel like answering it multiple times. We'll have some company on this little endeavor. The Dai Li found some people trying to smuggle themselves into the city aboard a ferry." Asami pushes the door open and walks through into the other room. "During their interrogation they said they were from Republic City so the Dai Li handed them over to me."

I hesitantly lean my head through to see who she's talking about and my jaw, but thankfully not my towel, drops. There's two harried looking men in the room. One is lying on a couch as he stares at the ceiling and the other is standing next to a tall and thin vertical window, red scarf around his neck and all.

Bolin and Mako.