3).The Realizations(part 5)
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After telling Jinora that she'd take the rest of the day off, Korra went to the Republic City Park with Bolin.
"I don't think the Equalists would hide Mako in this park." The earthbender said. Around them were people walking, children playing, everyone doing everyday activities one would do in a park. Korra didn't know if she should adore or be annoyed by his naivety.
"I'm looking for my source. He should be..."
"Equality now! Equality now!" A familiar voice amplified by the same megaphone. "We want equality now!"
"...right there." Korra saw the protester on his small podium, shouting to the people that mostly ignored him. He still had bandages all over his face, evidently too proud to go see a waterbending healer.
"Non-benders of Republic City, Amon calls you to action! Take back your city! It's time for the..." The protester suddenly stopped when he saw Korra and Bolin approach him. His grin widened as he shouted at her without the megaphone. "My good lady!"
"Well, that...wasn't the worst title I've ever been called." Korra forced her smile.
The protester jumped off the podium to greeted her, completely ignoring Bolin who stood few steps away.
"I'm so glad to see you again! How may I help you?"
"Yes, nice to meet you too." She said as quickly and dismissively as possible. "I heard rumor around town about the raid at the Triple Threat Triads headquarters last night, know anything about that?"
The man's eyes brightened with excitement, he opened his mouth to yell something, but then closed and gestured Korra to the podium. He took out four leaflets from the pile and handed them to her.
"Witness the Revelation tonight, nine o' clock." He read the title on one of the leaflets, before flipping the paper around to showed Korra a drawing pattern on its back. "Four pieces of these will show you the location on the city map. I believe you'll find what you're looking for there."
"Couldn't you just tell me the location?" Korra frowned.
"They didn't tell me either, this way even if the police get me, I won't have anything to tell them! Smart plan, right?"
"Very smart." She smiled, but inside thought. 'It means they don't trust you, you idiot.'
Korra returned to Bolin,letting the protester go back to his business, shouting and promoting the cause he believed in, but didn't understand.
"What did he tell you?"
"Nothing intelligent." She gave Bolin the leaflets, letting him see the drawing on their back before asking, "Is there a city map nearby?"
"Umm... I think there's one at the bench under the bridge."
"Let's go then."
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"It seems she already got an invitation."
From the other side of the park, two men and one woman were observing the interaction between Korra and the protester.
"A direct approach is no longer necessary then." One of the men looked over to Bolin as he left the park with Korra. "That guy... I swear I saw him before."
"He kinda looks like one of the pro-benders though. I don't remember which one." the woman commented.
"Nonsense," the last man dismissed his friends' idea. "She couldn't be associated with those benders. Probably just a look-alike. Let's go to the factory, they could use our help preparing for the meeting tonight."
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The ominous looking factory was a secret meeting location, as Korra and Bolin walked after a small crowd of people heading toward the building. Both of them wore a disguise, with Korra wearing an overcoat and a woolen hat, and Bolin just wore his regular clothes, but adding a fake mustache.
"I still think the mustache is a bad idea." The mercenary mumbled. They gave two leaflets to the door man and entered the building with no problem.
"No one recognized me so far. This is going great!" Bolin proudly stroked his mustache.
They walked to the meeting place and looked out over the gathered crowd, waiting before an empty, but lit podium at the other side of the large factory.
"I never knew this many people hate benders." The earthbender was put off by the size of the gathering. He knew about the Equalists, but he didn't know how serious they were.
Korra put a somewhat comforting hand on his shoulder, easing his tension. She was hardly affected by the crowd, since she was used to seeing a lot more people gathering for even stupider reasons.
"Keep an eye out for Mako." She whispered to him as they made their way through the waiting crowd to get as close as possible to the podium.
Suddenly,a white light shone out of an open hatch in the middle of the stage. An announcing voice echoed through the hall.
"Brothers and sisters, please welcome your hero, your savior, Amon!"
A hooded figure, dressed almost identical to the poster, emerged from a trapdoor in the stage with a line of Equalists behind him under loud approving cheers of the crowd. A spotlight turned on, illuminating the Equalist leader as he walked up to the microphone, the people still cheering loudly for him.
"Nice opening." Korra said as she smile and clapped along with the crowd. Bolin hoped she was just trying to blend in, because the fact that he hired a non-bender mercenary to the anti-bender gathering event started to sounded like a bad idea.
"Welcome, my followers."Amon said, his voice was soothing, yet possessed so much power and authority.
"My quest for equality began many years ago." He took the microphone out of the stander. "When I was a boy, my family and I lived on a small farm. We weren't rich, and none of us were benders. This made us very easy targets for the firebender who extorted my father."
Amon paused,walking to the right on the stage just to be dramatic.
"One day, my father confronted this man, but when he did, that firebender took my family from me. Then, he took my face. I've been forced to hide behind a mask ever since."
The crowd gasped in astonishment, while Korra thought that was the most boring, and cliché back-story she ever heard, no disrespect to the dead, mind you.
"As you know, the Avatar had disappear for almost a decade now, but if she were here, she would tell you that bending brings balance to the world."
"Said who?"Korra grunted below her breath.
"But she is wrong. The only thing bending has brought to the world is suffering. It has been the cause of every war in every era, but that is about to change. I know you all have been wondering, "What is the Revelation?". You are about to get your answer. Since the beginning of time, the spirits have acted as guardians of our world, and they have spoken to me. They say the Avatar has failed humanity."
"That better not be you, Aang." Korra mumbled angrily, wondering if her past ghost actually went around, gossiping about her to the weirdo in a mask.
"That is why the spirits have chosen me to usher in a new era of balance. They have granted me a power that will make Equality, a power to take a person's bending away,"
He paused again for dramatic.
"Permanently."
The audience gasped, and started talking among themselves, some thought that was amazing, some thought that was impossible, some thought Amon was a chosen, some thought he was a liar.
Korra and Bolin looked at each other, her eyes reflect doubt, and wondering, while Bolin's reflect fear, and horror.
"That's impossible." Korra whispered. "He's out of his mind."
"I thought only the Avatar could take away people bending?" Bolin's voice was shaking, however, his words unintentionally made Korra's voice grew cold when she answer.
"The only Avatar that could take away bending was Aang." at least, that she knew of. "And he's already dead!"
Bolin was taken aback with that reply. Why did Kairi sound so hatred, as if she...hated...the Avatar.
The earthbender gulped, picturing the girl exposed him to the crowd, revealing herself to be the Equalist sympathizer.
'Why didn't I go to the police after we got the location!?' Bolin screamed an inner thought. 'This is bad, I better run, but I can't just leave Mako with this people. What should I...'
"I know you all have questions, some might even have doubts, so let us have a demonstration. Please welcome, the Leader of the Triple Threat Triad, and one of the most notorious criminals in Republic City, Lightning Bolt Zolt."
An Equalist guard lead the tied up man onto the stage. He wore a gold and black jacket with a pink under shirt.
The crowd booed at the man, which to his arrogant or dignity, spat back.
"Ah, boo yourself!"
At the same time, Equalist guards lead five more tied up benders onto the stage, forcing them to their knees, Mako being the last of them. The firebender looked around, seemingly unsettled by the crowd in the hall.
"Mako!"
Bolin was about the run to the podium, but Korra pull him back. He almost startled at her touch, still thinking about the possibility of her stabbing him in a back.
"We can't fight them all."
"Then what do we do!?"
"Calm down and let me think." She then started scanning the area while the commotion on the stage continued.
"Zolt has amassed a fortune by extorting and abusing non-benders. But his reign of terror is about to come to an end. Now, in the interest of fairness, I will give Zolt the chance to fight to keep his bending. Lieutenant."
With Amon's order, one of the guards who was wearing a different gas mask from the others, took off the rope binding Lightning Bolt Zolt. Amon moved away from Zolt while the same guard pushed him in the opposite direction, creating some space between the two fighters.
"You're gonna regret doing that, pal."
The Triple Threat Triad leader smiled, before immediately shooting a fire blast at Amon. But the masked man nimbly dodged every blast that Zolt threw at him, gradually coming closer.
Zolt realized he had underestimate his opponent, so he surged forward and fired the bolt of lightning at the Equalist leader who ducked underneath it, grabbed hold of Zolt's wrist, and twisted it around until he moved to standing behind him.
"He's good." Even Korra got distracted from her planning when Zolt started shooting lightning on the stage.
Amon grabbed Zolt's neck from behind while lightning was still pouring out of Zolt's fingers. He quickly moved his hand from Zolt's wrist to his forehead, and placed his thumb in the center.
Zolt's face suddenly contorted in fear when he felt a surge of strange energy creeping its way inside his body from the thumb of the mask man, at the same time, his lightning slowly changed into a stream of fire, before disappear entirely.
The last thing Zolt saw when he met Amon's gaze, was the weird flicking of orange light in the mask man's eyes.
Amon let go of Zolt, who collapsed weakly onto the ground. Zolt got up with difficulty, before attempting to firebend at Amon to no avail. He crashed back to the ground at the feet of the Equalist leader.
"Wha ... what did you do to me?"Zolt looked at Amon, saddened and shocked.
"Your firebending is gone. Forever." The Equalist leader answered, slowly walking around his victim. "Not only that, but your children, and the children of your children, every descendant of you who were born after this moment, will only be non-benders."
Amon turned back to the audience that amazed by his declaration, the power to not only removed one bending, but, for the lack of a better word, sterilizing the bender lineage entirely.
"The era of bending is over. A new era of Equality has begun!"
The crowd cheered madly. Lieutenant released the second captured bender, and kicked him forward to face Amon.
"We have to hurry!"Bolin yelled at Korra, luckily his voice was buried in the cheer of the crowd, so only Korra could hear him. The mercenary was looking at the machines on the wall, certain that they were powered by water and steam.
"Wait here, and when the chaos starts, run toward the exit. I'll take your brother and meet you at the city park." She told Bolin quickly before walking away, not giving Bolin a chance to ask anything or protest.
Korra emerged at the side of the pleased crowd, quickly moving through one of the side exits. She ran through a hallway filled with machines, stopping at a big red wheel. She turned the wheel all the way with little difficulty, but it only released one small air leak.
"Gonna need more."
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Back at the hall, Amon had successfully taken away another one's bending, after a futile attempt of fighting from the owner. He was dragged to the side of the stage while another bender got released and put against Amon.
"Come on, Kairi, what are you doing?"
Bolin looked around for any sign of chaos, anything that suggested it would help his brother escapes, but the only commotion going on was another bender lose pathetically to Amon. Only one bender remained before Mako's turn!
Said brother, however, was observing the situation around him with a surprisingly calm expression, as his fellow gang members got taken out one by one, and the crowd cheered every time they collapsed to the floor, losing their bending forever.
Mako sighed to himself, a corner of his mouth pulling up in a small...smile.
'This is it then.' He thought to himself, watching his friend howl with fear as Amon got a grip on his neck.
'They gave me a chance...so many chances. Bolin told me countless time to quit working with the Triad, and just yesterday, Azon offered me a place in her team. I should have listened to them.'
Lieutenant approached Mako and untied him with less than gentleness, before taking him by the arm and flung him to the middle of the stage, in front of Amon. The crowd cheered, prepared for another round of excitement.
Mako took a deep breath, and slowly let out.
'Here goes nothing.'
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"Hey, you!"
A voice startled Korra after she just finished turning a small red wheel, causing another minor leak to shut out of the pipe. She turned to see one of the Equalist guard walked toward her. From the appearance and the voice, this one seem to be a woman.
"What are you doing back here?"
"Oh...I am..."
"Wait..." The female Equalist cut Korra off when she get closer. The goggle eyes stared at her for a second before asked. "Kairi? Are you Kairi the mercenary?"
"What!? No! Who told you that?..."
"Don't you remember me? You met me and my friends at the dock when you fought those Triple Threat Triads."
"You are that girl?" Korra was genuinely surprise. "No offence, but you guy kinda dress the same."
"Of course, it's me! I'm so glad you came, but what are you doing here? You're missing out all the fun in the hall."
"Oh, right. See, I was looking for the bathroom, but then I saw these leaks." She pointed to the leaks of her own create. "I was worried, so I try to fix the machine, but it didn't work..."
"What? Let me see!"
Korra stepped away and let the guard inspected the machine. She then slowly moved behind the Equalist as she analyzed the leaks.
"If this thing broke, the steam will float the entire hall. I better tell someone..."
Without warning, Korra wrapped her arms around the Equalist's neck from behind, locking her in a tight choke hold. The female guard struggled, but Korra just kept tightening her arms, cutting off her air, and prevented her from making any sound.
"Sorry, I'll try to be gentle." The mercenary whispered not long before the body in her hold went limp. She let the unconscious girl fall to the floor, and went back to breaking the machine.
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The cheers began to die down in the hall when the audience noticed something was wrong, so did every Equalist on the stage.
From what should've been another victory of their leader, Amon. The fifth victory in one roll to solidified the beginning of their revolution, but there was no fight. The last prisoner, Mako, just stood staring at Amon without any attempted to attack or defend himself.
"Your move, bender." Amon said, as if to encouraged the young man. Mako turned to looked over the gathering people, seeing all their eyes on him. He actually missed Bolin in the crowd because of the fake mustache.
The firebender turned back to face the mask man, shaking his head.
"I won't fight you."
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to be continued...