Chapter 51
With Labored breathing, Korra sat down in a chair next to the flat stone training area. She placed a cool towel around her neck, and drank water out of a bottle. Another hard day of training, and another step closer to knowing almost every bending type. She had gotten the basics of lava bending, and had learned a few more techniques in water and air bending as well. As the sweat dripped off the bridge of her nose, she let herself relax and tried to catch her breath.
"Where is she? I came as soon as I could." Asami said in the distance.
"Hold on a second, she doesn't know yet." Katara said.
"She's been training since she woke up, and we've been trying to get all the details." Aang said.
"We have the details." Toph said, "I'll tell her."
Korra pushed herself up from he chair and made her way to the voices.
"No, I'll tell her." Aang said.
"Tell me what?" Korra said, rounding a corner and finding the group and two other police officers on the patio. "What's going on?"
"Korra...please stay calm when I say this." Aang said. The very notion of him saying that, made her feel quite un-calm. "Last night...someone in a black suit...broke out Zaheer and the other members of the Red Lotus."
Korra's eyes shot wide. She had grown too comfortable, allowing herself to believe that the Red Lotus would never be able to escape prisons that held the super villains powerhouses like the Abomination who could rival the Hulk in strength. Quickly regaining her composure, though, Korra remembered this had been one of the main reasons she had been training so hard. She could take the Red Lotus this time. And besides, she had Aang, Spidey and Supergirl.
"Okay..." Korra said, "Do we know where they've gone?"
"No." Toph said, "And we have no idea whether or not this guy in black has any affiliation with them. He matches the description of the guy that broke into the two prisons in Gotham last week. He may be cooking something up, or he might be running around freeing super criminals. Zaheer and his crew weren't the only ones to escape."
"Alright, well...they're probably coming here then." Korra said, "Aang, I think we should send Katara and the kids into hiding until this is over."
"I agree, but..." Aang said.
"The Red Lotus know they can't take the both of you AND whatever reinforcements we'll have stockpiled here." Toph said.
"I've already asked Sokka and Suki to help." Katara said, "They're on their way from the South Pole right now."
"Which means their best option is going to be to try and draw you guys out." Toph continued, "And that could very well mean trying to get a hold of someone you two care about. Someone like one of the kids."
"Which means the safest place for them may be right under my nose so I can keep them safe." Aang said.
"Well...maybe the Fortress of Solitude?" Korra said, "I'll talk to Supergirl when she get's back. I'm sure her and her cousin won't mind us using it."
"Sounds good to me." Toph said, "In the mean time, everyone stay calm. Even the FBI is on this one, I'm sure they'll be found before they can even think up a plan." At that, Toph and her fellow officers turned to leave.
"Korra, are you alright?" Aang asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine." she said, "I'll be right back, but I want to make a call real quick." she moved past everyone and headed upstairs to her room then grabbed her phone and dialed Peter's number. He hadn't been very receptive of her's or Kara's attempts to text and call him, but surely he had heard the news and was worried about her. As she stood there, the call went to voice mail. "Hey Spidey," she said, knowing that no one else knew the secret identity of the boy she dated, "I'm sure you heard the news about the Red Lotus. I just wanted to say I'm fine, but I wouldn't mind talking to you. I'd talk to Kara, but, you know...she's off in space for a couple days so...call me back as soon as you can please." She half sat, half flopped back on her bed and looked out the window. Korra knew how much it meant for Peter to catch as many villains as possible, but she was growing frustrated that he so rarely even acknowledged her or Kara. It's not like they had loads of free time themselves, but they still made time for each other.
"Hey Korra." Asami said, she pushed open the door and stood in the doorway. "I, uh, didn't mean to snoop, sorry, I just wanted to make sure you were alright."
Korra forced a smile, "I'm fine. Thanks Asami."
"Really?" she raised an eyebrow. "Because the group of psychopaths that tried to kill you as a little kid just broke out of prison, and to most people that would be...at least a little alarming."
"I...well, okay, I know I am scared." Korra said, "Because it's not just me at risk... It's the cycle of the Avatar and the balance of the entire world at stake, but... I'm confident I can handle this. I've been training like crazy to be ready for anything, and this falls under 'anything', so..."
"Well..." Asami sat on the bed next to her, "I'm free tonight, I was thinking that since Kara's in space and Spider-man is...busy, maybe we could watch a few movies?"
Korra smiled. "Yeah, I'd like that."
Cowl down, Batman approached Spider-man who sat working at the Batcomputer.
"Why didn't you take the call?" Batman asked.
"It was probably just Korra telling me not to worry about her." Spidey said, "The girls hate when I worry about them. And besides, she has Aang and Toph to help her. She'll be fine. In the meantime, I'm right on the heels of Octavius, and I really don't need the distraction."
Batman looked to the butler, Alfred, a hint of worry on his face. Alfred shared the sentiment.
"You've been pursuing Octavius almost single mindedly." Batman said, "Why so desperate to bring him in?"
"I..." Spider-man was about to give reasons for his hatred of Doc Ock from his past world where he had nearly killed Kara, then turned her against him and Korra. "It's the smart ones we gotta watch, right? I mean, guys like Clayface and Scorpion are likely to just lash out to try and take one of us down, but Octavius is gonna hatch a plan and recruit some muscle to help out. Plus, I just don't like his haircut."
A few days later, Korra lay flat on her bed, staring up at the ceiling. A number of thoughts were going through her head; how she could beat the Red Lotus, why Peter hadn't tried to call her back yet, what she would do if Kara somehow got in trouble while trying to get the galactic empires to agree to terms.
"Korra, Kara is here!" Katara yelled from downstairs.
A smile came across her face. Supergirl had only just reentered Earth's atmosphere a few minutes ago and immediately came to see Korra. It was nice to have at least one person that wanted to be with her. Korra rolled out of bed and hurried down the stairs.
"SURPRISE!"
Korra flinched and summoned a fireball in her hands.
"Woah, calm down Korra. It's just us." Aang said.
She immediately lost the fire in her hands as she looked over the room to see nearly everyone she cared about standing in the living room. Kara, Asami, Aang, Katara and their kids, Korra's parents, Toph, Bolin, Mako, Sokka and Suki, all stood amongst streamers and multicolored balloons and a table topped with brightly wrapped presents.
Korra could only raise an eyebrow at them all. "What's this all for?"
"Happy birthday!" Kara said, coming forward. She held out a strange rock. "I brought you some cool space rocks to see if you could bend them!"
"M-my...birth..." Korra's lower lip quivered. She snagged Kara's wrist and pulled her into the kitchen.
"Korra, what's-"
Kara was pulled into a tight hug before she could finish her sentence. "My birthday..." she let out a breath, "I didn't even realize..."
"I know you've been worried and focused on training the last few days, but did you really forget about your own birthday?" Kara asked, returning the embrace.
"No, Kara, you don't understand." she pulled out of the hug, "For as long as I've been alive, in my old world... as soon as the last Avatar dies, the new one is born. Almost immediately. All my life, my birthday has been the anniversary of Aang's death."
"Oh..." said Kara.
Korra gave her a quick kiss, then embraced her again. "I've been so upset with Peter these last few days, but I love that idiot. I could never have had this world without him."
Kara chuckled, "I know. And don't worry. He might not have come to the party, but he's coming to our date tonight, even if I have to drag him there myself."
A man in a bulky trench coat walked down the sidewalk as dusk began to set in in Gotham City. With a casual look over his shoulder, he dipped into a side alley. A shadow jumped across the rooftops above.
Halfway down the alley, the man stopped at a door and knocked three times, paused, then two more. No one answered. The man knocked again, but again there was no response. Checking up and down the alley to make sure he was clear, the four metal arms of Doc Ock threw off the trench coat and pried open the door. Spider webs covered nearly every surface of the dark room.
Before he could react, something slapped against the back of his head and knocked him on his face in the middle of the room. Ock looked up into the white lenses of Spider-man. The red in his costume had been replaced by black, and the blue with a dark shade of gray. His chest and most of the rest of his body was protected by a thick layer of Kevlar.
Ock swung a metal arm, but it was slow and Spidey easily dodged it, then retaliated with a kick to the face. With his metal arms, Ock pushed himself upright, but was immediately met with a punch across his face. He tried to stab two arms forward, but again they were slow and easily dodged, allowing Spidey to deliver an uppercut to his abdomen. When he hunched over, the Wall Crawler brought an elbow down on his head.
"Wha...what did you do?" Doc Ock asked, "Why am I...slow...can't think?"
"Neural inhibitor. Slowing the signals your brain sends to your arms. The metal ones at least." Spider-man said, he grabbed the back of Ock's head and forced him to look face to face. "I'd like to beat answers out of you, but seeing as I've already taken out everyone you were working with, I only have one question left. Who was the man in black?"
"I...I don't-"
Spider-man knocked the villain out with one last punch to the head.
Sitting at a table in Korra's favorite restaurant in Republic City, the girls grew more and more agitated with every passing minute Peter was late. Kara quickly dialed his number into her cell, then rapidly tapped her heel as she held the phone up.
Peter picked up and Kara immediately started tearing into him. "Peter!? Where are you?! Do you even realize what time it is?! We were supposed to meet over half an hour ago! Are you even on your way yet?!"
The phone hung up. "Yes." Peter said from behind them. Kara flinched, she had been so focused on yelling at him, she hadn't even noticed him enter the restaurant. "Sorry I'm late." he said as he took his seat.
Korra clenched as she kept her arms crossed and tried not to not to tear into him as well. She waited on him to explain, that he had been in a hugely destructive battle with a villain that had mutated the majority of Gotham or something, but Peter said nothing.
"That's it?" Korra said, "You're late for the first time meeting with either of us in a week, and the only thing you can say is, 'Sorry I'm late'?!"
"Well I was busy." Peter said, "Small army of villains on the loose and all."
"So you don't even have enough time to give me a quick call to see if I'm alright after the Red Lotus breaks out?!" Korra said.
"What, so now you want me being overprotective?!"
"No, but I at least liked knowing that you cared enough to call!" Korra exclaimed.
As much as Kara wanted to join in on giving Peter a piece of her mind, she also realized her role should probably be to calm things down. It was a birthday after all, and one in public with people starting to stare.
"Hey guys, let's take it down a notch." Kara said, "I mean, Peter's been acting like a jerk, but I'm sure it's only temporary. Maybe tomorrow Korra and I will swing by and help you round up a few more bad guys."
"No." Peter said, "You two need to stay out of Gotham."
"What?" Kara asked. "You know, you're really starting to sound more like Batman. And I don't mean that as a compliment."
"I don't mean to sound like you guys couldn't help, I just don't want you anywhere near the Joker." Peter said, "He reminds me of Norman Osborn, only he doesn't have to pretend to be a sane CEO during the day...And how should I not take being like Batman as a compliment? He's one of the best heroes in history, and he does it without any powers."
"Yeah, well he also teamed up with Tony Stark to make an army of Superheroes to fight my cousin." Kara said, folding her arms and giving Peter a narrow eyed look that dared him to disagree.
"What's wrong with checks and balances?" Peter asked, "Sort of what our government is based on. No one faction is supposed to have all the power."
"But my cousin isn't like one of your corrupt government officials." Kara said, "All he wants to do is help everyone he can."
"Cool, so if he just ran the world the way he saw fit, everything would be better for everybody, right?" Peter now crossed his arms.
"...What?! What are you saying?!" Kara exclaimed, "You think that without the Avengers, Superman would take over the world?!"
"Woah, what happened to bringing it down a notch?" Korra interjected.
"Korra, Aang's a member of the Justice League. Do you really think he'd be on a team that secretly wants to take over the world?" Kara asked.
"No, but...let's find something else to talk about." Korra said.
"Oh good, something else for you to yell at me about." Peter said.
"We wouldn't be yelling at you if you weren't acting like a jerk." Korra said.
"Sorry I have more important things to deal with!" Peter exclaimed. "You know what? I think I've had my fill of you two for now. We're done here."
"What do you mean we're done?" Kara asked. Peter said nothing as he stood and walked towards the entrance. "What do you mean 'we're done'?!"
Their nervous waiter approached the table. "Um, excuse me ladies, is there a problem?"
"No." Korra said flatly, "We'd like to pay our bill now."
"I mean...on your birthday?!" Kara reiterated for the fifth time as she flew them back to Air Temple Island. "Seriously?! Of all the jerk things that he could do, and the jerkiest time to do them-"
"Kara, can we just drop it?" Korra asked, "I'd like to spend the last few hours of my birthday happy. If I can."
"Y-yeah, sure." Kara said, floating towards the ground, "Ooh, how about we take your new Sato Mobile for a drive around the island?" she dropped them into the convertible car Asami had given Korra.
Uh, well, I don't exactly know how to drive it yet." Korra said, gripping the steering wheel. "Asami said she'd teach me. Hey! Do you know how to drive one of these things? Maybe she could teach us both."
"Sounds fun." Kara said, "I mean I fly through the city at the speed of sound. How difficult could driving be if I slowed down a thousand miles an hour?"
There was a few seconds of silence before Korra put her forehead against the steering wheel. "Why does that idiot have to make things SO DIFFICULT?!"
"So much for dropping it." Kara said.
"I mean, this is what he wants, right?!" Korra said, "He said it himself, all guys want to be with two girls. And we were so happy, and now...this! I don't even know what this is, but he's just being a jerk!"
"I...hey, you know what we should do?" Kara said, suddenly perking up. She floated up and over, landing on Korra's lap. "We should take a vacation away from all boys. Themyscira. I'll talk to Cassidy about it, I'm sure the Amazons wont mind."
"Yeah." Korra said, "Yeah, let's do it. Wait, no...I can't. With the Red Lotus on the loose, I can't leave Aang and the kids."
Kara groaned. "Fine, I'll go catch those losers. THEN we take a vacation."
"Assuming you don't have to go into space by then." Korra said.
Kara groaned even louder. "When did this happen? Why can't we take time to ourselves and hang out anymore?!"
Korra wrapped her arms around Kara's waist and held tight. "Just an unfortunate side effect of growing up and having more responsibilities."
Has everyone seen the pictures of Melissa Benoit, in her supergirl outfit, with the girl scouts? There's one of her holding a puppy and I think my heart exploded a little. Looking forwards to that show so long as she puts on a good angry face now and again.
Anyway, thank you guys once again for reading. Just about every comment I get makes me glad I actually started writing this just last year. I feel like my writing has improved, as well as my confidence, so I wanted to take time again to thank you all.
