Chapter 90

Sora woke with a splitting headache, feeling woozy and sick. She couldn't immediately move, and she dozed in and out for a while, though she wasn't sure for how long. A few times it occurred to her that she needed to get up, to find out where she was and make sure Asami was with her and tell her family she was okay. But she only had those thoughts for fleeting moments before she was unconscious again. Sometimes she didn't have those thoughts at all, wondering why she felt so awful and thinking more about going back to sleep because her eyes were too heavy to open.

When she finally managed to stay awake for longer than a few seconds, she had to take measured breaths to calm the panicked racing of her heart. Between the nausea and the worry, she thought she might actually puke, but she managed to calm herself down after a few short minutes. Then she took stock of herself, aware now that she was lying on a cold stone floor and her wrists and ankles were bound by rope. But aside from some soreness and the itchy rope chafing her wrists, she couldn't ascertain any concerning damage. And when she opened her eyes and blinked away the blur, she was glad to see Asami lying right next to her.

Asami was already awake, and when she noticed Sora's gaze on her she smiled shakily, expelling a breath of relief. "There you are."

"Here I am," Sora mumbled, her mouth dry and not all that cooperative. "You okay?"

"I'm fine," Asami assured. "How are you feeling? You were out for a long time. I was starting to get worried."

Sora frowned. "'M fine. Jus – dizzy. Thirsty. Where're we?"

"I'm not sure," Asami admitted. "We were driving for a while. I think we left the village. But we drove straight into this place so I didn't get to see outside. They brought us to this cell and left."

Sora opened her mouth to respond, but she felt an odd shift and a familiar presence, and whatever she had been about to say to Asami came out as a confused, "Yunjin?"

Asami furrowed her brow. "What about him?"

"He's… here, I think," Sora said, trying to reach out to him, but her mind was still a bit of a mess.

Asami looked deeply concerned. "Sora, honey, I don't think Yunjin is –"

"Not physically," Sora interjected. "Spiritually."

"Oh," Asami said in surprise. "Is that – can he do that?" She looked around as if expecting to see him materialize before them.

"Not quite the same way," Sora replied, "but we can sort of talk." She wasn't sure she was adequately conveying her thoughts to him though. With her brain still muddled from the drugs, she couldn't retain a straight thought for very long, and she couldn't connect as well to that spiritual energy that came so naturally to her. "I don't know if he can understand me though. Does your head hurt?"

"A little, but I think the drugs affected you more than me. I still dropped like a stone, but I wasn't out for as long."

"Ugh," Sora groaned. "I think I would have preferred getting punched in the face. This is awful. Don't ever let me agree to being kidnapped again."

Asami snorted. "This entire plan was your idea."

"Clearly I shouldn't be making decisions."

"We'll see how the rest of this goes," Asami said optimistically. "I'm sure once we manage to figure out –"

She went suddenly quiet when they heard movement just outside the door to their cell. There was a jingling of keys, and then a click of the lock and the door swung open. Two men entered wearing the uniforms of Kuvira's soldiers, and Sora and Asami exchanged concerned looks. They had been expecting Xai and the village police to be running the operation, but the situation was turning out to be a little more confusing than they had expected. Had Xai bribed and coerced Kuvira's soldiers too?

The soldiers said nothing as they approached the two girls, and each of them kneeled down on either side of Sora and Asami, grasping at the rope that tied their hands behind their backs.

"What's going on?" Asami demanded, expertly inflecting her tone with fear. "Why have you brought us here?"

"Sorry about the ropes," the one behind Asami replied, not quite answering the question. "Just a precaution."

Both soldiers cut the bonds from Sora and Asami's wrists and ankles and then gripped the girls' arms to pull them up to their feet.

"No funny business, yeah?" the one behind Sora requested. "We aren't here to hurt you."

"Then what do you want?" Sora questioned with trepidation, hoping she played it off as well as Asami.

"It's not what we want," the same soldier answered. "It's what this nation needs. You'll be briefed soon. We'll take you to your room first so that you can –"

A third soldier poked his head in the doorway and interjected, "Change of plans. The boss is here. Wants everyone in the great hall in fifteen."

"Guess you'll be getting briefed first, the soldier on Asami's right amended, still holding onto Asami's arm as if he thought she'd try to run off.

"Can we have some water first?" Asami pleaded, and Sora figured it was more to show weakness before the men, to fool them into underestimating them, but she also kind of hoped they'd get some water because she had never been so thirsty in her life, and that included the time her body had been without a soul for a week. The soldiers hesitated, and Asami persisted, "For my sister at least, please. She's not feeling well."

Sora didn't have to try very hard to feign weariness, and she figured she probably looked a mess. Even Asami looked ruffled.

The soldier holding onto Asami scrutinized Sora, frowning slightly. "How old are you, girl?"

Sora swayed a little for affect and then mumbled, "Seventeen."

The guy behind Sora scoffed. "Spirits. I thought we told them to stop sending kids."

"I'm not a kid," Sora protested, as she expected any teenager would.

"Might as well be," Asami's soldier grumbled, pulling at the pouch on his hip and then handing it to Sora, who realized it was filled with liquid and immediately reached out for it. She drank the water greedily, letting it run down her chin and forgetting for a moment that she was supposed to be acting, and she probably should have been warier of taking drinks from strangers after so recently bring drugged. But she was too thirsty in that moment to care, and she wasn't going to pass up what might be her only opportunity to rehydrate for a while.

Sora passed what was left of the water to Asami, who was much calmer about taking a drink before returning it to the soldier.

Then the soldiers were nudging Sora and Asami out of the room and into an equally dim hallway. Sora couldn't tell if they were underground or just in a stone building with no windows. Either way, the intention was clearly so that the occupants lacked an easy escape route. Every hallway they walked down looked the same, with only a few doors marked with numbers and none of them in any understandable order. For Sora's mother, it would have been easy to use seismic sense on the paved stone floor to find an exit, but for anyone else it would require a little more ingenuity. For Sora, all it would take was the right moment and a clear head to send her spirit off to investigate. Now that she was up and moving and had some water in her stomach at least, her head was starting to clear bit by bit.

As they walked, Asami asked the soldiers, "Why are you doing this? Why have you brought us here?"

"You'll hear straight from the boss in a few minutes," one of them answered. "And you'll be briefed later on."

"Please," Asami went on tearfully, "whatever we've done… we don't want trouble –"

"You're in no danger here, girl," the soldier cut her off with a frown.

"You're lucky to be here," the other one added. "You're safe, and you'll be better off when the instructors are finished with you. These are dangerous times we're living in."

Asami and Sora exchanged a look and fell silent. It seemed their answers might be coming to them soon without the prompting. Sora wanted to ask if Xai was the boss the guys were talking about, but she thought it might make the soldiers suspicious so she decided to wait and see what happened in the great hall.

The great hall they were taken to wasn't all that great. It was cramped and bland, but every wall had a banner with Kuvira's military insignia on it. It seemed that Sora and Asami were some of the last people to arrive, and they were pushed into a space in the back. There were soldiers in every corner, and several more up on the small stage at the front. The room was full of men and women, mostly women, mostly young, and all of them prisoners like Sora and Asami, if the mixture of grim and hostile looks on their faces was anything to go by. Only a few of them were bound by chains though, the ones that appeared to be the most uncooperative. The rest of them just looked resigned.

Sora scanned the crowd looking for Yumae's sister, certain that the picture Yumae had shown her would be enough to help her recognize Shuri. But Sora couldn't see all of them very well, mostly just the backs of heads, though a few did turn to look when they started noticing the two newcomers. No one tried to strike up a conversation in the presence of so many soldiers though.

The soldiers that had escorted Sora and Asami to the great hall left the two girls to join some of their fellow soldiers on the other side of the room. Once they were alone, Sora leaned over to murmur to Asami, "I'm starting to think this is more of a Kuvira thing than a Xai thing."

Asami nodded with a frown. "Yeah, I'm thinking the same thing. And if it is, we might have a bigger issue."

And indeed, the issue was even bigger than Sora could have ever imagined.

The boss the soldiers had been referring to came out onto the stage shortly after, and Sora was horrified to find that she instantly recognized them. She hastily turned her head away with a whispered curse, afraid she might have caught their eye and trying to cover her face with her hand. Asami looked at her with concern, having missed the boss's entrance while she was looking around the rest of the hall.

"What is it?" Asami whispered.

"It's my cousin," Sora hissed. "It's Junior!"

Asami's eyes widened as she looked up at the stage and saw him with her own eyes, and she quickly turned her head away too. "Shit."

"If he sees me it'll compromise this whole mission," Sora muttered in distress.

"Well, I guess we don't need to stay," Asami sighed. "We know now who's behind it, just not why. My concern now is what he'll do if he finds out we're here. He's not going to let us go. We're going to need to –"

Asami trailed off as Bataar Jr began to speak, and both girls turned to listen to him while still trying to avoid his gaze. They were probably far enough back in the room to not be recognized, but Sora wasn't taking any chances. She was panicking a little, wondering why her cousin was kidnapping women, wondering how she was supposed to get out without him knowing she was there, wondering if he would do something awful if he did see her, and wondering how she could ever tell her Aunt Su.

Junior was speaking to the assembled prisoners with unwavering calm and so much positivity that Sora feared he wasn't simply following someone else's orders. "I know that all of you have been working hard so I won't take up too much of your time. I just wanted to remind you of the importance of your contribution. One day soon, you will all be part of an elite fighting force that will be the turning point in this war. You will serve the Great Uniter as we rebuild the Earth Kingdom into one great nation. Each of you will prosper beyond your wildest dreams. I know that some of you are uncertain of your place here, but rest assured you were handpicked for a reason. Your loyalty to Kuvira and to the cause will not go unnoticed. When you help us win this war, you will be well rewarded."

A commotion at the back of the room caused Sora to turn her head and watch as one of Kuvira's soldiers hurriedly pushed his way to the front of the room. Junior frowned and bent down as the soldier reached the front of the stage, and his frown only deepened as he listened to what the soldier had to say.

Then Junior straightened up and told the assembled crowd, "I'm afraid there is business I must attend to now. But I will be meeting with each of you later on today. I want to be sure you're all settling in, and see the progress you've made."

With that, he turned and left the stage from the back, and Sora turned to Asami with frantic energy. "We need to get out of here."

Asami nodded grimly, and clutched tight to Sora's arm as the crowd began to disperse. There were too many soldiers to escape the great hall, and Sora and Asami had to act natural as their soldier shadows came back and led them to their room. The girls were told that the boss would come by to talk to them soon, and then left. The second the door was shut, Sora dropped down to the floor, folding her legs beneath her and sucking in a deep breath.

"I'm gonna try and find a way out of here," she told Asami.

"I'll watch the door," Asami said. "I'll tell you if anyone's coming."

Sora evened her breath and tried to calm her racing heart, sinking down into herself, reaching out to that spiritual essence. She needed to find an escape route, and then tell her family who was responsible just in case she didn't make it out.

She retraced her path to the great hall, weaving in and out of walls to avoid the soldiers roaming the hallways. She went over and behind the stage, and found a single door that lead her down another corridor, but this one had only two doors. The one at the end went right outside, and there were several military vehicles Asami and Sora could use to escape, but it would also require them to fight through all the soldiers roaming around. Sora committed as much of the surrounding area as she could to memory, and then went to check the other door.

It led to a small office, which Sora could only look inside of for just a second before she lurched back out. She had seen Kuvira standing behind the desk looking angry, and Junior across from her with hunched shoulders.

Sora put her ear to the door and listened as Kuvira growled, "I don't know what the flameo you were thinking, but we need to do damage control now."

"I'm sorry, but I think you're overreacting," Junior said a bit timidly. "This is going just fine. Only a few of them are dissenting and no one on the outside has any proof of what's going on. They don't even think we're involved –"

"Are you sure about that?" Kuvira cut him off. "Did you know that your aunt and uncle are currently in the village where you've been taking most of these women from? How do you think I found out about this operation you've been keeping secret from me? Because Xai called to assure me he was taking care of them."

"I didn't intend to keep it from you forever," Junior insisted. "I just wanted to do something useful. You've been sidelining me lately. I knew this was a good idea, but that you would need to see proof that it would work –"

"It's not working!" Kuvira snapped. "You don't think Lin Beifong and her brood just happened to be in town, do you?"

"They'll never figure it out," Junior scoffed. "My aunt and uncle aren't half as smart as they think they are."

"I wouldn't underestimate your cousins," Kuvira warned. "We both know what Jeia is capable of and Ronen is one of the people the Avatar trusts the most –"

"My cousins are children," Junior dismissed. "And the Avatar is still in the South Pole recovering –"

"She could be recovered in two days for all we know. I can handle her, but we aren't prepared to take on everyone else yet, and fighting the Avatar will gain us a lot more enemies. If Lin and Tenzin turn against us now, they'll bring the rest of the world with them."

"Then we'll handle them like we discussed," Junior said without concern.

Kuvira made a noise of frustration. "You aren't understanding this. We haven't amassed enough of an army yet. If the United Republic loses faith in me, they'll tear us apart, and you kidnapping Earth Kingdom citizens won't endear them to us either. Our own people will turn against us. We need to get ahead of this."

There was the sound of footsteps growing nearer to the door, and Junior calling out, "Where are you going?"

Kuvira answered, "To clean up your mess."

Sora jumped away from the door just before it was yanked open, and threw her spiritual form into the opposite wall to avoid being seen. She poked one eye out to watch Kuvira storming down the hall towards the exit, Junior racing to catch up to her after a moment of hesitation. Sora watched them go, and then returned to her body at once with a gasp.

From her place at the door, Asami spun to face Sora. "What did you find?"

Sora swallowed the lump in her throat before replying, "I think I know a way out, but we can't leave yet. I need to tell Yunjin what's coming."

No sooner had Sora returned from telling her brother what was going on when the door to their room swung open. The soldier standing there said, "Come on. You're going home."


Tenzin managed to keep Haito and Taizu distracted for a while, chattering on and on about whatever he could think about, telling the two soldiers that his family was still sleeping and he didn't want to disturb them. Haito and Taizu fell for it for a while, even went with Tenzin down the street to help him get breakfast for Lin and the kids. He wasted as much time as he could, thankful that the diner he had chosen was busy and he had to sit at a table with Haito and Taizu for a while to wait. Even on his return to the inn, he kept a slow pace and made a few stops along the way to examine things he wasn't all that interested in.

In the end, his procrastination was not forced to end by the soldiers becoming frustrated by him as he had expected, but rather, by the sight of his two sons running to him from the other end of the inn's expansive courtyard. At the sight of them, Tenzin immediately dropped his act and the food he was toting, and went rushing forward to meet them.

"What is it?" Tenzin demanded before they even reached each other. "What happened?"

"We heard from Sora," Ronen said quickly as he slid to a stop in front of his father, Yunjin stumbling up next to him a moment later, bent over and panting heavily. "We need to find Mom and Jeia."

"You mean they aren't here?" Haito exclaimed, having rushed to keep up with Tenzin even in his surprise. "Where are they? I thought you were all asleep."

"They've duped us," Taizu muttered, catching on quicker. "They're clearly up to something."

Yunjin heaved in a breath and straightened up, and then breathlessly told the two soldiers, "Sorry, guys, but you're gonna have to get out of our way now, or I'll be forced to have my brother and my father here kick your asses."

"We really must be going," Tenzin told the pair apologetically. "By any means necessary."

"But we'd prefer to skip the fighting if we could," Ronen offered.

Taizu and Haito exchanged a glance, and Haito immediately grimaced, raising his hands in surrender. "I'm out."

Taizu sighed, and he didn't look pleased, but when Haito started backing away, he seemed to recognize the futility of taking on Tenzin and Ronen by himself.

Tenzin turned his attention back onto Yunjin and repeated, "What happened? What did Sora say?"

"It's not Xai," Yunjin answered. "Or at least, not directly. It's Bataar Jr. He's been trying to create a secret, elite squad of fighters for Kuvira's army. But apparently Kuvira didn't know about it and she's coming here to fix it, whatever that means. She knows we're here looking into the disappearances."

Tenzin took it all in with grim understanding and a fair bit of trepidation. "Do you still have your bison whistle?"

"Of course," Yunjin replied, pulling it out of his shirt and blowing into it without preamble.

But they waited for several long minutes and even walked in the direction of where Lin and Jeia had gone to follow Yumae, and Oogi never came.

"Do you think he's too far away?" Ronen asked.

Tenzin shook his head. "He knows to stay close. Your mother may have already called him. He won't leave her and Jeia."

"Do you think we're too late?" Yunjin worried.

Which was about the time that Tenzin sensed a shift in the air. He looked up at the same time Yunjin did, Ronen a few seconds later, and all three of them came to a halt just as they saw four airships flying overheard, emblazoned with Kuvira's military insignia.

Ronen was the first to say what they were all thinking. "We're too late."


Lin had expected all manor of trouble to descend from Kuvira's airships, but she hadn't expected Kuvira herself.

After ordering her troops here and there, and calling to the confused villagers and police officers to cease their fighting, Kuvira eventually strolled over to Lin, Jeia, Yumae, and Oogi. Jeia seemed unable to contain herself, climbing back down from Oogi and striding a few steps towards Kuvira before catching herself and looking back at her mother.

For once, Lin shook her head instead of nodding her assent, but Jeia frowned and ignored it, looking back around and greeting Kuvira with a mostly eager, "Hi, Kuvira."

Kuvira smiled broadly, closing the distance between her and Jeia and bending down to be eye level with the girl. "Jeia! It's so good to see you. How are you?"

"I'm all right," Jeia answered. "I haven't seen you in forever, which is pretty lame."

Kuvira chuckled. "I've missed you too. I could have used a captain like you this past year. I've got some good soldiers, but none as good as you."

Jeia shrugged. "I could help some time maybe."

That's when Lin stepped in, putting Jeia a step behind her and grumbling, "Not likely," before facing Kuvira. "I'm surprised to see you here."

"I could say the same of you," Kuvira countered. "Mind if I ask what brought you here?"

"Depends," Lin replied. "Why are you here?"

Kuvira looked away shamefully for just a moment, and it was almost believable, except Lin didn't trust Kuvira and she had known the girl since she was eight. But Kuvira didn't consider that or simply powered on anyway, sighing regretfully as she answered, "I'm sad to say that it's unpleasant business that brings me here, something I've only just become aware of. But as soon as I heard, I knew I needed to come myself and put a stop to it at once. I'm headed to the head councilman's chambers at the Town Hall now. Will you and Jeia come with me?"

Lin glanced back at Yumae, who was leaning heavily on Oogi for support.

Misinterpreting, Kuvira said, "I'll have a healer look after your friend."

"No," Yumae protested. "I want to come along. I want to hear what you have to say to Xai."

"Of course," Kuvira easily agreed, looking almost sympathetic. She turned to address the rest of the villagers and police officers, all of them quiet now as Kuvira's soldiers kept them separate and contained. The soldiers that had aided the police in attacking the villagers were among the rest of the soldiers now, acting as buffers as if they hadn't just been on one side a moment ago. "I'm sure all of you want answers, and peace, and I'm here to give that to you. Come with me to Xai's chambers, and I'll explain it all."

She did not wait for a response, but began to lead the way to the Town Hall, some of her soldiers flanking her, the rest ushering the rest of the villagers along. No one really protested. They were probably confused and eager to know what was going on, and they had no chance against Kuvira's four airships full of soldiers anyways.

Yumae staggered forward, and was helped along by two soldiers Kuvira had sent to look over her injured leg.

Before Lin followed, she went back to Oogi and urged, "Go find Tenzin and the boys."

Oogi bumped his head against her shoulder, backed up two steps, and then took off into the air.

Lin took Jeia's hand and led the girl along behind everyone else.

Jeia muttered, "I told you it wasn't Kuvira."

Lin sighed. "I wouldn't be so sure that it isn't, kid."

"You never gave her a chance," Jeia huffed. "Not once."

"Yeah," Lin admitted. "You're right."

It was less than a ten-minute walk to the village's Town Hall, and as the huge group of them came upon the small building, Xai walked out the front doors with a few councilors and body guards of his own. He smiled as if unperturbed by the mob heading towards him, standing at the top of the steps with his hands resting casually on his hips as he called down, "Kuvira! I'm so sorry; we weren't expecting you. We can have tea made at once. I hope everyone has been treating you well. What brings you to our humble village this afternoon?"

Oogi landed quietly just behind Lin and Jeia, and Tenzin, Ronen, and Yunjin came rushing over. Lin could see the relief on Tenzin's face at seeing them both unharmed, but it faded slightly when he saw the grim look on her face. He clutched her arm and stood close when he reached her. Ronen stood next to his parents and Yunjin next to Jeia, but none of them spoke yet as they watched the scene unfolding in front of them.

Kuvira ascended the steps to stand face to face with Xai, who's smile faltered then, the corners of his mouth twitching as he fought to hold it in place. She could have whispered to him, but she spoke loud enough for everyone in the vicinity to hear. "You know why I'm here, Xai. It's the same reason your people are fighting each other in the streets. It's about the people that have gone missing these past weeks. You did a good job of covering it up, but that's over now."

Xai looked nervously around at the crowd before him, still holding that tense smile in place. "Missing? No. No. I mean, it's far more complicated than – I have the best people working on –"

"It's over, Xai," Kuvira interrupted. "I know now what you've been doing." She abruptly turned away from him, facing the people as an expression of guilt passed over her features. "I am so sorry to have had any part in this, but you see, this great nation has been torn apart, and I've been fighting day in and day out to tie the pieces back together. In our efforts, I asked each leader of every village and township, no matter how big or small, to send me whatever soldiers they could. I asked only for volunteers, for people who had the time and the will to help me reunite the Earth Kingdom. Xai was most eager to help me, and I was too trusting to recognize what he had done. He continued to send me people even after I had gone. Elite fighters, he said, ones that would turn the tide of the war and make this whole nation prosper. I had not been to the facility where these people were being trained. I had no idea of the truth until today. When I learned that Xai had been kidnapping them, I was sickened."

Tenzin's hand tightened around Lin's arm.

Xai looked stricken, his smile entirely eradicated now and his eyes wide. "What –" he spluttered. "N – no – no – that's not – I was only –"

Kuvira spoke over him. "I want to personally apologize to each of you, and assure you that all of your loved ones will be returned to you by the end of today, each of them unharmed. I promise that they were kept well fed and cared for. I only hope that someday you might be able to forgive me this folly. Furthermore, I don't wish to interfere in your government. I know that Xai was an elected official. I leave his fate to all of you. I only want to advise that you not turn against each other. The police were acting only on Xai's commands. He filled them with falsehoods, led them to believe that the families of those that were taken were acting irrationally. Let us all come together now, to condemn those few that are truly responsible."

"No!" Xai shouted fearfully. "I didn't –!"

But his words were drowned by the outpour of angry villagers crying out against him. The police surged forward, this time to detain Xai.

"She's lying!" Ronen exclaimed, half in disbelief, his voice thankfully unheard by anyone but his family. "We have to stop this."

"No," Lin said, grabbing Ronen's sleeve when he took a step forward.

"It wasn't just Xai," Yunjin told his mother. "Sora told us it was Junior. The entire thing was his idea. Kuvira's doing this to save his ass… and hers."

"And she's going to get away with it," Lin said plainly. "If we go up there right now, we'll get hanged along with Xai."

"This isn't right," Ronen continued to protest.

"No, it isn't," Tenzin softly agreed. "But Xai is not innocent –"

"But it isn't fair that he should take all the blame," Ronen argued. "Junior might have forced him into it for all we know. These people will crucify him and Junior gets off entirely free."

"We need to be practical about this," Lin hissed through gritted teeth, yanking Ronen back now and looking worriedly around at Kuvira's soldiers flanking them. "Kuvira and Junior will have their comeuppance, but it won't be here."

Ronen seemed to understand, but he still looked at his mother with sorrow and regret. "We have the power to do something here."

Tenzin reasoned, "It won't do us any good to reveal our knowledge to Kuvira. Who knows what she'll do to keep us silent? Until we have further proof against her, we'd only be making ourselves targets, and then we'll have no power to stop her at any point."

"You're all being stupid," Jeia scoffed. "Kuvira doesn't need stopped. It was Junior's dumb idea to take people and she's giving them back. That's what we came here to do."

Ronen seemed like he wanted to say something but Lin squeezed his arm and gave him a look. Now wasn't the time to lecture his baby sister on morality.

"So what then?" Ronen demanded. "We just leave? Do nothing?"

"That's exactly right," Lin said. "We find Sora and Asami and we get the hell out. We have no place here." They had no say in how the village doled out justice, and they had nothing to prove Junior's involvement but Sora's word. Yumae had asked them to come to her village to help find the missing women, and so they had, and now it was time for them to move on. They could worry about Kuvira and Junior later.


Lin, Tenzin, Jeia, and the boys left Yumae's village on Oogi the moment that all the kidnapped citizens were returned. To avoid tipping off Kuvira and Junior, the family knew they had to wait to reunite with Sora and Asami, so they touched down about a mile out of the village and waited. It didn't take very long for the girls to arrive, but they looked exhausted.

While Asami reunited with Ronen, and after Sora had hugged Yunjin, she moved onto her parents, who immediately started asking after her health.

"I'm all right," she assured them, "but being drugged sucks. My head still hurts. Do you have food? I'm starving."

"Of course," Tenzin responded, digging through one of Oogi's saddle packs to find her some rations and water.

As Sora stuffed her mouth with food, she added a garbled, "Otherwise, though, I think the mission went okay. We weren't there long enough to learn much about what was going on there, but at least we know the truth."

"We can always come back," Asami suggested, "once everything settles down. Find Yumae and ask her sister what went on in there."

"Maybe," Ronen said, frowning. "I'm still surprised it was all Junior's idea. I thought it was mostly his allegiance to Kuvira that drove him to leave Zaofu, but this is something else."

Sora swallowed the food in her mouth with a loud gulp and replied, "Something even more troubling is that, when Kuvira suggested to Junior that we might find out about it, he said that they should deal with us like they discussed."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Yunjin wondered aloud.

"Nothing good," Lin muttered. "If they think we need to be dealt with, they've got something planned."

"Kuvira thought it was too early," Sora went on. "That she wasn't powerful enough to take us on yet."

"Then it sounds like we need to make sure she never is," Ronen said.

"Let's not jump too far ahead," Tenzin advised, glancing over at Jeia, who was sitting on the ground a few feet away, sulking and digging a rock into the ground as she listened to them. "We're missing a lot of information here. The rumors we've heard about how Kuvira is handling things are just that – rumors. She's done a great deal of good for the Earth Kingdom so far, and we have no reason to believe that she won't relinquish control when the time comes. As with any leadership, there are errors, and her pinning the blame on Xai may have been unjust, but she loves Junior, doesn't she? It was likely she was just trying to save him. And dealing with us could simply mean negotiating."

"That's a whole lot of optimism, Dad," Yunjin said. "I'm not sure that I agree, but it is too soon to judge."

"I just don't like the way this is going," Ronen admitted. "Something doesn't feel right."

Asami looped her arm through his and softly assured him, "However this goes, we'll be prepared."

Lin only hoped that was true, because the feeling in her gut was telling her otherwise.


Arriving in Zaofu was not quite the peaceful and exciting vacation it had originally been slated to be. Of course, Lin had known all along that she would spend part, if not all, of the trip looking after her sister, to see how Su was really coping with the betrayal she had felt at the hands of Kuvira and her own firstborn. But Lin hadn't been withholding troubling information about Junior's activities in the Earth Kingdom before. She had been planning to reassure her sister that Junior was doing a good thing, that it didn't need to be taken as a personal slight against his mother and the rest of his family, that eventually he would come home. Now, though, Lin knew that wasn't quite the case, and she knew also that she would have to be the one to tell her sister about what had gone on in Yumae's village.

Su asked about their investigation shortly after landing, but Lin had feigned weariness and insisted they talk about something else, telling Su only that the women had all been returned and nothing else. Lin knew it was only a temporary fix, that Su would want details later, but at least they could all spend the first night together as a family and without the burden of the truth weighing so heavily. They all had dinner together, and with all the kids and Lin and Su and Tenzin and Bataar there, it almost felt normal and relaxed. Junior's absence was only mildly out of the ordinary, considering he had always been a little elusive before, but it was clear Su felt it keenly.

In addition to avoiding the mention of Junior and Kuvira, there was another name no one at the table would say out loud, at least not in the presence of Sora. That is, until Sora herself set her fork down on her plate, cleared her throat, and asked her Aunt Su, "Is Zara still staying here?"

The rest of them went suddenly silent, freezing in place, looking between Sora and Su, who slowly sat her own utensils down before softly answering, "Yes, she is. But you don't have to worry, sweetheart. You won't see her while you're here."

"How – how is she doing?" Sora tentatively inquired. "Was it the right thing to do? Bringing her here?"

Su hesitated, glancing over at Lin, who was already frowning. But she truthfully told Sora, "Yes, I think so. She's doing well. It was rough at first, of course. She was a bit destructive, angry, but we've been keeping her busy, channeling her energy into better things. I've had her talking to a therapist and we've started integrating her into parts of the city. So far, she seems to be on the right track."

Sora sucked in a deep breath and nodded. "That's… good to hear." She returned her attention to her plate, picking her fork back up and returning to her dinner. Everyone else followed her lead and resumed where they left off, striking up safer conversations.

Sometime after dinner, though, there was no more hiding from the conversation Lin would have to have with her sister. She wanted to avoid the topic of Junior altogether, to let Su live half in oblivion a while longer, but she knew Su would get suspicious, and probably angry if she found out Lin kept it from her, and frankly Lin would have wanted to know if it was her own kid. So, late that evening, when Su snagged Lin and asked for an explanation, Lin relented. Everyone else was heading off to bed or had already gone that way, except for Tenzin who lagged behind with Lin, but she told him to go ahead to the guest house while she went with Su.

Then Lin said to Su, "Come on then. We should sit, maybe get you a drink."

Su followed without protest but scoffed, "Well that doesn't sound ominous at all."

Only once they were alone in the sitting room, glass in hand and settled down on the couch, did Lin begin to speak.

"Listen," she started bluntly, "this is gonna sound bad and you're not gonna wanna hear it –"

"Just spit it out Lin," Su cut in. "Whatever it is, I can handle it."

"I don't have all the information," Lin continued to hedge, "only what Sora was able to overhear. Maybe there's a better explanation, maybe it wasn't exactly as it sounds –"

Su sighed impatiently. "Lin."

"Yeah, all right, all right. It was Junior. He was having the leader of Yumae's village send him people, young women mostly, to be part of some elite fighting force for Kuvira's army. Doesn't seem like they were totally mistreated but they were definitely there against their will. Sora and Asami were drugged and held in locked rooms, but they weren't there long enough to see the rest. The reason it got shut down was because Kuvira found out about it and didn't think Junior's plan would work. She knew that I was in town and was worried we would link it back to her and turn the world leaders against her. Junior said that they could just take care of us as they had discussed, whatever that means. But like I said, I don't know everything."

Su was quiet, seeming to take it all in, not looking Lin in the eye now, slowly taking a long pull from her drink. Her hand trembled as she lowered the glass, but at first that was the only outward sign that she was in any sort of distress. "So," she said quietly, her finger drumming against the side of the glass, "you're telling me that my son kidnaps women now?"

Lin winced. "Well, when you put it like that… I don't think it's quite as bad as it sounds. He had… good intentions… sort of."

"And he has a plan to take care of my sister and her family?" Su went on.

"It's probably just political," Lin reasoned. "Not like he'd try to kill us or something."

Su leaned forward to sit her glass down on the low table in front of her, and then she stayed bent over, her elbows propped on her knees as she buried her face in her hands. At first, she continued to breathe steadily, and Lin couldn't tell what emotion her sister was feeling. She reached out, but her hand hovered over Su's shoulder and didn't finish the movement. Until Su's body began to shake, and her breathing became labored and Lin knew that Su was crying even as she tried to suppress it.

Lin sat her own drink down and pulled Su into her side, and Su immediately dropped her hands and all pretense of being okay.

"What have I done?" Su choked out through a sob, her tears soaking through the shoulder of Lin's shirt. "What did I d – do?"

"Nothing," Lin murmured, "you did nothing wrong."

"How can my own s – son hate me so m – much? How did he become this?"

"It isn't your fault," Lin soothed, rubbing Su's back. "Kids never listen to us once they get to a certain age. I'm sure he doesn't hate you. He's just confused."

"He was such a sweet boy. How could he – it doesn't make sense."

"I know, I know…"

"I failed him," Su sobbed. "I failed him."

Lin shook her head and quietly protested, "No. No. You didn't. It's not your fault." She kissed the top of Su's head and held her tight, and that was really all she could do. She had rarely felt so useless in her life.


After Su had settled, she wiped her face and breathed in deep and told Lin she was fine. Lin didn't believe it for a second, but she knew Su needed time to be alone, to be with her husband. Lin would still be there in the morning, and for several days after, and she would do whatever she could for Su.

For now, she went to the guest house to be with her family, and the house was quiet so she surmised that all of them were sleeping. She checked in on each of them, finding Tenzin still half clothed, on top of the covers, apparently having fallen asleep waiting up for her. The kids were resting easy, all except Sora, whom Lin could not find. She remembered Sora saying that she was going to go for a walk after dinner, but it was late now and the kid should have been back. Lin was a little paranoid but not overly worried. Zaofu was safe and Sora wasn't a troublemaker. She sat in the living room though, and waited, checking the time now and then.

She was just about to wake Tenzin and go out looking when she sensed movement on the threshold. Sora crept in light as a feather, barely making a sound but for the quiet creak of the door hinges. She didn't notice her mother at first, so focused on sneaking inside without being heard, and when she turned and saw Lin, she jumped backwards with a gasp. "Mom! Spirits, you scared the life out of me. What are you doing up?"

Lin rose slowly, looking Sora over searchingly, taking note of the girl's flushed face and frazzled hair. She folded her arms across her chest and replied, "I could ask the same of you. Where on earth have you been?"

If it was Yunjin, Lin would have gotten a perfect story, every detail planned, an answer to every anticipated question. She would have known it was a lie, but she would have been impressed by the attempt.

If it was Ronen, he either would have simply come right out and told her what he had been doing without an ounce of shame, or told a lie so simple she might have even believed it.

Sora, on the other hand, was a terrible liar, and never came prepared. And when she saw the all too knowing look on her mother's face, she dissolved into tears. Lin hadn't been expecting that reaction, but she wasn't all that surprised by it either. For the same reason she didn't worry so much about Sora getting into trouble, she knew when Sora was doing something a little irrational, and not in the service of protecting her family, she was often ashamed to admit to it.

Far used to Sora's bouts of tears by now, Lin went forward to console the girl without further thought. She held Sora in her arms, much as she had held Su only an hour or so ago, and let the girl cry for a moment. Then she tilted her head down and stroked Sora's hair back to try and get a look at Sora's face as she surmised, "You were with Zara then?"

Sora only cried harder, and blubbered something vaguely reminiscent of, "I'm sorry."

But Lin insisted, "It's okay, kid. Take a breath. I'm not mad. Tell me what happened."

Sora made a concerted effort to calm herself, wiping her tears and sniffing back more. She was still gasping a little for breath when she admitted to her mother, "I only wanted to see – for myself – if what Aunt Su said was true. I didn't mean to – I wasn't going to stay – but I was still – I guess I was still upset and – she told me – we talked. I know you hate her but I – I don't know what to – I can't stop – she's so – and I just –"

Sora was getting worked up again so Lin shushed her and held her closer. "All right. It's okay. We'll talk about it later. It's late. Why don't you get some rest?"

Sora nodded against her mother's chest and let Lin lead her down the hall to her room. Lin made sure Sora was settled and tucked the girl in like she was five and not soon to be sixteen, and only then did she go climb into her own bed with Tenzin.

He stirred as she curled up against his side, and sleepily murmured, "There you are. Are you all right?"

Lin sighed and pulled Tenzin's arm over her as she muttered, "Ask me in the morning."


Despite everything that was still amiss in the family, they all managed to enjoy the next several days together. They played games and laughed and spent more time together than they had in a long time. They relaxed in the company of each other, ignoring, for a moment, whatever might trouble them. After the year they had had, they deserved to unwind, to block out the rest of the world for a little while. So that was what they did, disregarding everything else and focusing on each other. For a while, it was a bit like old times, like when the kids were little and everything was hectic but somehow easier. It helped that there was no specific end date. Lin was no longer employed and Tenzin wasn't really either in any official capacity. Ronen and Asami were the only ones with a real job, but since it was Asami's company it was easy for them to manage it from afar. But they would have to go back to Republic City eventually. Tenzin had the Air Nation to manage still and Asami couldn't stay away forever. Sora was eager to start leading missions with the airbenders, and probably to get away from the temptation of seeing Zara.

It was shortly after discussing when they might depart that Yunjin decided to tell some of his family his own plans.

Lin, Tenzin, and Sora sat down in the guest house living room at his behest, and Yunjin sat across from them as he went straight into it. "I've been thinking," he said, "about the future, and how I might be most useful. I don't think that I'm ready to lead airbenders on peace missions like Sora, but there's something else I might be able to do to aid that same goal. You'll probably freak out when I say it at first, so just hear me out."

"I don't like where this is going," Lin said.

Yunjin continued without further preamble, "I want to join Kuvira in some capacity –"

Lin shook her head. "Nope, definitely don't like it."

"Nor do I," Tenzin agreed.

"Why would you want to do that?" Sora exclaimed.

"Because I think it'll go one of two ways and both could be useful," Yunjin explained. "Even though we've heard some troubling reports from the Earth Kingdom about her actions, and what just happened in Yumae's village was not at all reassuring, we've also heard a lot of good things. Airbenders telling us that Kuvira arrived in time to save a battered village, to give the people food and resources they desperately needed. Kuvira's soldiers praising her as the Great Uniter and choosing to serve her to protect the Earth Kingdom from bandits and zealots. If those reports are true, then in joining Kuvira I'll be helping those people too, helping bring the Earth Kingdom back together and protecting people much the same as we've sent the airbenders off to do.

"If the other reports are true, where Kuvira is the bad guy, then maybe I can find the proof and the leverage we'll need to stop her. She sent me these leg braces for a reason, and I don't know why, but I can use it to prove my loyalty to her. She might be suspicious at first when I show up trying to join her ranks, but if I tell her how useful the braces were, how grateful I am to her, and how much I want to be of use, I think I can persuade her. And over time, I can gain her trust, maybe become a part of her inner circle. If she has any secrets, I can find that out. And if she doesn't, then we'll know we have nothing to worry about."

"That's…" Tenzin slowly began, "not a terrible idea, but… I still don't care for it."

"You're too young to be going undercover for something like this," Lin insisted.

"I'm the same age Ronen was when he started tagging along with Korra," Yunjin countered.

"Fine, then you're not healthy enough," Lin argued. "You only just got back up on your feet a few months ago, and you were not in a good place for a long time. There's no need for you to be rushing into any hasty decisions right now."

"This isn't hasty," Yunjin promised. "I've thought about it a lot, and this isn't something I'm going into with a bad motive. I only want to help the Earth Kingdom, and find out whether or not Kuvira can be trusted. I don't plan on doing anything stupid. I won't start any fights or act irrationally. What I've been through this past year is what will help me through this. Physically, I'm healthy enough, and mentally I'd say I'm stronger."

Sora chimed in, "Jin, you know I have total faith in you, and you'd probably be really great at this, but it's dangerous. If Kuvira finds out and she is being shady about something, you could be in a lot of trouble. And even if she isn't, you would be putting yourself in front of bandits and angry villagers on a regular basis while unable to defend yourself properly. You should practice more of your airbending first, get better at that before you do something like this."

"It'll take too long for all that," Yunjin said. "I can defend myself well enough, and I can still practice while I'm with Kuvira. This is all assuming she'll take me, but I think it's a good idea."

"Well I don't," Lin grumbled.

Yunjin smirked. "I knew you wouldn't. I'm going to do it though, and I want you guys to be onboard. I know it's not a mission you gave me, but it's the one I need to do."

"Is it so important that you do this now?" Tenzin questioned. "Can't we take some time?"

"I don't think it can wait too much longer," Yunjin answered. "I don't plan on running out tomorrow, but in a few weeks. I don't know how long it'll take me to get Kuvira to trust me, so the sooner the better."

"Somebody else can do this," Lin reasoned. "It doesn't have to be you."

"I think that it does," Yunjin replied. "I have a better way in than some random person, and nothing holding me back from a months' long expedition. And we know now that I can reach out to Sora if I need to. If anything goes wrong you can pull me out."

"There isn't any talking you out of this, is there?" Lin sighed.

"Probably not," Yunjin admitted. "I mean hey, you guys are the ones that kept telling me I was a master."

"You are, but you are our son first and foremost," Tenzin said. "We don't want you going into anything where we may be unable to protect you."

"I think we're long past that," Yunjin said quietly.

"All the more reason not to let you go," Lin responded.

"I'll send you letters every week," Yunjin tried to appease them. "And I'll be careful, more than I ever was before."

Tenzin stood up and went to sit next to Yunjin, pulling the boy into his side and saying, "I am hesitant to say it, but… you have my blessing. I don't want you to go, but I have every confidence that you can do this."

Yunjin managed a small smile of relief, but then turned his gaze onto his mother, watching her with uncertainty.

Lin wanted to fight against it, to force him to stay home where it was safe, but she also knew a losing battle when she saw it. She stood too, putting her hands on her hips and gruffly said, "Letters every day, and you're going to spend the next few weeks training with me before you go. No son of mine is going off on an undercover mission without the proper training."

Yunjin's smile grew. "I can do that."

Sora went over to Yunjin's other side and hugged him too. "Are you sure you don't want to just come on missions with me?"

"One day I will," Yunjin promised her. "Actually, before I go, there's something I want you to do for me."

"Anything," Sora said.

"I want you to get your tattoos."

Sora frowned. "I told you I'm not doing it without you."

"It won't be without me," Yunjin insisted. "I'll be with you the entire time, and I'll be at the ceremony, and when I get mine, I know you'll be right by my side."

"I don't know why you won't get them with me," Sora said in frustration. "I don't deserve them anymore than you do –"

"It's not about that," Yunjin interjected, "not anymore. It's just that we're going in different directions right now. I'm going undercover. You're going to be a leader of the Air Nation. You should look the part. And when I get back, I promise I'll get mine. I just want all of us to have this moment before we start separating again."

"And there's nothing I can say to convince you to get your tattoos with me?" Sora tried one last time.

"'Fraid not. Don't think I'm ready to get rid of my hair yet." He smiled wryly and patted his long hair.

Sora tugged on a strand of her own and joked, "I think being bald will be a nice change."

Yunjin smirked. "I can't wait to see it."

Lin could have waited a lot longer, but there was no denying that her kids weren't so little anymore, and there was little she could do to stop them from growing further. All that she could do now was hope that she had taught them enough to protect themselves.


-Up next, season 4! Sort of! I'm excited to put my spin on it and see what you guys think. The last couple weeks have been pretty terrible for me so I hope you're all doing better, and that you all enjoy this chapter. Thank you all for your reviews, and until next time!-