Lin cringed when the airship thudded into the landing pad. The vessel creaked and groaned, kicking up sparks as it slid across the metal surface. Before it could further crash, the landing crew sprang forward to stabilize it with metal cables, bringing it to a sudden halt. Spirits, whoever was flying that thing definitely wasn't a professional pilot. Or at least, not a good one. Made sense, if Anraq was the one piloting. He'd always been a fine cop, but never a pilot. But if that were the case, why the flameo would anyone let him fly?

She approached the airship with her hands set against her hips, watching as the hatch opened and the gangway lowered. Sure enough, Anraq was the first one to appear.

"Hey, Chief," he said, with a quick wave.

"Anraq, it's good to see you. What brings you to Republic City? I wasn't expecting any important business from Zaofu." Lin paused, looking him over. Her brow lifted. The man's uniform had been torn, stained with deep crimson, with long slashes carved across one of his arms. He limped down the ramp, barely able to stand on his feet. "And what the flameo happened to you? You lose a fight with a wolverine jackal? You look terrible."

"Uh, yeah... about that. That's actually why I'm here." Anraq forced his posture straight, a pained grimace twisting across his face. "Alright, Chief, listen to me. Something big happened in Zaofu. Something bad. Horrible, actually."

"What are you talking about?" When he didn't answer right away, she folded her arms across her chest and glared at him. "Well? Spit it out."

"I can't be the one to tell you," he said, with a slow shake of his head. "There's someone else who should. Now, try not to freak out or anything, but..."

Lin's brow scrunched with confusion. When Anraq looked over his shoulder at the airship, she followed his gaze. A flutter lifted in her gut at the sight of the next person stepping onto the ramp. Her eyes flared. "Kuvira! What in the—" She snapped a glare towards Anraq. "You'd better have a damn good explanation for this!"

"Lin, please," Kuvira said, coming forward. "I can explain everything."

"Then start explaining." Lin's glare heated. "I know I said I'd be there if you needed anything, but this isn't exactly what I had in mind. What are you doing out of prison?"

"Zaofu was attacked."

"What?" Lin balked, shifting her stare back and forth between the two. A thousand questions stormed through her head, as a sinking stone plummeted in her gut. Anraq looked away, his legs stumbling to keep himself upright. Kuvira stared straight back at her, but there was a distance in the woman's eyes. A noticeable grief, glimmering behind a hardened wall failing to veil it. The stone sank deeper. " By who?"

Kuvira eased a heavy breath. "The Red Lotus."

"What?" Impossible. No one had heard from the Red Lotus since Zaheer and his gang had been defeated. How could they be back now? Where had they come from? The sinking stone hit the deepest pits of Lin's stomach and exploded, crashing a wave of nausea through her entire core. Her gaze flicked towards the airship. Anraq and Kuvira couldn't have come on their own. That wouldn't make sense. Why would Kuvira even be out of prison at all? "Where's Su? Why didn't she come tell me this?" She snapped her focus back on Kuvira, now recognizing the uniform she wore. "And why are you wearing her armor?"

"Lin, I..."

"Why are you here Kuvira?" Her tone grew harsher, more urgent. "What happened?"

"Lin, Su is..." Kuvira's jaw trembled, a choked breath catching in her throat. Tears brimmed at the corners of her eyes. "She's gone."

"Gone? What do you mean gone?" Lin barely recognized the desperation in her own tone. Her voice cracked, shivering with a grief she couldn't accept. The nausea in her core ruptured, but she swallowed it down. Reaching forward, she grabbed Kuvira by the shoulders and pulled her close, staring into her eyes. She had to hear her say. Her voice shook again, biting with a distress she didn't know herself capable of. "Where's my sister?"

"She's dead, Lin!" Kuvira wavered, a quivering sigh bursting from her throat. "She's dead, and I couldn't save her. I tried, but I... I was too late."

"It was Zaheer, Chief." Anraq kept his gaze lowered at the ground, as if unable to look her in the eyes. "The Red Lotus freed him from prison and he came to Zaofu first. I don't know how they got in, but they took out a chunk of the security force, emptied the prison, killed your sister, and captured her family. The remaining guards are trying to restore order, but things are bad."

"No..." Lin released Kuvira and took a staggering step backwards, knees buckling. Her nausea vanished, replaced by a cold, creeping numbness that spread throughout every inch of her body. Cold. Everything felt so cold. She blinked, suddenly dizzy. The entire world was spinning, and spirits damn her, she couldn't find a way to make it stop. "No, no, this isn't right. It can't—you're wrong. You have to be wrong."

"Lin, I'm sorry. I can't..." Kuvira hung her head, and reached into the pocket of her robe. She pulled out a sealed letter. "Here. This is a missive from the Zaofu security captain. It details everything that happened."

"Keep it," she uttered, stumbling forward. She turned from them, a hand on her forehead. "It won't do me any good. Just go. Mako is down below with a police squad. Show it to him, have him take you to the president. I can't... I need to be alone."

Kuvira reached out a tentative hand, holding it to her shoulder. "Lin..."

Lin tore herself from the touch, swatting Kuvira's arm away. "I said go, damn it!"

Kuvira recoiled, and pulled away. Her gaze shifted with understanding, and with a heavy breath she waved for Anraq to follow her. "Let's go."

Lin waited until they were gone. She chanced a look around the airfield. The landing crew, too, had left. She was alone. The last vestiges of strength flooded from her legs. Dropping to her knees, she slouched forward with a hand pressed over her mouth, eyes shut tight. Sounds and images faded from her mind, the world crumbling around her, as Lin Beifong slipped into the one thing she never let anyone see her do.

She coughed a grieving sob, and began to cry.

President Raiko folded his fingers together atop his desk and leaned forward, looking back and forth between the two. "Alright, let's hear this idea of yours."

Asami sat straighter in her seat, and lifted a large rolled up piece of paper. "Okay, as you know, Republic City's public transportation in recent years has been shaky, to put it mildly." She unrolled the paper on the desk to reveal a map of the city. "With the area around the spirit portal still in need of more repairs, and the Spirit Wilds having steadily spread out all over downtown, navigating the lower streets has become a veritable nightmare for most people. Even with the elevated streets, it makes travel take longer than it should. But we think we've come up with a solution." Glancing to the thinly-mustached man in the seat beside her, she added, "Varrick, would you like to explain?"

"Gladly!" The eccentric Water Tribe native shot from his seat to a standing position, gesturing from Asami to himself. "So, Asami comes to me one day saying we need to come up with a safer, more efficient form of public transportation, and of course I agree. I mean, I can't say I know the woes of taking the bus myself—that's what I have a driver for, you know—but I can certainly imagine the turmoil. Even my driver has troubles getting around here sometimes. Why, just last week he nearly crashed into a rogue spirit vine that grew across the street overnight!" Varrick spread his arms out wide to illustrate the size of the vine, and continued his story with all manner of hand gestures to go along with it. "I said, Qwam, these are the kinds of things you need to look out for when you're driving me around. What if I'd been in the middle of picking the gunk out from underneath by fingernails? Could have lost a finger! Probably would missed some very important meetings, wouldn't be able to help Zhu Li out around the house with Iknik, Jr., and really the whole thing would have been a disaster!"

"Varrick..." Raiko muttered, with an unamused glare. "The point, please."

"Right! Well, after a few hours sweating out ideas in my sauna, the solution finally came to me: trains!"

The president gave him a puzzled look. "We already have trains, and I wouldn't say they're effective transportation for citizens to take on a daily basis, in that they only go in and out of the city."

"No, not those trains!" Varrick insisted. "New ones. Underground!"

At this bit of information, Raiko raised an intrigued eyebrow. "I'm listening."

Asami unrolled a second paper, this one detailing the blueprints of a series of tunnels to be built beneath the city. "See, we've devised a way to create a subterranean railway that could connect the various major city neighborhoods. It would be a fast, efficient way for people to make their daily commutes, and since it's underground we wouldn't have to worry about navigating spirit vines."

"This will revolutionize the city's public transportation as we know it!" Varrick chimed, pointing a finger directly at the president. "I propose we call it the Varri-rail. Charge a reasonable, nominal fee for use—or heck, even sell yearly passes; people will eat that right up!—and bam, the city gets a new source of income, and citizens get a better way to get around. Everybody wins! Plus, with both Varrick and Future Industries working on the project, it'll be done in no time!"

"Hmm." Raiko held a hand to his chin, looking intently over the blueprints. "I'll admit, that does sound like it could work."

"Well, of course it'll work," Varrick said. "My ideas always work!"

Asami turned to him with a frown. "Right. Like the time machine you tried to build last year?"

"I already told you, the lab explosion was just a minor setback," he replied, crossing his arms over his chest. "I'll get around to cleaning it out eventually, and when I do, watch out! I'll get that baby working yet, and then we'll see who's laughing."

"Ahem," Raiko said, trying to steer the conversation back on course. "In any case, I'll look over your plans further, and if I like it, we can see if we have room in the budget for—"

The door to the president's office slammed open, as a new arrival hurried inside. Dressed in full police uniform, Mako snapped to attention and saluted. "Sir, I'm sorry to barge in like this, really, but—"

"Lieutenant!" President Raiko bolted from his seat, hands planted firmly against the desk. "What is the meaning of this? I'm in the middle of a meeting!"

"I know, and I'm sorry, but this is important," Mako insisted. "It really can't wait."

"Well, make it quick!"

Mako cleared his throat, and held out the open envelope he'd been carrying. "Here, take a look at this."

Raiko snatched the envelope and pulled out the letter inside to read it. His shifting gaze caught a few notable, alarming phrases: Zaofu attacked... Suyin Beifong killed... Red Lotus... Zaheer freed from prison... With each new sentence, his eyes widened further. "This is... dear spirits."

"Mako, what is it?" Asami asked, with a cautious look. "What's going on?"

"There was an attack on Zaofu." He hesitated, exhaling a deep sigh before continuing, "It was the Red Lotus. They've freed Zaheer and picked up exactly where they left off."

"What?" Asami stiffened, tightly gripping the sides of her seat. "Oh no..."

"And that's not all." Mako's voice shook briefly, before he steeled himself to delivered the news. "They got to Suyin. She's gone. Dead."

"Come again?" Varrick furrowed his brow, glaring up at the lieutenant. "Did you just say that those Red Lotus nutjobs are back? And they killed Suyin?"

"Yeah... I'm sorry. I know you two were friends."

"Zaofu was supposed to be the safest city in the world." Varrick sank into his seat, a grim seriousness descending over his face. "I should have helped design it to be safer."

Asami bowed her head, fingers pressed against her eyes. "How did this happen?"

"I'm afraid we still don't know." A new voice, this time. An oddly familiar voice. "But what we do know is that the Red Lotus aren't going to stop at Zaofu. And they've already taken the rest of my family hostage."

Raiko snapped his gaze towards the open doorway, eyes nearly popping out of his head. "Kuvira? What—?" No wonder the voice had sounded so damn familiar. His gaze shifted to Mako. "What is she doing out of prison!"

Kuvira stepped up to the desk. "I'm acting on behalf of Zaofu, at least for the moment. If we could have sent someone else, we would have, but we didn't have a lot of time. If you keep reading the missive, it should explain as much."

"Yeah, and don't bother asking about the prison in Zaofu." A man wearing a torn Zaofu guard uniform moved next to Kuvira. He limped up to the desk and practically fell against it. "That's a different kind of mess right now."

"Anraq, careful," Kuvira said, holding an arm out to support him. "You'll hurt yourself more than you already are."

"I'm fine," Anraq muttered. He sucked in a deep breath and stood straighter, focusing on Raiko. "You're just going to trust us on this, President. It's bad, and it's only going to get worse."

Raiko shot a studious glare down at the missive in his grasp. The damn thing did seem to explain why Kuvira was here, but that didn't mean he had to play along with it. "Trust you? Trust her? Are you out of your mind! Have you forgotten what she did to this city?"

"Mr. President, I know what you think of me," Kuvira said, with a deep breath. "I know what many people think of me. And I'm aware that I still have a long sentence to serve, but right now I'm doing what I can to help. For Su, for my family, for Zaofu, and the other nations who are at risk with Zaheer on the loose. Right now, that involves informing you of what happened. And after that, I want to assist however I can, to stop Zaheer and get my family back."

"This is outrageous! Lieutenant, arrest her at once!"

"Uh..." Mako lifted an eyebrow at Kuvira. His gaze shifted from her to the others around the room, doing nothing immediately to stop her. "I'm not really sure if I should?"

Perhaps his hesitance was understandable. Mako was the only other bender in the room, aside from probably Kuvira's injured friend. Varrick certainly wouldn't be any help, and Raiko wasn't about to put himself in the line of fire either. Asami might have been able to help, if only she had one of those old Equalist gloves on her. Combine that with the numerous sharp metal objects in the room, from pens to paperweights, even a ship in a bottle, and any attempt at starting a fight with Kuvira would probably go south real quick.

But that didn't mean Raiko was about to sit back without trying. He pointed again at Kuvira, while glaring at Mako. "Lieutenant, I order you to—"

"Raiko, hold on!" A new voice called from the open doorway, all attention shifting towards the figure standing there

Raiko squinted at the new arrival with a grumble. How many people were going to keep barging into his office? "Avatar Korra... Have you already been informed of this debacle?"

"I have. Lin called me, told me to come down here." Korra heaved a deep breath. "She didn't sound too well."

"Well, now that you're here, what exactly do you have to say about this?" Raiko asked.

She looked to Kuvira. "I say, I believe her. She's trying to help." Her gaze shifted, focusing again on Raiko. "You don't have to be happy she's here, and certainly not about the reason why, but if it's true Zaheer and the Red Lotus are back, then we're going to need all the help we can get, and right now no one has more of a reason to go after them. If Kuvira wants to help, I say we give her a chance. Wouldn't you agree?"

Raiko's brow twitched. He glared at the Avatar. "Do you have any idea what you're asking?"

"I know, believe me," she replied. "But I'm asking you, for once in your career, to trust me. Trust the Avatar. I'll take full responsibility for Kuvira while she's out of prison."

President Raiko hummed in frustration, sinking down into his chair. Of all the outrageous, ridiculous things to happen today, this ranked as the most infuriating. Still, the return of the Red Lotus was nothing to scoff at. They likely would need all the help they could get, especially if the Red Lotus were targeting world leaders again. His own name would be on their list, in that case. "Very well, Avatar Korra. I'll have to discuss this with the other world leaders, but on your word, Kuvira will be allowed a temporary parole to assist you in this matter. But she is to remain in your custody, under your direct supervision at all times, am I clear?"

Korra gave an affirmative nod. "Yes, sir. I promise, you have nothing to worry about."

"Nothing to worry about—easy for you say," he muttered. "You don't have to inform the other nations that not only is a terrorist group on their way to potentially assassinate their leaders, but also Kuvira is out of prison. These are going to be some very aggravating phone calls. Now, everyone out of my office! I'll expect to hear from you soon, Avatar. I assume you'll have a plan?"

"I will. Thank you."

The group shuffled out of the office, door slamming shut behind them. They stood there a moment, awkward glances shifting between them. Asami kept her focus on Kuvira. Ever since Kuvira had appeared, she hadn't been able to bring herself to speak. With each passing second, the bubbling in the pit of her stomach churned stronger, threatening to spill over. She fought the sensation, remaining calm and passive. Now wasn't the time to start anything, especially not with the news they'd just received.

Kuvira looked to Korra with a slow, appreciative smile. "Thank you. That could have gone poorly."

"Don't mention it. None of this is your doing, you being here. With what happened in Zaofu..." Korra sighed, reaching out to hold one of Kuvira's hands in comfort. "I'm so sorry, Kuvira. I wish I had something better to say."

"You don't have to say anything." Kuvira strengthened her smile, and gave Korra's hand a thankful squeeze. "It's just good to see you again. In person, I mean."

Asami's gaze focused on Korra and Kuvira's hands, and their tender embrace. The churning raged, and she looked away. Five years later, and their friendship still wasn't any easier to bear.

"Asami, there you are! I have those reports you asked for."

Asami's thoughts jolted at the sound of the voice. She stiffened, looking over her shoulder to see a man dressed in a crisp business suit and glasses, with short dark hair and a scruffy goatee, approaching her with a stack of papers in his hands. Oh no. Not good. She looked back and forth between the man and Kuvira. No way to stop either of them from noticing. Oh, this was about to get messy.

"Sorry I'm late," the man said, huffing out a tired breath. "Had to do some digging in the file system, and I almost ran over a family of spirits on the way here, but I—"

"Baatar?" Kuvira's gaze shifted towards the man. A man that would be all to familiar to the former Great Uniter—Baatar, Jr., her ex-fiance.

Baatar's jaw twitched, eyes flash anger. "What is she doing here?"

Kuvira took a step forward, reaching out to him. "Baatar, please, I..."

"Asami, I have to go. Here are the reports. I can't—I'll be by the office later." Baatar shoved the papers into Asami's hands, and hurried back down the hallway, away from the group.

"Baatar, wait!" Kuvira ran after him, disappearing from sight around the corner.

When they were both gone, Mako gave Korra a concerned lokk. "Shouldn't you go after her? Raiko just told you not to let her out of your sight."

"That isn't really something I should be interrupting," Korra said, with a soft breath. "They need to work it out on their own."

"Listen to the Avatar, kid." Varrick leaned against Mako, an arm coming around his shoulder. "Lovers' disputes are not something you want to get caught in the middle of, trust me on that."

A loud crash grabbed their attention. Anraq grunted, falling against a nearby pedestal and knocking a vase onto the floor. The pottery shattered, clay shards scattering across the ground. He caught himself against the pedestal, arms shaking to hold himself upright. "In the meantime, could someone get me to a hospital? I'm not feeling so hot."

"Baatar, stop, please! We need to talk!" Kuvira raced down the hall to catch up with her ex-fiance. Five years since she'd seen him. Five years since they'd spoken. Muddled thoughts stormed her mind. There was so much she wanted to say—needed to say.

Baatar did stop, eventually. Perhaps because he realized Kuvira wasn't leaving him alone. He froze there in the middle of the corridor, sucking in a deep breath through his nose. "Oh, you want to talk?" He spun around, lowering a furious glare at her. "Are you sure you don't want to kill me instead? Maybe finish the job after you missed the first time?"

Kuvira flinched, falling back a step as though physically struck by his words. The sheer anger and bitterness—her heart severed, shredding to pieces in her chest. "...I deserved that."

"That's hardly all you deserve!" Baatar heaved another breath before stepping towards her. "I gave my life to you, Kuvira! I loved you! I wanted to marry you, to wake up next to you everyday, to have children with you! I would have done anything for you! And what do I get for all that? You stab me in the back and try to sacrifice me for your own blind ambitions!"

"Baatar—"

"No, I'm not finished, yet! You just listen." His shout drew the attention of several passersby in the building, all of whom quickly hurried to leave the quarreling pair alone. "I spent a lot of time wondering what I'd done wrong, asking myself what I did to make you want to destroy what we had. So much time blaming myself—hating myself—until I realized it wasn't me. It was you, Kuvira. You're the one who threw away our relationship like it meant nothing. You're the one who betrayed me. I thought at least I could move on with you still in prison, but this..." He looked her up and down. Hard to mistake her as a prisoner right now. "I guess I was fooling myself there, too."

"I'm sorry, Baatar." Kuvira shrank back and stared at the floor. Her thoughts wavered. Everything she'd wanted to say, everything she'd been thinking for the past five years—it all vanished. In the face of his resentment, what could she ever say that would make a difference? "For everything I did to hurt you. I know that doesn't help..."

"No, it doesn't." Baatar looked away, a scowl twisted across his face. "Just answer me something. Did you ever really love me? Or was I always a puppet for you to throw away for your campaign?"

"Of course I did." She gazed at him in earnest, as the last pieces of her heart fluttered away like the wilting petals of a dying rose. "I still do. I just... I made mistakes. So many mistakes. What I did to you—that was the worst one I ever made. I know I can't take it back. I wish I could. I wish I'd left with you that day."

Baatar's gaze shifted again to focus on her, but his resentment never faltered. "Well, it's a little late for that now, isn't it? You decided your own selfish ambition was more important than us."

Kuvira steadied the trembling in her breath. She tried to respond, tried to say something, but words never came. What else was there to say? All she could do was stand there, wishing she could earthbend herself into oblivion.

"Is there anything else you wanted to say, or are we done here?" Baatar asked.

"No, I..." Her voice choked short. Of course there was something else. But how could she? He already hated her so much. "I noticed you work for Asami now?" Perhaps if she avoided the subject a while longer, she'd find the resolve.

"Yes," he stated, with a an indignant shrug. "I'm in charge of the Future Industries Research and Development division. After I served my sentence helping Asami to rebuild the city, I stayed here and continued working for her. I needed a fresh start."

"Right, that's good," she said, with a slow nod. "You'll be better off here than you ever were with me."

Baatar grunted in annoyance. He shifted his weight, glanced back over his shoulder—looking for a reason to leave, no doubt. "What are you even doing here, Kuvira? Why aren't you still in prison? And why are you wearing my mother's uniform?"

She swallowed. The longer she put it off, the worse it would be. He had to know. Best to rip off the bandage and get it over with. Not like he could hate her much more than he already did. "Baatar, there's no easy way to say this."

"Say what?"

"You mother..." Kuvira sucked in a sharp breath to calm herself. It didn't help. Her nerves ignited all the same. "There was an attack on Zaofu, and... I'm sorry, I couldn't..."

Baatar's gaze narrowed. She could see the concern growing in his eyes, his mind already working to think of every possibility. "What are you trying to say?"

Kuvira shut her eyes. No avoiding it now. "She's dead. The Red Lotus—they killed her."

"What?"

"I'm so sorry." She opened her eyes again to look at him. The pained horror staring back at her cut deep through her chest. "I tried to help, but I..."

"You're lying." He lurched away, lips quivering. "You have to be lying."

"Baatar, I would never—"

"No!" He took another step back, fury searing across his face. If anything, it almost hid the tears beginning to spill from his eyes. "I don't want to hear anything else from you! I've had enough of it!"

"Baatar!"

Kuvira watched him flee down the corridor. He disappeared around the corner seconds later, leaving her alone. Emptiness took hold. The entire building warped around her, walls closing in with violent intent. She blinked her vision clear, fought against the lump of cold metal reforming where her heart had once been. The harder she fought, the deeper the pain.

Slowly, her senses returned. Not enough to soothe her. Her breathing shuddered, picking up with rapid, shrill wheezing. Fingers tightened into a fist, and she punched the wall. Knuckles cracked through plaster. Dull pain throbbed through her fist. She punched again. And a third time. A fourth. By the time she let her arm fall limp at her side, she couldn't even feel her knuckles anymore. Her hand shook, vibrating with uncontrolled tremors she couldn't stop.

With nothing left in her, she collapsed against the wall and sank to the floor. A sob kicked into her throat. Before she could stop herself, she finally broke. There she was, the Great Uniter, crying in the middle of city hall where anyone could see, wishing she could fade into nothing.

How had things ever gone so wrong?