"Identification is not the same as knowing someone through and through."
― Jodi Picoult, Handle with Care
Chapter 8 - The Deep End
Perilous ice shrouded parts of Air Temple Island. These weren't little blocks of ice used as defense against an attack. They were massive, a signal for all to see. Overhead, the almost blinding full moon revealed the distress to anyone who looked in the vicinity, the gleaming rays bouncing off the ice and into the city.
That was the funny thing about ice: it could simultaneously be beautiful and fatal.
Air acolytes and airbenders spoke with officers. Those who weren't speaking with officers were gathered in the common rooms, much too anxious to go back to sleep. No one appeared to be injured, but more shook up than anything.
Meelo told everyone about his encounter. He had woken up, parched, and headed towards the kitchen to get a drink when he stumbled upon a black cloaked figure wandering the halls. The young airbender sent a gust of wind towards the figure, but the intruder dodged and retaliated with a strong water bullet. All the commotion woke the others, but they weren't alone as a few more intruders revealed themselves.
"I had them until they fought dirty and froze us! If I see those guys again, I'm going to make them pay. They escaped with boats!"
"I sent some officers in the directions that the boats went. They may be going to the Fire Nation or Earth Kingdom. Did they steal anything?" Lin inquired, looking at Tenzin.
"As far as I can tell, no, but I haven't had a chance to check all the rooms thoroughly. I don't know what they could possibly want to steal from here."
"My guess is they wanted to kidnap Rohan and Meelo. You did a good job, protecting yourself and your home," Lin praised with a tiny grin for Meelo. He produced a wide smile and did a little dance. Turning to Team Avatar, the chief said, "I want you to remain here on the island for the rest of the night in case they try coming back. This is the closest we've come to getting a solid lead."
They agreed and began discussing more in depth about what occurred. Something wasn't adding up though for the detective.
"This seems pretty sloppy compared to the rest of this case. Up this point, whoever these people are made no attempts to make a grand entrance appearance wise. All of a sudden a bunch of waterbenders invade the island and show their cards?"
"I've been trying to figure that out myself," Lin mused. "I'm wondering if the full moon has anything to do with it. I have to date it back to see if it was a full moon when the station was bombed and the corporations were robbed. If it was a full moon, they may use full moon nights for grand statements and the rest of the month for smaller statements, the small-scale robberies and the kidnappings."
"We have to check out the Triple Threats again. This seems like something they'd do, and if something is missing from here, I'd bet they could get a lot of money for ancient Air Nation artifacts if they did take anything. Waterbenders attack Air Temple Island. Earthbenders attack Korra and Asami. Firebenders attack Asami's office. It's every element except air. The Triple Threats must be hiding something, somewhere."
"Who are you? Why are you on our island?" Meelo questioned accusingly, interrupting the main conversation. He just now noticed the dirty little boy hiding behind Asami.
Everyone had forgotten about him. Having nowhere else to go, he silently followed the others. Meelo approached him with his chest puffed out, ready to defend his home again. Ikki and Jinora backed him up a few feet behind, but made no attempt to be intimidating.
"I'll ask you again, who are you?" he pressed, leaning forward with his hands on his hips. Only Asami's left leg separated the two boys. The boy from the streets growled again, clearly not in the mood to talk to him.
"He's…the lead we found tonight?" Korra answered for him with a worried smile. "His sister was supposedly stolen a while back so we were going back home to get some sleep and question him further."
"That's…awfully convenient," Beifong replied flatly, analyzing him. "On the night Air Temple Island gets attacked by waterbenders, you find a boy who looks like he has Water Tribe blood."
"Now that you mention it…" Mako trailed off, looking at him again. The boy snarled, but it didn't faze him. He crossed his arms over his chest, cop face on. "Tell us the truth. Right. Now."
"Screw you!"
"Hey," Asami placed a hand on his shoulder and drew his attention, "we're just trying to get to the bottom of everything. The quicker we get through this, the quicker we can all get some sleep. Did someone pay you with money, food or shelter to keep the Avatar busy?"
His eyes widened at the revelation and shifted to Korra. He hadn't realized that she was the Avatar. "No, we never associated with anyone else. I don't even know any other waterbenders. I learned everything I know myself."
Seeing they were not getting anywhere, Beifong ordered everyone to get some sleep and start fresh in the morning. Her parting words were, "Keep an eye on him, that elbow leech."
Bolin and Mako led him over to the boys' dormitory, promising to keep an eye on him. It didn't escape Asami's sight that he was still being hostile towards Mako. He wasn't particularly friendly with Bolin, but it didn't look like he was about to bite him.
Running from one place to another made Korra forget that when the boy bit her he drew blood. Asami was the one who reminded her as she reached out for her hand and felt the dry line of blood coating her hand.
"I swear for as much growling he's done tonight, he's half animal. If he was a saber-tooth moose lion and bit a finger off, that'd be a different story especially if he had some animal disease," she lightly joked, throwing her a small smile. Asami wasn't impressed with the joke. "Relax, it's nothing I can't handle. A little bit of water, and I'll be fine. I won't even be sore in the morning."
Asami shook her head, thinking about his odd behavior. "There's something he's not telling us. Do you think if you used healing on him to calm his mind, it'd make him more willing to talk?"
Korra stopped in the middle of the hallway and closed her eyes, sighing loudly and slapping a hand against her face. "That's why I love having you by my side. I'm stupid for not thinking of it before. I don't know if it'll make him talk, but it'll hopefully make him more civilized and no one else will be at risk for an attack."
"You're not stupid. Just sleep deprived." Asami gave her a quick kiss. "Come on, we need some sleep."
Over breakfast, the four friends devised a fairly simple game plan. Korra would use her healing abilities to balance his mind and hope he'd be more cooperative. They needed answers desperately. This was either going to end terribly, with some key miniscule information, or be another dead end.
On their way to the boys' dormitory, they'd run into Opal who had been helping Tenzin check the island for anything missing. As it turned out, one of Tenzin's bison whistles was missing as well as a few airsuits. The group found those odd items to steal, but then again, so were the other items from others who were robbed.
Besides Asami's office. They'd have to think about it more later and with Beifong's expertise.
Mako opened the door where the boy was staying, revealing a vacant room. The only sign that someone had occupied the room was the messy bed.
"Where is he, Mako?" Korra jabbed him in the chest. "I swear, if you've lost him, Beifong is going to kick all our asses!"
"Me? You're the one who suggested we bring him we us in the first place!"
"Guys, let's calm down," Bolin interjected, physically getting in between them before one of them did or said something they'd regret. "If he really left, he couldn't have gotten far. Let's split up and check the island."
As it turned out, it didn't require them to split up outside. The sound of airbending, creaking gates, and an all too familiar commanding voice gave way to where he was. By the airbending gates that were once the Avatar's bane of existence were Meelo and the boy who was now wearing traditional airbending clothes and looking uncomfortable.
"But I'm not an airbender."
"I don't care what you are! You will master this technique to prove you didn't invite those intruders onto my family's home!" Meelo commanded. He blasted a gust of wind through the gates and shoved the boy into the rapidly spinning gates. "Be the leaf! Or I'll throw you into Yue Bay for trespassing!"
The all too familiar sound of a body pinballing and colliding with every single gate met Korra's ears. She grimaced, remembering how different she was when she embarked on learning airbending from a master. This boy wasn't an airbender so it wasn't really a fair comparison, but those gates would not discriminate in serving up pain to anyone who dared enter without proper technique.
"Meelo," Korra warned, walking up to him, "why did you take him out of the room he was in?"
"To prove his worth!"
"And you think the gates will do that?" Just as she finished asking, he was forced out of the side, thrown onto his backside, sliding on the ground. Asami being the great woman she was, helped him sit up. "He's not an airbender, and he doesn't have any airbending blood. Play nice, okay? You should be eating with your family anyway."
"Fine," he grumbled, walking back inside.
Korra returned to the others where the boy was sitting on the ground between the three of them. Thinking a less hostile approach may work better, she crouched down, but the boy flinched and shielded himself with his arms. "I think we got off on the wrong foot last night. First off, what's your name? We can call you Elbow Leech if you insist on not telling us so choose your poison."
For a few moments, he didn't move. Tiny arms continued to protect his body, but when nothing happened, he slowly lowered them. He was silent, looking into the eyes of the four adults staring at him.
"Hisakata."
Back inside, the friends gathered around a table with Hisakata. Asami fixed him a plate of food and laid it out in front of him. For several moments, he just stared at it as if he'd never seen food before.
"Go ahead, it's safe," Asami gently coaxed, smiling at him.
Cautiously, he brought a bite of food to his mouth. He turned ravenous shoving bite after bite of food into his mouth. The emptiness of his stomach came to the forefront as a proper meal entered his system. What he was eating was of no concern, just that it was food that wasn't from the trash or a sketchy food kiosk.
"How about you tell us about yourself, buddy?" Bolin suggested, but quickly waved it off. "Wait, wait, wait! I don't think we introduced ourselves properly so we'll start! I'm Bolin. The brooding guy's my brother, Mako. The lovely lady who got you food is the generous, drop dead gorgeous Asami Sato. And last but not least, Southern Water Tribe Native, our esteemed Avatar Korra, but we all just call her Korra."
Instead of responding, he continued shoving food into his mouth like an animal. Mako didn't like that.
"It's your turn, kid." The detective impatiently snapped his fingers, but he continued to ignore them. Mako narrowed his eyes, drawing in a deep breath at the defiant child. "You know it's rude to ignore someone when they ask you a direct question. Very disrespectful in an officer's presence and the Avatar."
The boy's body went rigid, food halfway towards his mouth. It never made it to his mouth, but dropped back onto the plate and shoved away, appetite gone. He directed his gaze at the wall then muttered just clear enough for them to hear, "Midori's gone; I've been alone for weeks."
"You're a street kid," Mako added, arms across his chest. "What's the story behind that?"
He whipped his attention back to the friends, eyes infuriated, lips curled up in a snarl, and clearly not a fan of Mako. "I don't work for any of those damn Triads if that's what you're insinuating!" He looked down in his lap, breathing heavily. "She died three years ago. He left. Hopefully dead in a ditch somewhere."
He left it at that. Bolin looked over at his brother, silently pleading with him to lose the detective façade or at least dial it down. Of the four of them, they knew what it was like on the streets. But what Bolin was forgetting was that they weren't even sure if he was telling the truth or not. That was what was preventing the detective from dropping his suspicions.
"How old are you and Midori?" Korra asked, breaking the pause in their conversation.
"I'm seven. She's eight. We're not from Republic City, but street kids attract less attention here so we came here and have wandered the streets ever since." That was more than any of them expected to get from him for one question.
"I'm going to try something, okay?" Korra informed, touching his shoulder. He jerked back, not expecting it, and threw her hand off of him. He narrowed his eyes, still suspicious of her. She held up her hands, trying to earn his trust. "Avatar's promise, I am not doing anything that will harm you."
After a thorough examination of the Avatar, he finally gave a little nod. Korra bent water out of the pitcher on the table and went to place them against his temples, but he cringed back again, this time towards Asami.
"I'm not injured!"
"It helps calm your mind and completely safe. It feels like you're on a plushy cloud. It's actually quite relaxing. She's done it for me on many occasions," Asami explained, hoping to assuage him. In a last effort attempt to help him, she twisted in her chair and placed her hands on his shoulders. Unlike Korra, he didn't react as aversely or move to shove them off. "If you're telling the truth and not involved with these criminals, we'll find Midori and everyone else."
The tension in his body left and he sighed. He relaxed in his seat with his back towards Asami and his front towards Korra, bowing his head down in submission and closing his eyes.
The moment glowing water touched his skin, he became loose. The weight of everything he'd been holding seemed to evaporate. "That feels amazing," he lowly spoke, almost hypnotized by the water's properties. "Healing can be used for your mind?"
"To an extent," she answered, feeling much of his energy twisted up. "Like injuries, depending on the severity and significance, it can help soothe and heal the body in many ways, but it's not always a miracle worker, unfortunately."
He hummed and allowed the Avatar to work her magic. Asami pulled her hands back, admiring her girlfriend hard at work in calming him.
After a few minutes, Asami went in for the kill.
"Tell us about the night Midori went missing."
Only Korra saw his eyes clench shut and a pained expression overtake him. "She went to go pickpocketing. She was taking longer than usual so I went looking, but couldn't find her. I went back to our hideout, but she never came. A few days passed and she never came back. She would never leave me this long."
It wasn't definite proof that she'd been stolen. It was speculation from a street kid, raising red flags for Mako. Something was fishy.
"Why were you hiding in that destroyed kiosk yesterday? Remember, Bolin and I were on the streets for many years. You don't have nearly as much experience, but like you said, being out in the open like that's dangerous."
"I…"
The hesitation caused Mako to lean forward on his palms and frown at him. "Spit it out! Did you just make up that story about your sister? You're someone's whipping boy! I bet she's hiding out in some hole, waiting for you to return with your haul. Or better yet, she abandoned you and you're wasting our time."
"Shut up! Shut up! She'd never do that!" he screamed, covering his ears, causing Korra to back up and stop bending. "She'd never leave. She'd never leave me. No, no, no."
"Then tell us what happened! Who're you working for?" Bolin attempted to calm his brother, but the damage was done already.
"No one! No one! It's only me and her!" Hisakata was shaking and rocking himself in his seat.
Korra and Asami both shot daggers at Mako for completely losing his cool in this situation.
Korra watched the trembling boy. She gently lifted up his chin and locked eyes with his. "Hey, look here. Stay with me. Ignore him. Focus on me." She returned the water to his temples and treaded carefully with her question. "Where were you last night? What do you remember?"
Hisakata tried with all his might to remember and block out the world around him. He shut his eyes, trying to focus on the previous night and speaking to the others as he remembered bits.
He was walking down the street. He was off to find a trash pile to sleep for the night in the Dragon Flats borough when the world was suddenly on its side then black. The next thing he knew, he was waking up and crying and face to face with them.
"How can we believe anything he says?" Mako grumbled, having finally calmed down from his outburst. "We found him nowhere near Dragon Flats. Half of his stories aren't even connecting and are likely lies. You can't trust him. You had a brief encounter with them. We're wasting our time. He has no legitimate or valid connections to this case."
Korra froze at Mako's aggravated words, the water splashing onto Hisakata's lap.
"To be able to use this power, you need to know who you're searching for and have a connection to that person. It doesn't have to be a strong one like when you found Wu, but a brief encounter at the least."
"You're pawns," she whispered, connecting all the dots. "We're going to the vines!"
Lin begrudgingly sat with Su beside her. Su was talking happily into the phone to her husband while Lin was tapping her foot obnoxiously on the ground, sick of waiting around on police time.
"Okay, enough socializing!" Lin stole the phone from her. "Put Kuvira on the phone."
"Ah, Lin, hello to you too. Give me one moment."
There was some rustling on the other end. "Hello?"
"Kuvira, this is Chief Beifong."
"You don't say? I would've never guessed from that gruff, no-shit tone."
"Don't be a smart ass. I need insight into your mind as an enemy of the nation."
"Former enemy of the nation. Give me your worse, Chief."
"Last night, waterbenders infiltrated Air Temple Island during a full moon. While they were sneaking on, Avatar Korra and her friends found a young boy from the streets who claims his sister has been kidnapped by the people who've been kidnapping everyone else. He's clearly of Water Tribe descent. It seems too convenient."
"And you need to call me to tell you what the issue is here? I've heard murmurs about what's been happening the United Republic. They've obviously set some sort of trap as part of their strategy, but if they're as good as I expect them to be, they expect you to know that. The Avatar and her friends just happen to stumble upon an abandoned child, a Water Tribe child, the same night waterbenders infiltrate Air Temple Island? I call bullshit. Like what's occurred so far, they're pitting you against one another which is brilliant on their part."
"Kuvira!" Lin pounded her fist on the desk, not pleased she was slipping back into her old mentality that far.
Kuvira laughed. "That right there is why they're brilliant, cunning. And I thought the esteemed chief of police was level headed and rational? I haven't spoken with anyone outside of the Beifongs and the house staff since I've been put on house arrest so scratch me off your list of suspects. Admit it, you're desperate. Public clawing at your throat, crimes pulling you in every direction that may or may not be related. Who can you trust, Chief?"
"Do you want me to personally fly down to Zaofu and rip that cocky smirk off your face and smack the smart ass remarks out of you?"
"Oh, calm down, Lin. I'm just pulling your cables. You're the one who called me even though I suspect Su had to badger you about this. I do know one thing for certain. They've been clandestine this long, they can continue to be until they're ready to show their faces, their true message when they're ready. They control the board and likely have devised the board for many months, maybe even years. It wouldn't surprise me if they know your tendencies and Korra's tendencies. You two are the two most prominent figures on this case, are you not?"
"Are you stupid? Of course we are!"
Kuvira chuckled lowly at the chief's demeanor, knowing it killed her to be speaking with her. This was one of the most entertaining exchanges she's had since being locked up. "That boy you mentioned earlier plays some role in this. That's up to you to unravel and determine the best strategy. You need to outsmart them at their own game. You can play into their trap with the boy and hope for the best or you can wait for their next move and hope it's not too late for you to restore balance to the United Republic. The clock is ticking for those hostages, Lin, and perhaps your time as chief."
Lin shoved the phone at her sister, having had enough of Kuvira's smart ass. She angrily pounded her fist on the table, leaving a fist sized dent in the metal. Almost everything Kuvira mentioned was already planted in her head, but hearing it from the former enemy of the state emphasized all of it. Ever since the station blew up and she was off duty, she was determined to catch the perpetrators and find justice for the families being torn apart and for her officers.
Just as Su hung up, Korra burst through the doors with her friends trailing behind.
"They're in an underwater hideout in the Mo Ce Sea," she announced loudly, leaning her hands on the desk. She quickly filed the Beifong sisters of what they discovered through Hisakata and how Korra found Midori using her energy. "We know where they are, we need to attack now. We'll go underwater, earthbend our way in, you two will use your seismic sense, and we'll fight these guys."
"No, absolutely not!" Lin stood her ground, rising from her seat. "It's likely a trap, and they're going to be ready for us."
"They're already ready for us!" Korra threw her hands up. "They've been watching our every move, and that's how they know I've interacted with Midori and Hisakata and my ability to connect with people's energies. We need to move now before they have time to react. It's been less than a day, surprise will be on our side for once. We can take whoever they are."
Time did seem to be key to this whole investigation. Corporations and the station blown up just as the Avatar and her friends left the city and the chief was off duty. Kidnappings and robberies happening without so much as a peep that something was wrong until it was too late.
Beifong exhaled loudly and ordered, "Ready the airship and assemble a team of officers to assist."
"Are you sure this is the most efficient way to find the exact coordinates?" Beifong questioned skeptically, arms crossed over her chest. She and the others stood by the open airship door over the middle of Mo Ce Sea, Republic City a tiny dot in the distance.
"They're somewhere underneath Mo Ce Sea, I felt and saw her, but the sea doesn't exactly have landmarks. I'll be just a few minutes looking around to see if anything looks familiar and hope I can find her again without the help of the vines like I did with Wu."
"You're going to be careful, right?" Asami chimed in from her side, placing a hand on her shoulder.
Korra threw her a little smirk. "Does everyone forget I grew up in the South? The waves aren't turbulent, and I handle the water just fine. There's no sense in dragging the rest of you down there unless this is the right spot."
"Doesn't mean I can't worry. Be careful."
Asami guided her lips to hers in a parting kiss, pouring all her emotions out. She knew there was nothing to worry about, but that's what love did to a person.
"I always am. You can't get rid of me." She sent her a teasing wink. "You're stuck with me for the long haul, baby."
Korra leaned a hand against the frame and looked back at her friends, the two Beifongs, and the officers. With a reassuring smile on her lips and a mock salute, she said, "I'll see you all in a few. Be ready to fly."
And with that, she jumped out of the airship. Firebending accelerated her descent and waterbending braced her for a softer impact with the sea. The waters were murky, but no challenge for her in her bubble.
Vibrant sea life glided through the water and among sea plants and rock formations. So different than the seas of the South, but so much warmer for which she was thankful for. One large rock formation caught her attention.
Swimming over to it, she examined it closely, recognizing the fine details. It was beautiful and unlike anything she'd laid eyes on. Swirls of blue, gold, grey, black, and veins of green swirled together beautifully. The patches of blue almost seemed to be glowing underneath the sea.
Korra placed her hand on the rock and focused on connecting with Midori's energy again. The blue beneath her hands appeared to intensify, glowing like healing water. She couldn't be sure if it was because of her actions or if it was a natural property of the rock. Either way, it provided her the information she needed.
Midori wasn't far maybe two or so miles south if she's connecting with her energy right.
In the skies, the rest of the group waited patiently and anxiously for Korra to emerge from the sea with directions. Many of them were conversing by the door when a low rumble growled outside the airship. They moved to see what the noise was, but not a moment later, a geyser of water shot up, nearly striking the airship.
That geyser wasn't created by Korra though.
The Avatar wasn't in sight.
"Korra!"
Posted: Janauary 28, 2021
Sorry for the delay on this story, but I was busy finishing up One Look and I Ignite. If you haven't checked that out, go check it out! Now I've gotta get used to After All This Time's writing style again during edits lol!
Anyway, more trouble on the horizon it looks like.
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