"Down with the benders! Down with bending! Support equality!" I stopped walking and turned to look towards the source of the noise. Sure enough, there was a man standing atop a table, shouting into his loudspeaker. Behind him was a poster with a masked face, which reminded me of Guy Fawkes, just that it has more Chinese stylings.
"You there!" the man suddenly pointed at me. I looked around me, and sure enough there was no one beside me.
"You a non-bender?" I nodded.
"Have this flyer," the man said as another passed me a flyer. As he passed me the flyer, he said softly to me, "The revelation is upon us, brother."
"Isn't that the handsome fire bender Korra always talks about?" Ikki said as Mako walked up the stairs, looking around for Bolin.
Shutting Ikki up, Korra walked up to Mako, asking, "Hey Mako, what brings you here?"
"You seen Bolin? Figured he'd be here," Mako replied in his cold, indifferent voice.
"Nice to see you too. And no, I've not seen him since practice. Think something's wrong?" Korra replied sarcastically, while Ikki and Meelo chuckled at the side. Jinora simply rolled her eyes, before walking away with her book tucked under her arm.
Shaking his head, Mako turned around and got ready to leave, saying, "Bolin has a knack for getting into stupid situations. See you later."
"Wait!" Korra called out, and Mako stopped and turned around. "Umm, if it's any help, I could help look with you? For Bolin." Beside her, Ikki and Meelo made an "ooh", before being shooed away by Korra.
"Nah I got it."
"Hey cool guy, let me help you. We could take Naga!"
"Who's that?"
"So you're best friend is a dog. Makes sense," Mako commented as he and Korra rode around the streets on Naga, stopping every ten metres or so for Naga to sniff the ground for Bolin's scent.
"I'll take that as a compliment, city boy," Korra said, playfully elbowing Mako in the stomach. Naga stopped yet again, sniffing the ground before letting out a dismayed whimper. "Your dog's having trouble?" Mako asked.
"I don't get it. Naga is an excellent tracker. She once tracked down an elephant seal over nearly a hundred miles in the snow. What's so hard tracking down Bolin?"
"Maybe it's because she's not used to the city, with so many people and satomobiles. Maybe she can't detect Bolin's scent," Mako commented as another satomobile sped past them.
"Or maybe she needs a stronger source of Bolin's scent. Guess that handkerchief didn't work."
"Hmm, maybe you're right," Mako nodded, while Korra smugly smiled. Ignoring her, Mako continued, "I know Bolin has a pile of unwashed laundry back in our apartment. That should do the trick. I just hope Bolin is not doing anything stupid in order to get the thirty thousand yuan."
"Yeah, so we just need you on guard duty for the next few days, nothin' illegal," Shady Shin said as he patted Bolin on the back, before heading into the restaurant.
Bolin found himself standing guard outside a restaurant, that also functioned as the headquarters for the triple threat triads. Beside him stood a few more thugs, and the restaurant looked more like a bank with all those extra protection. Shady Shin had offered to pay Bolin five thousand yuan, in addition to the five thousand he already gave Bolin. This would clear a third of the championship costs, and Bolin couldn't say no to that. After all, it was just standing guard outside a restaurant. How dangerous could it be?
"Hi, we are looking for the Fire Ferrets. Do you know where we may find them?" I asked the receptionist at the arena. Asami and I had just finished our work and were now looking for the pro bending team in order to negotiate a sponsorship with them.
"Well, I don't know where they are right now, but you can try their apartment. They live upstairs in the apartments."
"What do you mean? You mean they live above the arena?" I asked, confused as to what the receptionist meant.
"Yep, take the elevator over there to the tenth floor, and then take the stairs. You would see a door numbered 05. That's the home of Mako and Bolin," the receptionist said, before turning back to his paperwork. I looked at Asami, who simply shrugged and walked towards the elevators.
When we got there, however, the door was left ajar. I could hear some muffled voices inside the door - one male and one female. Looking at Asami, I walked closer to the door, and could more clearly hear their voices.
"Here's Bolin's unwashed laundry. It should be more than enough for Naga to pick up his scent," the male voice said.
"I think that is more than enough for anyone to pick up his scent. I think I'll just take the shirt down to Naga for her to smell," the female voice replied.
Wondering what on earth was going on behind the door, I nonetheless walked up to it and rapped it three times with my knuckles.
"Yes, may I help you?" the owner of the male voice opened the door, although he sounded slightly annoyed. I recognised him as Mako, the firebender from the Fire Ferrets.
"Yes, we are from Future Industries. We would like to-"
"Sorry, I'm not interested in buying anything," Mako coldly replied before slamming the door shut in my face. I looked at Asami, who was trying to hide her laugher. I rolled my eyes at her childishness.
Knocking on the door again,I could hear heavy footsteps, almost sounding like boots. Then, without warning, the door flew open.
"He already said he wasn't inter-" This time, the owner of the female voice swung open the door and half-shouted in face. I instantly recognised her as Avatar Korra, the one who dragged me along for a police chase not too long ago. I did not manage to watch the last pro-bending match, but I heard over the radio that Korra had joined the Fire Ferrets. In my opinion, as the Avatar that should be illegal.
"Hey, aren't you that guy from the police station?" She asked, staring at me. I nodded.
"Isn't my apology enough? What else do you want? We are busy here," Korra demanded, staring daggers into my face. I could feel the intensity of her glare, especially knowing how powerful the Avatar was from what people had told me.
"I am actually from Future Industries. I would like to speak to the Fire Ferrets regarding a sponsorship," I started, and Korra looked visibly confused.
"Sponsorship? What do you mean?" Mako suddenly reappeared at the door. Evidently the mention of his team's name piqued his interest.
"So you're saying that Future Industries would cover the cost of pro bending for us?" Mako asked, looking surprised.
"That's what a sponsorship means. Well there are different types of sponsorships, but this is what we are offering the Fire Ferrets. After all, you are a team that has potential to win this season, and Ms Sato here is a fan," I explained.
"Wait, you won't happen to be related to Hiroshi Sato, creator of the Satomobile and owner of Future Industries?" Mako eyes widened in surprise.
"Yeah, he's my dad."
"Get out of town!"
"I'm serious, would you like to meet him?" Asami asked, still chuckling over Mako's reaction.
"Anyways," I interjected, staring at Asami, "Would the Fire Ferrets be interested in taking up this offer?" Korra, who had been quiet this entire time, suddenly spoke up. Or rather, asked a barrage of questions.
"Will you cover the training costs?" I nodded.
"The food?" I nodded.
"Our uniforms?" I nodded.
"What about the thirty thousand yuan championship ante?" Mako nudged her in the arm and shot her a glare. "What?" Korra asked, annoyed.
"Yes, we heard about the thirty thousand yuan. And we will cover that too," I answered, while Asami nodded her head beside me.
"Then how is this beneficial to you?" Korra, asked, obviously confused. Maybe this is what staying isolated in the South for all your life does to you.
"There is something that the Fire Ferrets have to do. You would need to wear uniforms with the Future Industries logo on it," I explained.
"Heck, I'll even tattoo on my chest if you want me to!" Mako said, smiling and pointing to his chest with his thumb as he spoke. Beside me, Asami chuckled and I let out a smile.
"Well, I guess it's settled then. I assume all the members of the Fire Ferrets are alright with this? Where's Bolin by the way?" I asked as I pulled out the contract from my bag for Mako to sign.
"He went missing today. Probably trying to find thirty thousand yuan. Don't worry, we will find him soon enough," Mako reassured and I nodded. With our work done, Asami and I soon left their apartment.
"Hey Asami, I'm leaving already, see you tomorrow!" I called out as I left the office. In my hand was the flyer I had received earlier that week in the park.
"So early? I always thought you were a workaholic," Asami said, surprised, as she walked out of her office. She immediately noticed the flyer in my hand, and snatched it away before I could react.
"Don't tell me you are one of them," Asami started as her eyes darted across the flyer. I laughed before I took it back from her.
"Don't worry Asami. I'm not that kind of people. I'm just going to see what all the fuss is about," I reassured, before turning around.
As I was about to enter the elevator, Asami suddenly called me, "Jay!"
"Promise me you stay safe ok? I don't feel too good about this."
Nodding my head, I gave her one last smile before stepping into the elevator. What could possibly go wrong?
The warehouse was just one of many within the industrial district. Small groups of people - no more than three per group, walked briskly towards the only lighted door into the warehouse, their hands in their pocket and coat pulled up, obviously not wanting to be too conspicuous. Beside the door stood a tall, burly man. The people showed him the flyer before being allowed inside.
"So it's an entry ticket," I muttered to myself, fishing the flyer from my trench coat pocket. Taking a deep breath, I was ready to walk towards the warehouse, when suddenly a couple caught my eye. Or rather, the red scarf the guy was wearing.
I immediately recognised the two as Mako and Korra, despite their attempts to disguise themselves. What would they be doing at an event that was anti-bending and pro-non benders? Ignoring it, I quickly walked towards the door, keeping a short distance behind them.
"This is a private event. No one can enter without an invitation," I could make out the gruff voice of the doorman as he reached for a large wrench lying beside him.
"What invitation?" I heard Korra's voice, feigning innocence.
"You guys are benders, aren't you?" The doorman suddenly raised his voice, and two more burly guys walked out from the shadows.
"Sorry guys for being late," I suddenly interjected, cutting in between Korra and Mako, surprising them. The doorman eyed me suspiciously, still holding onto the wrench.
"Sorry, the invitation was with me," I fake panted, fishing the flyer from my coat pocket. The doorman took one look at it and lowered his wrench, while the other two walked back into the shadows.
"My apologies. Please enter," the doorman opened the door, and the three of us walked in. As we entered the doorway, the doorman said, "The revelation is upon us, my brothers and sisters."
As we walked inside the warehouse to the gathered crowd, Korra dragged me to the side and asked me, "What were you doing there?"
"I got this flyer, and decided to come see what was going on. Question is, what are you two doing here?" I eyed the two of them suspiciously.
"We though Bolin might be here," Mako replied, looking around the old warehouse cautiously.
We headed towards the lit, but empty, podium that stood inside the warehouse. The crowd was gathered before it, still murmuring amongst themselves. It reminded me of a rock concert that was about to start, rather than some dubious, underground event.
"Wow, I always knew that a lot of people hated benders, but I didn't expect there to be so many," Mako remarked as the three of us took our place at the side.
Suddenly, the speakers boomed and the crowd fell silent. "My brothers and sisters, please welcome our saviour, Amon!"
All the lights went out except for a single one that remained in the centre of the podium. Suddenly, smoke started pouring from the floor, and a figure emerged from a trapdoor in the door, with many other figures flanking either side of him. I wouldn't have been too surprised if Darth Vader walked out of the mist. All around me, the crowd went wild with cheers of approval.
As the smoke cleared, the figure started speaking.
"My quest for equality began many years ago. When I was a boy, my family and I lived on a small farm. We weren't rich, and none of us were benders. This made us very easy targets for the firebender who extorted my father. One day, my father confronted this man, but when he did, that firebender took my family from me. Then, he took my face. I've been forced to hide behind a mask ever since. As you know, the Avatar has recently arrived in Republic City," the mask wearing figure spoke. Beside me, Korra eyes widened in shock, before she hides herself in the scarf Mako was wearing.
"And if she were here, she would tell you that bending brings balance to the world. But, she is wrong. The only thing bending has brought to the world, is suffering. It has been the cause of every war in every era. But that is about to change.I know you have been wondering, "What is the Revelation?" You are about to get your answer. Since the beginning of time, the spirits have acted as guardians of our world, and they have spoken to me. They say the Avatar has failed humanity. That is why the spirits have chosen me to usher in a new era of balance. They have granted me a power that will make Equality a reality. The power to take a person's bending away. Permanently," the figure finished to a cheering audience.
Beside me, Korra was stiff, her teeth gritting in anger and sweat dripping down her temples.
I immediately grabbed Korra's hand, whispering harshly to her, "Don't do anything stupid. Please." That seemed to work, as Korra exhaled before saying, "I know."
Just when I thought the event was over, Amon brought up another figure onto the stage. What happened next would shock the audience. The unfortunate figure was a triad boss, Lightning Bolt Zolt. He was given a chance to fight Amon, but was swiftly defeated. Amon pressed a thumb to Zolt's head, and just like that, Zolt's bending was gone. Forever.
Suddenly, Korra pointed to the side of the stage, saying, "There's Bolin!" I squinted my eyes, and sure enough, the earthbender of the Fire Ferrets was there, gagged, bound and on his knees. No doubt he was going to be the next victim of Amon once he was done with the guy before Bolin and after Zolt.
"We need to save him!" Korra prepared to rush for the stage, only for Mako and I to hold her back.
"Are you crazy? You will get yourself caught!" Mako scolded
"He's right, there's too many of them, maybe we should come up with a plan first," I said, nodding at Mako as we both held Korra back.
"Ok, what's the plan, smart guy?" Korra hissed at me, annoyed that I was still maintaining a firm grip on her.
"Well, firstly we would need a distraction…"
"You sure this would work?" Mako eyed me as we both huddled near the back of the warehouse and out of sight and hearing of the now roaring crowd.
"Those machines are powered by steam, which runs through the pipes. Korra can use them to create a huge fog that would cover us, while Mako here can go and grab Bolin in the chaos."
"Then what are you going to do?" Mako asked me.
"Remember the smoke when Amon appeared. I bet there is some smoke machines below the stage. When Korra creates the chaos, I will use the machines to create even more smoke since steam disperse rather quickly. That should buy us more time."
"Let's do it guys." Korra said with a resolute look on her face, before we split up.
"What is taking Korra so long?" I wondered, just as the Equalist guard stirred a little at my feet, clutching his head and groaning. I quickly delivered another punch, knocking him out again.
I had managed to sneak my way under the stage, finding not smoke generators but instead a bag of smoke grenades and a lone guard, which I quickly subdued. Tapping my feet in impatience, I peered up in between the gaps in the stage. I pulled away from the gap just as yet another bender hit the ground, exhausted and without his bending.
Unable to wait any longer, and fearful that Korra had run into some trouble, I sneaked out from under the stage and towards the corridor where Korra had gone to. Adjusting the scarf I had taken from the equalist guard, I stealthily entered the corridor, closing the door behind me.
Sure enough, there was Korra engaging in combat with the doorman that had stopped her earlier that night. It seemed that everywhere she went, fighting was her number one option. Seeing that Korra had gotten him tangled in a scarf, I was about to go when the door in front of me slammed open and the two other doorman from just now rushed into the corridor and towards Korra, not seeing me in the process.
They were approaching Korra from behind, one of them holding some weird looking glove while the other held a more conventional weapon - a large pipe. Korra still had not seen them, and they had not seen me. Considering they were twice her size and spotting a live wire on the floor, I knew I had to do something.
The left one hit the ground before he even knew what happened. I pressed the live wire against his neck, and he was now convulsing on the ground, still clutching the wire. The other one, who was walking slightly ahead, turned around but was greeted with a large wrench to his face. It did not completely knocked him out, but the same wrench swung executioner style to the back of his head when he bent over in pain did the trick.
Korra had just swung the doorman she was fighting into some metal pipes, breaking off their valves and releasing a huge cloud of steam. Dusting her hands, she looked proudly at her handy work, before I called out to her.
"Jay, what are you doing here?" Korra asked in surprise, with her surprise becoming even more apparent when she spotted my handiwork. Two men were sprawled on the ground behind me - one convulsing while holding on a wire and the other out cold.
"I was wondering what took you so long," I deadpanned, picking up the weird looking glove that one of the guys I knocked out was wearing. It was rather heavily, with wires and exposed metal prongs on the palm. When I unknowingly tensed my fingers, sparks began to dance across the metal prongs.
"So it's a stun glove," I thought to myself, keeping that glove on. Beside me, Korra was already working on bending all the steam into one compressed ball. Looks like it was time to head back under the stage.
I had just reached under the stage when a large explosion tore through one of the wooden walls that formed the backdrop of the stage. There was chaos as the crowds starting screaming, and the guards started running about. Looking from my spot, I saw the steam all around the place, although it was quickly dispersing.
Grabbing a handful of smoke grenades, I prepared to toss them onto the stage. They looked like massive party poppers, complete with the string trailing out one end. Taking three of them, I yanked out the strings and hurled them onto the stage.
"What the-" I heard Amon comment, before the smoke grenades simultaneously exploded, covering the entire area in a thick smoke. Grabbing the bag containing the remaining three, I sneaked out of my hiding spot and into the chaos.
In a gap in the smoke, I spotted Mako fighting another equalist guard. Mako sent a small bolt of lightning towards the equalist, who dodged it and swung his sparking glove at Mako. He missed, however, and Mako seized the opportunity to throw him off the stage. He then made a beeline for Bolin, who was still tied up but unguarded.
I looked around the mess of people. Equalist guards were running about, trying to find the infiltrators, while people were running towards the only exit, which was a bottleneck. Korra was fighting three of the guards, while Mako was frantically untying Bolin's ropes. Suddenly, I spotted another equalist guard rushing to them, gloved charged up.
Just as the equalist guard ran past me, I stuck out my foot, tripping the guard who landed with a thud. The mask dropped off in the process, revealing the guard to be a female, although her face was still covered with a scarf.
She charged towards me, doing a spin kick which I blocked but nonetheless pushed me back. I swung back with my bag, hitting her leg in the process. As she was about to get up, I quickly rushed towards her, managing to land a glancing punch as she attempted to doge it. In the process, her mask fell to the ground, revealing who she was.
I stood rooted to the ground in shock. In front of me, dressed in equalist uniform was Rei, my old friend from when I still worked at the restaurant. I was about to call her when suddenly another guard ran up to her, shouting, "The Lieutenant wants us now. One of the captured benders is escaping." Rei stared at me, still wrapped with my scarf, for a few more seconds, before picking up her mask and running off.
I spotted Korra leap out a window, and I knew it was time to go. The smoke was starting to clear, so I emptied all three remaining smoke grenades onto the ground to cover my escape.
Sliding down the ladder, I soon reached the ground. Bolin and Mako were knocked out, with Korra locked in combat with another equalist. However, this equalist was equipped with two rods, and both sparked with electricity. I was about to go and check on Mako and Bolin, when Bolin stirred.
"Go help Korra, we'll be fine," Bolin croaked, before checking on his brother. Nodding, I sneaked closer to Korra and the equalist.
Watching the fight, I noticed that the equalist's weapons were both connected via wire to a weird looking backpack. Upon closer inspection, I deduced it was probably the generator that was powering his weapons. Picking up a nearby metal bar and wrapping one end in a scrap piece of cloth, I waited for my opportunity.
When the equalist was sufficiently close, I sprang out from my hiding spot and stabbed the bar into his generator. Immediately, his weapon malfunctioned, sending sparks flying out of the generator and he fell to the ground, convulsing from the electrical shock.
"Let's go!" I shouted to Korra, who blew a whistle using two fingers. Beside us, trash cans were sent flying as a huge dog, which I recognised as the one that was captured along with Korra and I by the police, burst into the alley we were in. Korra hopped onto the dog, while I pulled the still groggy Mako onto the saddle before hopping on myself. The huge beast then picked up Bolin in her mouth, before dashing out, just as more equalists burst out a door.
As we were running, I was still coursing with adrenaline, amazed at how I was able to escape alive, and equally as shocked by the presence of Rei. Just before we turned the corner, I looked back and spotted a figure. Amon was standing on the roof of an adjacent building, staring at us through his painted mask, hand behind his back. It sent a shiver down my spine, but before I knew it, we rounded the corner and he was out of sight.
On the top of the building, Amon stood with his hands behind his back. The Lieutenant, his generator now removed and supported by two equalist on either side, commanded for the remaining guards to go after them, only to be stopped by Amon himself.
"Why? That's the Avatar!"
"I know, and she will be the perfect messenger to tell the people of my power," Amon replied, still staring at the corner where Naga had turned. "Just who are you," Amon muttered to himself, still thinking of that mysterious masked man who took down the Lieutenant.
Taking one last look at the corner, Amon walked away, musing to himself, "Whoever you are, I'm not going to let you foil my plans. The revolution must still go on."