Korra was in a state. Su had taken both Wei and Wing in order to take out Kuvira in the night, which meant we had no choice but to go and face Kuvira in the morning knowing full well that peace was impossible. Kuvira had announced over the loudspeaker that she had captured Su and her sons, and that she would only refrain from taking action against the rest of Zaofu's citizens if they surrendered to her. With the situation as it was, it was decided that Korra, myself, Jinora and Opal would go down to face Kuvira at dawn as she requested, whilst everyone else stayed safe within Zaofu.
"Stay hidden Fang. Don't let them see you." I murmured to him as he walked beside me on our way down to face Kuvira. He growled softly then melted away from sight, but I could still feel him close to me and I smiled as his spirit essence nuzzled against my cheek before I focused on the task ahead. Kuvira had her entire army out in force, with Su and her sons locked in platinum cages to keep them from escaping, like a full body of armour which only allowed their heads to be seen. When we came to a halt, Opal yelled across to Kuvira with the Beifong ferocity.
"Release them now!"
"If Su agrees to bow to me and turn over Zaofu, she and the rest of your family will not be harmed." Kuvira promised coldly but Su refused, vowing that she would never bow to Kuvira.
"There must be some way for us to resolve this." Korra reasoned, trying to be a mediator but Kuvira wanted nothing to do with peace. She wanted to fight and conquer, she'd become addicted to the taste of victory and now it was all she wanted.
"I've already laid out my terms, and I think they're very reasonable. After all, Su did try to take me out during our peaceful negotiations."
"You call bringing an army to threaten our city peaceful?!" One of the twins, Wei, demanded darkly but Kuvira ignored him as Opal shook her head then scanned the frontlines for her boyfriend.
"Where's Bolin? I know he would never go along with this!"
"Bolin is with my fiancé, working on something very important, but I assure you he's on board with my plans. You two have been apart for some time. I guess you don't realize how much Bolin has grown up." Opal grit her teeth at Kuvira's taunting before the woman frowned at us deeply. "Now turn over Zaofu."
"I can't just let you take the city!"
"Avatar Korra, you are interfering with internal Earth Empire business and letting your personal feelings get in the way of reason. Zaofu cannot continue to rule itself. They have been hoarding their riches and technology too long. I'm here to distribute those resources fairly throughout the nation. This is about equality." Kuvira announced to us all, making me clench my fists at her lies. How could people be so blind and deaf when Kuvira spouts off nonsense like this?
"You don't care about equality! This is about control!" Opal shouted before turning to Korra. "Just take her down. You know it's the right thing to do. You have to stop this!"
"Kuvira!" I shouted to her, taking a step forwards and slicing out my hands. "Your power trip has gone on long enough. I am not going to stand by and allow you to dominate your will over someone else's! I more than anyone know what it's like to be in control of someone else, to have absolute power that they cannot break away from, but that does not give you the right to enforce it upon everyone you meet! If you do this, then I swear to you. I'm not going to hold back." Kuvira responded to me without fear, my warning and threat clearly not affecting her.
"The only way you're going to keep me from marching into Zaofu is if you physically stop me. Now what are you going to do?"
"It looks like you're not giving me a choice." Smirking as if she had already won, Kuvira agreed before turning around to face her army.
"Fine. I want you all to know that I would never ask any of you to do something that I'm not willing to do myself. So rather than risk your lives, I will fight the Avatar one on one." She announced, using it as an opportunity to bolster her popularity even more. "Korra, if you win, then you can do whatever you want with Zaofu, but after I beat you, I want you out of my business for good. I'm the one who brought peace to the Earth Empire, not you. You're not relevant here anymore." That pissed me off.
"Go give her hell, Korra. Smack that smirk right off her face." I growled, punching my fist against my palm as Korra nodded her head before shouting back to Kuvira.
"Fine. You want to fight the Avatar? Then let's finish this right here, right now!" Jinora looked up with worry.
"Are you really ready to fight her?"
"Just stay back and let me handle this. It's been a while, but I got a lot of pent up rage." Korra assured us all though Opal still gave her a warning.
"Don't mess around. Kuvira is too good. Just go into the Avatar State and get it over with."
"No, I'm only going to use that as a last resort. Jinora and I warned her to be careful before we watched Korra loosen herself up, cracking her neck before she got into a fighting stance so the rest of us backed up, knowing that we couldn't get in the way or interfere.
"Use whatever you want, all the elements, the Avatar State, anything you need. I know you're a little rusty." Kuvira said snidely, making Korra snap back.
"Enough talk." Going with her favoured element, Korra punched with two fire blasts at Kuvira in order to attack first, testing the water. Kuvira was great at dodging, and she was as skilled a fighter as Opal said. If she weren't the enemy I would be impressed with her fighting style and how she was able to hold her own against Korra even with all four elements coming at her. In fact, Korra seemed a lot slower than usual. Within the first few blows Korra got a rock to the stomach, doubling her over and she lost her footing as Kuvira then used two metal bands to take hold of her wrist and ankle, which she used to throw Korra through the air.
"Looks like the Avatar is a little off her game." Kuvira taunted as Korra dragged herself back upright.
"Don't let her get you frustrated! She wants you to make a mistake!" Opal yelled constructively to Korra. My best friend then switched from fire bending to earth bending, sending a wave of rocks underneath Kuvira who rolled out of the way and flipped backwards as Korra followed up with a blast of air bending. For a while there was a lot of give and take, both of them holding their own but I knew Korra too well, and I could see her rapidly deteriorating. She was still not fully recovered from three years ago, and having only just gotten the poison out of her system…I should have given her a healing session. She won't last long in this condition.
No matter how hard Korra fought, Kuvira continued to gain the upper hand and soon enough it was clear she was losing. "Come on, Avatar. Get up! Show me what you've got."
"We have to help her." Opal said to Jinora and I but we both held her back before she could interfere, Korra also telling her to stay back as she got back onto her feet. I'll hand it to Korra, no matter how many times she gets knocked down, she'll always stand back up. Soon Kuvira was just toying with Korra, making her miss her shots and pretty much ensuring her victory. Su yelled for Korra to go into the Avatar state, and I think that really was the only way for Korra to win this by this point.
The bright glow soon shone and Korra who thrust out her hands at Kuvira who had been coming at her from above, throwing her back towards her soldiers with a powerful blast of air. Korra was near enough in a complete blind rage, striking at Kuvira again with another air blast. She rose into the air, pulling two rocks with her as Korra focused on Kuvira, but before she could land the blow something made Korra snap back out of the Avatar state, making her fall to the ground with a yell, seeming weak and fragile.
"I don't understand. We got the poison out. What's wrong with her?" Jinora questioned in confusion as I tensed up all over, seeing Kuvira starting to stand.
"The kind of damage Korra's been through…it's not just physical. I think it's psychological as well. This isn't good." Kuvira stood before Korra, towering over her and snidely told her that she knew Korra was weak. I tensed further. Kuvira used metal bands around Korra's wrists to raise her up into the air in order to slam her back into the ground, before then raising her up to entomb her body in stone. Seeing that Korra was in real danger, I decided not to hold back anymore, making a motion to Opal and Jinora to get ready as Kuvira made a weapon from her metal armour from around her arms.
The two air benders by my side both blasted Kuvira with air as I ran forwards, calling out as I did. "Fang! Get Korra!" He appeared beside me, great and shining blue as he howled and leaped, covering the distance in just one jump as his wispy tail whirled and smacked against Kuvira, tossing her away before she could recover before Fang then used his tail to curl around Korra, breaking the stone to then put her up onto his back as she remained unconscious.
"You broke our agreement! Attack!" Kuvira ordered her soldiers forwards as I skid to a halt, now close enough to fight. I pulled water from the air, directing my hands forwards before I then snapped them back in a sharp motion which caused the water to freeze into numerous ice spikes which I then sent shooting down at the army and Kuvira, forcing them to block and defend themselves. Meanwhile, Jinora and Opal began to bend a tornado around us as Fang retreated with Korra, keeping her safe for me as I started to fight against Kuvira.
She was just as strong as she seemed, bending rocks and metal at me but I was fast, much faster than Korra had been just not. Neatly sliding over the floor I pulled water from the grass and earth before using it to fight, keeping Kuvira busy as Jinora projected her spirit to ask her siblings for help. "You will submit!" Kuvira bellowed at me as we continued to fight, getting closer to her so that I could finally reach her.
"You do not command the world, Kuvira, and you'll soon be ripped down from your high tower!" I yelled back before jabbing her in her pressure points in one arm, making her cry out as I took away her bending momentarily with chi blocking. Seriously, I am so glad I took those classes. Kuvira was too shocked to even protect her other arm, so once she was totally defenceless I flung up my arms to give myself momentum, lifting myself up into the air before I swung my body around with a twist and slammed both feet against her chest with as much force I could muster, throwing her back. Too bad I hadn't offered to fight for Korra, but I knew Kuvira wouldn't accept a defeat from me. She'd have just ordered her army to march on Zaofu anyway, with or without bending.
In fact, I'm not too sure she would have kept her word had Korra beaten her anyway. By this point Meelo and Ikki had arrived with Pepper, Meelo yelling wildly. "Dive, Pepper! Dive! Here comes a hurricane!" I rushed back towards Pepper and quickly grabbed Korra off Fang as he lowered his back for me, allowing me to lift her up with one arm around her back and the other under her knees. She'd lost weight, she's not as muscular as she used to be.
"Good job Fang, come with us!" I instructed and he quickly shifted into his spirit essence form, coming with me as I climbed into Pepper's sadly and held Korra as she groaned, looking exhausted and hurt whilst my cousin blasted back the mecha-tanks as they started to move towards us.
"You can't handle all this Meelo!" My cousin was so nuts, I love him. After thumping against his chest, Meelo came back when his sister called for him so he returned to the reins and got Pepper into the air who dodged hooks and lines from below that tried to catch her, taking us up into the air.
"We have to save them!" Opal cried out, looking down at her mother and brothers but Su called back to her.
"Opal, get out of here! We'll be fine! Just go!" Starting to cry, Opal leaned over the side of the saddle as Pepper carried us further away.
"I'll be back for you! I love you!"
"Don't worry Opal." I said to her as I held Korra in my arms, using water to give her some healing. "We need more help, but we'll get your family back. We'll get your aunt Lin and everybody else who can help us. We'll have a better plan once we know what we've got on our side." I assured her as she sobbed and cried against me. "For now, let's just get Korra to safety. She's in bad shape."
"So, we're going home?" Ikki asked me so I looked at her, already having a sinking feeling in my gut.
"Yeah Ikki. It's time we all went home."
