No words can explain how much I regret the insane pause I have taken from this story and from writing in general. So I won't try.
Instead, I think a recap of the story so far is a good idea. We're almost at the end!
-:- -:- -:- RECAP -:- -:- -:-
-:- -:- -:- RECAP -:- -:- -:-
-:- -:- -:- RECAP -:- -:- -:-
As seen on the show, Korra challenges Amon to a fight on Aang Memorial Island - but loses, is captured and brought to the Equalists' main base, whose whereabouts are unknown to everyone but the Equalists.
The squad finds out what has happened and tries to locate the base and thus Korra, but to no immediate avail. Asami decides to use her relation to her father as a cover to go undercover as an Equalist trainee, pretending to fight for their cause. She is transported to the base where Korra is located and tries to find a way to blend in and free her friend.
Meanwhile, Amon puts Korra through hell and seems to find pleasure in torturing her in various ways – including sexual assault – which almost costs Korra her life when a severe fever hits her. Feeling a sense of ownership of her, Amon relocates her to his private chambers. The power struggle escalates and turns both sexual and physical.
Korra tries to escape when a shimmer of her bending has returned by mistake, but it fails. Asami, now having established some relations to the other trainees, sees Korra and is reminded of her goal.
As time passes by, Amon's obsession with Korra grows, and he fears that it might be something more than just lust. At the same time, he is conflicted about his plan to kill her in a final big ceremony, but decides that his plan is more important than whatever it is he is feeling for her.
Mako, Bolin and Tenzin continues their search for Korra. Mako finds a letter addressed to Amon during an invasion of one of the Equalist ceremonies, but forgets about it. He meets Amon in fight and realizes that the man is a blood-bender, but is knocked unconscious, and his life is spared.
Asami decides to play a dangerous game and manipulate Talan, an Equalist instructor who is crushing hard on her, to help her attend the final ceremony where Korra is supposed to be sacrificed (which Korra still doesn't know). At the same time, Mako, Bolin and Tenzin have progressed in their own plans and, too, plan on invading the ceremony to rescue Korra.
Feeling weak, Korra spends her time in confinement trying to reach her past lives and Aang to unlock her air-bending, but to no avail. Instead, she finds the strenght for one last escape attempt. She manages to break out of the base in the middle of the night, Amon at her heels. She throws herself off a cliff and into the ocean, accidentally knocking herself unconscious in the process. Amon uses his bending to save her life – his little secret – and he realizes that he might indeed be feeling something terrifyingly close to love for the Avatar. Thus he decides to relocate her to another base, away from him, until the big day arrives and she will be removed from his life forever.
-:- -:- -:- -:- -:- -:- -:- -:- -:- -:- -:- -:- -:- -:- -:- -:- -:- -:- -:- -:- -:- -:- -:- -:- -:- -:- -:- -:- -:- -:-
Chapter 27: Separation II
(Make sure to read the recap above!)
-:- -:- -:-
The communication device between the main base and the base which the Avatar had been relocated to had always been poor, but the morse code message informing him that she had arrived safely and there had not yet been any complications sent a jolt of relief through Amon.
The idea of separating himself and the Avatar had been a wise decision – not necessarily the one he preferred, nor enjoyed, but it would have been foolish of him to keep her close. He needed to cut the ties immediately, needed to return to a state of complete independence and control; back to the state of mind where he would rather see her dead and cold in the ground than alive and warm and naked by his side. Soon she would be gone permanently, and he was not sure how he would handle this fact if he carried on following this unhealthy path of attraction.
And unhealthy it was indeed. It had served as foundation upon which an uncontrollable obsession had sprouted. The images of her would not leave his system, and no matter how much he tried to keep himself satisfied, an insatiable hunger still burned within; a fire that only she could put out – but never for long, because it always returned to heat, burning even brighter than before, eating away at his sanity at even higher speed.
He hoped – oh, he so hoped – that this was the solution. He could not maintain this state of constant distraction. The hardest part had yet to come, and that shortly. At this point, he was not entirely convinced that he could even kill her as planned, and if he failed, everything he had worked to achieve, this empire he had managed to build through years of planning, persuading, manipulating, and fighting, it would all crumble beneath him and slip between his fingers like desert sand. That could not happen. Especially not because of one girl. She was not worth it. She could not be. He would not allow it.
The fact that, somewhere in the back of his mind, he sought to correct himself – that she was not a girl, but a woman, a remarkable one at that – it irritated him. It was not the important part. Determination was; determination that he so longed for, but could never entirely grasp and hold on to.
Growling in frustration, Amon rose to feet, approaching the window behind his desk to focus on something entirely different. But he soon found that the sight of the sea and the cliffs near the base reminded him of the accidents of yesterday, and how he had felt a gripping fear of losing her – not as a tool in his plans, but her as a person. And how he had risked revealing his true nature to the organization in order to save her life. It had been challenging enough already to make up a plausible story of how he had managed, single-handedly, to pull her out of the raging sea. Because of her he had been too close to creating suspicion in his allies, and now, with the final stage of his plans nearing, he needed them by his side more than ever.
Stubbornly, he kept telling himself that his actions the night before had not been personal; that it had been pure necessity keeping her alive. Had he not saved her, she would have drowned or perhaps been crushed against the cliffs, and while the entire Republic City – maybe even the whole world – knew that she was in his possession, it would mean that she had been killed in a state of suppression, that it had been unfair, and that the whole deal of "being equal" was not even respected by the main advocate for equality. It would weaken his case fatally, and the Avatar would become a martyr; a symbol of his cruelty, and an effective weapon against him.
But, despite this carefully constructed reasoning, he still knew, somewhere in the back of his mind, that his primary goal had not been to avoid her becoming a martyr, as he had been on the verge to lunge over the cliffs in order to hold her in his arms once again. No, his actions had an entirely different explanation whatsoever. And he could not ignore the insight, the knowledge of his own weakness. It was an unwelcome seed planted in the back of his mind, growing from his constant attention; a deep crack in the windshield, seeking to travel along the surface until the gentlest blow could make it all shatter in an instant.
The attraction, the confusion, the danger, the fear, the rage... All of it was consuming him. Drowning him. Strangling him. He needed air-
And thus, when suddenly somebody knocked on the door to his office, Amon saw the distraction as much needed liberation from his engulfing thoughts.
"What?" he voiced as the door swung open. Only when the Lieutenant huffed in surprise, Amon realized that he had snapped at him. Sighing, he let his shoulders drop from the tension – the inner chaos had kept his pose tight, his body stiff. He could not let anybody know that something was getting to him. That someone was getting to him.
"Simply informing you of the arrival of our long awaited order, sir."
A sudden wave of excitement washed in over the masked leader, the Avatar momentarily forgotten, as he headed out and downstairs to Hiroshi Sato, his loyal second-in-command following in his step. Any distraction as great as this was more than welcome these days.
-:- -:- -:- -:- -:-
Talan and Boban had found that Asami and Carmille worked quite well as permanent sparring partners, even though Carmille was four months of training ahead of Asami. Being pushed to the limit by the slightly older woman had turned out to be just what Asami needed to show steady progression in her fighting.
That, and Asami found that the constant challenge helped her to not think too much. She had gotten a deal with Talan, which had been her primary objective for the past week or so, and now that she knew he would help her sneak into Saturday's ceremony, she did not have to worry about that anymore. Instead she found the mere thought of him to be annoyingly distracting. Every time a movement would bring her in line of sight, and she caught a glimpse of the man, her stomach would flutter in delight; a feeling Asami would much rather be without. She did not have the time to feel such things. And she should not – she was, after all, merely taking advantage of their mutual attraction. It meant nothing in the end.
When the midday bell rang, Asami and every other person in the training hall except Talan and Boban was covered in sweat. The air was thick and heavy with perspiration, the temperature and humidity making everything worse. Normally, the majority of the soldier trainees would dry themselves off with a towel before heading for lunch, but not today. Just as Asami bent down to grab her water bottle, the double metal doors flung open, and someone proceeded inside.
"The Mecha Tanks have arrived!" the person exclaimed in a state of euphoric glee. Excitement erupted inside the hall, and Asami watched as people left in a hurry, normal procedure completely forgotten. Even Boban and Talan followed the crowd, not a single glance thrown back on their students.
With a heavy feeling inside, Asami realized what it meant. Her father would be there, making sure the delivery ran smoothly. And she could not let him see her. Surely, he would want to speak to his daughter, whom had recently joined his side in the war. Except that she really hadn't. And she did not feel like pretending to have forgiven him. He might even see through her plans to double-cross the Equalists, and then everything would have been in vain.
But, on the other hand, she could not not show interest either. Would it not be even more suspicious if she still tried to avoid her father, especially now that he was providing the Equalists with weapons that could help them win the war against benders?
She had to be there. But she would remain in the back, unnoticed by her father and the others.
And maybe it was not such a bad idea after all. If her father had redesigned the Mecha Tanks, she needed to know beforehand. It would be risky to relay on a Tank on Saturday if she no longer knew how to operate it.
A stream of ecstatic Equalists, young and old, led her through the hallway, passing the staircases and the common room on the way. They proceeded through the door to the garage, passing through the open garage door and stopping to join the already huge crowd just outside. Even Emima, the secretary, and Jayak, the old man in charge of the storage in the cellar, were present. One would think that these people had never seen a Mecha Tank before.
Which they probably haven't, actually, Asami corrected herself. How often had her father published special designs for the common population to purchase and use? War machines were for war only – always had been, always would be.
At the unwelcome sight of Amon and her father conversing by the delivery truck, Asami pulled back and decided to stand by the wall just inside. And soon the gap between her and the crowd was filled. It would not seem too suspicious as it was now, she concluded. She simply could not get through – not her fault.
As her father used a remote control to present one of the four Mecha Tanks, the gigantic metal super-suit being lowered to the ground, the crowd nearly screamed in ecstasy. It was an impressive sight, Asami had to admit, but it was wrong nevertheless. Her father was helping the wrong people.
One of the senior instructors were called forth by Amon and offered the honour of testing the first Tank. One of the engineers from Future Industry helped the Equalist into the suit, and once the suit was moving, the crowd was spell-bound. Except from Asami, of course, who seemed to be the only one noticing as her father picked up a box and gestured for Amon to follow him.
Frowning, Asami wondered what was in that box – something secret, clearly, and thus something possibly dangerous to herself and her friends. In a moment of desperation, she considered exiting the garage by the oddly repaired door next to her, but before she could do so, it was opened from the outside, and her father and Amon entered.
Shocked, Asami pressed herself into the crowd, just in front of enough Equalists to remain hidden from the sight of her father, stepping on several feet in the process. Weirdly enough, nobody really seemed to mind, as they were mentally engulfed by the metal monster in front of them.
The two men went to the far corner of the garage, partially hidden by cars and other Equalist vehicles provided by Future Industries – Asami recognized every single model, several somewhat new and more slightly older ones. How long had her father worked with Amon? Hopefully not when she herself had helped him out in her training to become the owner sometime in the future.
It soon occurred to her that she could neither see nor hear anything useful from her current position. If she wanted to know what her father had made specifically for Amon, she would have to move much closer. And the thought was nothing less than terrifying. One thing was having her father discover that her allegiance to the Equalists was fake, but in front of Amon...
No, she was not going near them.
But as it is now, I'm simply wasting time. Everybody's gathered out here to-
And then it struck her: Since everybody was out watching the delivery, there was nobody inside – except one person.
For some reason, the thought of sneaking around and breaking several rules seemed much more preferable to the welcoming show. Now would be the ideal time to grant access to the first floor, the forbidden area, unseen. The place Korra was being kept, momentarily unguarded.
Asami made sure to move quickly, but not like she was in a rush. She could not attract any attention. Not that she suspected that anyone would turn around and look at her anyway, seeing as there were much more exciting things to look at. But she had to make sure. She could not risk getting discovered. Not now, not this close to the final fight for freedom. This might very well be her one and only real chance to rescue her friend. How the great sacrificial ceremony would elapse was impossible to predict, after all.
Carefully disentangling herself from the clump of people, Asami kept a wary eye on her father and Amon at the farther end of the garage as she moved toward the door leading inside the base. Once inside, she stopped to listen, but there were no signs of life anywhere on the ground floor.
Alright, she thought. This does not seem that difficult. It might actually work somehow...
The steps leading upstairs creaked softly under her weight, just like they had done the few times she had been called into Amon's office. Once again she stopped to listen, but still no sound, except the ones she was causing herself.
When passing by the wide open door to the library, Asami became painfully aware that the librarian might actually still remain inside. As far as she could tell based on Larila's stories, the old man rarely left the rather modestly equipped library. And why would a man, obsessed by books, head down to look at a machine meant for fighting and destroying?
She made sure to tread carefully the next few metres to avoid making any unnecessary noise. When at a somewhat safe distance, Asami took a deep breath and looked at the door behind which Korra would be. This was almost unbelievably easy.
The final few paces were hard to do silently, but Asami finally reached the door to the broom closet. With a lightly shaking hand she grabbed the handle, and turned, not sure what to expect.
Unlocked, the door swung open easily, revealing a shadowy room. Empty, besides some shelves on one side and a bucket and a wooden mop in the corner. Empty. No Korra to see. She had come too late.
The disappointment, the anticlimax, the failure hit Asami so hard that she was left grappling with enormous and unexpected emotions washing in over her.
With tears in her eyes, she knelt by the door frame, starring blankly into the room. If Korra was not here, then where was she?
-:- -:- -:- -:- -:-
Hiroshi Sato was a passionate man when it came to his work. Whenever he would present Amon to one of his inventions, he would practically radiate pride and excitement. And although the older man could seem overwhelmingly merry from time to time, Amon had always felt a huge respect for him. He was brilliant and had every reason to be proud of his work.
And, more importantly, said brilliance had turned out to be extremely beneficial to the Equalists.
As Hiroshi placed the box on the work table at the far corner of the garage, Amon realized that this was no ordinary invention to him. The way he handled the box with utmost care and respect revealed that the contents were among the man's finest works to date according to himself. And Amon knew to trust the man.
"Truth be told," Hiroshi began, fingers working the clasps slowly, deliberately, "I wasn't sure this particular design would work out. Not after only a few weeks' work, anyway. But here it is, perfectly customized after your criteria."
Of course. If the brain behind Future Industries decided on something, he would make sure to reach his goal – either by himself or in company of carefully selected designers, inventors, and workers. Not much was too difficult for Hiroshi Sato, it seemed.
"I must say, I admire your dedication," Amon offered with a curt nod as Hiroshi revealed the technology inside the box. The man huffed delightfully and eased a black metal device out from amongst the shredded paper filling.
"Likewise," he replied, smiling. "Your work is revolutionary as well. I'm honoured to be able to assist you in creating this new society."
Pleasant formalities over, the two men turned to focus entirely on the new invention. The box turned out to contain two identical devices and a third, much larger one.
"These," Hiroshi began, gesturing for the two smaller designs, "are cameras. You install them wherever you want to supervise. They record twentyfour-seven, unless you turn them off. Once installed, only you can control them. For that you will need this screen. The buttons allow you to choose which camera you will be watching through on the screen. The buttons below allow you to turn the cameras on and off at any time. And, of course, this button is the on-off switch for the screen itself."
Impressed, Amon nodded thoughtfully. It was truly remarkable, this invention. The perfect espionage device – just as he had intended it to be, the day he had ordered it. His initial thought had been to supervise Asami somehow, seeing as he had always had doubts about her loyalty to the Equalists... but now that he was given two cameras, a more interesting idea formed in his mind – an idea that secretly made the corner of his lips curl upward.
"How do I install them?" he asked, taking one of the so-called cameras to inspect it gingerly between his fingers.
"Actually," Hiroshi smiled, letting his eyes scan the crowd of Equalists briefly before returning his attention to Amon, "I was thinking that my daughter could help you with that. You see, Asami used to show great fascination with our inventions before she befriended the Avatar, and I suspect that she must be missing working with it. She is surprisingly talented, you will find. She will figure the installation out in a blink of an eye."
Behind the porcelain facade, Amon's smile faltered. No. Asami should not be involved in any way, let alone know about the existence of this particular device. Not to mention that there was absolutely no way he would send her to the Avatar's location to install cameras. He would have to be extremely foolish to offer the Sato girl such a chance of betrayal. Even after several private talks with her, his gut and mind told him that she was not entirely on their side yet. Perhaps in a week's time, when there was no other side to fight for... But by that time he probably would not need the cameras anyway, seeing as his major point of interest would no longer exist.
"I see your point, and I agree it is important that your daughter maintains her interests and skills, especially if she is to be your successor one day, but having her leaving the base at this time is not a possibility. I have tight schedules for the next few days, and your daughter cannot be replaced."
Truth be told, the only plans he had for Asami was to keep her as far away from the ceremony as possible, but it was better to appeal to Hiroshi's great deal of father's pride if he were to convince the man to let go of his suggestion.
With arched brows, the older man nodded, visibly thoughtful, before he smiled in cooperation.
"Alright, I'll have Jonah take care of it instead. I'm sure I will get another chance to reconnect Asami to Future Industries soon enough."
"Indeed," Amon agreed, smirking in minor triumph behind his mask.
"Actually, if it is not too inconvenient," Hiroshi added hastily, "I would appreciate if you would tell Asami about this new invention of ours. Just when it is convenient for you, of course. I think she would appreciate the information; it is, after all, a revolutionary design for us."
"Of course," Amon replied, knowing fully well that it would not happen in the near future, if ever. But he had the feeling that Hiroshi would not rest until he knew Asami would be involved somehow. As long as the man felt content, Amon did not mind producing a white lie or two. "In fact, I think I might let her install one of the cameras anyway. I need one here and one in another base – is that possible?"
Hiroshi nodded, now smiling broadly.
"Perfect. I will give Jonah the address and instructions. It is not too far away, but the area is surrounded by forest. Will it still work, you think?"
"I expect no problems," Hiroshi assured him.
-:- -:- -:- -:- -:-
When finally Hiroshi and his workers had left the main base and Jonah had been sent east to the base where the Avatar was currently imprisoned, Amon sighed in relief and thoughtfully observed the Equalists slowly returning to their daily schedules. It was remarkable how a few new machines could lighten the general mood and excitement of his people. The atmosphere was ecstatic, euphoric almost, and he felt renewed energy surge through him as well.
Placing the screen and the remaining camera back in the wooden box, Amon decided to carry his new equipment upstairs to his office. He was not sure how long it would take the young man to install the camera at the other base, but he would be sure to have the screen ready for when it was done. He would not miss a thing – after all, he was sure it would be entertaining to observe the Avatar as she sought to figure out what the device was meant for. And when finally she found out, would she throw a fit or hide herself from view? How would she handle having her privacy taken away from her once again? Perhaps even smash the camera? His final thought made him frown, and he hoped that Hiroshi had made sure the devices were not too fragile.
When the stream of people had thinned out in the garage, Amon joined the remaining Equalists as they headed inside the main hallway. People were still too engrossed in excited conversation to notice the box their leader carried silently. In fact, he was not sure many of them had noticed his presence at all. A slight smile curved his lips upward. Those simple pleasures...
Then he looked down, and his smile widened. Simple pleasures, yes.
The stream of people passed the living room, obediently intent on resuming their training session for the day. After all, nobody had signed up for the Equalists unless they truly wanted to fight for the cause – and that included hard training. They would need it after the death of the Avatar, when the majority of the population would revolt against them, and the remaining benders were sure to attack or perhaps even try to flee Republic City.
Soon after the living room came the staircase leading upstairs, and Amon turned right and climbed, deep in thought. Once at the office door, he put the box down by his feet and rummaged though a pocket for the key, a sudden gasp catching his attention from the other end of the hallway. Turning to the source, Amon was mildly surprised to spot a familiar face.
Asami, apparently startled by his presence, quickly got to her feet while sliding a sleeve across her eyes, sniffing once.
Interesting, Amon noted, drinking in the details around her. It was not too hard to figure out what – whom – she had been looking for, however.
"You are not supposed to be here," he stated coldly, observing the girl intensely, ready to react should she try and run.
"I – uh...-" Asami began, fumbling, flabbergasted. While she fought to collect a chain of words that sought to convince him that she had only done a minor offense, Amon noted that he had never seen her like this – uncollected, unprepared. Very unlike her. He was not sure what she had expected, allowing herself be be caught red-handed committing treason, but he knew what price she would need to pay.
"I was just looking for my friend Larila," Asami finally tried, unsuccessful in remaining entirely calm. Utterly unconvinced, Amon let the key slide back into his pocket as he stepped towards her, determination and threat showing in his stride.
Every inch of Asami's posture displayed panic, and it seemed that she was debating with herself whether to barricade herself into the broom closet behind her, try and run past him, or simply surrender and hope for the better. No decision was taken by the time he reached her, however, and her expression simply reflected regret as she allowed him to grab her by the upper arm and lead her away.
"I am telling you the truth," she whispered, then quickly added "sir".
Amon remained silent as he continued dragging her toward the stairs.
"Please, I would never...-" she tried again, then suddenly settled for an entirely different approach: "I will tell my father about this, you know. I have done nothing wrong!"
A hidden smirk crept onto Amon's face as he concluded that Asami's stubbornness reminded him of her close friend. Then, as soon as the thought really had struck him, a frown overtook his features.
The rest of the way to the somewhat remotely placed prison cells was walked hastily without another word from either of them.
-:- -:- -:- -:- -:-
When Korra finally returned from the small bathroom connected to her new room, having rinsed the still sore cut on the side of her head and dabbed away the worst of the newly reactivated bleeding, she realized that someone had been there. On the bed awaited a reasonably sized cardboard box, its flaps sticking out, revealing that it had probably been rummaged through beforehand.
Dispassionately she approached the box, unsure what contents to expect, but finding that she really did not care about much anymore. Maybe it was the dull aching in her head talking, perhaps even the stiffness in her entire body – in any case she slowly carried herself over to said box and let herself dump down right next to it with a tired groan. Leaning in over the box, she half-heartedly scanned the contents. Clean linens for the bed, a few towels, a stack of dark clothes of unknown size and shape, toilet paper, soap, a toothbrush, toothpaste, and a few other necessities. Most of all it looked like a regular starter kit for newly employed trainees.
Nice, she thought dryly, allowing herself to lie down, legs sticking out over the edge of the mattress. So, how long exactly was she supposed to stay here? Despite the fact that the question was nearly impossible for her to know the answer to, it seemed far easier to figure out than the whole ordeal of why the hell she had been moved to an entirely new location. In the end, however, she found herself pondering about the latter question, just as she had done quite a few times already.
The timing told her that it could have something to do with her latest escape attempt. The fact that she had actually made it out of the building this time must undoubtedly have shaken the ground upon which Amon's confidence was built. On the other hand, she found that he had managed to orchestrate her transfer so quickly that she could not rule out the possibility that it had been his plan to relocate her all along. In any case, it still did not answer the question as to why he needed her shipped away like this. What were the benefits?
Perhaps he himself even resided in the very same building? Or he could be on his way? There was really no way for her to know just yet. Just because she had not seen him did not necessarily mean that he was not around. In fact, it would seem quite unwise to seperate the two of them when Amon had proved to be the one person capable of keeping her captured. Still, if he were truly there, it was strange that he had not shown his appearance yet. She knew that he so enjoyed threatening her with his mere presence; a pleasure he probably would not deny himself even now.
The thought of him being near sent an uncomfortable chill through her that she knew all too well already. But this time there was something more. Something... conflicted. She remembered the panic that had pumped through her veins vigorously and the feeling of hope in her chest as she had lunged herself over the edge of the cliff, freedom within reach. But she also remembered the flash of fear erupting inside of her once the icy water had washed in over her mere moments before the darkness had taken her. In that very moment, when the fear of drowning had engulfed her, somewhere in the back of her mind she had wished for him to save her. Because she knew that he was probably her biggest hope for survival right now – as well as her possible doom. No matter how messed up it was, his presence not only meant danger for her, but also some sort of safety. When he was around, she could be certain that nothing and nobody was allowed to hurt her – that privilege was reserved for him, and him only.
On the contrary, the thought of him also reminded her of how close she had been to finally getting away – and failing yet again. Another major defeat. Another reminder of how inadequate she was, of how powerless he had made her. And she hated how he had managed to strip away everything that once defined her. If her friends would ever manage to track her down, defeat Amon and the Equalists, and save her, there would not be much Korra left to save anyway.
Bullshit, she bit back. I won't allow him the satisfaction of having broken me. I am not broken!
Repeating the words a few times like a mantra, Korra steeled herself mentally, feeling how anger rose to heat her cheeks in the process – and, along with that, how another pounding headache started to bloom inside her skull.
Sneering, she pulled her legs up on the bed and wrapped her arms around them, letting her body fall to the side on the still bare mattress.
Slow, deep breaths. She had to calm down. In this state, when she was most likely suffering from a concussion, working herself up would only cause pain. Aching in her muscles or scrapes and cuts from her physical training never really bothered or hindered her, but it was a challenge to stay mentally balanced, in control and in contact of her spirituality when her head was pounding and spinning like this. In a state like this, she felt unnervingly vulnerable. She would have to rest for a bit to regain some of her power if she were to be ready for whatever awaited her.
-:- -:- -:- -:- -:-
Voices ripped her from sleep mere seconds before the door to her room swung open.
Reacting on instinct, Korra snapped to her feet to prepare herself for an attack, but stumbled back onto the bed dizzily, her hands fumbling to stabilize her into a sitting position and her eyes blinking rapidly to regain sharp sight.
She swore under her breath as she watched three persons enter the room. Surprisingly, only two of them were clad in the typical Equalist attire; the third was a man in his late twenties looking like any guy she would meet on the street in Republic City – except from the tool belt around his waist and the box he carried in his hands.
Much to her confusion, the man seemed just as surprised to see her as she him, and she swore she could determine the exact moment he recognized her as the Avatar.
"Uhm," the man began, looking at the nearest Equalist. "Is... is she going to be trouble?"
The Equalist, who must have drawn his kali sticks before even entering the room, weighed the weapon thoughtfully before turning to Korra.
"I wouldn't advise it".
Korra huffed and rolled her eyes at the tone of superiority. Those idiots truly did believe that those electrified sons-of-bitches would hold her back even if she decided to turn aggressive, did they not?
Give me a few days of rest to get my head straight, and I'll gladly take on those pieces of shit weapons you so like to wield, she purred in her mind.
Apparently satisfied with her lack of retaliation, the man nodded and turned to the Equalist once again.
"Where do you want this?"
The three assessed the walls and the ceiling in a moment of silence while Korra tried to decipher the nature of box in the stranger's hands. What were they talking about? Where did they want what exactly?
"I believe this corner would offer most intelligence," the second Equalist said, pointing to the corner above the wooden bookcase. The others nodded thoughtfully.
"Positioned to cover as much of the room as possible?" the stranger asked, now in a more muted tone, as if Korra wasn't supposed to hear too much. A few nods of agreement, and the man put the box down on the couch to unpack whatever hid inside.
As he worked to attach a black device to the selected spot, the Equalists watched Korra; one seated in the couch, one standing guard by the door.
"What are you doing?" Korra asked, testing waters. The man ignored her, but she was not ready to give up just yet: "There's no need to keep it a secret. I will figure it out anyway. You might as well just tell me now".
"Shut up," one of the Equalists said flatly.
"You know, I could just tear it down the second you leave this room," she continued, feeling the thrill of being uncooperative.
"I would like to see you try," the stranger mumbled, perhaps more to himself than her, which unnerved her a bit. She narrowed her eyes at him, feeling how the strain on her eyes caused a few throbs in her skull, but she ignored it.
"We already prepared for that," an Equalist added, inclining his head to the box on the couch, knowing fully well that Korra had no idea what he meant because she couldn't really see what was inside.
"I doesn't matter. I will figure it out," she bit back.
No more words were exchanged after that, and after about half an hour of drilling and hammering, the three left the room, leaving Korra to stare intensely at the device and the solid metal cage attached to the wall around it.
Every now and then, she would catch sight of a tiny red dot lighting up on the side of the device, signalizing something she could not quite figure out.