Republic City; Reylea
3rd person POV...
Things in Republic City have been relatively normal ever since the Anti-Bending Revolution ended. And with Team Avatar and the police department continuing their strikes against all of the different criminals and gangs in the city, crime has been dwindling. People feel a lot safer and more comforted, and nonbenders especially don't have to worry as much about the bending triads extorting them for yuans.
Still, that doesn't mean crime is gone.
It's the middle of the day, a time where nobody would think anyone would dare attempt suspicious activity. Yet the window on one of the skyscrapers standing next to a bank is blown open by two criminals inside, both of them wearing clown masks. Dopey, the thug next to the window, gestures to his partner, Happy, who pulls out a hook attached to a thin cable. He hands it over, and Dopey looks out at the building beside them for a moment, and then uses metalbending to shoot the hook over to the bank.
Nearby, down in the streets far below, a single man stands at the edge of a curb: Bozo. He's in a simple gray jacket and gray pants, with a large empty bag slung over his shoulder. He continues to stand completely still, looking down at the ground with his messy green hair partially obscuring his face. In his hand he's holding a clown mask of his own by his side, which is shifted into a scowl.
A van comes to a screeching stop on the corner, and Bozo pulls his mask on and jumps inside quickly, allowing the van to drive off again. He starts to check his blaster, making sure it's working properly. All of the clowns on this heist have a blaster of their own, thanks to their benefactors.
"Three of a kind, let's do this," the clown at the wheel, Grumpy, says.
"That's it? Three guys?" the third clown, Chuckles, asks in confusion.
"Two guys on the roof. Every guy gets a share, five shares is plenty," Grumpy states.
"Six shares. Don't forget the guy who planned the job," Chuckles reminds him.
"He thinks he can sit it out and still take a slice," he scoffs.
"I know why they call him the Joker," Chuckles replies sarcastically.
Up above the streets, Dopey and Happy both attach their hooks to the metal line and jump out of the window, sliding down the cable to the roof of Republic National Bank. They drop off onto the roof and quickly scramble to their feet, collecting their bags and rushing over towards an electrical breaker. As they stop by it and start working on getting their tools out to break in, they start up conversation.
"So why do they call him the Joker?" Happy asks.
"I heard he wears make-up," Dopey replies.
"Make-up?" he asks, smashing open the access panel.
"Yeah, to scare people. Y'know, war paint," he replies.
Back down on the ground, the van pulls up to a stop in front of Republic National Bank, and the three clowns quickly get out and make their way inside. All three carry empty bags and, being nonbenders, have blasters with them as well; Grumpy has a semi-automatic gun. Chuckles however is an earthbender, and therefore doesn't need a gun.
Running inside past the Bank Manager's Office, Grumpy starts shooting his blaster into the air to create a loud and frightening sound. The Bank Manager looks up, and people start to scream as the criminal clowns rush into the bank, quickly taking control. A security guard whips around at their entry, but Chuckles quickly stomps his foot and shoots a pillar of earth into the guards chin, knocking him out. Bozo and Grumpy make their way forwards with their blasters raised all customers and employees alike.
"Alright everybody, hands up heads down!" Grumpy orders. "I said hands up heads down!"
Bozo places his bags onto a table while Chuckles works with Grumpy at the front of the bank to round up the people. One of the tellers raises his hand fearfully as Grumpy approaches with his gun.
"No, please!" he pleads.
"Let's go pal I'm making a withdrawal here!" Grumpy snaps, yanking him over the side and onto the ground.
Another teller quickly moves her hand down to press a small button on the side of her desk, but Chuckles notices and moves over in her direction.
"I said hands up!" he exclaims.
He yanks the woman over the side of the desk and onto the ground, shoving her against the wall while she screams fearfully. He and Grumpy get all of the customers and employees rounded up, forcing them to crouch on the ground against the sides of the desks, their hands completely in view. Having checked all of the bags, Bozo slips them onto his shoulders and starts making his way around, handing people grenades and pulling the pin.
Up top, Happy works at the electrical panel to disable the alarm, grinning underneath his mask.
"Here comes the silent alarm… and there it goes," he says triumphantly before frowning. "That's funny, it didn't dial out to the police it was trying to reach a private number."
"Is it a problem?" Dopey asks, quietly raising his arm.
"No I'm done here-" Happy replies.
Before he could finish his sentence, Dopey uses his metal bending to shoot out a hidden piece of metal underneath his sleeve. The metal punctures through Happy's back and cuts through his spine, directly through his heart; he's dead before he realizes it. Without any time to waste, Dopey grabs the tool bag and rushes for the stairwell, making his way down into the bank for the vaults.
Having already known the layout of the bank, he reaches the vault very easily and gets to work. Since the vault door is made of platinum, he's unable to metal bend it, and instead uses a special drill to start cutting through. As he works on cutting through, a sudden electrical spark from the drill has him collapsing on the ground with a startled cry.
Back in the bank, Bozo continues to distribute the grenades to all of the hostages while Chuckles keeps the security guards subdued. Grumpy stands in the middle of the room and looks around, his blaster raised in warning.
"Obviously we don't want you doing anything with your hands other than holding on for dear life," he states.
On the other side of the room, the Bank Manager slowly sits up in his chair and takes off his glasses, staring at the clowns with dull, angry eyes. He focuses his gaze on the clown closest to him, Chuckles, who smacks his arm down on the back of a security guard, causing him to collapse with a grunt of pain.
"On the ground, stay on the ground!" Chuckles yells. "Nobody make a move! Nobody!"
Without a moment to waste, the Bank Manager makes a few gestures with his fingers and then points them out at Chuckles. A powerful streak of lightning breaks through the glass of his office and strikes Chuckles in the back. He lets out a scream of pain as he's fried by the lightning, and then falls to the ground dead.
Bozo and Grumpy look over in surprise and quickly rush for cover as the Bank Manager gets up, storming over to them with a furious gleam in his eyes. The Manager looks over to where Bozo hid, and thrusts his fingers out again. Bozo ducks as the lightning explodes against the desk he was hiding behind, and he quickly rushes over to the next desk. More lightning strikes follow after him, but Bozo manages to just barely stay covered by the desks he runs behind, eventually reaching the last desk with Grumpy. Customers let out screams of fear every time a lightning strike gets to close.
"You have any idea who you're stealing from?! You and your friends are dead!" the Bank Manager yells.
"He needs a few seconds, right?" Grumpy asks quietly.
Bozo looks up into the air thoughtfully for the moment, and then quickly nods his head. Standing up, Grumpy raises his blaster in preparation to shoot, but the Bank Manager unleashes another shot of lightning that badly strikes against his shoulder, causing him to grunt in pain.
"Ah! What the-" he groans in surprise, ducking back down.
Having known the proper time difference between a lightning bender's shots, Bozo lunges out before he could react and raises his blaster, quickly shooting a barrage of red lasers that impacts against the Bank Manager. He stumbles for a moment in pain, and the collapses onto the ground with a quiet groan. Bozo silently observes the Manager with a tilt of his head, and Grumpy gets up in bewilderment.
"Where did you learn to count?!" he asks incredulously.
Bozo looks back at Grumpy, but doesn't answer.
Back with Dopey in the vault, he's close to cutting through the door, although the electrical discharge from the door that shocked him still has him bewildered. Grumpy then runs in with the bags, getting them all set for collecting the money.
"The wire just sent out like several thousand volts. What kind of bank does that?" he asks.
"Mob bank," Grumpy states, giving a small chuckle of understanding. "I guess the Joker's as crazy as they say. Where's the alarm guy?"
"The boss told me when the guy was done I should take him out," Dopey replies, unlocking all of the vault mechanisms. "One less share right?"
Grumpy pulls out his blaster, a small smile on his face. "Funny. He told me something similar."
Dopey stills in his movements, his eyes going wide with fear.
"Wh- what? No, no!" he cries out, whipping around.
Grumpy aims his blaster at Dopey and shoots him down without a care. Standing up, he opens the vault door and rushes in with his bags, where heaps of yuans lie sitting on their tables, all wrapped up neatly. Grumpy throws one of his bags down and rushes up to a pile, grabbing armfuls and shoveling it into his bag gleefully. Once all of the bags are filled, he brings them back up into the lobby, where Bozo helps him drag all of the bags into a single pile by the doors.
"That's a lot of money," Grumpy remarks. "If this Joker guy was so smart he'd have us bring a bigger car."
Bozo then hears the sound of a blaster being loaded, and slowly turns around to see Grumpy aiming his gun at him.
"I'm betting the Joker told you to kill me as soon as we loaded the cash," he states with narrowed eyes.
Bozo sighs, lifting his arm up to check the watch on his wrist.
"No, no no no, I kill the bus driver," he says.
Bozo starts to slowly step to the side, and Grumpy follows him with his blaster raised, a frown on his face. Bozo continues to turn, making it so that Grumpy is standing directly in front of the doors.
"Bus driver?" Grumpy demands. "What bus driver?!"
Moments later, the door wall explodes open as the back of a Republic City school bus bursts its way through. Grumpy only has a moment to look behind him in shock before the bus slams into him, knocking him several feet away on his back. His skull was hit by the bus, leaving him dead the moment he hits the floor. The bus driver then gets out of the back and rushes over to the bags, glancing for a moment at Grumpy.
"School's out, time to go," he says in amusement. "That guy's not getting up is he?"
Bozo starts grabbing the money bags and tossing them over to the bus driver, who in turn tosses them into the bus.
"That's a lot of money," he comments, tossing another bag in.
Bozo hands him the last bag to put into the bus, and then looks around the bank to see if anymore are still around.
"What happened to the rest of the guys?" the bus driver asks, confused.
Without responding, Bozo simply raises his arm behind him and shoots a few well-placed shots, not even batting an eye. He walks over and collects the last few bags, tossing them into the bus. As he climbs up in preparation to leave, a voice ringing out gets his attention.
"You think you're smart huh? The guy that hired you… he'll just do the same to you," the Bank Manager states with a mocking laugh, despite his pain. Bozo lowers his head before making his way over, pulling something out from his belt. "Oh, criminals in this town used to believe in things. Honor, respect! Look at you. What do you believe in huh? WHAT DO YOU BELIEVE IN-?!"
The Bank Manager is interrupted as Bozo crouches in front of him and sticks a grenade into his mouth, muffling his voice.
"I believe, whatever doesn't kill you simply makes you…" Bozo says, pulling off his mask. "…stranger."
The Bank Manager widens his eyes in fear as the face that stares at him from behind the mask is none other the Joker himself. Joker glances around curiously for a moment, and then gives him a wild smirk, disappearing in an instant. He watches him go with wide eyes, noticing a string around the pin on his grenade that is attached to the Joker.
Joker pulls a card from his pocket and then slaps it down onto a nearby table, humming to himself. He looks at his blaster for a moment and then collects Grumpy's weapon, tossing them both into the school bus. He climbs up right after, closing the door behind him and locking it.
As the school bus starts off, pulling the string with it, the Bank Manager tenses up fearfully in preparation for the worst. However when the pin on the grenade is pulled, what comes out instead isn't an explosion, but is rather just a plume of smoke.
Air Temple Island; Republic City
Caron POV…
A cool breeze blows through the morning air, and the sun lightens up the open courtyard. I would be able to enjoy it more if I wasn't burdened with everyone's favorite task: studying. Sitting against one of the short walls by the forest, I'm reading from a book Tenzin recently gave me. In it is the list of things that Jarik left behind for me to study up on, something I'm not too thrilled to be doing at the moment.
"At least it's not the White Lotus," I grumble to myself. "Ok, ok. Stretching out with the Force…"
Standing up, I glance at the book again and then get into a calm stance, arms at my sides. I take a breath and start to focus, closing my eyes as I let the Force fill me.
Sudden movement from somewhere distracts me, and I open my eyes to look around where I could sense it, frowning in confusion. The leaves of a large bush are swaying, but quickly settle back down. Shrugging to myself, I go to continue my training when I sense even more movement. Whipping around, I narrow my eyes suspiciously and stretch out with the Force, only to pull back in exasperation upon sensing a familiar presence nearby.
"Hah hah, nice try Korra," I scoff, rolling my eyes. "You can't sneak up on me, remember."
I then lunge towards the wall and look over with a smirk, intending on scaring her in kind. However the only sight that greets me is Naga, sniffing through the dirt with her body low to the ground. She looks up at the sight of me and wags her tail. I raise an eyebrow in response, humming to myself.
"Huh. Hey Naga," I say, petting her snout. "Guess I mistook you for Korra."
Naga purrs happily and licks my hand before resuming her search through the dirt. I roll my eyes at her in amusement, and then turn around to continue my studying. What greets me instead is the sight of Korra hovering inches away from my face, readying to pounce with a wide grin on her face.
"Hey squirt!" she shouts.
"Wha-!"
I'm unable to say anything other than a surprised shout before Korra tackles me over the wall like a deranged lunatic. We hit the dirt and go tumbling over over each other, eventually sitting upright underneath the trees. Korra is on me instantly, hugging me tight to her chest to pin my arms, and then wrapping her legs around me so I couldn't escape. She then starts giving me a fierce noogie, much to my bewilderment and annoyance.
"Gah! Monkey-feathers!" I shout, desperately trying to shove her arm away. "What the heck Korra?!"
"Still think I can't sneak up on you?" she teases gleefully, rubbing her knuckles over my head.
I finally manage to get one arm free and try shoving her arm away so that she would stop messing with my head.
"Ok ok I get it, you win!" I exclaim irritably.
"Ha! In, your, face!" she declares, resting her chin on top of my head and crushing me with her arms. I wince at her tight grip, doing my best to shove her off.
"Ow! Hey! Come on, stop! I was in the middle of something!" I protest, squirming defiantly.
"Seriously? I could hear you grumbling to yourself across the courtyard," she retorts.
"Alright, sure," I admit reluctantly. "But shouldn't you be training with Tenzin?"
"I'm already done. Now I've got free time!" she replies.
"Wouldn't you want to spend that time with your boyfriend?" I ask her.
"Nah, he's busy today. Besides, this just give me all the time in the world to spend with my dear baby brother!" she cooes.
Korra squeezes me tighter against her, a smirk on her face while I just sulk, slumping in her grip with a glum expression.
"Great…" I mutter.
A sudden bark off to the side gets our attention, and we both look over to see Naga staring at us, tongue out happily and wagging her tail. Our faces morph into looks of horror as she makes her way over to them at a trot.
"Way to go sis," I deadpan.
"Ok… this one's on me," Korra amends meekly.
The door opens to reveal both Korra and I just outside, standing stiff with our shoulders slumping, glum expressions on our faces. Luon starts to make his way outside before stopping, his eyes widening at the sight of us.
"Oh... hey guys. You look..." he says slowly.
"Like we were mauled by a polar bear dog?" Korra offers dryly.
"...yeah, I guess," he finishes.
It's true: our hair is all messed up and scraggly, some areas matted with Naga's wet drool. Korra's hair bands were taken off in the scuffle, leaving her hair completely down without her trademark wolftail style. Our clothes look like we've been rolling around in the dirt, and our faces are glistening with more drool. After Naga caught us completely unawares, we were caught in one of her playful sessions, and she just wouldn't let either of us get far.
"You can thank my sister for that," I state, punching her arm.
"How was I supposed to know she would do that?" she protests, not even fazed by the punch.
"You used her to distract me!" I retort, groaning.
"I'm sorry, what happened?" Luon asks in bewilderment.
"Nothing!" we both say at the same time.
"I'm going to take a shower," Korra states, marching forwards.
"No, I get dibs!" I reply, rushing ahead.
"What?!"
"You're the one who tackled me and got us into that mess!"
"Hey, I've had a very busy week ok? Tenzin is training me nonstop!"
"Well isn't that something new?!"
Luon watches us blow right past him, staring at us like we were crazy. I suppose we probably were... well at least Korra is. Tackling me like that in the middle of my studying?!
...
Ok not that I enjoy studying, but still!
"Uh, I'm gonna head to the Pro-bending area now... Butakha needs a few hands," he tells us.
"Alright, see you later! Remember we got more crime busting with Team Avatar tonight!" Korra calls out.
"Got it!" he replies, walking away.
"I'm showering first!" I declare, sprinting forwards.
"Wha- hey!" she protests, running after me.
Republic City Hall; Reylea
3rd person POV...
"Senator Raiko, in regards to the recent Anti-Bending Revolution what are you plans to help the city recover?"
"I'm glad you asked that Mr. Hyak," Raiko replies with a nod. "The Anti-Bending Revolution is a prime example of how things can go wrong in what would otherwise be considered a utopia for democracy and freedom for all without prejudice. In order to repair the damage that was done, we must first look to strengthen the relationships between our people, whether they be benders or nonbenders."
"And as for the economic concerns? Lots of companies tied to the Equalists have been put out of business, and many have lost jobs," Mr. Hyak says.
"The city's economy is running poorly right now for sure. But with the right plans we can certainly change that, especially amongst the poor and middle classes," Raiko states. "It's important to help create new jobs, so that money can once again flow through Republic City's streets-"
"Pardon me Senator Raiko, if I may?" Senator Shuno interrupts from across the debate stage. "I don't necessarily feel that a loss of jobs is the only reason the lower classes are suffering."
"How so?" Raiko questions.
"Something that is important to point out is the issue of crime," Shuno declares firmly. "Even before the whole Revolution, the government was in shambles. Bending Triads were able to gain whole swaths of territory right under the law, and politicians turned a blind eye to all of that. They extort the poor and average citizen on these streets, and they're allowed too because we haven't been tough enough on it. These criminals also play a big role in anti-bending sentiment. If we're going to fix these problems, then we first need to focus on flushing the United Republic of these criminals!"
A round of applause stems from the audience after Senator Shuno's remarks, and the moderators continue with their questions.
"Senator Shuno, you say that the root of the problem comes from the Bending Triads," Mr. Hyak comments, and he nods his head. "What is your view of Team Avatar bringing the fight to these criminals, and the arrival of this alien known as Jarik Shan?"
"I have no problems with them. They're working hard to take out these criminals, and do so alongside Chief Beifong and her police force," Shuno replies.
"Are you at all concerned about the possible dangers Jarik Shan could represent?" Mr. Hyak asks.
"Of course. There are things to be worried about, especially since we have no knowledge of what's beyond our atmosphere," Shuno says in agreement. "However we have our own issues with Force users that are proven to be a real threat to our people. They have powers we've never seen before, so we need support more than ever. Jarik Shan has offered to teach Caran what he needs to know, something we desperately need as we go further into the unknown."
"Senator Raiko, your thoughts?"
"Thank you Mr. Hyak. Senator Shuno, you bring up an excellent point there in regards to Jarik Shan and these Force users," Raiko comments. "With the rise of the Messenger and these so-called 'Knights of Ren,' it's important to have allies who we can depend upon to help us combat them. I admit I hold my own reservations about the truth of alien life beyond our atmosphere, and about Jarik Shan. But if we turn away people just because they're not like us, even like these drastic circumstances, then how can we call ourselves a fair and equal society, in the United Republic of Nations?"
The audience claps in response to Senator Raiko's words, and the debate continues on.
Tenzin watches from the side of the room as both candidates state their own viewpoints and ways of running the government, trying to get a sense of them. It seems as if the debate could run on with no end in sight, as both candidates seem equally loved by their supporters. It's hard to tell right now who will eventually be elected President.
Republic National Bank; Republic City
Lin walks through the hallways toward the vault with Saikhan at her side, observing the crime scene. Several officers and investigators are working on analyzing the scene and finding any clues or evidence towards what exactly happened.
"Reports confirmed that six people took part in robbing the bank, but only one walked out alive," Saikhan tells her.
"The Bank Manager? He is a registered lightning bender," Lin suggests the reason.
"No. Only one of them was hit by lightning. Autopsy shows that one was impaled by a piece of metal, another from serious head injury. The rest were killed by gunfire," he reports. "Another card was left here."
Lin comes to a stop and turns around with a look of surprise at the information on the criminals, and takes the card from Saikhan. She observes it for a moment and then shakes her head, looking up at him with a scoff.
"Well we know the Joker can resist showing himself," she remarks, frowning. "The question is, why would he kill his own men?"
"I'm not sure," Saikhan replies.
"Can the Bank Manager tell us what really happened?" she questions.
"No. He's dead now too."
"What? He was taken to the hospital!" Lin states firmly.
"The doctors came back in for another check-up, only to find him dead," Saikhan informs her grimly. "Stab wound, right in the neck."
Lin remains silent for a moment and processes the information.
"This is a Triad Bank," she realizes, chuckling without any humor. "This bank is run by the Bending Triads."
"Are you sure?"
"It makes sense. The Joker's main targets have been the Bending Triads. This bank stored some of the Triad's money, and the Manager failed to protect it. Failure in a gang typically leads to that result," she explains, referring to the Manager's death.
"Should we close down the bank?" he asks her.
"Get a proper investigation going, find proof, and then do exactly that," she confirms with a nod. "If a bank as large as this one is under the control of the Triads, I want to know just how many more are theirs."
"I'll get a team on it right away," Saikhan says.
He walks away and leaves the vault while Lin remains, looking around the scene more. On his way out, Saikhan passes by Tenzin, who had just entered the vault. They give each other a nod before he approaches Lin, who merely shows him the Joker card.
"Him again?" Tenzin asks. "Who are the others.
"Just a few small timer thugs," she replies. "I may need to get Caran on the case though."
"What makes you say that?" he asks her.
"This is a Triad Bank," she reveals. "I need to find out just how many more banks our under their control. If we can take away their money, then their operations will fall apart."
"That is a big opportunity, and also troubling," Tenzin remarks thoughtfully. "The Triads couldn't have gotten hold of a bank as large as this recently. This just shows their corruption is much deeper than we ever thought. What about the Joker?"
"One man or all of the Triads? I'm afraid he'll have to wait. They've been mixing their dirty yuans right under my nose," Lin states with a scowl, crossing her arms. "How was the presidential debate?"
"It's hard to tell at this stage, but I can see why they so easily swept any other candidate out of the race," he informs her. "They both make excellent talking points."
"Who's your preference?" she asks.
"I'm not sure yet," he admits. "I'd imagine you'd support Senator Shuno without question.
"Oh?" she comments, raising an eyebrow.
"He's very big on wanting to solve the issue of corruption in the city, and putting these Triad gangs behind bars."
"That is someone I would support," she admits with a nod. "Do you trust them?"
"I'd like to. I'm just hoping both of them aren't using their talking points to get their way," Tenzin sighs. "I don't want to deal with another Tarrlok situation."
"That would be good," Lin nods in agreement. "Speaking of which, where are the others? I would've expected Mako to be present here."
"Out being 'Team Avatar' again," Tenzin jokes, but she stares at him, unamused, and he sighs. "Caron found out about another meet-up between a few criminals, and they decided to go after them."
"They better be glad I allow this," she grumbles.
East Parking Garage; Republic City
A small pack of cars and satomobiles make their way into a deserted area of the parking garage several stories up. Once they come to a stop in their meeting place, where a black van is parked, several members of the Triple Threat Triad get out of their vehicles. The one currently in charge of this group of Triple Threats is Tokuga; he's younger than most in the gang, but he's made himself a very fierce reputation among the other Triads to earn his position.
"There's a reason we bring dogs gentlemen," he remarks, opening the back of one of their cars to pet a mutt's ears. "They can detect anything."
He stops petting the dog and allows some of the men to grab the leashes for the dogs, taking them out of the cars. Tokuga then approaches the black van with a few of his goons and comes to a stop, crossing his arms.
"You've been lacking in your shipments Oren," he says with a frown.
"You think you can blame me for this?" Oren replies, climbing out of the back of the van, and two firebenders flank him. "I've been doing this for a lot longer than you have. And I know when the going gets bad."
"You thinking of backing out?" Tokuga asks with narrowed eyes.
"Not at all," he says in response. "Like I said, I've done this longer. You want business to continue? It needs to slow down for now."
"The Triple Threats have no interest in slow deliveries Oren," he states dangerously. "We need your shipments now!"
"If you don't like the Agni Kai's delivery schedules you can go to someone else," Oren retorts. "Assuming, Team Avatar, left anyone else to deliver your stuff."
The pack of dogs then start barking and growling wildly, smelling other people approaching that aren't supposed to be there. Tokuga and Oren freeze up and then start looking around with seeking eyes. Tokuga slowly pulls out his sword while the others around him prepare for a fight, some pulling out pouches of water, others ready to fire bend.
"My dogs are hungry kids!" Tokuga calls out, taunting their age.
His gaze then settles on a lone figure standing just out of the light, silently watching them. He smiles to himself, making a guess on who that figure is.
"Pity you don't have friends to back you up, alien!" he mocks.
One of his goons suddenly lets out a shout of surprise before going silent. Tokuga's smile falls, and he looks over, only to see the goon had vanished. Another shout has him looking to the other side, where he just vaguely sees a man throwing another goon over the side of the concrete wall. More figures seem to pop out of the shadows, some of them appearing to have glowing green eyes. The figure that Tokuga first saw then holds something up; a clicking noise follows, and he throws something to land near the group of criminals.
The object he threw then explodes, sending a few Triple Threats tumbling across the ground. Tokuga ducks down at the explosion and quickly backs off, while Oren stumbles back and makes a mad dash for his van.
"That's not the Avatar!" he says to himself.
Tokuga looks around angrily, and spots several men in black uniforms jumping out of the shadows. He instantly recognizes them as Equalist chi-blockers, and widens his eyes incredulously. The man he first saw then brings two sticks into his hand, and electricity burst across them to reveal him as the Lieutenant: Amon's former second-hand man.
The Lieutenant rushes forwards, and his pack of chi-blockers quickly follow to take on the criminals. Several chunks of rock and fire are thrown by the thugs, along with some water whips, but the chi-blockers duck out of the way and continue onwards. They quickly reach the criminals and start getting into melee battles, punching and jabbing at them. Triple Threats throw a barrage of elements while Equalizes throw out grenades, smoke bombs, and use their own bodies to take them on. The Lieutenant swings his kafi sticks and jabs several earth benders, causing them to let out screams of pain as they fall to the ground.
"Loose the dogs!" Tokuga cries out.
The dog handlers instantly let go of their leashes, and the dogs all make a wild dash for a few chi-blockers. Caught off guard, two of them are quickly taken down with shouts of pain as the dogs bite their arms and legs using their sharp teeth, growling and snarling. One chi-blocker tries to sneak up on Oren, but he quickly whips around with a fiery punch and hits him back, knocking the mask off and burning part of the chi-blocker's face.
All of sudden, the fighting is interrupted when a bigger satomobile comes charging into the parking garage from over the side. Several figures quickly jump out, revealing themselves to be Avatar Korra, Asami, and Mako.
"You've got to be kidding me," the Lieutenant scowls to himself.
The Triple Threats instantly shoot bursts of fire and rock over at them, but Korra stomps the ground to bring up a wall of earth. The criminals continue their barrage for a few more seconds before stopping, the rock wall not being damaged in the slightest. The chi-blockers also halt in their attacks as the Triple Threats cautiously approach the rock wall.
A shockwave of cracking rocks then travels through the floor to hit one of the cars, crumpling it against the roof in an earth pillar. The wall is instantly lowered, revealing Mako with his hands full of lightning. He thrusts his arm out, and a streak of lightning impacts against another car, causing it to explode. The criminals scatter, while the Equalist chi-blockers are at a loss of what to do, run and escape or take out the oppressive benders. One of them narrows his eyes at Team Avatar and starts to move forwards, bringing out a shock glove in preparation to put it on.
"Hey man!"
The chi-blocker looks over in alarm to see Caran suddenly standing right beside him. Before he could do anything, Caran clenches his fist to crush the shock glove effortlessly, and then blows him away with a Force push. A hole underneath the floor then opens up, allowing Bolin and Luon to jump through. Bolin instantly goes on the attack and throws chunks of rock at the Triple Threats, while Luon makes his way over to the chi-blockers.
"How you like that?!" Bolin exclaims, hitting an earthbender.
Tokuga observes the scene with a scowl and then jumps into a van with two of his bodyguards. They start to drive away while everyone is occupied with each other. Oren has the same idea, but is slow in getting into his van.
Luon quickly takes on two chi-blockers, ducking underneath their kicks and then shoving one's head against a support pillar. The other jabs his arms, but Luon deflects their punches away and then does a roundhouse kick to send him against the wall. The chi-blocker looks up to see Luon's fist hurtling towards his face, knocking him out cold.
He then looks over to see another chi-blocker screaming in fear and pain as two dogs snarl and bite at him. Sighing in aggravation, he pulls out a grappling tool, courtesy of Asami's tech, and then shoots it at the chi-blocker. One of the dogs sprints away as he's pulled over, but the other dog still goes with him. As Luon moves to shove away the angry dog from its victim, it suddenly turns on him and bites his arm. He lets out a shout of pain as the dogs bites him, but manages to swing around and hit the dog against a pillar. The dog whimpers and limps away while Luon holds his bleeding arm, silently cursing out his idea to shove an angry dog.
"Not doing that again," he hisses between clenched teeth.
Two more dogs then comes charging at him with angry growls, and he backs up in alarm. Thankfully, Naga jumps into the fray and stands protectively in front of Luon, roaring at the two dogs. They come skidding to a stop, whimpering, before turning around with their tails between their legs and running away. Naga roars at them as they leave, and then turns to look at Luon with worried eyes.
"Thanks girl, I owe you one," he says with a smile.
On the other side of the garage, Korra ducks underneath a burst of fire from one goon and then kicks her foot up, creating an earth pillar that knocks him harshly against the ceiling. Another goon then tries to tackle her, but she easily overpowers him and smacks him away with some water, freezing him to the wall. Mako shoots a series of fire punches at two water benders, blocking their water whips and then performing a roundhouse kick. A wall of fire is sent out to knock the two water benders against a van.
The Lieutenant makes a gesture for all of his remaining chi-blockers to make their escape, and they all rush away as quickly as possible. Before he could move away, Asami jumps in front of him, her glove sparking dangerously.
"You?" she asks, raising an eyebrow.
"Get out of my way girl," he snaps.
"I don't think so," she replies defiantly.
Growling to himself, the Lieutenant whips out his kafi sticks and starts swinging them at her. Asami ducks out of the way and rolls across the ground, hitting one of the stick away with her forearm. Lieutenant tries kicking her, but she sidesteps and then thrusts out her glove. The Lieutenant brings up one of his kafi sticks to stop her, and she grabs it with her glove. The sudden mixture of electricity shocks both of them, and they're blasted away from each other, surprised.
Asami shakes her head to get rid of her dizziness, and then looks up to see the Lieutenant jumping into the air and swinging his kafi sticks down with a shout. She quickly rolls out of the way, the Lieutenants stick smacking harmlessly against the ground. He then looks up to see Asami flipping overtop of him with her own shout. Her legs wind around his neck as she flips, and he's suddenly yanked to the side, only to then get slammed against the ground while she lands on her feet, pushing her hair back into place.
"That was for a lot of things," she comments triumphantly.
Nearby, Caran was busy using the Force to toss aside several rocks thrown his way, occasionally redirect them back. A stream of fire is sent his way, and he raises his hands to create a Force shield, something Jarik taught him to do, and allows the flames to part on either side of him. It made him feel like he was a firebender. Laughing to himself, Caran then reaches out to grab the firebender with the Force and then throws him against an earthbender, knocking them both out.
"Who's next?" he asks with a grin.
"Dude watch out!" Bolin exclaims in a panic.
Caran sensed the danger at the same time Bolin warned him, and whips around to face it. A black van comes charging for him and then turns around, intending to hit him with its side. Caran widens his eyes jumps out of the way just in time, grabbing onto the top of the van and letting out a surprised shout.
"Aw, geez!" he exclaims.
Inside, Oren hears the sound of Caran grabbing onto the van and narrows his eyes, slamming his foot on the gas. The van lurches forwards and speeds toward the exit while Caran fumbles for his lightsaber, bringing it into his hand. Activating the green blade, he stabs it into the side of the van and starts cutting his way through, grunting in exertion. Oren glances back to see the green blade piercing through the van, and then looks forwards again. Spotting a pillar up ahead, he angles his way there and then drives alongside it.
Caran has only a moment to widen his eyes in alarm before the pillar is right on top of him. Yanking his lightsaber out of the van, he quickly jumps off of it to try and avoid the pillar, but he still hits it and tumbles to the ground painfully. Oren looks back to see him knocked off and smirk triumphantly, gunning his way towards the exit.
Having taken care of most of the criminals, Korra saw what happened and instantly rushes over to Caran, crouching beside him worriedly. She helps him to his feet while he lets out a few pained groans, shaking his head.
"Caran, are you alright?" she asks in concern.
"Yeah I'm fine, just bruised," he replies, wincing a little. "Alright, I've got this fool."
He then starts to make his way over towards the ledge much to Korra's bewilderment, and she reaches out to grab his wrist in confusion.
"What are you doing?" she demands.
"Trust me Korra, I got it," he says confidently.
Still cautious, Korra nonetheless lets go of him, and he climbs up to stand right on the edge of the garage, looking down at the bottom level far below.
He senses the van and its driver as it moves, gaging the timeframe in his mind, and then makes his move. Smirking, he jumps off of the ledge and falls down several stories. Right as the van drives underneath him, he hits the top of it. Using the Force, Caran managed to cushion his fall and land properly, while also creating a massive dent in the roof that completely stops the van in its tracks, breaking the windows as well. Oren lets out a startled cry as the emergency bags blow out of the steering wheel and hit him in the face.
From up above, Korra lets out a sigh and rolls her eyes as she witnesses the whole thing, yet is still unable to keep the amused smile off her face.
The Lieutenant's mask is ripped off his face, and he glares up at his captors with a scowl. He and the chi-blockers that were caught are all lined up against the wall along with the thugs from the Triple Threat Triad and Agni Kai's.
"Well, look who it is buster! Still got the mustache? Man!" Bolin exclaims.
"Yeah, I think its gotten longer," Caran murmurs to him.
"What are you doing messing with me?" Lieutenant demands.
"Uh, arresting criminals that you also happen to be in the same vicinity as," Luon comments, raising an eyebrow.
"We're not affiliated with this bending scum," he scowls furiously.
From his tied up position right next to him, Oren frowns at the Lieutenant and makes a few mocking faces.
"Clearly," Luon drawls sarcastically.
"What are you doing out here anyways? I thought the whole Equalist thing died," Korra remarks, crossing her arms.
"No thanks to you," Lieutenant scoffs bitterly. "After Amon and the Messenger betrayed us, we didn't have any way of getting rid of your stupid bending. I rallied anyone still left and loyal to the cause to keep hitting these good-for-nothing triads. At the very least we could take out these oppressive scum."
"Huh. That's actually kind of noble... aren't you supposed to be a bad guy?" Bolin asks, frowning intensely with a hand on his chin.
"Why are you bothering us? We're taking out these thugs, same as you," Lieutenant says irritably.
"Don't forget that you're a criminal too," Mako reminds him. "You've committed several felonies, kidnapping for example, and willingly took part in oppressing benders yourselves, along with several other crimes. Chief Beifong would be more than happy to put you behind bars."
"Oh, and you're kind of being a vigilante," Caran adds.
"And you freaks aren't?" he retorts. "What gives you the right to go out like this? What's the difference between us?!"
"We have special permission from the police force, and the United Republic government," Korra states smugly. "We're under Chief Beifong's watch, and she has final say on whatever we do."
"Yeah, we have Chief Beifong's permission!" Bolin says with a grin. "In your face, mustache man!"
"Enjoy your jail time," Asami says.
The six of them then move away, leaving the mix of chi-blockers and gang members tied up on the side of the wall. Asami, Mako and Bolin climb into the Satomobile while Korra, Caran and Luon mount Naga.
"Oh spirits, what the heck happened to your arm?!" Korra asks with wide eyes, finally noticing the injury.
"Dog bit me," he mutters, grimacing.
"Alright, we're getting you back to the island," she states firmly. "Come on Naga!"
They rush out on the polar bear dog while Asami turns on the satomobile, driving down the parking garage and over to the exit. She would be taking the brothers home before heading back to her place, while the others went back to Air Temple Island where they would be staying. Once all of Team Avatar is gone, the chi-blockers and criminals are left in silence with each other, all of them scowling and angry, yet unable to do anything.
"Scum," Lieutenant scoffs.
"Freaks," Oren retorts.
Yeah, Lieutenant is still around. I think it's perfectly reasonable to assume he'd be doing something like this after Season 1, if he survived anyways. It was never really confirmed whether or not Amon's bloodbending killed him, so I think this is a good send off. :D
Thanks for all of your support to this story, and to the Shaniverse! Really love it!