A Legend of Korra Fanfic

By Sakura Martinez (aka SMTsukishiro)

Summary:

A promising engineering student. A mysterious woman capable of controlling the four elements. When their paths crossed, the resulting collision not only changes their lives and themselves, but the fate of the entire world as well. [Korrasami AU]

Author's Note:

I know we'e been lacking on the Korrasami for a couple of chapters now, and I do wish I could immediately provide you guys with what you want, but...well, I don't want to rush the story.

And since I am not the rushing type, especially when it comes to plot, this chapter has to happen.

Don't worry, we'll be back on Korra's side of the story in the next chapter.

Anyways, I still hope you guys enjoy reading this short(er) chapter.

Allons-y~!

The Legend of Korra

The Schism

Chapter 20. Beguiling Symphony

Hiroshi Sato staggered into his spacious study, his whole body tired and aching. Working on such a humongous and monumental project as the reconstruction and upgrade of the Spirit Bastille was tiring, especially with how Noatak had insisted it be done before the month's end saying that their benefactor would be arriving to check on the machine.

The Industrialist did not mind the challenge of getting the technology to work. In fact, he thrived in challenges and welcomed them. Still, it didn't mean he wanted to work on the hulking thing for days on end. He had a company to run and maintain, after all.

As he always did during times of great stress and fatigue, the Future Industries CEO decided to give his daughter a call. He was worried for her, after all, knowing about the explosions underground and the fall of Dragon Flat Burroughs. At the same time, Asami's voice had a way of energizing him and making him forget his troubles; her brilliant inputs and interesting stories were always a pleasant and welcomed distraction.

Thankful that he had a phone close by (as was a bottle and a glass of Red Dragon Whiskey), he took the receiver and began dialing his daughter's dormitory phone. All he got was the operator's voice telling him that the connection could not be established. Hiroshi shrugged, it was a normal reoccurrence not to be able to connect the first time, and tried again. And again. He tried several more times with the same result. Frustrated that the phone was not working—and blaming it on the explosions, as well as the poor service by the telephone company—Hiroshi gave up, but not before vowing to have his people focus on making their own brand of communication service, which would be better than the current one.

He contemplated for a moment on what to do next. Though he wanted to speak with Asami, it was now out of the question to do so. Granted, he could personally visit her, but it was late and his daughter was probably asleep already. Besides, after that bombshell President Raiko had thrown with his press conference, the entire city was in curfew. And as much as he wanted to see and speak with his daughter, he didn't want to get arrested for it.

In the end, Hiroshi Sato merely nursed his Red Dragon Whiskey as he reviewed the documents his secretary had left concerning his company.

Tomorrow, he told himself just before he began working. I'm going to give Asami a call tomorrow, and if I still can't reach her, then I will just visit her and apologize for taking so long to check up on her. He smiled to himself at the silent promise made. How long has it been since I last saw my little girl?

The next day, Hiroshi readied himself to work on his company. He believed Noatak would understand, after all, Future Industries was needed and he didn't want his competitors—especially Cabbage Corp.—to overtake him while he was out helping the Equalists. As soon as he was dressed and ready to tackle the day of corporate management that lay ahead, Hiroshi made true to his promise to contact his daughter. However, similar to the night before, all he got was the operator's redundant message.

"To Asami's dormitory it is then," he nodded to himself before calling his butler. "Osamu, can you have the satomobile prepared? I want to visit Asami before I head to work today."

Osamu, the plump, lazy-smiled, bespectacled Sato Family butler, appeared as his name was called, only to bow and nod at his employer's request before leaving the room to do as he was told. Within minutes, he returned to the Sato Patriarch's study, informing Hiroshi that the car has been prepared and was awaiting him.

Hiroshi thanked and dismissed the butler before leaving his study and heading to out to where the car was idling as promised. Quickly, as Hiroshi knew the day was going to be a long and busy one, he instructed the driver to take him to Asami's. The driver frowned, an expression Hiroshi did not expect the man to make, but chose not to question the reason for it as the man behind the wheel eased the car out of the driveway of the Sato Estate and towards the University Area.

What was meant to be a bonding moment between father and daughter ended up instead with Hiroshi completely flabbergasted and beyond himself with worry. The entire dormitory building was completely sealed with bright-yellow, crisscrossed police tapes and by members of the police force themselves.

Quickly Hiroshi left the car even before his driver had parked it and made his way to a one of the police officers standing near the entrance of the building with as much haste as a man his age could muster.

"Did something happen? What's going on?" Hiroshi demanded an answer failing to mask his anxiety.

The officer, who despite standing erect, looked at the CEO with boredom that could only come from one who has stood in the exact same spot for hours.

Still, even with how jaded the officer was, he still answered Hiroshi politely. "Did you not know, sir? There was a shooting incident here a couple of days ago. We're still trying to put the pieces together, but according to witnesses' reports, a group of masked, armed men were firing at two young women."

The officer's words did nothing to quell Hiroshi's worries and only served to multiply it tenfold. His mind churned with images of his daughter hurt…or worse. He could feel beads of sweat forming on his skin, his pallor taking on a deathly hue—one that the police officer did not fail to notice.

"Are you alright, sir?" the officer had asked. One hand on Hiroshi's shoulder, the other already taking hold of his radio, readying it should there be a need to call an ambulance for the older man.

"Y-Yes, I am fine," Hiroshi lied, dabbing his face with a handkerchief. "The women, are they alright?"

The officer shrugged. "We don't know, sir. We're still looking into that. Are you sure you're alright, sir? You're not looking well."

Hiroshi was about to open his mouth and assure the younger man that he was fine when a much older and decorated officer stepped out of the building, looking disgruntled. The moment the other officer saw Hiroshi, he perked up and immediately rushed to the Future Industries CEO.

"Mister Sato," the officer greeted, extending a hand to shake Hiroshi's. Hiroshi met the man's hands and shook it once. "I'm glad that you came. I was about to go find you."

"Find me? I'm sorry, Officer Saikhan, I don't understand. I only came here to speak with my daughter. She's a tenant here." Hiroshi was added a new thought for concern: what if they already found out about the Equalists and his connections with them and that the shooting incident the younger officer had spoken of was tied to the vigilante group. He hoped it wasn't. Knew in his gut that it wasn't. But it didn't keep him from thinking of that all the same.

"That's precisely why I was about to go look for you, Mister Sato." The officer said, and then as an afterthought before going to the main point of his dialogue, added, "And it's not just 'Officer Saikhan' now. It's 'Chief' Saikhan."

The younger officer beside Saikhan, however, corrected the title by saying, "Acting Chief Saikhan" as though it was on reflex and looking at the man with scorn.

The acting Chief glared at the young officer. "Yes," he drawled. "It's all the same, however. With Chief Bei Fong missing from action, President Raiko saw it fit to appoint me to hold the position. It would do us no good having that post vacant when a terrorist is running rampant within the city."

"Yes," Hiroshi drawled. He knew about the so-called terrorist. He was there during Raiko's press conference and had received one of the photographs of the alleged perpetrator. "I have heard about Chief Bei Fong missing and about this terrorist. So tell me, what is it that you need with me, acting Chief? If it's not too important, I would like to take my leave of you and speak with my daughter now."

"I'm afraid that is impossible. As I have said, your daughter is the reason why I was about to go look for you." Saikhan barred Hiroshi's path. The expression he wore show that he did not like Hiroshi's tone nor how he was referred to. With a look that Hiroshi couldn't place, Saikhan turned and said, "Perhaps this is something best discussed privately, Mister Sato. Please follow me."

As a rule, Hiroshi had found that if a high-ranking police official mentioned anything about "talking privately", it was almost-always not a good thing. And so the anxiety he was feeling—that bad feeling that had never left him since arriving at the police-tape-barricaded dormitory—only intensified further. Still, he didn't want to seem suspicious (than he already felt he was being), and so he nodded and followed the acting Chief of Police.

Saikhan led Hiroshi to a nearby police tent that was currently unoccupied. There, he gestured for the Head of Future Industries to take a seat—an invitation Hiroshi took—before he delved into the heart of the matter.

"I'm not a man who dilly-dallies with things, Mister Sato," Saikhan began. "And, quite frankly, I don't even know how to say it any other way than this: your daughter is missing."

Hiroshi was stunned. For a moment, he failed to show any kind of reaction, nor utter a sound. Saikhan thought it was an offer for him to keep talking, to explain what had happened, and so he did.

"We arrived here with reports of a shooting incident and found your daughter's room completely trashed. The witnesses claimed the men who were after her were wearing strange getups, masks and some kind of armor. They were also heavily armed. I know this is a lot to take in, Mister Sato, but I would like you to tell me if you and your family have received any kinds of death threats recently."

There was a loud pounding in Hiroshi's ear. He wondered what it was; figured it was his heartbeat. He heard what the acting Chief of Police had said, but he couldn't comprehend it.

Why Asami? The question kept repeating itself in his mind along with his unceasing pleas to the gods to keep his daughter safe.

Being given nothing but a disbelieving stare and a deafening silence to his question, Saikhan tried to shake the other man from his stupor by asking, "Mister Sato? Did you hear what I had just asked? Mister Sato?"

"Y-Yes, I heard you." Hiroshi shook his head, tried to clear his mind of the fearful thoughts that invaded it. He would need to be forthright with the police, for Asami's sake. "No. I have not received any threats to my life nor my family's life. I would have had Lin look into it if that had been the case. Tell me, did any of your witnesses say anything about the state my daughter was in when she fled?"

"No, they didn't." Saikhan replied. "But they did say she wasn't alone. Another girl was with her. And judging from the description of this girl, it was not Chief Bei Fong's niece either."

It was hard to focus, and definitely impossible to have anything done in his office when Hiroshi Sato was finally free to go about his day. Numerous questions swirled in his mind. Where was Asami? Who was that other young woman she was with? Is she hurt, or was she safe? And if she was not in any danger, why had she not tried contacting him?

Similarly, he was told that her roommate and Chief Bei Fong's nephew was missing as well. He didn't know what to make of that. Was it merely a coincidence? Perhaps the Bei Fongs in the Earth Kingdom had asked Lin to bring their youngest back home without telling anyone about it. That was, of course, a possibility.

He was so lost in his tumultuous thoughts that when Noatak arrived in his office, the Professor found the Industrialist's hand hovering above a great number of document that needed signing, a faraway look in his eyes.

Hiroshi didn't even realize that he had a visitor. He hadn't heard his secretary inform him of Noatak's arrival, nor did he hear the other man's greeting. Thus he was surprised when someone placed a hand on his shoulder and when he looked up and saw that it was his friend who had done so.

"Noatak," Hiroshi cleared his throat and averted his gaze from the Professor's as he began arranging the documents in front of him, frowning slightly as he realized he hadn't signed a single one. "I didn't hear you come in. Is there something I can do for you?"

Noatak shook his head, frowning as well as he took a seat opposite to Hiroshi. "It seems that is a question I should be asking you, my friend. I came here wondering why you weren't with our people working on our project, though I suppose that can't be helped. I was so focused on what needed to be done that I forgot you had a company to run. I apologize."

"I was going to have someone deliver a message to you, I just forgot with everything that has happened." Hiroshi explained. A sigh escaped his lips as he added, "I received a very disturbing news earlier today."

"About what?"

A haunted look met the Professor. "Asami is missing, Noatak. I was just at her dormitory. There were police everywhere. They say there was some kind of shooting incident a couple of days ago there. Armed men were targeting my daughter—" Hiroshi cradled his head, the weight of those words were too much. "—I don't know if she is safe, or why people would be attacking her to begin with. Did those people do so to get to me? Is this related to my business dealings? I don't even know. I'm at my wit's end and even the police are unable to offer much assistance."

Noatak was hardly fazed by the news. His calm and collected demeanor irritated Hiroshi, so much so that he wanted to punch the man. But, of course, the Industrialist didn't. Instead, he questioned why his friend seemed uncaring about what had happened to his daughter.

"It is not that I don't care, Hiroshi. It's only because I knew about what had happened to Asami. That is why I am here." Noatak responded, unperturbed by the tone Hiroshi had taken. "Unlike our bumbling and idiotic police force, however, I have valuable information regarding that particular incident."

Noatak's words surprised Hiroshi. He had hoped Noatak would know something, he just didn't really expect him to actually know.

"Do you know where Asami is? What has happened to her? Is she safe?" Hiroshi had to keep himself from asking more question than he knew his friend could answer all at once.

"First thing first, Hiroshi. The shooting." Noatak gestured for Hiroshi to settle down. "My brother's men were behind it."

Noatak said those words without much preamble that it took several seconds for Hiroshi to understand what his words meant. He seethed with the new-found knowledge, and bellowed, "Tarrlok? Why would he attack my daughter?"

To answer the CEO's question, Noatak took from his pocket a cassette tape. "This was taken from the audio surveillance we had set up in the Garage. It's a recording from that night when someone snuck in."

"What does that have to do with my daughter?" Hiroshi raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms with a huff.

Handing the tape to the Head of Future Industries, the Professor replied, "Everything. Just give this thing a whirl. You'll see."

It was such an ominous thing to say. Ominous and curious. But it was something connected to Asami, and so Hiroshi took the tape and inserted it into his player. Quickly, he played its contents, keeping silent as he listened in.

"Well, well, well, this is a rather big surprise." Hiroshi knew that voice. There was no denying the fact: it was Councilman Tarrlok speaking. "When I was told there were intruders, I did not expect them to include the two of you, Miss Sato, Miss Bei Fong."

Hiroshi gasped. He couldn't believe what he had just heard Tarrlok say. He looked at Noatak, hoping for an explanation, but Noatak placed a hand over his lips—a gesture that told Hiroshi to keep quiet and listen. And so whatever questions—and there were plenty—he had, he kept to himself.

"Pray, tell, who is this other young lady? Is she a student here as well?"

There was a moment of silence. Asami, Opal, and whomever this third person Tarrlok had spoken of was, had chosen not to answer.

Of course, the Councilman didn't appreciate that. The way he spoke afterwards hinted of such. "Keeping silent, are we? Well then, let's move to another question you might find the need to answer: what are you doing here, trespassing? Did you come to catch a glimpse of the factory? Perhaps you desired to show your friends the things you, yourself, had seen down here, Miss Sato? Do enlighten me. It would be, after all, a shame for the University to lose two of its most promising students."

Hiroshi leaned closer to the audio player, intent to hear what his daughter's answer would be. He was disappointed and miffed, however, when he was met with a loud static that made it impossible to discern what happened next.

He looked at Noatak, who explained, "That's all we managed to rescue from the surveillance system. Whatever else was there had been deleted."

The Sato Patriarch slammed his hand over his office table, eyes ablaze with fury. "It doesn't matter!" He grabbed the nearby phone receiver, "I am going to give the acting Chief of Police a call. Inform him of Tarrlok's involvement in this."

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," the Professor's voice was icy that it stopped Hiroshi in his tracks, confused. "No one will believe you, even with that tape. In fact, you would only be putting Asami in a much deeper trouble than she's already in."

"Then what do you expect me to do, Noatak?" it was hard for Hiroshi not to be angry. "Your brother knows where my daughter is, what has happened to her. I can't just turn a blind eye!"

"Patience, friend." Noatak replied, still calm. "Tarrlok will get what is coming to him. But we need him for now. We must continue with this charade for a bit more."

"You're joking," but even as the Industrialist said that, he knew the Professor was very serious about this matter.

Instead of continuing with that particular topic, Noatak shifted gears and took out from the suitcase he had with him, a blueprint. "I need you to focus in making this first, Hiroshi."

"You want me to work while my daughter is in danger?" Hiroshi was incredulous.

"If you want to be able to rescue her, then yes." The Professor replied, unwavering. "We will make use of this to put Tarrlok in his place."

The Industrialist frowned, but took the blueprint and looked at it. It was another glove, though the use it has was far different and more deadly than the ones they had in their possession. It was incredible how Noatak would come up with such a design, though there were quite a number of mistakes here and there. It was also quite frightening what goes on in that man's mind.

"Make this and I can assure you Tarrlok will pay."

Their overnight stint had been a bust. Not only had they been unable to find hide nor hair of Lin Bei Fong, they were not even able to get far in finding the entrance to whatever secret the bookstore the sleazy Councilman Tarrlok had. They knew there was a secret to the bookstore—be it a secret room, a hidden passageway that led to who-knows-where. After all, Tarrlok would not have made his way to that particular bookstore in such a suspicious time and manner, and stayed in there for so long if there was none.

And yet, even when he and the Lieutenant had combined their resources—be it in the form of their means and knowledge—they could not uncover the how and the where of this secret. The Lieutenant was fearful of what Amon might do or say for such a failure. The Agent? He was more worried about his paycheck. It was true the Masked One had a temper, but there was nothing Amon could do to him that would make him shake in his boots.

Well, there was one thing, but the golden-eyed Agent would rather not think about that. He would rather think Amon still needed him. And if not, he could always work for someone else—someone Amon couldn't touch. He already had a back-up plan for that.